Harlow is one of Essex’s most deprived towns.
Nearly a third of households here have a yearly income of less than £20,000 and nearly two-thirds of households have less than £125 of spare cash left at the end of the month for non-essentials. A quarter of all homes in Harlow are council houses.
This, then, is a place where every penny counts and the cost of living squeeze is keenly felt – not just by its residents but its local Conservative MP Robert Halfon, who is desperate for the prime minister and his government to prioritise pounds in pockets over parties.
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Mr Halfon is here having his lunch in the local “Cornish Cafe”. He often comes here to eat and chat with constituents and told me that he wanted the PM to focus on helping people with the cost of living squeeze.
He urged the government to cut VAT on fuel bills and look again at green levies on consumers’ bills – suggesting a sliding scale so when energy prices spike, green levies reduce.
He said: “If the government could institute a system where if the international energy prices go high, the green levies escalators go down. Even if you don’t get rid of them completely, you can lessen them.”
He is frustrated. Born by the PM’s seeming lack of focus on what, he says, is by far the most pressing issue for this government and the country, and the “unnecessary distraction” of the party scandal, which has left Mr Halfon and his constituents “upset and distressed.”
But he has little time too for Tory party infighting and calls to get rid of Mr Johnson, arguing that it will only further distract his government and party from tackling the issues people really care about.
“Forget about operation red meat”, he said. “The public want operation cost of living.
“My…
Source : skynews
