'Just to be clear.. I think you misspoke just then, when you said prices are coming down, did you mean prices are going up?'
The Treasury Minister was called out by interviewers this morning after claiming that food prices are coming down, despite this not being the case.
Speaking on Good Morning Breakfast about the news that UK inflation has fallen to 3.2%, Laura Trott said it was “great news for people at home” as it meant prices were falling.
Trott told the presenters: “Crucially we saw food prices coming down and this hasn’t happened by accident, this has been a result of the government working very hard with the bank and policy committee to make sure we got these inflation rates coming down steadily now. Real wages are now rising and people have a little bit more money at the end of the month and that’s really good news.”
However Ed Balls replied: “Just to be clear.. I think you misspoke just then, when you said prices are coming down, did you mean prices are going up?”
“Sorry the rate at which prices are rising is coming down.. So inflation is coming down”, Trott corrected.
The Tory minister was widely criticised online for her misrepresentation of the truth as an attempt to rose-tint the Tories economic record, with Carol Vorderman referring to it as “Tory numbers”.
“To be clear, “goods/services” which cost £100 when Johnson became PM would cost you £131.10 today,” wrote Vorderman.
David Osland responded on X: “Laura Trott has a degree in economics from Oxford and surely does know the difference between inflation rates and price levels. Her attempt to blur the line this morning was a deliberate bid to hoodwink the public.”
The price of goods continues to go up, just not at such a steep rate as before, with Unite the union leader Sharon Graham highlighting this morning that, while headline inflation may be falling, “sky-high prices are now baked into the economy”.
To reach hundreds of thousands of new readers and to make the biggest impact we can in the next general election, we need to grow our donor base substantially.
That's why in 2024, we are seeking to generate 150 additional regular donors to support Left Foot Forward's work.
We still need another 124 people to donate to hit the target. You can help. Donate today.