Union leader says the government is 'missing in action' as profits hit £2.3bn at UK's biggest supermarket chain
The leader of Unite the union has slammed the UK’s biggest supermarket chain after it received bumper profits for the past year, while customers continue to struggle with the cost-of-living.
Tesco reported its pre-tax profits hit £2.3bn, up from £882m in the year to 24 February, saying price inflation in groceries had “lessened substantially”.
Sharon Graham, the general secretary of Unite who has spoken out extensively on the issue of ‘rampant profiteering’ in the UK, has argued companies have used the cost-of-living crisis to rake in money.
Graham said: “Tesco is raking in mountains of cash while families struggle to put food on the table because of sky high prices. Many companies have used the cost-of-living crisis to grab excessive profits.
“There is an epidemic of profiteering in our economy – the government has been missing in action and failed to curb it.”
The company’s adjusted operating profits reached £2.83bn – up more than £300m from a year earlier.
According to the Food Foundation tracker, one in five families with children in the UK went hungry or skipped meals in January because they couldn’t afford to buy groceries.
The charity noted that, although food inflation has slowed, food prices remain high which continues to significantly impact people struggling across the country and warned of a ‘health emergency’.
Contributing Editor at LFF ,Prem Sikka, commented on X about Tesco’s latest profits: “Their profiteering is our cost-of-living crisis.
“Govt pushes real wage cuts for workers but no restraints on profiteering, exec pay, dividends. Can’t revive the economy by profiteering.”
The boss of Tesco, Ken Murphy, said the firm was “conscious things were still difficult for many customers” and the company said it had “worked hard” to cut prices.
(Image credit: Roger A Smith/ Creative Commons)
Hannah Davenport is news reporter at Left Foot Forward, focusing on trade unions and environmental issues
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