More Britons struggling to pay their bills: poll

[LONDON] More people in Britain are finding it hard to meet their bills and a growing number are worried about being unable to heat their homes this winter, according to a poll which underscored the impact of rising inflation on the public.

The monthly survey by Kantar Public published on Thursday showed 39 per cent of people were finding it harder to meet their monthly budget than a year ago, up by nine percentage points from September's poll.

Seven in 10 respondents worried that fresh food and fuel prices would rise over the next few months, Kantar said.

The share of people concerned about not being able to afford to keep their home warm during the winter months also climbed by nine points between September and October to 62 per cent.

British utility bills rose earlier this month as a price cap on the most widely used tariffs increased by around 12 per cent.

The country's most widely followed measure of inflation dipped slightly to 3.1 per cent in September but the Bank of England has said it is likely to top 4 per cent soon. It is considering when to raise interest rates from their all-time low of 0.1 per cent.

Kantar interviewed 1,075 people between Oct 14 and Oct 18.

REUTERS