BUSINESS owners and members of the public are begging the Government for more support with soaring energy bills and prices.
Sky-high energy costs, partly due to the war in Ukraine, drove inflation up to 11.1 per cent last month, the highest level in 41 years.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is due to deliver his Autumn Statement later today to announce measures to boost the economy and bring inflation down.
But shopkeepers and residents already struggling with the cost of living crisis are calling for immediate help to ease the pressure.
Petya Parvsheva, 41, and her husband, Ivo, 42, own The Fish Station on East Street.
They have had to lay off one employee after seeing their monthly energy bills rise to £4,000.
READ MORE: Couple 'working for free' as energy bills at fish and chip shop triple
The pair said they have not had any support from the Government despite the introduction of the Energy Bill relief scheme.
Petya said: “I don’t see any support from the government, they promised a lot of things.
“Yes, they provided support for households but for businesses there is nothing.
“Prices are going up every week and nothing has changed. When the prices go up from the suppliers then how am I supposed to keep my prices low?
“One [member of] staff has been laid off, their wage is being used up to cover for the electricity costs.”
A way to help businesses weather the storm would be to cut VAT rates, Petya said.
“They cut the VAT rate during the pandemic, why don’t they do this again?
“When you’re paying £4,000 for electricity and gas and then you have to pay VAT at 20 per cent, why don’t they cut this?”
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James Egan, 27, the managing director of estate agency Edison Green is also calling for more support.
He said: “We’re appealing a cap on business energy rates, as right now there is support to households but there aren’t any for businesses.
“Our business energy rates have gone crazy and there is no cap for it.”
Pub landlords across the city are also anxiously waiting for today’s announcement - though some aren’t holding their breath.
Eric Light, landlord of the Salmon Leap in Totton, said he is expecting a “painful” Autumn Statement.
He said: “It’s a difficult place at the moment. I am expecting quite a painful statement today but we are in a difficult position all round, coming out of Covid.”
Ged Gorrie, owner and manager of Shenanigans in Carlton Place, said the cost of energy has gone up “quite considerably”.
He says it is an “extra burden” on running the pub, which he manages with business partner Bill Dearsley.
He told the Echo: “The cost of buying our products is certainly going up. We, like any business, do not want to pass it on to our customers.
“It is a double whammy really, people not coming out because their own bills are going up andus putting our prices up.”
Although there doesn’t seem to have been a drop in the number of customers just yet, “that will happen”.
Mr Gorrie would like to see measures to help control energy bills and no rise in beer duty costs.
“I think people are uncertain,” he said. “I would just like to see some stability. Some certainty for us and for everybody.”
READ MORE: Company hands workers extra £150 a month in cost of living crisis
Over in Shirley, Steve Pitts, of Clockwork Bar, said loyal customers are keeping them going.
But he says the business is suffering “behind the scenes”, adding: “It’s been a bit tough, tougher than Covid.
“(In the lockdowns) we were not paying for beer or staff and the government grants helped with rent.
“Landlords do not seem to notice what’s going on in the world. They are like, ‘Well, you’re due an increase’.
“It’s difficult, but with a loyal customer base we will get though it and if we don’t, we don’t.”
READ MORE: 'Lives may be lost' if government doesn't tackle energy costs, campaigner warns
On the high street, everyone is feeling the pinch.
Tom Searle, 32, says it’s an “extremely scary” time.
The personal banker added: “I am happy that I don’t have a mortgage, but now I probably never will have one.
“We are being led by people who aren’t going to struggle with any of the issues we are going through.
“I have very little hope for the government.”
Retail manager, Cameron Waygood, 26, said: “As someone who works in retail, it seems as if prices just keep going up.
“It is getting ridiculous. The general feeling is it’s all a bit hopeless.”
Student mental health nurse, Michelle Palmer, has similar views.
The 47-year-old said: “It’s a real struggle at the moment, especially with Christmas coming.
“It has affected everything; I am a student trying to raise a family and pay for everything.
“At some point the government is going to have to put a cap on it, or we are going to end up in a recession again.
“I don’t think anyone seems to know what they are doing. Nobody sticks to their promises.”
READ MORE: 'We need an emergency budget now': City MP hits out amid energy price cap
Gary Callaghan, 77, says “radical measures” are needed to address the current crisis.
“I think interest rates rising is inevitable because of the way in which the economy has been managed.
“We are all living on borrowed money and the value of money has gone.
“We can’t go on like this. It is inevitable that we will have to pay more tax and we will have to address one of the biggest problems, which is the NHS.
“We need a national government, and at some point, they are going to have to take some very unpopular measures.”
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