31%: The jump in food prices irking UK voters as they go to the polls

As voters in the United Kingdom go to the polls to choose their next government, the rising cost of living is among the top issues of concern.

Household budgets have been strained over the past few years by high inflation driven by the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

While inflation has finally returned to the central bank’s target of 2 percent after hitting double-digit highs in 2022 and 2023, people are still paying much more for essentials, including food, than they were just a few years ago.

With public discontent over living standards running high, voters on Thursday are poised to turf the ruling Conservative Party out of office and return the Labour Party to power for the first time since 2010.

While the Bank of England has reduced the speed at which prices are rising by sharply raising interest rates, it has not reversed the price growth that has accumulated over the past few years.

Prices are also still rising, albeit much more slowly than before.

Food prices today are about 31 percent higher than they were three years ago, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The prices of many staples have risen even higher still.

The average price of a pint (about 0.5 litres) of milk is up by 23 pence ($0.29), or 55 percent.