Third of Londoners struggle to pay bills

ALMOST 80 per cent of Londoners say their household bills have increased over the last six months, a new poll for City Hall has revealed.

A third have struggled to pay bills while one in eight have gone without essentials or have had to take out loans to make ends meet, YouGov found.

London mayor Sadiq Khan said the survey published on Tuesday highlighted the burden of rising food, energy and fuel costs.

He warned that forthcoming changes to income tax – with personal allowances frozen – the imposition of the 1.25 per cent social care levy and changes to benefits threatened to drive an estimated 130,000 more Londoners into poverty.

The Mayor will also be adding to the cost of living, with a five per cent Tube and bus fares hike due next month and his share of council tax bills rising by almost £32 a year, meaning an average London household will pay almost £400 a year for services run by City Hall – up 8.8 per cent on current levels.

The survey also found that 23 per cent of Londoners said they were “comfortable financially” and 36 per cent said they are “coping OK financially”.

But 13 of Londoners said they were currently struggling to make ends meet, going without essentials or relying on debt.