Cost of Living & Greedflation. Why Tories focus on wages, inflation & interest rates
The IMF not a friend of working people published figures in June which underlined that the key motor for inflation in the EU Zone is excess profits, what is known as Greedflation.
An Editorial in the Times (27th June) noted that action on excess profits, on energy companies and supermarkets is essentially performative. It claims that only control of wages and interest rates can bring down inflation.
There is of course a political agenda here. Controlling excess profits, a genuine motor of inflation, hits the rich. Controlling wage increases below the level of inflation and interest rate rises keep profits going while making the less well off in society pay.
That was the agenda on display from Chancellor Hunt and the Bank of England boss Bailey on Monday arguing again that wage rises cause inflation.
Wage increases are above 7% primarily because of high pay awards In private sector finance and business. The point is that there should be decent pay for all.
Alex Collinson from the TUC has noted that this is far from the case. In reality real wages fell by 1.7% in the last year and June was the nineteenth successive month of falling wages. Wage levels remain at 2005 levels.
Profits of energy companies and supermarkets however are at 2023 levels and with interest rates at a 15 year high both mortgage payers and renters face significantly hiked housing costs.
The really useful knowledge that needs to be discussed and acted on in workplaces and communities is that the Tories and the bosses are determined that workers will pay for their crisis while they maintain and increase profits. But only if we let them get away with it
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