15 February 2011

Ever upwards and onwards

Do you believe in the government's inflation figures? Well you can if you like. But some don't. The Guardian reports:

    The official inflation figures due out today are misleading the public, according to international experts who say the data released every month in the UK understates the true increase in the cost of living.

    Although the government's preferred measure of inflation is expected to show an increase on December's 3.7% to 4%, an article in the respected journal of the International Association for Official Statistics says there is a risk of a loss of public faith in the official data.

I checked my old receipts and can point out that since June 2010 Lurpak butter has increased from £1.38 to £1.50 (an increase of 8.7%), a sixpack of salad tomatoes has increased from £0.88 to £0.95 (+ 8.0%), a sixpack of Tesco value eggs from £0.91 to £0.98 (+ 7.7%) and a Warburtons medium 400g sliced loaf from £0.63 to £0.70 (+ 11.1%). These are Tesco prices but I have no reason to suppose that other supermarkets are significantly different.

Still believe the government's figures?

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