Regular discussions promised after Cornwall cost of living crisis summit
A statement from the organisations involved will be sent to new Prime Minister, Liz Truss
Last updated 6th Sep 2022
Politicians and organisations in Cornwall have called on the new Prime Minister Liz Truss to take action to help those impacted by the cost of living crisis.
At a crisis summit, Cornwall Council leader Linda Taylor highlighted the impact rising energy costs will have across Cornwall whilst admitting the council did not have set budgetary plans to prepare for the upcoming hike, adding she was hoping for government funding.
Rainclouds burst outside and claps of thunder could be heard as representatives from a number of organisations gathered in a lecture theatre at the University of Falmouth and University of Exeter campus. However, as they discussed ways of protecting people from the rising costs of living it seemed apt that outside a storm was already raging.
Read more: Statement from Cornwall cost of living summit to be sent to new Prime Minister
The event – named Turning The Tide – was designed to try and form a collective approach to the crisis by bringing together people from the public, private and voluntary sector to look at how people in Cornwall could be helped.
Yet, as the stark reality of the situation was explained by the speakers, the elephant in the room seemed to be the lack of any money available to help those who will be most affected.
Cllr Taylor said that she was hopeful that new Prime Minister Liz Truss would make an announcement this week which would provide more funding and support for households and businesses affected by the energy price rise.
"I want to see what announcements she will make"
She said: “There has been a commitment made by her (Liz Truss) that we are going to be hearing an announcement this week of what measures the Government is going to make to address the crisis. I want to see what announcements she will make to address the concerns which have been raised here today. The issues in Cornwall are replicated across the UK so it is something they are well aware of".
As well as impacting individuals and businesses the rising cost of energy will also impact public sector organisations like Cornwall Council, which is already planning for a tight budget planning process for the coming year. When asked what the council was doing to prepare Cllr Taylor said she didn't know, but added that the council's estate transformation plan – which is aiming to cut the number of buildings and offices it has and maintains is being reduced – would help cut bills.
She added: "They are public buildings so we need them to provide services but it may be a case of turning the heating down a notch or two, we can't just turn the lights off".
Other organisations are also facing difficult decisions due to rising energy costs so we asked Cllr Taylor about other public sector institutions such as schools and what was being done to help them. There have been reports nationally that some headteachers are having to balance the need to pay energy bills with spending on staff.
Cllr Taylor said: "I don't know what the council will be doing in relation to academies. A lot will depend on what Liz Truss says this week in her announcement. We are all talking about partnership working, in relation to schools I am sure that something will be worked out. Most of our schools are academies and academy trusts are businesses so they will have to look at that".
"We can't just turn the lights off"
Cllr Taylor said that she was concerned about the impact on businesses not just on their rising energy costs but with people spending less as they tighten their purse strings. She said she was hoping that the Government would provide funding and support to ensure that businesses can get through what will be a "difficult winter".
With energy costs set to rise again in October and warnings that households and businesses will see massive hikes in their bills, there are concerns that people will be forced to choose between heating and eating whilst businesses could be forced to close. #
There have been calls for the Government to do more to help with the crisis and prevent more people from being impacted.
A representative from Truro foodbank explained that they had seen a massive increase in the number of people needing food parcels – up from 2,800 in 2019 to around 4,200 today – and a shift towards more working people needing support including teaching staff and health workers.
At the same time, there was a warning that donations to foodbanks are starting to drop with a risk that at a time when demand is increasing supply is falling.
The summit agreed to publish a statement which, amongst other things, will call on the Leader of Cornwall Council and Cornwall’s MPs to urge them to share the outcomes of the summit with the new Prime Minister Liz Truss and the impact that the cost of living crisis is having on people in Cornwall.
Citizens Advice sees "massive" rise in pleas for help
Speaking after the event Gill Pipkin, CEO of Citizens Advice Cornwall, said there had been a "massive" increase in the number of people seeking help and support. But she encouraged anyone who needs help to come forward.
"There has been a massive increase in the number of people coming for help, it is right across Cornwall, there will be parts where demand rises at different times but there is demand everywhere.
"We are particularly seeing people who don't have enough money now coming in, regardless of whether they are working or on benefits – there isn't enough money to cover the essentials – rent, energy, food and fuel".
Gill said there had also been a marked shift in the people going to Citizens Advice including people in a "two income household who still don't have enough money coming in".
She added: "That isn’t because they have been going on holiday, for a meal out or trips to Starbucks, they simply don’t have enough money coming in to pay their bills. The one thing that worries me is that we are being told that you need an average household income of £45,000 to not go into fuel poverty. The average income in Cornwall is around £20,000. That is a concern".
Read more: Quarter of Cornwall households might not be able to pay energy bills, charity warns
And Gill's advice to people concerned was clear: "Don’t suffer in silence, reach out. What we see is people don’t come to us until they are at crisis point, they are about to lose their home or have bailiffs at the door. If people feel they are struggling they should seek help and support.
"There is nothing to be embarrassed about, an awful lot of people are going through this through no fault of their own – it is not poor management or budgeting, it is simply they don’t have enough money coming in".
Asked whether Citizens Advice Cornwall was taking on more staff to deal with demand she said she would like to but a lack of funding made it difficult: "We are reliant on external funding, we are not Government funded, we are a charity and we do have a number of pleas out at the moment asking for additional funding so that we can employ more people or train more volunteers. We are currently around 50/50 volunteers, but volunteers are not free either".