Kerre Woodham: I shudder to think at the tough times ahead for some households

In the wake of news that a whole raft of cost-of-living subsidies and temporary tax cuts are set to end tomorrow, along with all the other news headlines, I had to Google reasons to be optimistic this morning.

We've got the end of the fuel tax discount and the subsidy for road user charges for diesel vehicles coming to an end. Half-price public transport fares will stop for most as well. Children under 13 remain free, as do half price fares for community card holders and people under 25.

But for most people, especially those who rely on public transport to get to work, fares are going to go up and fuel is going to go up.

Budget advisers say the additional increase in spending on fuel and transport is going to put people doing it tough right now under even more pressure, further into hardship.

They say that about 10 to 15 percent of the weekly income is spent on petrol and transportation - for those who need budget help and budget advice, this is just going to make it even tougher for them.    

How long do you think the tough times are going to last? Economists say about 18 months.

Are you going to be able to weather the tough times and for some of you are you looking at the news headlines and thinking well that doesn't apply to me, things are fine here.  

We're noticing it in our household. We've three working adults who have all got jobs.

We're certainly not on the bread line, but if we're noticing it, I shudder to think what it's like in some households.

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