Rising inflation has been described as a “nightmare” by one pensioner who spoke to Express.co.uk, while another accused Mr Johnson of not “giving a s*** about the poor”. This comes as the country battles a mounting cost of living crisis, with the Bank of England forecasting that the UK will see double-digit inflation and a 1 percent contraction in the size of the economy later this year. Inflation reached 9 per cent in May - its highest level in 40 years. And in April, millions of people saw an unprecedented £700-a-year increase in energy costs.
Speaking to Express.co.uk about the impact of rising prices, pensioner Kathleen Everidge, 78, said the situation is a “bleeding nightmare”.
She explained: “Everything has gone up, your toothpaste, all necessities and things like that.
“I’m on my own. Rent is all going up. Trying to sort that out is an absolute nightmare.
“There is so much stress… You just can’t get anywhere with anything. They’re wearing us bl***y out here.”
Ms Everidge, who lives on Jubilee Walk in London, described the Government’s benefits system as a “complete b***s up”, adding: “They give you £2 here and then they take it off somewhere else.
“It gets on my bl***y nerves.”
Sharon Berhimi, 58, from Cricklewood, told Express.co.uk that she is forced to wrap up in a blanket in the winter months to prevent her arthritis from deteriorating, as she can’t afford to turn the heating up.
She said: “Everything is going up, I can’t afford it. It makes me go out more, because I’ve got to go and look for cheaper things.
“I’ve got arthritis in my body and I’ve got to wrap up in a quilt or something in winter.
“It’s not good enough. [Boris Johnson is] not really bothered about anybody. He’s got money so he doesn’t care.
“He’s all for the rich, he doesn’t give a s*** about the poor. He doesn’t give a monkeys and it’s always been like that with the Conservatives.”
“It’s not good enough. [Boris Johnson is] not really bothered about anybody. He’s got money so he doesn’t care. He’s all for the rich, he doesn’t give a s*** about the poor. He doesn’t give a monkeys and it’s always been like that with the Conservatives.”
“Whoever takes over, it’s going to be very tough - the Tories are going to leave them with nothing.”
But another pensioner, Josephine, disagreed, saying that “politicians are all the same”.
The 81-year-old claimed that people in the UK were “better off after the war”.
She told Express.co.uk: “Of course I feel the impact because I’m coming up to 81 years of age.
“I don’t know how much money they expect us to pay on gas and electricity - it’s ridiculous.
“The food prices - every day we’re in the shop and something’s gone up.
“The thing is, I came here in 1960 and we were better off after the war, much greater. It seems like money is just disappearing, but not for the people that are supposed to have the money, we just do not get anything. I don’t know what they do with the money.”
She added: “I don’t trust Boris Johnson as far as I could throw him. I don’t trust him at all. But politicians are all the same.
“They don’t care about you, all they want is your money.
“They don’t ask, ‘have you got enough?’, they just take it. So I just can’t understand.”
Another pensioner, Maevis, who lives in Cricklewood, added: “I don’t trust no government. They are all the same.”
She said: “It’s very, very difficult.
“Every day you go into the shop and everything is going up, sky-high.
“I don’t trust any of them, they’re all the same - when they get into power, they all pretend that they care about society but they are only in it for all they can get.”
Pensions only rose 3.1 percent this year, which was much less than inflation at the time.
But earlier this week, Downing Street confirmed the state pension will be rising by double figures to protect pensioners from inflation.
Speaking about the planned rise, Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab said: “[Pensioners] are particularly vulnerable and they are disproportionately affected by the increase in energy costs which we know everyone is facing.”
Express.co.uk has contacted Boris Johnson for comment.
