. The Prime Minister was handed a boost on Wednesday morning as the Office for National Statistics announced inflation rose by 6.8 per cent in the 12 months to July, down from 7.9 per cent in June and 8.7 per cent in May. Mr Sunak and Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor, welcomed the fall and said it showed their plan to combat rising prices was 'working'. But the influential IFS think tank said it was still uncertain whether Mr Sunak would be able to deliver on his promise , arguing that 'it no longer seems at all clear that inflation at the end of the year will have fallen by enough to achieve it'. Halving inflation by the end of 2023 was one of five priorities announced by Mr Sunak in a major speech in January. At the time, inflation was running at 10.7 per cent, implying an end-of-year target of 5.4 per cent. 'Always a little odd' Heidi Karjalainen, a research economist at the IFS, said: 'The Prime Minister's target to halve the rate of inflation by the end of the year was always a little odd as there is only so much the Treasury can do to influence the pace of price increases. 'When the target was set, the Prime Minister may have hoped he could rely on falling energy prices to do most of the work to hit it. 'However, the stubbornly high rate of price inflation for goods and services other than food and energy has put the target in jeopardy. 'With only four months to go, it no longer seems at all clear that inflation at the end of the year will have fallen by enough to achieve it.' Mr Sunak said he was 'determined to build a better economy and a better country' as he responded to the figures published on Wednesday morning. He tweeted: 'That starts with tackling inflation. And the news this morning shows that the plan is working. If we stick to the plan I've set out, we'll get it done.' Not yet 'at the finish line' Mr Hunt echoed a similar s){kind=link}
With only four months to go, think tank says it is uncertain whether Prime Minister can deliver on promise to halve inflation by end of year
Rishi Sunak’s pledge to halve inflation by the end of the year is in “jeopardy”, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).
The Prime Minister was handed a boost on Wednesday morning as the Office for National Statistics announced inflation rose by 6.8 per cent in the 12 months to July, down from 7.9 per cent in June and 8.7 per cent in May.
Mr Sunak and Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor, welcomed the fall and said it showed their plan to combat rising prices was “working”.
But the influential IFS think tank said it was still uncertain whether Mr Sunak would be able to deliver on his promise, arguing that “it no longer seems at all clear that inflation at the end of the year will have fallen by enough to achieve it”.