THE food price inflation rate is running at 5.3% – at least this is what the Government thinks prices are in the UK at the moment.

We already know many families are being brought to their knees by food prices and that in one year the food basket price has increased across the board and is now a major cost for families on low wages.

Add to that the cost of utilities and the basic needs of these families becomes what is known as existence living, where balancing income against what to put on the table or go without becomes a daily ritual.

What families used to spend on luxury items has now been swallowed up just by surviving a ritual that has now become unbearable for many.

Many are seeking help with food charities – this is Britain in the 21st century.

We are supporting the rest of the world in aid and forgetting charity begins at home.

The fact is food prices are not running at the rate of inflation, but at a much higher margin – in many cases as high as 30% on essential items.

Cheap foods are salt-laden but are the only option for some. Mainstream items of food are too expensive, and this is having an effect on pensioners too.

The Government is totally out of touch with reality, and Mr Cameron says, “We are all in this together”.

Well, that’s what he may say, but the reality is that the poor are financing a fragile recovery and at one hell of a cost.

There is one undeniable fact, Mr Cameron: We are not all in this together, and it’s the poor who are supporting the rich.

Jim Evans, Montague Place, Brighton