As we head into winter 2023, energy prices are now falling and it may be tempting to declare the energy affordability crisis over. But that would be a big mistake. Citizens Advice data suggests that millions are facing a winter as bad, or even worse, than last winter.

What impact should our social security system have on poverty and disadvantage? It is a fundamental question for welfare states, but one that inevitably pivots on contested ideas surrounding human need, desert and motivation. To decide the level at which benefits should be set, decision-makers have tended to fixate on questions of work or contribution and neglect more basic issues of adequacy and coverage. While there are all sorts of overlapping functions of social security, arguably the central purpose should be to provide a basic minimum that prevents or alleviates poverty.

As the cost of living crisis enters a dangerous new phase, it’s pushed millions of people to rely on unsecured lending as a last resort to pay for bills and essentials. With interest rates rising, and inflation stubbornly high, it’s unclear how much more pressure this strategy can bear.

The Commission’s Interim Report summarises the findings of the Commission’s work since 2022. It brings together the first steps towards the Commission’s goals of building consensus around the need to tackle poverty in the UK and the tools and approaches that could be successful in doing so.

Britain’s energy bill crisis is not over: Ofgem’s imminent confirmation of the Q4 2023 price cap is expected to show that annualised typical energy bills will be above £1,900 from October, close to double those before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and only a little below the effective level of £2,100 from last winter that resulted from the combination of the Energy Price Guarantee and universal £400 payments through the Energy Bills Support Scheme.