Is the UK heading for an apocalypse?

[BleakWinter]

Hello dear Mimsnetters. I wonder if anyone can lift me out of this dreadful feeling I have of impending doom? With the oncoming energy hikes, rent increases, mortgage rate hikes and increased interest rates, I honestly feel a bit hopeless about everything and powerless to do anything about it. I'm just reading about how most countries, despite having their own particular difficulties, are starting to bounce back after Covid. They are starting to trade again, unlike us apparently. I feel like we're not Global Britain, we're Little Britain and we're falling further and further behind other countries. I feel desperately sorry for our youngsters and those in their early 20's. How are they going to afford to house themselves or run a car? I honestly love this country ( by which I mean the UK so not strictly a country but you know what I mean.) and I think this is why I feel so worried. The government has gone completely AWOL and neither of the 2 new PM candidates fill me with much confidence. I feel like we're in the worst possible position with a non existent government. Is there anyone out there who feels things might start getting better? I know things are cyclical...but the fact that things have been horribly difficult before doesn't really make me feel any better. How can I stay positive and not get overwhelmed?

Britain is in a bigger mess than elsewhere. Higher inflation ( its 2.5 in Switzerland) and lower in Europe.

Britain won’t face its energy problems either. So it will be in a bigger mess than Europe when this ends ( if it does)

I do t think this is anything like the late 80’s/early 90’s.

Its a completely different scenario.

When are we protesting in the streets regarding the cost of living esp energy- I’d like to join ???

Our bills are already at £500 a month. We live in an old four bedroom farm house. This is just for electricity, we don't have any gas. We pay for heating oil on top of this plus firewood and coal. There are five of us living here.

There are a few things we could do to make our home .ore energy efficient but we just have no money to spend on it at all.

@Lapland123

Join is Enough is Enough

What a staggering level of ignorance. Please read and then tell us all will okay:

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/aug/21/water-firms-sustain-life-they-should-answer-to-citizens-not-shareholders

This is so much worse than Covid. The reality is the UK is heading into a 10 year recession of the likes of which we’ve never experienced in our lifetimes. Think of the 1930s, or even the Weimar Republic. Take a look at what happened there.

I think it is going to be really tough for a long time.

Don't think quite to the level of apocalypse. However I didn't really believe that we would get here really. (Sewage on beaches etc).

Just going to take one day at a time.

I'd feel hopeful if I knew the people running the country cared about the long-term welfare of the country, but they are profoundly selfish and out of touch. The only qualification for prime minister these days is "wanting it enough".

It will be bumpy until spring and the energy markets will stabilise as each country's solutions swing into action.

We are relatively protected from Russian energy supplies at just 4% imports, as long as Norway adhere to their legally binding agreements we should be okay.
We are in France and they are already putting some restrictions in place here. Germany have a big issue coming down the track accepted, but that was poor decision making and to dine degree naivety.

Of course the situation isn’t ideal, but the consequences of Russia invading Ukraine was never going to be ‘painless’ for the rest of the world. We are in a better position than other very real alternatives - ie at actual war with Russia.
Time to toughen up - big pants on - solution based thinking and start looking after each other. That’s what is going to get us through it.

I don't think the word apocalypse is hyperbole at all. I think we're seeing a dramatic decline in everything it means to be part of a civilised country for a large number of people: economic living standards, ability to earn enough to provide even the essentials of living, access to functioning public services, ability to shape the direction of society eg through access to quality education, secure housing, participation in decision-making via a robust and thrustworthy democratic process . . .

If you combine all this with the big one that hasn't even been mentioned yet - climate crisis - which is itself going to require vast amounts of resources and honest political will that we don't seem to have in order to address, then there really is no apparent upside.

Those blithely reassuring us that we've got through worse before so we'll get through it now, seem to completely overlook how deeply rooted all this is in a decades-long process of economic change, how clearly the ruling class WANT exactly these developments (ie vastly greater inequality, with the majority of people having little economic or political power and living in a state of virtual serfdom) and how thoroughly our democracy and electoral process is being corrupted to ensure they can't be reversed.

Some people seem to think this is all just an unhappy accident, and that we're still living under a well-meaning government that will get everything back on track as soon as possible because obviously they have everyone's best interests at heart. The evidence suggests otherwise.

I think we're seeing a dramatic decline in everything it means to be part of a civilised country for a large number of people

But now we can just switch on our phones and gaze blankly or turn on Netflix for the next exciting installment and obliviously let everything else s low ly falll a pa r t ........

At London bridge yesterday afternoon. It was -2°C. A bloke in BARE FEET begging. Unbelievable. The Tories have taken us back to 1800. Very scary.

I hope you told him to "go and get a job"!

Maybe trampling grapes in a French vinyard or something.

Wow that's a heartless comment. Do you have any Idea how difficult (read as nigh on impossible) it is for someone who is homeless and filthy to get a job? I can't believe how anyone could say that and add an 'amusing' aside about going barefoot in -2°C. People Iike you are part of the problem TBH.Yuk!!

I think so.

It doesn't help that politicians are so out of touch with their ridiculous salaries.

I bet Liz Truss doesn't have her thermostat set to 15 and is terrified of how she is going to pay her energy bill...

Interested to see the inside of Grant Schapps house just now on the news talking about energy saving. Very average and not at all what I was expecting!

Come April when all the energy companies announce the billions of pounds they've made in profits, the penny will drop just how inhumane this has all been.