Currently, the plans are still on the drawing board, according to The Telegraph. It is clear, however, that supermarkets can voluntarily contribute to the plans and that there would be no enforced participation.
The British government is increasingly concerned about the pressure on the financial situation of households there, given rising inflation and interest rates. Prime Minister Sunak has made reducing household costs one of his policy priorities and pledged to cut inflation to 5% by the end of 2023. Inflation stood at 8.7% in April, up from more than 10% at the beginning of the year.
The biggest attempt since 1970
If Sunak manages to implement its cap, it would be the biggest attempt to regulate supermarket prices since the 1970s under Prime Minister Edward Heath.
The proposal also recalls a proposal recently approved by the French government, in which French food producers agreed to apply the “lowest possible price” for essential food products. Earlier this month, the French finance minister announced an extension of the initiative.