Rising inflation means mounting pressure for the self-employed
- 12 Sep 2017
Inflation has unexpectedly climbed to 2.9%, ONS figures revealed this morning. The increase brings inflation back to the peak levels reached in June, after a dip to 2.6% in July.
In response, IPSE has warned that freelancers will suffer disproportionately because of increased transport costs.
Tom Purvis, IPSE’s Economic Policy Advisor commented: “This rise means the self-employed and others across the UK will continue to feel the squeeze as earnings fall further behind the cost of living. Increasing fuel costs will also be a significant blow for the many self-employed people who have to commute long distances to work. And with the cost of train tickets rising to an even higher rate, they will be left with no choice but to take the hit from rising petrol prices.
“It’s not just transport either. A separate report released on Tuesday showed that overall input costs rose by 1.6% in August, while output prices rose 0.4%. These high figures are putting mounting pressure on self-employed people, who – unlike employees – need to purchase their own professional equipment.”
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