MILLIONS WILL FACE ANOTHER SURGE IN FOOD BILLS

MILLIONS of households face nightmare Christmas food price hikes amid warnings Labour could clobber businesses at the Budget.

- By Martyn Brown and Katie Elliott

Retailers urged Rachel Reeves to think “very, very carefully” with food and drink inflation expected to hit 5.7% by the end of the year.

They warned against a repeat of last year's employer national insurance hammer blow, which has driven up prices for firms and consumers.

Alarm bells are ringing, with fears the Chancellor will unleash another punishing tax raid as she scrambles to fill a £30billion black hole in the public purse when she delivers her Budget on November 26. Aldi boss Giles Hurley said any measures that further increased bills for employers could lead to higher food prices.

The supermarket chain's chief executive insisted that the impact of last year's NICs rise and the cost of new packaging rules had already "rippled through to prices on the shelf edge".

He added: "Any policies which affect the operating costs of business should be considered very, very carefully because of the very real risk they find their way back into the food system and on to prices."

Mr Hurley also stressed that longterm stability will depend on strengthening Britain's farming base.

He argued a healthy domestic agricultural sector could help to bring down prices and reduce relying on global markets. The industry leader told the BBC: "Ultimately, a resilient food sector is utterly dependent on having a resilient British farm sector."