Citizens Advice responds to the Prime Minister's first speech

Dame Clare Moriarty, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said:

“The scale of the Prime Minister’s ambitions for his government are clear. We hope his plans for cost of living take on the biggest pressures on household budgets: energy, rent and debt. At Citizens Advice, we know people can’t wait any longer.

“Tackling the deep roots of these struggles will be key to shifting the dial. Over 4 million households are behind on their energy bills, that’s why we’ve long-called for better targeted bill support. With sky-high rents pushing millions to the brink, the Prime Minister is right to focus on the worst effects of the housing crisis. Action here must also include support for the lowest income renters, by unfreezing housing support.

“These are the roots of the problems, and the consequence is the record levels of debt we’re seeing at Citizens Advice. A promising direction was set today, and with a relentless focus on energy, rent and debt, the new government can bring about much-needed change before the end of this Parliament.”

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We are the people's champion. We give people the knowledge and confidence they need to find their way forward - whoever they are, and whatever their problem.

Notes to editors:

  1. Citizens Advice is the people’s champion - supporting people across England, Wales and the Channel Islands through: the national charity Citizens Advice; the network of independent local Citizens Advice charities; and the Citizens Advice consumer service.

  2. Our network of charities offers impartial advice online, over the phone, and in person, for free. Citizens Advice helped 2.71 million people face to face, over the phone, by email and webchat in 2024-25. And we had 44 million visits to our website. For full service statistics see our monthly publication Advice trends.

  3. Citizens Advice service staff are supported by more than 19,500 trained volunteers, working at over 1,900 locations across England, Wales and the Channel Islands.

  4. Citizens Advice is the statutory consumer advocate for energy and postal markets. We provide supplier performance information to consumers and policy analysis to decision makers.

  5. Citizens Advice consumer service can help with consumer issues like broken or faulty goods, or problems with energy, heat networks or post. You can get advice from the Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133 or 0808 223 1144 for Welsh language speakers.