As of July 2009, annual price inflation rates of particular products:

• food: 5.6%
• fuel and light: 9.6%
• gas: 24%
• coal and solid fuels: 21.9%

[government inflation figures]

In the year to June 2009, the prices of many essentials rose at a far higher rate than RPI inflation:

• Coal & solid fuels up 21.9%
• Fuel and light up 9.6%
• Gas up 24.0%
• Electricity up 6.8%
• Water and other charges up 4.7%
• Fares and other travel costs 5.5%
• Bus and coach fares 7.3%
• Other travel costs 4.8%
• Food up 5.3%, with
  • tea up 10.3%
  • coffee & other hot drinks 10.7%
  • potatoes up 7.4%
  • pork up 11.4%
  • bacon up 4.7%
  • biscuits & cakes 4.3%
  • beef up 6.0%
  • milk up 5.8%
  • lamb up 9.7%
  • sugar up 12.0%
  • fruit up 5.2%
  • vegetables up 9.8%
  • cereals up 6.1%
  • fish up 20.0%
• and if there’s any money left, the cost of a foreign holiday has gone up by 7.8% [For the complete breakdown of how prices have been rising, click here.

[For the statistics for February, the month whose price rises are supposed to guide our pay rises, click here.]

So, London Underground and TfL's 1.5% pay rise won't buy you very much, will it? And the following years of their multi-year offers are even worse! In fact, these offers amount to pay cuts, which is why RMT is determined to fight for a better deal.

Our pay rises