ABOUT four in 10 people bought less food during the past two weeks due to the rising cost of living, according to an Office for National Statistics (ONS) survey published today.

Thirty-nine per cent of adults said that they had trimmed back their grocery shopping, rising from 34 per cent a fortnight ago and 18 per cent at the start of the year.

The survey also revealed that 91 per cent of British adults reported an increase in their cost of living, up from 88 per cent earlier this month.

The ONS said that the most common reason was higher food prices, with 92 per cent of people saying that their grocery bills had risen.

Earlier this week, data from market research firm Kantar showed that grocery price inflation hit an 11-year high of 5.9 per cent in April.

Kantar’s head of retail and consumer insight Fraser McKevitt said: “The average household will now be exposed to a potential extra £271 per year.”

Inflation jumped to 7 per cent in March and analysts now predict the rate for April to exceed 8 per cent due to the impact of higher energy bills.

This coincides with new building society figures showing the rate of house price growth slowing from a 1.1 per cent rise in March.

Labour shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said: “The Conservatives have raised taxes 15 times in two years despite a cost-of-living crisis.

“Labour would cut VAT on energy bills and our plan would save families up to £600, paid for by a one-off windfall tax on oil-and-gas-producer profits.”