Asda boss expresses shock on households’ diminished budget

Asda chairman Lord Rose has said it is “shocking” that British households do not have enough to live on each month as he laid bare the reality of what is seen in his supermarkets.

About 20 per cent of all householders in the UK are “running a £60 a month deficit”, according to Asda’s survey, which he termed “shocking”, Rose told Sky News.

He said that some shoppers are eating less and cutting back to help make ends meet.

“People coming to the counter to the till and saying, well, actually, I’ve now spent £25 of my £30 of my £40 that I’ve allocated for myself this week and don’t put any more through the till,” Rose said.

Despite challenged budgets, Rose predicted that Christmas would not be a wash out.

“People will want a good Christmas. They’ll want to have a nice celebration on the day. They’ll want to look after their children,” he said. “But they’ve been very thoughtful about what they can afford and what they can’t afford.”

Meanwhile, Tory peer Rose gave his thoughts on the raft of strikes taking place this winter and said that some workers are “pushing it a little bit harder than perhaps they should”, and asked individuals to be “thoughtful”.

“It’s not a question of who deserves a rise, it’s a question how much can we afford to give people and when can we afford to do it?”

Rail and postal worker strikes are having a big impact on retail in the run up to Christmas.

Rose said that nurses “definitely deserve” a pay rise but questioned whether a double-digit increase being pushed for by unions was affordable.

“The answer is in the current state of the National Health Service, it probably isn’t,” he said.

His comments come as the country braces for further rail strikes, kicking off today (16) morning and running into the weekend. Rail workers are also due to walk out again next week, amid a row over pay and job security with operators.

Last month, Asda risked falling victim to strike action, with drivers at logistics company Wincanton, which deliver food to Asda stores, voting to walkout over their pay. However, the drivers accepted an offer from Wincanton, averting potential supply issues to the supermarket.