Nearly a fifth of people have run out of food, say survey

In the four weeks to December 18th, a total of 24% of those asked said that they had occasionally, hardly ever, or never, been able to keep warm in the previous fortnight.

In total, around one in seven 15% of the population were worried that their food would run out before they had enough money to buy more.

Over two-thirds of those who ran out of food in the past two weeks, and could not afford to buy more, were struggling with heating.

Inflation, which shows the rising cost of living, was 10.5% in the year to December, which means a typical basket of goods and services rose by 10.5% in a year. The Bank of England's inflation target is 2%.

The latest data also covers the issue of hospital waits, with 21% of adults saying they were waiting for a hospital appointment, test or to start receiving medical treatment through the NHS.

A third of people who used credit to help get through Christmas and the holiday season said they were not confident about their ability to repay, according to a survey for the BBC.

More than eight in 10 of those asked were worried about the rising cost of living, with some losing sleep over it.

People are finding ways to cut costs to pay bills. A majority of respondents have been turning the heating down and the lights off, or reducing their grocery store.