The new prime minister will take office at a time of great uncertainty

The squeeze on living standards isn’t the only urgent issue that the next occupant of No 10 will be expected to address, writes Harriet Williamson

On 5 September, a new prime minister will take office (EPA)

As the long school holidays draw to a close (perception of their length tends to depend on whether you’re a teacher or a parent, or both) and parliament resumes after its summer recess, this autumn feels like a real moment of transition.

On 5 September, a new prime minister will take office. By all accounts, it is likely to be Liz Truss rather than Rishi Sunak in residence at No 10. The next PM will have much to contend with, and most pressing is the cost of living crisis, exacerbated by the 80 per cent increase in energy bills confirmed by Ofgem last week.

Truss has not, at the time of writing, set out a plan for how she will help people to cope with the untenable rise in energy costs. Support for campaigns such as Don’t Pay UK and Enough is Enough – the latter of which is backed by Labour figures including Andy Burnham and Zarah Sultana – is growing as the “zombie government” remains dangerously inert. I wrote about my own fears, which are unfortunately shared by households with varying levels of financial security across the UK.