Can someone explain how the fuck £12.71 an hour is supposed to be enough for a single person to live on in 2026? Who decides this is minimum wage? You're taking home roughly £1,790 a month after tax, National Insurance and pension. Then reality hits. Rent under £700 is almost impossible to find, £300 food, £140 council tax, £140 water and electricity and £350 for fuel, car insurance and tax. That's £1,690 before you've even spent a penny on your phone, clothes, toiletries, socialising, emergencies or anything remotely enjoyable. So you work full time all month and end up with roughly £150 left. Maybe people aren't struggling because they spend too much. Maybe they're struggling because the cost of simply existing has become fucking ridiculous.