the government thinks that £30 million. remember, it would get some of that money back in tax and national insurance. and the uk has one of the lowest debt burdens among leading global economies. just under 100%, as we were saying. so arguably has room to spend a bit more. the government s second argument is that putting more money into people s pockets could keep inflation higher for longer, which makes everyone worse off over time and increases the pressure on the bank of england to use its powers to reduce inflation by raising interest rates, which affects borrowing costs for consumers, homeowners and businesses. all of these disputes are different and short of offering everyone an inflation matching pay rise there is no simple solution. 0ne worker s frustration at their falling standard of living is another person s frustration at the disruption that looks set to dominate the christmas headlines. simon, thank you very much. a minute s silence will be observed in jersey tomorrow