Ailbhe Rea: How Was Your Terrible Tuesday?

It’s been dubbed “Awful April” and “Terrible Tuesday” — today is the day the UK is hit with a flood of household bill increases on everything from water, electricity and broadband bills to train fares and council tax.

Bloomberg calculates that households face nearly £600 of extra costs on average with these combined hikes — spelled out in grim detail in the piece. That sharp 26% rise in water bills, in particular, will infuriate people who are already all too aware of sewage spills, systemic mismanagement and under-investment in British water infrastructure, and now find themselves footing the bill for it.