Cost of living crisis? Drought? Time for a new pool
Rishi Sunak is spending £400,000 on a new swimming pool at his mansion as a heatwave hits the UK – and millions of Brits come to terms with the rocketing energy bills they will be paying later this year.
Aerial photos show the Tory leadership hopeful is constructing a mini leisure complex at his £1.5m mansion in North Yorkshire.
Last year, Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty were granted planning permission to build the pool alongside a gym and tennis court on farmland at the property.
According to the Independent, the pool will measure 12-metres-by-5-metres, and would normally cost around £120,000 to build without excavation costs.
But it will be in an insulated stone building, which will also include four showers and storage rooms.
Once this is taken into account the cost of the project rises to £405,000.
The Northern Echo also reports that the pool will cost an estimated £13,000 a year to heat.
RIshi Sunak's huge swimming pool, gym and tennis courts are nearing completion in the grounds of his Manor House near Northallerton. @RishiSunak @trussliz @yorkpress @TeessideLive #Ready4Rishi pic.twitter.com/QlqgNVcLCJ
— TeesPix.Photos (@TeesPix) August 12, 2022
The former Chancellor’s pool project comes as millions across the country face up to the reality of sky-high energy bills later this year, with the cost of living crisis only set to worsen.
On Wednesday, it was announced that Brits already owe over £1.3bn in energy debt, with the average amount owed now three time higher than it was in 2021.
And this was followed by a warning from energy consultants Auxilione that energy bills could rise to more than £5,000 next year for a typical household.
In October this year, energy bills will exceed £3,000 as the price cap change comes into effect.
It’s not just the cost of Sunak’s pool that will raise eyebrows. On Friday, an official drought was declared in parts of south-west England, parts of southern and central England, and the East of England.
Millions now face hosepipe bans because of low-water levels.
And Yorkshire, where Sunak’s pool is being built at his manor property, is also expected to move into a drought later this month, the BBC reports.
To add insult to injury, the people of Sunak’s constituency in Richmond, North Yorkshire, are also facing the prospect of losing their local pool because of the cost of bills.
Related links:
- Rishi Sunak wants to crack down on degrees that don’t make students rich
- Man in the running to be next PM admits he had to be taught how to use contactless card
- MPs claim £420,000 to pay their energy bills as Brits increasingly struggle with soaring prices
