WHY is it always pain for those who already struggle, but payday for energy giants, banks, arms companies, and the wealthy?

As the US-Israel war on Iran continues, the same old pattern emerges. Across the UK, millions struggle to stay afloat. Energy bills hit family budgets, businesses struggle, and housing costs skyrocket. The illegal war has caused chaos, killed civilians and triggered the largest ever disruption to fuel supply, with impacts to be felt for months and years to come.

I welcome the call by leading UK civil society organisations for the Chancellor to levy taxes on the predicted excess profits and windfall revenues that big corporations, the wealthiest, will make from this crisis.

Time after time, when wars break out or major crises unfold, big corporations and the super-rich make a killing. Extraordinary profits are generated on the backs of ordinary people during periods of crisis. All the while, households and businesses are in urgent need of substantial support to cope with the affordability crisis.

The government should make this crisis a turning point for the UK. Take bold action to reform our tax system, combat widening inequality, invest in our energy security, and build resilience to withstand future shocks and make life affordable for people and businesses.

1. A strengthened energy profits mechanism which captures excess profits made by oil and gas giants – including windfalls during crises.

2. A retail bank tax which claws back the excess profits they make from the UK public.

3. A windfall tax on companies profiteering from this crisis, including big agribusiness, arms suppliers and associated AI and tech firms.

4. Invest revenue into direct support to households and businesses to help weather the cost-of-living crisis and low and zero carbon solutions to build an energy system making our economy more resilient to withstand future shocks.

The illegal war is founded on wanted war-criminal Netanyahu’s tyrannical tryst with Trump. Each day, the media slavishly reports the US president’s ill-considered drivel. It would be painful but entertaining cringe-comedy if it weren’t that thousands of lives depend on his dim-witted utterances.

One part of the world sees him as arrogant, bigoted, spoilt and vain, with a juvenile tendency to throw tantrums and a love for fellow despots, and to protect the wealthiest at the expense of the poorest (whilst projecting an impression of being a workers’ champion).

But then there's another sizable group which hero-worships him. Which feels he speaks for them and, in their view, properly challenges what they perceive as woke, unpatriotic, lefty-liberals and Eco-warriors who they believe are soft on law, order, migration, minority populations and groups. The media love him because he divides opinion so sharply. For them, politics is better when there are outrageous comments, deep division and dispute rather than thoughtful and considered nuance.