British Premier reacts to criticism about private pools

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak insisted he understands that millions of people are struggling to make ends meet, particularly with regard to energy bills. He argued that his government's successful efforts to reduce people's energy bills were more important than his spending tens of thousands of pounds out of his own pocket to heat the pool at his North Yorkshire estate. He also pointed to the "windfall tax on energy companies" he secured as chancellor as evidence that his government had used that money to help reduce people's bills. When Mason pressed him on whether his own massive wealth got in the way of understanding the lives of his constituents, Sunak again pointed to the taxes his government had levied on energy companies. The PM recently had the electrical grid around his property upgraded to service the new heated swimming pool he was putting in, according to The Guardian.

The optics of the PM luxuriating in his 12m (40 ft) heated private pool while hundreds of council-run swimming pools have been forced to close or reduce hours have led to questions like Mason's. The Energy Price Guarantee holds gas and electricity costs under £2,500 per year ($3,044) for the typical household, and the Energy Bill Relief Scheme for non-domestic energy users will no longer offer government assistance to public swimming pools starting in April.