BBC News at Six has left viewers confused after an Apprentice finalist appeared on the show to discuss how he was affected by the inflation figures.
Reporters visited East Sussex to talk to ordinary families about how inflation has affected their finances.
While the figure has fallen to a three-year low (2.3 percent), families across the country are still struggling to make ends meet.
Other interviewees said that ‘it was difficult for everyone’ and explained that they had to shop at discount supermarkets to get the lowest prices.
It was then a surprise when Apprentice finalist Phil Turner and his wife Theresa, who run a seven-figure business, appeared on the show from their luxury kitchen to explain how inflation is cutting into their takeaway budget.
Phil, who featured in the latest series of Lord Alan Sugar’s The Apprentice, has run a successful seven-figure pie business owned by his family since the 1930s.
Despite his lucrative business, Turner’s Pies, Phil claimed inflation is the ‘biggest blow’ to his disposable income, which he happily spends on takeaways and holidays.
Speaking about the show from his luxury kitchen with two seating areas and a luxury Le Creuset pan on the stove, Phil said: “I think, to be honest, the biggest blow to us is the inflation rates.
He continued: ‘You’ve got a lot of money coming in every month and normally you put a little bit aside and that’s what we have for holidays or takeaways, but a lot of that was just gone.’
Meanwhile, Phil’s wife said she was happy they opted for a five-year mortgage plan.
“This time we are in for five years, previously we only had two years… but we wanted to know where we were in the next five years because it could have been even higher,” she said.
Viewers were left confused about their performance in the segment.
One said: ‘BBC News just went to see an everyday family hit by interest rates at the age of 6, but the husband was Phil from The Apprentice which seemed a bit of a weird/distracting choice.’
A second added: “If you have a kitchen island you automatically don’t qualify for the ‘normal family’ interview.”
‘Everyday’ families don’t have kitchens big enough for two dining tables,” wrote a third.
A fourth added: “Six burner burner! Le Creuset cast iron skillet in the background? Nothing mundane about them.”
Another said: ‘Everyday family hit by inflation with a huge kitchen full of dreams.’
Dad-of-two Phil, who had a disastrous record after losing eight out of 10 jobs, was hoping to win over Lord Sugar with his Sussex pie shops after saying his ‘biggest inspiration’ in life was his hard-working are parents.
Phil, who came second, explained during his interview with Claudine Collins that his parents are his biggest inspiration. Working with them has taught him to appreciate the sacrifices they have made, which he hopes to pass on to his own two children.
Holding back tears, he said, “I definitely think my mom and dad are my biggest inspirations. While I was there working for them day in and day out for a few years, in a close-knit environment, I really came to appreciate how much work they put in and how much shame they put in.
‘My appreciation for them as parents and people went through the roof, just talking about this gives me a warm feeling inside.
‘Family means everything, after having children it really starts to come into perspective, you think, what do I leave to my children, what legacy can I leave behind? As I get older, I’m starting to realize that.’
And Phil admitted he couldn’t have achieved the success he has today without his wife Theresa, who he affectionately calls ‘Tree’.
Phil and Theresa were childhood sweethearts after meeting at school in seventh grade and now the couple have been ‘happily married’ for almost eleven years.
He said filming The Apprentice, in which candidates live in a house in north London, away from their families and with limited contact with the outside world, was the “hardest” two months, especially for Theresa, who managed in his absence to the companies.
Phil, owner of five cake shops, wrote on Facebook: ‘For those of you who know me personally, I’m sure you’ll agree that Tree is by far the better half of our partnership.
“Leaving her dream job to raise our two wonderful children and supporting me in following my dreams is something that I sometimes take for granted, but for which I will be forever grateful.
‘Tree and I met in 7th grade at school and quickly became friends and partners a few years later. In June we will have been happily married for 11 years. Like every couple we have our moments, I mean, imagine having to put up with me for twenty years…
‘Being away for two months filming last year was one of the hardest things we’ve ever experienced as a family, and especially for Tree, because she took on a lot of my responsibilities and had no one to make her laugh. ‘