Star comment: Shrinking value of coins in our pocket
It is the 25th anniversary of the £2 coin and some of the statistics tell us much about how our society has changed in terms of cost of living.
The £2 coin had much buying power for essentials back in 1998 but much less so now. Back then, the £2 coin could have bought two pints of lager – but it would purchase less than half a pint today. The coin only has sufficient purchasing power to buy one loaf of bread now but would have bought four loaves 25 years ago.
A £2 coin in 1998 would also buy five litres of fuel but will now only give you 1.4 litres.
The buying power for essential goods has diminished much further than the actual value of the £2 coin in overall real terms. It is again an illustration that our current inflation crisis is hitting the items that we need most, like groceries and energy.