Boris Johnson believes helping struggling families to pay their bills would be "shovelling" money to appease "bleeding hearts," it has been reported.
The Prime Minister is under mounting pressure to raise a windfall tax on energy firms to help ease skyrocketing bills.
But it's said the PM believes spending the proceeds of such a tax on immediate relief for families would be a short-term fix, and the cash would be “here today and gone tomorrow.”
It was revealed last year that Boris Johnson had spent £112,549 refurbishing the luxury flat he shares with wife Carrie and their children above Downing Street.
He was also reported to have blown £50 a pop on organic ready meals prepared by the head chef of an upmarket deli, and has occasionally engaged the services of a £165-an-hour personal trainer.
And in 2009, shortly after the last global financial crisis, he dismissed the £250,000 a year he earned as a newspaper columnist as "chickenfeed".
And despite senior Tories reportedly hoping a rescue package to tackle the cost of living crisis could be announced this week, sources told the Sunday Times it would not be unveiled until early June.
The newspaper reported that Mr Johnson's press secretary Guto Harri compared immediate help to ease the cost of living to "pain relief", arguing that "surgery" would be better to boost the economy.
One insider reportedly said: "Every pound we spend on pain relief is a pound less to spend on surgery, fixing the problem.
"Some younger people are hearing the screaming voices and think: ‘Let’s buy more nurofen or more morphine."
"We do need to provide some more morphine but we really need to keep money to spend in the operating theatre."
It comes as former welfare chief Iain Duncan Smith called for benefits to be boosted in line with inflation.
He said rebates and discretionary funds represent "a step in the wrong direction for tackling poverty", arguing it would be better to uplift Universal Credit (UC) as it "links benefits to work".
It comes after Boris Johnson said he cannot "magic away" all the soaring food and energy expenses, as he came under increasing pressure to alleviate the cost-of-living crisis.
The Government is already handing out £150 council tax rebates for many homes and will take £200 off energy bills from October. But campaigners say this will not be enough for many people.
The recommendation to bring benefits in line with inflation is set out in new report from the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) - a think tank founded by Sir Iain in 2004 - calling for a "special fiscal event", funded by above-forecast tax receipts, to ease the strain on cash-strapped households.
UC payments rose by 3.1% in April, in line with the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) rate of inflation in the year to September 2021.
Meanwhile, CPI inflation rose to 9% in the year to April, Office for National Statistics (ONS) data signalled on Wednesday, up from an already high 7% in March.
In its report, the CSJ says the Government should consider reviewing the rate of benefits quarterly, rather than annually, at least as long as the "current period of unusual inflationary pressure" lasts.
The think tank says the first increase should come at the end of June.
It claims that bringing UC in line with inflation would see over four million households gain an average of £729 extra support to stave off the cost-of-living crisis over the coming year.
As part of its package of recommendations, the CSJ is also calling for an increase to UC work allowances, which would provide "an effective tax cut" for 1.66 million poorer, working households, worth £733 million, or on average £442 each.
Sir Iain said: "The CSJ is calling for a special fiscal event to tackle this crisis, and to provide a shield against the worst of inflation for those most struggling.
"In UC the UK has a world-class social security system that is data-rich and effectively targeted at the households that need it most.
"Rebates and discretionary funds represent a step in the wrong direction for tackling poverty. UC links benefits to work, ensuring those that are able can move into and progress within employment. Thus it is a hand up, not a hand-out."
He added: "While the decision to cut the UC taper in the autumn budget put £1,000 back into the pockets of three million claimants, much of its value will be wiped out by inflation. And it will do nothing to protect those who are not in work.
"With UC only uprated by 3.1% in April, those who rely on welfare for their income will experience a 7% cut.
"To prevent this, the Chancellor and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions should implement an emergency in-year uprating, bringing UC into line with inflation to ensure it covers the true cost of living."
The CSJ also wants the Government to suspend UC debt repayments for six months and forgive historical debts "born of design issues in the legacy benefits system".
In addition, environmental levies should be absorbed into general taxation, and the energy price cap should be reviewed quarterly rather than every six months "to avoid cliff-edges in prices", it said.
Last week, Mr Sunak said he was not able to raise the payments more than 3.1% due to an old computer system that the Department for Work and Pensions uses.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies economic think tank has suggested the poorest households might be facing inflation of 10.9%.
This is higher than average because they spend a larger portion of their money on heating and lighting their homes.
