Queen's Speech: How Boris Johnson's plan for the year will impact you

As the cost-crisis-continues has Boris Johnson done enough to address the growing issue? Anushka Asthana reports

The cost-of-living is rising at an alarming rate, families are struggling to cope through the crisis, and Britons this year are facing the biggest drop in living standards since records began in 1956.

Household energy bills have soared to a record-high, inflation looks set to join it at 10%, taxes are going up, and the UK is expected to enter a recession later this year.

The one thing most people were looking out for in the Queen's Speech - an address which sets out the government's legislative plans for the year - would have been any measures to soften the blow of the cost-of-living crisis.

As the cost-of-living crisis deepens, ITV News' Robert Peston analyses the new legislative programme announced on Tuesday.

Boris Johnson has warned families he cannot "completely shield" them from rising costs but promised the government will help "where we can".

There were 38 bills set out in the Queen's Speech - which was delivered by Prince Charles this year after the monarch dropped out - but how much of it will directly impact Britons?

Cost of living measures

As ITV News Political Editor Robert Peston said, there was "nothing that provides immediate relief" from the cost-of-living crisis, but there are some measures which may help in the long term.

The government highlighted an already announced £22 billion package to help with energy bills, tax cuts and other measures and hinted at further support in future.

That includes a £150 council tax rebate available to most households and a £200 energy bills discount for everyone, which comes in the form of a loan to be repaid over five years.

But Prime Minister Johnson said the "best approach" to tackling the cost of living is to help people into work.

The rest of his plan to address the crisis focuses on a bid to grow the economy after the coronavirus pandemic.

Transport

The government wants to "simplify" the rail network and improve services for passengers by creating a new public sector body to oversee Britain's railways.

Great British Railways (GBR) will absorb state-owned infrastructure management company Network Rail and take on many functions from the Department for Transport.

GBR will "act as the single national leader of the railways", with "a clear mandate, goals and budgets set by the government, who will reserve powers of direction", the PM said.

The High Speed Rail (Crewe-Manchester) Bill also featured in the government's legislative programme, however services are not expected to start until 2035 at the earliest and 2041 at the latest.

The route includes new stations at Manchester Airport and adjacent to Manchester Piccadilly station.

The Transport Bill also features legislation to allow self-driving and remotely-operated vehicles and vessels.

The government wants to enable more "innovation" in order to provide "new choices for the public", which could include the currently restricted use of e-scooters.

Private e-scooters, which are currently banned from use on public roads and pavements, could soon be used in the UK after trials were set up in dozens of England's towns and cities.

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Energy plans

A policy capping household energy bills will continue even after 2023 when current legislation is set to run out, as set out in the Queen's Speech.

The government said the cap is the best way of protecting millions of households across the country, despite recent record rises in energy bills that happened when the price cap was in place.

The PM's energy plan centres on both the desire to achieve net-zero by 2050 and the need to completely remove any need for Russian gas and oil, following its invasion of Ukraine.

Mr Johnson said the Energy Security Bill "accelerate our transition to more secure, more affordable and cleaner homegrown energy supplies".

It focuses on paving the way for new, low-carbon technologies and growing the consumer market for electric heat pumps.

Housing reforms

A Social Housing Regulation Bill will be brought in, aimed at improving tenants' rights in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster, with beefed-up powers for the regulator.

The regulator will be able to inspect landlords and intervene when they poorly handle issues such as complaints, while new tenant satisfaction measures will be introduced so tenants can see how their landlord is performing compared to others.

Housing association tenants will be able to request information from their landlord in a similar way to how local authority landlords are subject to Freedom of Information requests.

And there will be no limit to how much the regulator can fine a landlord who falls short of the required standards.

There's also a Renters Reform Bill which will seek to abolish so-called "no fault" evictions by removing Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 but also seek to reform possession grounds for landlords, strengthening them for repeated cases of rent arrears.

It will introduce an ombudsman so disputes between private landlords and tenants can be resolved without going to court.

And a property portal will be established to help landlords understand their responsibilities and give tenants "performance indication" to hold their landlord to account.

Levelling up and saving the high street

Levelling up is the flagship policy of Prime Minister Johnson's government so there's no surprise it featured heavily in the Queen's Speech.

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill will give local leaders new powers to help rejuvenate high streets by forcing landlords to rent out empty shop units.

Other measures include the ability to make the pavement cafes which sprang up during the Covid-19 pandemic a permanent part of the town centre landscape.

During the pandemic, restaurants, pubs and bars were granted temporary powers to serve guests on pavements and new legislation will make these powers permanent to expand capacity for businesses in the hope of boosting local economies.

The new Bill of Rights

This bill will replace the Human Rights Act, which was signed in 1998 to further effect to rights and freedoms guaranteed under the European Convention on Human Rights.

According to the government, the bill will strengthen "freedom of speech" and ensure a "proper balance" between the rights of individuals and effective politics - for example, making it easier to deport foreign offenders.

Justice Secretary Dominic Raab said the Bill would "strengthen our traditions of liberty, particularly the right to free speech, while adding a healthy dose of common sense and curtailing abuses of the system".