Stretched Britons begin stampede for stamps

I consider the rise in postage to be one of the most honest measures of overall inflation - ``The price rise - which will raise the cost of sending a letter first class by a huge 30 percent to 60 pence ($0.96), and the slower, second class by 39 percent to 50 pence - has sparked alarm across the country where consumers are facing slow wage growth and high inflation.''