UKC

I'm finding this a bit strange. 

https://www.retirementlivingstandards.org.uk/

Indicates that the past couple of years of high inflation in the essentials of life mean that one needs 20% more retirement income for a comfortable retirement. 

And yet at the same time and presumably for the same reason annuities seem to have leapt in value so retirement has not become harder to get to. Actually it's just as close if not closer. 

Does anyone understand why this is? And can I expect annuity rates to drop with inflation leaving my with increased cost of living but not leaving the annuity rates at the same level? 

Aren’t annuity rates fixed at the time of purchase and subject to change based on current interest rates? If you buy an annuity now you’ll be ok but if the interest rate drops again, and you need to buy, you’ll be knackered?

Well unfortunately I'm 53 so I can't buy an annuity now. 

For many people with defined contribution pension funds a flexible draw down pot is better than an annuity. Maybe not for everybody but definitely worth investigating and making an informed choice 

To be honest I was more piggy backing your question to see if my understanding was correct. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable will be along as a if this is a once a decade buying opportunity I ought to start thinking about it (when I turn 55).  
Edit: This seems to back up what I said and also says you can buy an annuity and continue to pay into a pension. You just need to decide whether the increase in income from buying now (at a higher rate) covers the increase in pension you’d when older at a probably/possibly lower rate.

 https://moneyweek.com/personal-finance/pensions/605406/buy-an-annuity

Depending on how old you are it might be 57

You probably know this already but when you buy an annuity, you are buying  a fixed annual income rather than a 'rate'. When you buy it, you can also get the annual income to factor in a chosen annual rate of increase, which you can select in advance. You don't need to request this unless you want to but if you do, it [obviously] means your guaranteed monthly income will be reduced accordingly. You can also buy a Fixed Term annuity which is another option, for example to tide you over till your state pension starts.

This is a useful place to start and you can run some hypothetical figures through to see what sort of annual income you can expect. Don't forget to factor in any tax you may be liable for:

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/pensions-and-retirement/taking-your-pensi...