Friday, June 27, 2014

More Inequality

Still the evidence that the rich are growing richer rolls in.

Britain's top earners have pulled away from all other income groups, with the top 20% of households increasing their disposable incomes last year while all others fell.

The top fifth of earners saw their annual disposable income rise by £940, while the bottom fifth lost £381 and all other groups lost around £250.

 Excluding retired households, disposable incomes fell overall by 6.3% on average, or £2,100, much further han the £1,200 fall for all households. The bottom fifth of non-retired households saw a 2% fall in incomes

General secretary Frances O'Grady said: "The return of rising inequality should worry everyone as it suggests that nothing has been learned from the financial crisis despite the huge fall in living standards that so many people are still experiencing."

Duncan Exley, director of the anti-poverty charity, the Equality Trust said the figures showed the government's main measure of income inequality, the Gini coefficient, had returned to its 2009/10 level. The Gini for disposable household income is 33.2 for 2012/13, up from 32.3 in 2011/12. He said: "By George Osborne's own measure, inequality has now risen to the same level as before his government came to power. There is now overwhelming evidence that the UK's unusually high inequality is damaging our health, society and economy.”

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