A discussion between Ian and Tim, a long-standing friend, about wealth distribution in the UK. The topic meanders its way through various taxes and benefits and concludes that the current system is wholly broken.
Links:
Peat Bogs
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/02/21/headway/peat-carbon-climate-change.html
Who Owns England?
https://whoownsengland.org/
Income tax rates and allowances
https://www.gov.uk/income-tax-rates
National Insurance rates and allowances
https://www.gov.uk/browse/tax/national-insurance
Inheritance tax rates and allowances
https://www.gov.uk/browse/tax/inheritance-tax
Hierarchy of Needs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow%27s_hierarchy_of_needs
The wealth calculation I referenced was £14tn total wealth divided by a population of around 70 million, which is around £200,000 average wealth per person, not the £280,000 I referenced in the talk, which was likely due to using somewhat different numbers. For a family of 4, that means they should have a combined wealth of some £800,000 if they have the average.
Table 2.14 of the ONS data shows, though, that individuals have a huge range of personal wealth, with 10% of the UK population having less than £20,000, another 14% having between £20,000 and £85,000, and a further 13% having more than £85,000 and less than £200,000. This means that 37% of individuals in the UK have less than the average wealth figure, some considerably so. Conversely, some 40% of the population is fortunate enough to individually own at least £500,000 of assets.
I misremembered Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs as Markov’s Hierarchy of Needs. Correct link is posted above. A good summary diagram is available here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow%27s_hierarchy_of_needs#/media/File:Maslow’s_Hierarchy_of_Needs2.svg
