Things have not being going well for low- and middle-income Britain: wages flatlining, public services crumbling and, as a result, faith in mainstream politics eroding. To start turning things around, it pays to understand the country as it exists today, not as it once was or as you imagine it to be.
So, we should all pay attention to “Unsung Britain”, a major research project from my old Resolution Foundation colleagues, which aims to provide an audit of the circumstances and challenges of the poorer half of the working-age population. Their launch report already has important lessons.
First, improving health and wealth are not separate objectives. Those on low-to-middle incomes are more than five times more likely than richer people to be out of work because of ill health. When critics say the budget’s extra money for the NHS does nothing for growth, they are missing the point.
Second, poorer Britain is working. Yes, recent rising ill health has reduced employment, but the long view is that employment among low-to-middle income families is up nine percentage points since the mid-90s. There has been no rise among richer households. Contrary to many headlines, the share of poorer families in which no one is working has near halved since Tony Blair came to power (from 24% to 13%). Today, we need to improve the pay, security and volatility of people’s work.
Third, the feeling of being squeezed is real. Half of low-to-middle income families’ spending went on essentials (like food and housing) at the start of the century. Now? In part due to higher housing costs, essentials eat up £3 out of every £5. We need to build, build, build. Our social contract hasn’t delivered for millions. It’s time to understand our country, so we can change it.
• Torsten Bell is Labour MP for Swansea West and author of Great Britain? How We Get Our Future Back
