Ageing Population
An ageing population brings with it many large issues which can then compound and cause a downwards spiral.
Key points:
- As more of the population reaches ages beyond what historically was possible, society will become more and more driven by these demographics. If democratic society, and therefore policy, is driven by what is best for these groups, what effect will this have on policy for the working class (taxpayers, etc.).
- The same government revenue stream will have to fund health and social care, and therefore there will have to be cuts to other parts of the budget, or tax rises.
- We attempt to offset this shift by bringing in young labour from outside the country (immigration) but if this is unskilled it can put even greater strain on an already fragile set of institutions.
- We need to increase natural fertility now so that in 20 years we have new workers supporting the cycle, and this can only come by paying attention to what the young adults need, which is more time and better future prospects (home ownership) so that they can feel more comfortable with the demands of bringing a new generation into being.
- Historically only 1 adult in the house worked and families were closer (distance) so this made it easier to allow childcare. Now both adults often work to get the same opportunities (home ownership, other necessities). We don’t want to return to the same gender norms, but we need to provide a way that parents together can more easily find time and money for things that are important (a 4 day workweek?).
Highest Level of Poverty in Children
How can 30% of children be in poverty?
Figure 14 collected from 1 shows the stark demographic changes in poverty.
Footnotes
-
Bourquin, Pascale, Mike Brewer, and Thomas Wernham. ‘Trends in Income and Wealth Inequalities’. Oxford Open Economics 3, no. Supplement_1 (1 July 2024): i103–46. https://doi.org/10.1093/ooec/odad100. ↩