--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Britain is a textbook case of how growing…" description: "\"Britain is a textbook case of how growing inequality leads to economic crisis. The years before the crash were marked by a sharp rise in remortgaging a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dca/frances-o-grady-15069_balance_britain-is-a-textbook-case-of-how-growin_2653398.jpg" --- # Britain is a textbook case of how growing inequality leads… ![“Britain is a textbook case of how growing inequality leads to economic crisis. The years before the crash were marked by a sharp rise in remortgaging and the growth of 0% balance transfer credit cards. By 2008 the UK had the highest ratio of household debt to GDP of any major economy.” quote by Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dca/frances-o-grady-15069_balance_britain-is-a-textbook-case-of-how-growin_2653398.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dca/frances-o-grady-15069_balance_britain-is-a-textbook-case-of-how-growin_2653398.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dca/frances-o-grady-15069_balance_britain-is-a-textbook-case-of-how-growin_2653398.jpg) > “Britain is a textbook case of how growing inequality leads to economic crisis. The years before the crash were marked by a sharp rise in remortgaging and the growth of 0% balance transfer credit cards. By 2008 the UK had the highest ratio of household debt to GDP of any major economy.” [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rising inequality fuels debt spikes, leading to economic crisis in Britain. **In simple terms:** Inequality drives debt and crisis. Key Takeaway Address inequality to prevent financial collapse. Themes economics inequality debt Mood analytical urgent Type economic commentary journalistic When to use this quote - government policy - financial education - media reporting Key Concepts macro‑economics policy analysis financial risk Questions to Reflect On - What policies reduce household debt? - How does inequality fuel financial instability? A Different Perspective Solutions require political will and public support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Balance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) [Britain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/britain/) [Credit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/credit/) [Crisis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crisis/) [Economic crisis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economic-crisis/) [Economics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economics/) [Economy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economy/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Inequality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inequality/) ## Related quotes > [Decreasing economic growth and increasing inequality leads to increased uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-bloom/decreasing-economic-growth-and-increasing-inequality-leads-to/) [Nicholas Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-bloom/) > [Many of our problems are home-grown. Gordon Brown regularly advised the rest of the world to follow his British model of growth. But the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-cable/many-of-our-problems-are-home-grown-gordon-brown-regularly-advised/) [Vince Cable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-cable/) > [The day I get a credit card with a negative real interest rate is the day we can compare government debt to household debt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-day-i-get-a-credit-card-with-a-negative-real-interest-rate-is-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“By the end of 2007, UK household debt had reached 177% of disposable income, mortgage debt 132%. Martin Wolf wrote in the Financial Times in September 2008”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-skidelsky/by-the-end-of-2007-uk-household-debt-had-reached-177-of-disposable/) [Robert Skidelsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-skidelsky/) > [A possibility is that we see more and more leverage, and credit-to-GDP ratios rise once more to even higher levels; eventually the banking systems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-m-taylor/a-possibility-is-that-we-see-more-and-more-leverage-and-credit-to-gdp/) [Alan M. Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-m-taylor/) > [I've got a chart here that shows our debt-to-GDP ratio. And while we did run deficits in the past, we now number our debt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kirk/i-ve-got-a-chart-here-that-shows-our-debt-to-gdp-ratio-and-while-we/) [Mark Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kirk/) > [We have never in human history seen a run-up in credit of the kind we have just witnessed in advanced economies since 1970, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-m-taylor/we-have-never-in-human-history-seen-a-run-up-in-credit-of-the-kind-we/) [Alan M. Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-m-taylor/) > [The U.S. and, to a certain extent, countries in Europe as well, have experienced growing inequality within their population for decades - a small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-bloom/the-u-s-and-to-a-certain-extent-countries-in-europe-as-well-have/) [Nicholas Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-bloom/) > [The burning issue of our time is the growing inequality in income and wealth in our country, and it's got to be addressed. We've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-harkin/the-burning-issue-of-our-time-is-the-growing-inequality-in-income-and/) [Tom Harkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-harkin/) > [Growing inequality is a huge problem, and of course is intimately connected to xenophobia and racism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-hochschild/growing-inequality-is-a-huge-problem-and-of-course-is-intimately/) [Adam Hochschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-hochschild/) > [It's an irony that growing inequality could mean more money for philanthropy. In the US, quite a few of the ultra-rich have taken to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoff-mulgan/it-s-an-irony-that-growing-inequality-could-mean-more-money-for/) [Geoff Mulgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoff-mulgan/) > [Too much dependence on the market has led to growing inequality and poverty, and too much stress on nature has exacerbated the problem of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fumio-kishida/too-much-dependence-on-the-market-has-led-to-growing-inequality-and/) [Fumio Kishida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fumio-kishida/) > [Placing a time limit on affirmative action would in all likelihood blunt the orchestrated politics of controversy that now bedevils it. And thinking about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orlando-patterson/placing-a-time-limit-on-affirmative-action-would-in-all-likelihood/) Orlando Patterson > [I see three forces militating in favor of growing inequality: increasing measurement of worker value added, automation through smart software, and globalization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/i-see-three-forces-militating-in-favor-of-growing-inequality/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [There is growing inequality. The families of the all-powerful Ministers are getting richer. The poor and hard-working Belizeans are getting poorer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/said-musa/there-is-growing-inequality-the-families-of-the-all-powerful/) [Said Musa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/said-musa/) ## More by Frances O'Grady > [The implication that women work for pin money and can manage on a worse pension, presumably by relying on husbands, riles. But even more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/the-implication-that-women-work-for-pin-money-and-can-manage-on-a/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) > [I like independent films... European films. I do go and see popular films as well because my kids force me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/i-like-independent-films-european-films-i-do-go-and-see-popular-films/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) > [I do know what it's like to worry about bills, I do know what it's like to worry about even finding a child-minder, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/i-do-know-what-it-s-like-to-worry-about-bills-i-do-know-what-it-s/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) > [Would I describe myself as new Labour? I'm Labour, organised Labour. 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Kennedy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/rfk-was-a-compelling-figure-because-he-was-willing-to-challenge-his/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) > [Never has a strong, responsible trade union movement been so needed. With austerity policies biting hard and with no evidence that they are working,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/never-has-a-strong-responsible-trade-union-movement-been-so-needed/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) > [The difficulty for the Government is there's this ideological straitjacket of the market will provide, let the market rip and everything will work out...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/the-difficulty-for-the-government-is-there-s-this-ideological/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) > [Governments of all stripes want to deliver growth and rebalance their economies now that they have learned the hard way that, left to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/governments-of-all-stripes-want-to-deliver-growth-and-rebalance-their/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) > [I am a feminist and I have no problems being called that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/i-am-a-feminist-and-i-have-no-problems-being-called-that/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) > [It is not natural or inevitable that half the world goes hungry; that the freedom of markets trumps protection of the planet; or that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-o-grady/it-is-not-natural-or-inevitable-that-half-the-world-goes-hungry-that/) [Frances O'Grady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) [Explore all 44 Frances O'Grady quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-o-grady/) ## More Balance quotes > [Balance suggests a perfect equilibrium. 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I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [she got a reputation for an easy smile and a sharp tongue, and using one to balance the other, she seemed friendly but distant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/she-got-a-reputation-for-an-easy-smile-and-a-sharp-tongue-and-using/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [Life's unfairness is not irrevocable; we can help balance the scales for others, if not always for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/life-s-unfairness-is-not-irrevocable-we-can-help-balance-the-scales/) [Hubert H. Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) > [“We don't need to strive towards balance, we rather need to work on the obstacles that are preventing the natural flow of balance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-alebraheem/we-don-t-need-to-strive-towards-balance-we-rather-need-to-work-on-the/) [A.A. Alebraheem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-alebraheem/) > [I think that kind of balance comes with the process of growing together as a band, the Little Dragon. We love to write, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukimi-nagano/i-think-that-kind-of-balance-comes-with-the-process-of-growing/) [Yukimi Nagano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukimi-nagano/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. 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Five hundred miles an hour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanni/when-it-comes-down-to-music-i-have-no-balance-i-am-100-percent-it-is/) [Yanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yanni/) [Browse all 5,166 Balance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Britain is a textbook case of how growing inequality leads to economic crisis. The years before the crash were marked by a sharp rise in remortgaging and the growth of 0% balance transfer credit cards. 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