Living or surviving? Britain’s poorest eking a living, richest splash out on leisure

Last Updated: December 11, 2015By

[Image: Jorge Silva/Reuters.]

Britain’s poorest households spend almost 50 percent of their income on the bare necessities of food and housing. On average, the richest spend more than four times as much on recreation, new research shows.

Although spending has grown across the board for the second year running, indicating the economy is showing signs of recovery, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures point to a stark disparity between the spending habits of the rich and poor.

The bottom 10 percent of households had just £188.50 to spend per week, while the top 10 percent shelled out £1,433.40. The UK’s richest spent a proportionately greater amount on recreation, cars and holidays.

Resolution Foundation chief economist Matthew Whittaker explained: “This reflects the unavoidable and sizeable costs associated with housing and food that all households face.

“As a result, poorer households spend a much higher share of their income overall and allocate far more of their spending to these essentials.”

“Disproportionate increases in the costs of many essentials over the last decade or so have meant lower-income households facing higher inflation levels than the headline rate, compounding the squeeze on their incomes.”

Source: Living or surviving? Britain’s poorest eking a living, richest splash out on leisure — RT UK

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One Comment

  1. mrmarcpc December 14, 2015 at 4:03 pm - Reply

    Nothing ever changes does it!

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