The UK risks following in America’s footsteps with self-inflicted deaths among the middle aged, a leading economist has warned.
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What’s behind the story?
It was Deaton, who won the Nobel prize for economics four years ago, and his partner Anne Case, both of Princeton University, who coined the term “deaths of despair” in 2015 after discovering the trend on a much larger scale in the US. Now he “suggests that something similar is taking place on the other side of the Atlantic”, says The Economist.
In the US, Case and Deaton laid some of the blame on the erosion of traditional social structures such as trade unions, the church and marriage.
Speaking on Tuesday, Deaton said: “I think that people getting rich is a good thing, especially when it brings prosperity to others.
“But the other kind of getting rich, ‘taking’ rather than ‘making’, rent-seeking rather than creating, enriching the few at the expense of the many, taking the free out of free markets, is making a mockery of democracy. In that world, inequality and misery are intimate companions.”
Why will we be talking about this for years to come?
The figures are part of a five-year inequality review launched by the IFS and chaired by Deaton. He and his team will be researching in more detail what has caused the trend in the UK, as well as recommending solutions to tackle the much wider problem of inequality.
If someone you are worried about expresses suicidal feelings, you or they should contact a GP or NHS 111. You can also call the Samaritans free on 116 123 for confidential, 24-hour support, or call Mind, the mental health charity, on 0300 123 3393.