IEA Communications and Marketing Assistant Kieran Neild- Ali sits down with Professor Forrest Capie to discuss his latest IEA research paper ‘UK Debt in Perspective’ which he co-authored with Professor Geoffrey Wood. 

The paper gives historical context to the current UK debt figures, which currently stand at around 100 per cent of national income. The authors find that from the beginning of the industrial revolution to the present day, the UK debt-to-income ratio has mostly been at the current level, or higher. At the same time, living standards have been transformed for the better.