London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 31, 2025

UK wealth gap widens in pandemic as richest get £50,000 windfall

UK wealth gap widens in pandemic as richest get £50,000 windfall

Resolution Foundation finds rising house and asset prices have ‘turbo-charged’ gap between richest and poorest

Britain’s wealth gap has ballooned during the pandemic with the richest 10% gaining £50,000 on average, dwarfing increases for the poorest third of the population, according to a thinktank report.

The Resolution Foundation said wealth had increased during lockdown as a result of a lack of spending opportunities and rising house prices, but the benefits had been skewed to the richest by a ratio of more than 500 to 1.

Jack Leslie, a senior economist at the thinktank, said it was rare for wealth to increase during a recession but the impact of events during 2020 and 2021 had been to “turbo-charge” the gap between rich and poor.

The Resolution Foundation – which focuses on improving living standards for those on low and middle incomes – said the findings of the report should cause the government to rethink its decision to scrap the £20 a week increase to universal credit in September.


The report, produced in partnership with the Standard Life Foundation, found that the average household had enjoyed a windfall of £7,800 per adult during the crisis – the first time wealth has increased during a recession since the mid-1940s.

“The Covid-19 crisis has seen a highly unusual combination of a sharp reduction in economic activity, and a sharp increase in household wealth. Many families have been forced to save rather than spend during lockdowns, while house prices have continued to soar even while working hours have plummeted,” Leslie said.

Britain suffered its biggest-one year fall in output in more than 300 years in 2020 but since the start of the crisis in February 2020 total household savings had risen by £200bn, household debts (excluding credit cards) decreased by about £10bn, and house prices – which fell by an average of 22% over the previous four recessions – rose by 8%.

The thinktank report said total UK wealth had increased by £900bn to £16.5tn during the course of the pandemic, but the poorest households were more likely to have run down rather than increase their savings, and had not shared in the house price boom because they were less likely to own a home in the first place.

“As a result, the rising wealth gaps that marked pre-pandemic Britain have been turbo-charged by the crisis,” Leslie said. “With policymakers facing many tough decisions in the autumn – from protecting households as unemployment rises to paying for a decent system of social care – they can no longer afford to ignore the dominant role wealth is playing in 21st-century Britain.”


The richest fifth of households were four times as likely to have increased their savings during the crisis as the poorest fifth of households (47% versus 12%), and 2.5 times as likely to have reduced their debts. The thinktank said this reflected pandemic-induced spending reductions being concentrated among those on higher incomes.

According to the report, adults in the richest 10% of households now have wealth of £1.4m each following the £50,000 increase during the crisis, while the poorest 30% gained an average of just £86 per adult in additional wealth.

The wealth gap between the average and the wealthiest 10% of households had increased by £44,000 during the crisis (after a £350,000 increase between 2006-08 and 2016-18), the Resolution Foundation said. During the same period, the gap between the average and the poorest 10th of households had also grown, by £7,000 (a bigger increase than seen during the whole 2006-08 and 2016-18 decade).

Mubin Haq, the chief executive of Standard Life Foundation, said: “The rise in wealth for those at the bottom has been paltry even taking into account the £20 a week increase in universal credit payments to those on the lowest incomes. Wednesday’s announcement of the cut to UC risks further widening the wealth divide which ballooned during the pandemic.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
×