Inequalities In Wealth Gross Domestic Product (GDP) measures the wealth or income of a country. It is calculated by adding together the total value of goods and services produced annually. The GDP per head is total GDP divided by the population. UK GDP: £1.069 trillion (8 th in the world) in 2005 UK GDP per head: £17,698 (20 th in the world) in 2005

Wealth in the UK How wealth is held in the UK: Housing – 35% State pensions – 26% Private pensions – 22% Savings – 17% The main sources of income in the UK: Employment Pensions Benefits Self employed income Rent, dividends interest Others

Majority of Wealth in the UK Owned by Pensioners The majority of wealth in the UK is owned by those near the age of retirement is because these people have saved throughout their life. These people may also have state pensions, occupational pensions or other benefits approved by the government. Elderly people gain benefits such as cheap heating in the winter and schemes that help may life easier and more economic.

Social Exclusion Social exclusion is complex to explain because it has many causes. Social exclusion is the result of the big economic, industrial and social changes which have taken place over the last twenty to thirty years and the government policies that either were partly responsible for these changes or were a response to them. These changes caused or contributed to long-term or repeated unemployment, family instability, social isolation and the decline of neighbourhood and social networks.