The Important Thing About Income Inequality is What You Do about it – Exploring the Path to Reducing Income Inequality in Aotearoa New Zealand

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While the tents of the Occupy protesters may be moved on, the issues of income inequality will not be pushed to one side so easily. The backdrop of massive international social and economic disparities shape the context for the particular challenges we face in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Deputy Prime Minister Bill English has said that the important thing about income inequality is what we actually do about it. This lecture looks at our current situation and asks – what (if anything) is being done about inequality right now and what more we could do. Can we find a path to a social and political consensus on income inequality and what might that path look like?

Paul Barber from NZCSS will address this question in a lecture to the Fabian Society on February 28th. You can register here.

Comments

#3 Paul Barber 2012-03-06 22:23

Thanks Jim for sharing the link about the German situation. I lived there for a decade until 2003 and watched the rise of neo-liberal thinking in their employment and welfare policies, which have been chipping away at much more securely achored social welfare and worker protections. They are joining the trend to unequally shared benefits of any economic growth.

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#2 Jim Whitman 2012-02-28 20:54

Hi
I'm sorry that I missed out the URL for Marshall Auerback's article on Germany http://www.alternet.org/economy/154231/german_economic_striving_at_the_expense_of_workers_and_neighbors_will_backfire?page=entire
Thanks again,
Jim

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#1 Jim Whitman 2012-02-28 20:26

Hi and thanks for last night's presentation. I mentioned during discussion that Germany had problems - here's a recent short article by on this.

And as a matter of interest, some of the OECD figures shown included the US. Here's something published on Steve Keen's website by Salvatore Babones on the death of the American middle class http://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/2012/02/28/the-death-of-the-great-american-middle-class/

And this by Steve Keen looks at employment in Australia and the economic consequences of housing asset bubbles http://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/2012/02/16/which-way-australian-unemployment/

There's a lot more that should be shared in order to fully inform our debate in New Zealand, not least the impact of the GFC and its causes.

Thanks,
Jim

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