UK income inequality widens after pandemic dip

British income inequality rose to a three-year high in the 2021/22 financial year after a dip during the coronavirus pandemic, but remains below peaks seen in the run-up to the 2008 financial crisis, official figures showed on Wednesday.

by | 25 Jan, 2023

The median British household had after-tax income – including wages, cash benefits and investment income – of 32,300 pounds ($39,800) in the year to the end of March 2022, 0.6% less than the year before after adjusting for inflation.

Median incomes for the poorest fifth of households dropped by 3.8% after inflation in the 12 months to the end of March 2022 to 14,500 pounds while those for the richest fifth rose by 1.6% to 66,000 pounds, the Office for National Statistics said.

Inequality dropped during the pandemic as high earners suffered bigger percentage drops in earnings, while the poorest benefited from a temporary increase in benefits which was withdrawn in 2021/22.

Read more at Reuters

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