Today financial capability charity Credit Action releases its Debt Statistics, giving an overview of the financial situation in the UK. The latest figures suggest that debt levels remain stubborn, with some households finding it increasingly difficult to get by. Headline figures: £53,995: average household debt (including mortgages) in March up from £53,994 in February £5,980: average household debt (excluding mortgages) in March up from £5,978 in February £164 million of interest was paid every day on personal debt in March £1.585 … Continue reading →

Debt Because 97% of the money supply currently consists of bank deposits, and these deposits are created by banks making loans, in order for there to be money, someone must be in debt. In the current monetary system, the absence of a state-issued, debt-free electronic money supply means that the money needed for the economy to function must be borrowed from the banking sector. In addition, any attempt by the public to repay debt in any significant amount has the … Continue reading →

Fran Boait, Positive Money’s Campaign and Operations Manager, presented the main reasons why we should care about the way money is created at the Positive Money conference ‘Modernising Money’ in January 2013. More about the ‘Modernising Money’ conference 2013 and more videos here.

The National Health Executive published an article entitled  “The Elephant in the Room: Economic Determinants of Health” in which the authors Richard Shelley and Sara McCafferty of Newcastle University argue that economic determinants of health have an equally if not more profound impact on individual and population health than the more widely discussed social determinants of health. They discuss the creation and allocation of money, and how it impacts health through debt, inequality and economic crises. Here is an extract: Few people … Continue reading →

Anti-poverty campaigners launched a new campaign against food speculation today. The campaign “Bankers Anonymous” by the World Development Movement asks people to take five steps to help win new rules to prevent banks driving food prices up through financial speculation. Here is more info from WDM: Betting on food prices is a lucrative business for many in the city. The World Development Movement estimates that Goldman Sachs has made £250 million from food speculation in the last year, while Barclays has … Continue reading →