ben, sounds like you are living in the days when the sun never set on the empire.
Post 2007 banking crash, the UK was hardly top of the tables when it came to average standard of living and most other economic barometers. I would be interested to know which countries you considered our peers, and those who ARE in better shape than the UK right now? France, err nope, Germany, err nope, so we get to countries like Switzerland and other unshakable European countries and we are not comparing like for like.
The US is screwed, big time, whilst money in general is becoming worthless, the dollar is becoming the leper currency. They will lose AAA before long, once QE and it's effects end, we could be in for some real fireworks.
Of course there was a c*ck up with the selling of the gold, not half as calamitous as Major / Lamont going toe to toe with George Soros
As for the sweeping statement about homelessness, not easy to measure but it doesn't take a quantum leap to convert the house repossession rates of the early 90's into something half meaningful in the context. For the record the repossession rate of approx 50,000+ per annum early 90's makes the current numbers seem insignificant. There will be figures available somewhere from the DSS et al, time prevents looking for this stuff.
It hardly fills one with confidence to learn the growth stimulated by Gordon Brown to get the country out of recession has been derailed so soon by the new triple axis of evil; Cameron, Clegg and Osbourne.
