La spirale de la dette des particuliers anglais
vonric | 19 novembre, 2006 18:51
Je parlais déjà au mois de mai dernier de l'endettement des particuliers anglais.
Je signale ici deux articles publiés par The Independent le 27 Septembre:
UK borrowers account for one third of unsecured debt in western Europe
On average, a Briton has twice the debt of a European
Total consumer debt in the UK is at a record £1.3 trillion
New debt last year came to an unprecedented £215bn
Citizens Advice faced 1.25 million new debt cases last year - the figure is rising
The boom in unsecured lending has boosted total consumer debt, including mortgages, to almost £1.3trn, close to three times the level of borrowing in 1997, when Labour came to power.
Alice Douglas, 42, writer: "I used every credit card I could get. At one point, I had 10 different credit cards with £8,000 on most of them, so that my debt was up to £60,000. It was all about to collapse until my mortgage company valued my property, which has massively increased in price.
"I still have about £30,000 on my credit cards, but I've just learned to juggle them. Once you've got them, there's too much temptation and you get used to a lifestyle where you want to have lots of things. We used to be happy with a £60 television set, but now we spend £1,500 on a 38-inch LCD.
"It's a gamble but it could pay off. If you're shrewd, you can use it to your advantage. My credit rating is very good because I borrow a lot but I'm able to make my payments. It used to stress me out but now I think, if I lose everything, it wouldn't be the end of the world."
Mr Blair's financial juggling act is being performed in almost every household in the land. Since Labour came to power, Britain's debt has ballooned almost threefold to £1.27trn.
This looks healthy, unless of course house prices crash or interest rates - which have already gone up 40 per cent in the past three years - go through the roof.
Were that to happen it would be pretty disastrous. Families would lose their homes, leading to a drop in spending on the high street, in turn triggering a surge in unemployment and a potential banking crisis.
The Bank of England may find the debt mountain makes it harder to set the right interest rate to tackle inflation.
=> exactement ce que je disais : CQFD !
