George Osborne in a recent speech, mentioned a mindblowing fact brought to attention by Mrs Merkel recently.
I can hardly get my head around this.
Europe accounts for 7% of the World population, 25% of the World's economy and 50% of Global spending on social welfare.
It's patently obvious that this is unsustainable even now but certainly in the years to come.
(The UK Govt are not really facing up to this - e.g. now guaranteeing absurdly unaffordable future commitments on Pensions for example. The UK Govt doesn't even have the balls to cut bus passes, free TV licences, winter fuel allowances to affluent pensioners).
Falling standards of living are going to be a fact of life and the fall will be permanent.
The ascendant countries in the World, now making most of the goods the World consumes, will increasingly attain, through inevitable economic mechanisms, a situation in which they receive a fair share of the 'cake'.
Europe, UK and the USA cannot expect to be able to borrow money from emergent nations to fund this indulgence indefinitely - it's just not gonna happen. (Half of the UK's current deficit is explained by interest payments even at the amazingly low rates ruling now).
IMO changes are on the way - sure as night follows day !
