How Do We Fix This Mess? - 9781444757125

The BBC's business editor explains in his characteristically straightforward way how the world got itself into the current economic mess—and offers a map of what needs to be fixed, in order that we might get out of it

The record-breaking growth between 1992 and 2008 wasn't the economic miracle that it seemed. It was based on a number of dangerous illusions—most notably that it didn't matter that the UK and U.S. year after year consumed more than they earned. But we couldn't go on increasing our indebtedness forever. The financial crash of 2007/8 and the subsequent economic slump in much of the west was the moment when we realized we had borrowed more than we could afford to repay. So who got it wrong? Bankers, investors, and regulators? And were they greedy, stupid, or asleep? What was the role of government? And what part did we, as consumers, play in all this? How do we get through this difficult period of transition to a more sustainable economy, one based on investment and exports, rather than on borrowing and consumption? With probing lucidity, Robert Peston takes us step-by-step toward a common sense way to fix this mess.