Every generation has it's ;fair share of scroungers and benefit recipients, the only difference these days is in the scale of benefits available, the number of eligible recipients as reflected in Government spending as a % of GDP has risen since WW2 from a low of 38% in 1948 to an average of 40% now rising to 42% last year.
Whilst deregulation of the banks created some issues, it 's the Government policy of low inflation and low interest rates that makes available credit/finance facilities affordable. Low interest rates was a pre requisite for the Government to lead up to and remove mortgage interest tax relief completely by 2000. Had interest rates remained high, it acted as a barrier to loans and credit in general due to affordability and would have made it harder to lower then remove completely mortgage interest tax relief.(with the exception of buy to let).
Cheap finance with long repayment terms, widespread use of credit cards,, all contributed to the increase in personal indebtedness, The increase in the available money in circulation thru finance and credit expansion allowed demand and the economy to expand to satisfy the new found consumerism generated by it. For example where would house prices be today,' if the interest rates and deposit requirements of the 60s/70s and 80s remained in place today. and take Housing Benefit out of the equation and I would suggest house prices would be much lower, had the UK population remained relatively stable.
Whilst many consider the baby boomers the most fortunate generation, we had to survive the massive decline in the UK industrial landscape and resultant lack of career opportunities and available jobs in those very important early years of our working lives, Maybe that strong very Victorian working ethic most of us demonstrated, has been increasingly diminished over time, as the cost of living and much higher expected standard of living cannot so easily be met by earnings and greater reliance on State aid eg Housing Benefit becomes the norm.
As the State increases it's taxation of all areas of growth/wealth generation and transfers between individuals , it will get to the stage eg Universal Credit, where the State will control (tax) all sources of income and in effect a prelude at some point in the future to giving us all an allowance to live on, making us totally reliant upon the State and not ourselves for our way of living.
As clearly the State knows best how to spend and prioritise what your money is spent on, than us mere mortals do.
