Social change, social polarisation and income inequality in London, 1979–1993

Abstract

This paper analyses General Household Survey data for London and Great Britain from 1979 to 1993 to examine the changes in household income distribution over this period. In particular it looks at the implications of this data for theoretical claims made by Pahl and Sassen regarding social polarisation. It is argued that London has not experienced greater social polarisation, in the sense that the size of both the top and bottom income groups have not grown at the expense of the middle. Instead, what has happened is that the higher income group has grown considerably at the expense of the middle. This has, however, been accompanied by the growth of income inequality in London. Incomes at the top end have increased much faster than at the bottom. Two earner professional/managerial households have been the biggest gainers in financial terms although the proportion of households with no earner has grown most rapidly.