More ‘Aftershock’ resources

The ‘Aftershock’ section of the BBC website continues to come up with good stuff about causes and effects of the credit crisis and recession.

If you missed the first part of their 3-part documentary series ‘The Love of Money’ you can still watch it on BBC i-player, and it is well worth doing so as it examines the collapse of Lehman Brothers and the consequences for the world’s economy.

Now they have two interactive features examining the way in which national debt has built up during the bail-outs covered by the programme, one focussing on the UK economy, looking at how a total of £1.5trn, or 94% of GDP, has been spent. One of the slides here estimates that in 2014 taxes will have to cover £60bn in interest payments on that debt alone, equivalent to the entire budget for education for the year, or over 50% of the spending on the NHS.

The second looks at the breakdown of bail-out debt around the world, adding up to £10.8trn, and includes an analysis of shrinkage in the global economy and the wealth effect on homeowners and pensioners.

Both could be useful not only in reminding A2 students of the events of the last year and their potential impact on the economy but also introducing AS students to the macroeconomic aspects of The Economic Problem, as resources are going to be very scarce indeed in the next few years, and choices about which needs and wants should be satisfied will be key economic and political debates.