The UK lacks consensus on how to address wealth inequality. As economist Paul Johnson outlines in Challenging Inequalities (2026):
“Anyone can come up with suggestions to tax the rich or give greater benefits to the poor. Equally, anyone can construct persuasive arguments against such policies. We are not lacking for policy ideas… we are lacking a much more fundamental sense of direction and consensus over what matters, what the effect of different policies would be, and what trade-offs we need to make.”
A report that we are publishing today, Hidden Wiring, argues that this lack of consensus is partly a consequence of how wealth inequality is framed. Rather than treating “wealth inequality” as a single policy problem, it proposes understanding its harms through three distinct but mutually reinforcing aspects: extreme wealth concentration; lack of wealth; and the wealth gap across the distribution. Each aspect has different drivers, consequences and policy levers. When policymakers and advocates conflate them, proposed solutions can target different challenges, fuelling political gridlock. This problem is compounded by the absence of a dedicated UK government institution responsible for monitoring wealth inequality, developing the evidence base and assessing policy responses.
The report outlines this policy problem, and introduces a framework to disaggregate wealth inequality into the three aspects. The purpose is to establish a common starting point for meaningful policy deliberation. As a case study, the framework is tested against the harms evidenced in the Fairness Foundation’s Wealth Gap Risk Register. The report then critically examines the framework, drawing on informal consultation with experts to identify areas of convergence and divergence.
The report was researched and written by Florence Guyomar, who recently completed a Masters in Public Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford that included a two month policy placement with the Fairness Foundation. It is the first in a series of planned Fairness Foundation outputs in 2026/27 looking in detail at different aspects of wealth inequality, their consequences and the potential policy responses.
For anyone at Labour Party Conference today, we’re running an event on this topic at 3pm at the Museum of Liverpool in partnership with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, with Liam Byrne MP, Will Hutton and Sarah Kerr - find out more and sign up here.