In Robert Peston’s new book, he explains in his characteristically straightforward way how the world got itself into the current economic mess—and how we might get out of it. The
record-breaking unbroken 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 US 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 the same probing lucidity he brought to Who Runs Britain?, Robert Peston takes us step-by-step towards a common
sense way to fix this mess.
