The Independent seeks donations to fund journalists covering reproductive rights, climate change and Big Tech while keeping reporting free of paywalls. Weak economic growth and a fall in workforce participation are posing an acute challenge to the UK, driven by an ageing population and rising long-term sickness. Official data show the share of economically active 16-to-64-year-olds has dropped since the Covid pandemic, leaving the UK an outlier among advanced economies. Mental health has become the most common reason for inactivity. Data caveats include low survey response rates and potential participation bias among the economically inactive.
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
An ageing workforce coupled with a rise in the number of people defined as long-term sick means the UK's productivity is suffering, he told a gathering of fiscal policymakers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. According to official data, the percentage of 16- to 64-year-olds who are economically active in Britain has dropped since the Covid pandemic, making the country an outlier among advanced economies.
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