
Why should we care about inequality? What has happened to inequality over recent decades? And can government do anything about it?
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We see inequalities all the time, whether at the school gates, the hospital, when travelling round the country and definitely when turning on the news.
But why should we care about inequality? What has happened to inequality over recent decades? And can government do anything about it?
We speak to Professor Sir Angus Deaton, an economist who is an expert on inequality and leads the IFS-Deaton Review, Debra Satz, a philosopher and Dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences at Stanford University, and Robert Joyce, Deputy Director at IFS and panel member of the IFS-Deaton Review.
Zooming In: discussion questions
Every week, we share a set of questions designed for A Level economics students to discuss, written by teacher Will Haines.
- What is the difference between income and wealth inequality?
- Explain why inequality of opportunity and inequality of outcome are connected?
- Evaluate one redistributive policy and one market policy the government could adopt to address income or wealth inequality in society.
Host

Director
Paul has been the Director of the IFS since 2011. He is also currently visiting professor in the Department of Economics at University College London.
Participants

Robert Joyce

Research Associate Princeton University
Angus is the Dwight D Eisenhower Professor of Economics and International Affairs, Emeritus and Senior Scholar at Princeton University.

Research Associate Stanford University
Debra is a Research Associate of the IFS and a Professor and the Dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences at Stanford University.
Podcast details
- DOI
- 10.1920/pd.ifs.2023.0012
- Publisher
- Institute for Fiscal Studies
Suggested citation
. (2023). When and why should we care about inequality? [Podcast] Institute for Fiscal Studies. Available at: https://ifs.org.uk/articles/when-and-why-should-we-care-about-inequality (accessed: 20 May 2025).
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