ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on themes rather than giving a blow by blow account of eventualities. Economists and economic historians have given a great deal of attention to differences in income levels between nations. The general conclusion is that development cannot commence until a backward country acquires certain minimal levels of economic organisation, educational attainment, and political and social stability. The chapter outlines the process of economic change in Britain during this century. By 1914 the proportion of employment in agriculture and manufacturing had reached peak levels and subsequent employment growth was in services. The persistent decline in the relative value of sterling matched the diminution in Britain’s influence and prestige. Britain entered the 1990s with an enhanced awareness of its relative backwardness but without any clear or emergent consensus regarding possible solutions. The chapter explores the vicissitudes of historical change and highlights the fundamentals of continuity.
