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Bust

The Economics of Population Decline
Brief Description
We are entering an era of population decline across the developed world – and beyond. Few have given serious thought to what this might mean economically. Will an ageing society and dwindling population be easily accommodated, or strike at the very heart of our prosperity? Paul... Read More
Format: Hardback
$5999
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We are entering an era of population decline across the developed world – and beyond. Few have given serious thought to what this might mean economically. Will an ageing society and dwindling population be easily accommodated, or strike at the very heart of our prosperity?

Paul Morland and Philip Pilkington argue that the consequences of the coming demographic upheaval will be economically devastating. All of the assumptions of economists – that a world of above-replacement birth rates and gentle annual population growth could be taken for granted – are being upended. Once, economics drove population changes, but now demography is the most fundamental force shaping our economic future. Bust addresses everything from labour and capital markets to housing and the welfare state, showing the profoundly worrying consequences of a shrinking working-age population and an ageing society. Unless we take radical action to bolster birth rates, we face a future of falling living standards, high inflation and low growth.

This book shines a penetrating light on one of the most ominous – and least understood – economic and social challenges of the twenty-first century. No-one who reads it will look upon public policy or the future of our society in the same way again.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781509572533

Publisher: Polity Press

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 12 November 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Polity Press

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 15.0mm

Width: 161.0mm

Height: 235.0mm

Weight: 680g

Pages: 240

About the Author

Paul Morland is one of the world's leading demographers. He has been an Associate Research Fellow at Birkbeck, University of London, and a Senior Member at St Antony's College, University of Oxford. His previous books include The Human Tide and No One Left.

Philip Pilkington is a macroeconomist and investment professional. He writes regularly for UnHerd, The Spectator, The New York Post, and American Affairs. He is co-host of the popular geopolitics podcast Multipolarity. His most recent book is The Collapse of Global Liberalism.

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    A population calamity is unfolding before our eyes. It started in parts of the developed world and is spreading to the four corners of the globe. There are just too few babies being born for humanity to replace itself. Leading demographer Paul Morland argues that the consequences of this promise to be calamitous. Labour shortages, pensions crises, ballooning debt: what...
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