In a damning exposé, it becomes clear that the extreme wealth of a small elite is at the root of many of society’s most pressing problems. From the rise of populist figures like Donald Trump and Nigel Farage, to the weakening of their political opponents, the polarisation tearing communities apart, and the devastation of the natural world – all can be traced back to the disproportionate power wielded by a tiny number of ultra-wealthy individuals.
The World Inequality Report 2026 reveals a staggering statistic: around 56,000 people, just 0.001% of the global population, control three times more wealth than the poorest half of humanity. In the UK alone, 50 families hold more wealth than 50% of the population combined.
This wealth inequality has a pernicious effect on every aspect of policy. Trump’s actions, from seizing Venezuela’s oil wealth to his designs on Greenland, are driven not by concern for the poor, but by the interests of this elite class that he represents. Similarly, when the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, helped destroy the work of USAID, he was acting on behalf of his social class.
Decades of research have shown that high inequality, regardless of overall wealth levels, is linked to higher crime, worse public health, more addiction, lower educational attainment, greater status anxiety, more pollution and environmental destruction, and a host of other societal ills. It creates a class of “global predators” who exploit the rest of us financially and in other ways.
Remarkably, while polling shows the vast majority of the public across 36 nations see economic inequality and the political influence of the rich as major problems, the political class overwhelmingly represents the interests of the ultra-wealthy. Even when forced to respond to calls for a wealth tax, politicians dismiss it with flimsy excuses.
The battle to address this imbalance must start with political parties clearly and unequivocally spelling out this aim. They cannot simultaneously represent the great majority and the tiny minority – they must choose a side. The question is, where are our true representatives?
