One of the UK’s great achievements is that people are living longer than they did just a few decades ago. But not all people have benefited equally from this increased longevity. Inequalities can be seen in different parts of the UK, manifesting themselves in shorter working lives, higher healthcare costs, higher welfare payments and income poverty.

At present, there is no simple measure that links health on the one hand to economic disadvantage on the other – and so to the tax burden that is needed to pay for health and welfare services. Nor is there adequate understanding of how working lives respond to health improvements, or of the efficacy of focusing spending on treating the sick versus policies designed to maintain and improve health.

This paper, published by the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation (CFSI), in partnership with ILC and The Business School at City University, challenges the conventional wisdom by proposing a novel way of thinking about inequalities that links health to wealth and to the economy.

The report argues that supporting people to spend more time in good health could help not just individuals, but boost people’s time in work, reduce health and care costs, as well as welfare costs on the state.

Alongside investments in health, including preventative services that keep people healthier for longer, the report calls for investment in skills training and technological innovation to support increased productivity.