Surely fairness demands we introduce a maximum wage

Published: 24th June, 2011

• PROFESSOR Wilkinson’s report on the work of the Fairness Commission makes interesting reading but, although the recommendations are all worthy objectives, there are many obstacles to overcome to achieve them (The wealth gap that makes us all the poorer, June 17).

He states employers “should pay the London Living Wage of £8.30 an hour” and, yes, that’s worth fighting for but, inevitably, the result will be that businesses will then raise their prices and we will all be back to square one.

As well as a minimum wage there should be a maximum wage. There is a limit to how much income anyone needs to lead a very comfortable life. Beyond that, all they can do is to invest it – to make even more money.

We have two-and-a-half million people unemployed in this country, so why are we importing goods that can be made here? The answer, of course, is because employers want cheap labour from abroad. What is to be done to change that?

There are many empty homes in Islington, so why do we have so many people living in overcrowded conditions? Could it be that building firms don’t find it profitable to provide good-quality, low-cost housing?

He also states that the super-rich are a fraction of one per cent, but the amount of wealth they own, particularly in the City, is colossal. It runs into (literally) billions of pounds.

The society we live in has been in existence for about 500 years. It has never yet solved the major problems of poverty, unemployment and lack of affordable housing and it never will. Profit is the driving force behind everything. Obviously, the books have to balance at the end of the day but people’s needs should be at the forefront. How are we to achieve that?
P Wagland
Brecknock Road, N19