Britain sucking resources

Summary

Britain is living off the rest of the world according to the New Economics Foundation, which illustrates how Britain's way of life now depends on sucking in resources from the rest of the world. The UK became a net importer of energy in 2004. If every country consumes as much as Britain does the world needs to be 3.1 worlds to cope with the demand. At just 22 weeks old an average British citizen will be responsible for the equivalent emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide that someone in Tanzania will generate in a lifetime.

Back in 1961 according to the NEF calculations the UK could manage until the second half of the year under its own steam. The end of national self sufficiency came up to May 14; the date this year falls on April 16-one of the earliest in the developed world.

Nowadays the UK is abusing its place in the international scheme of things and setting a standard that is fundamentally unsustainable and cannot be copied without disastrous consequences. The NEF study shows how poor countries are subsidizing the lifestyle of countries such as Britain by exporting not just food and now materials for industry but people.


Main idea

The UK depends on sucking the resources from the rest of the world. However the poor countries are subsidizing food, raw materials and people.


Opinion

Britain has to increase the resources inside instead of sucking the resources from other countries especially the poor countries.