Britain's Regional Inequality Is Locked in Place: 54% of Poor Areas Remain Poor After 26 Years

A Resolution Foundation analysis of UK household incomes from 1997 to 2023 reveals structural entrenchment. More than half of the local authorities ranked poorest in 1997 still sit in the bottom fifth; 82% of wealthy areas remain at the top. Employment gaps narrowed and wages converged, yet disposable income divides persisted. The shift: investment income—property gains, capital returns—now drives regional inequality twice as strongly as wages, explaining why job creation alone has failed to close the gap.