21st October 2026
The surprising answer is that the money already exists. We just need to change how our savings are used.
The UK has more than £12 trillion of financial wealth, yet we have one of the worst investment records in the developed world. Our financial system rewards speculation, asset ownership and financial extraction instead of investment in the things we actually need.
In this video, I explain how reforms to pensions and ISAs, based on my Taxing Wealth Report 2024, could transform that situation.
The government provides more than £90 billion a year in tax advantages for savings, but does almost nothing to ensure those savings benefit the wider economy.
I propose changing that.
Green ISAs, which would replace all existing arrangements, could help fund housing, renewable energy, transport and essential infrastructure.
Pension funds could be required to direct 25% of new contributions towards productive investment.
Together, these reforms could release well over £100 billion annually for investment, potentially approaching £150 billion, depending on the rules adopted.
This is not about taking people’s savings away. It is about ensuring that tax-supported savings help create the prosperity on which our futures depend.
Britain does not lack money. It lacks the political will to use its financial resources effectively.
Please watch my previous video on why Britain is poorer than it should be, and then watch this video for the answer. We could be richer. We just have to change our savings system.
00:00 How Could Britain Find £150 Billion a Year?
01:02 Britain Has £12 Trillion in Financial Wealth
02:05 Why Our Savings System Is Failing
03:08 The £90 Billion Cost of Savings Tax Relief
04:11 Why Tax Relief Should Support Investment
05:14 My Proposal for Green ISAs
06:17 How ISAs Could Fund Britain’s Infrastructure
07:20 Creating a National Investment Fund
08:23 Reforming Pension Tax Relief
09:26 How Pension Savings Could Create New Investment
10:29 Would People Stop Saving?
11:32 Why Tax Incentives Matter to Savers
12:35 Why Government Doesn’t Need Savings to Spend
13:38 Reconnecting Savings and Investment
14:41 What Could £100 Billion a Year Achieve?
15:44 Turning Financial Wealth Into Real Prosperity
16:23 Does Britain Have the Political Will?