Huge gap in wealth opens up between Britain's ethnic groups

Average white adult has eight times the family wealth of people of Black African ethnicity

A Resolution Foundation report found stark disparities in the wealth of ethnic groups in the UK. Alamy

People of Black African ethnicity in Britain have been found to typically have an eighth of the wealth of white British people.

Economic think tank the Resolution Foundation said the gulf affected the ability of some households to cope with the Covid-19 crisis and called for reforms to narrow the gap in wealth between ethnic groups.

People of Black African ethnicity had on average £24,000 ($32,000) of family wealth per adult, rising to £31,000 for people of Bangladeshi ethnicity and nearly £42,000 for those of mixed white and Black Caribbean ethnicity.

People of white British ethnicity held £197,000 of family wealth per adult, the foundation said.

At least half of Black African, Bangladeshi and Black Caribbean ethnicity households held less than £1,000 pounds in savings before the coronavirus pandemic hit.

"Despite significant progress in closing education and employment gaps between different ethnic groups, these wealth gaps are likely to persist," said George Bangham, an economist at the Resolution Foundation.

"Even high earners will struggle to save their way to high wealth, while white British people are much more likely to inherit significant sums than those of other ethnic groups."

The Resolution Foundation proposed wealth-tax reforms, help for first-time home buyers to focus on young people unable to count on family funds, and more generous pension tax relief for lower earners.