Thrifty Debtors

This is an edited version of this programme.

The downturn has made everyone worry more about money. But while we may want to be thriftier, Chris Bowlby discovers why we're stuck with high levels of personal and household debt. Credit has become a way of life and new technology makes it ever more accessible. We know we ought to save more for, say, old age, but pensions seem distant and a dodgy investment, while the government and others are desperate to encourage revived consumer spending. Borrowing to buy houses seems to many the best financial bet. Is there an alternative approach out there?

A wide range of voices from different communities explore the mixture of hard financial fact, psychology and morality that's shaped our financial behaviour in such a turbulent few years.

Producer: Chris Bowlby
Editor: Hugh Levinson.