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SO how will economic collapse cause mass mortality?
1) Unlike previous collapses we have gone further down the road of global consumerist capitalism.
2) Unlike during the 70's deficits and anomalies in markets or investments can be shifted round the globe and spread.....which means that when the 'sums dont add up' it is more a global rather than a localised effect
3) Far more foodstuffs are now 'moved' internal combustion engine transport is now far more prevalent for transporting food and other essentials
Oil prices will continue to creep up
Housing market will continue to depress....
House building need will cease (as existing houses drop in price, and mortgage rates increase and jobs are lost more defaults and more repossessions will result in more cut price existing houses becoming available for the few buyers that there still are.....new house build prices will be prohibitive compared to these)
House building will completely collapse absolutely...unless government intervenes .....possibly with some fool hardy attempt to use taxc money to rehouse the increasing homelessness.......but this would be wrong, because that would put a further increase on taxes.
Overall wages will need to be cut.
Imagine your supermarklet worker....all prices going up....they need wage increase....they have no slack.....yet if their wages go up so does food....even further...
More jobs will be lost, prices will continue to go up, rates will continue to go up, taxes will accelerate...more and more personal debt....untill eventually the mortgage lenders become aware that there is little point in them continueing to reposess if they cannot resell.....by this time it will be too late to save the situation, because the supermarkets will have gone bust.....the only option is for the government to nationalise these to continue supply......unfortuinately these supermarkets do not source from the UK or even locally, with oil prices increasing and wages increasing and rates increasing and investment ceasing, their production/distribution/storage systems will fail.
So basically No food (hopefully gov will secure water) No jobs many with no houses No prospects no hope of economic recovery. Obviously some noble souls will toil at their allotments and smallholdings, but there are now so few people doing this that they will soon sucumbe to the nicking of thier hard worked achievments (its much easier to scavange than to grow in breakdown situations)
Unless the government is more competant in these sort of emergencies (which I cannot see any evidence of so far) then I cannot see more than 1/2 of the UK population surviving 10 years into the future (thats me being relatively pessimistic mind and I could well be mad so dont worry your pretty little heads) This country cannot a) power itself b) feed itself c) administer itself d) manufacture things it needs......at present, this could be changed, but you need the will to do this
Food prices will increase
Interest borrowing rates will go up
people will spend less at supermarkets and they will try to buy 'basics' more and more.
As people try to buy more basics these will no longer be loss leaders as the more profit generating lines will not be brought so much
Supermarlkets will have less 'basics' or maybe they just wont stock more of them....let them run out.