In a recent blog post (you can read it here) I broached the problem of misguided information coming from politicians, activists and others who believe the top one per cent of tax payers should in actual fact pay more.When all the facts point towards them paying enough already.

I wasn’t surprised to find the same sort of false information from the same naysayers is also circulating about capitalism when, thanks to capitalism, we are quite simply living better for longer.

This month, Professor Hans Rosling recently conducted a lecture on behalf of the UK’s Open University, recorded and broadcast by the BBC. Professor Hans Rosling is a Swedish medical doctor, academic, statistician and public speaker. His presentation was entitled “Don’t Panic – The Truth About Population” and was derived from research he’d conducted on behalf of the United Nations.

His contention is that when you or I consider the recent explosion of human population and continue the trend we feel basically doomed, when in actual fact this way of thinking couldn’t be further from the truth.

Rosling says our population is currently 7 billion and will rise to 10 or 11 billion but then will level off and become stable. This is because as wealth and life expectancy grows, family sizes across the world, and particularly in Asian countries, will naturally shrink. The key word here is ‘wealth’ – driven, of course, by capitalism.

Fifty years ago the average worldwide family size was 5.5. With new industries and new jobs reaching even the most impoverished parts of the poorest countries, health care is up, life expectancy of children is up, education is up, living conditions are improving and today the average family size is 2.5. And it’s expected to drop to 2 before the end of the century.

People are realising that they can afford smaller families but more importantly they can’t afford larger families if they want to enjoy the benefits of a capitalist or semi-capitalist society.

All fuelled by the benefits of capitalism – the growth of technology, medicine, education and a free and competitive market within which the poorest farmers and richest oligarchs can trade.

It’s by no coincidence then that China has adopted a decidedly capitalist approach for its social modernization, as stated in “How China Became Capitalist”, a CATO policy report by Ronald Coase andNing Wang. Their conclusion is that within 30 years the post-Mao Chinese government is no longer communist,except by name.

Capitalism evidently works.

This is not to belittle the problems our human world still face. Of course, there is much to be done, and there always will be, but comparing how we lived to how we do today – thanks to capitalism – we are living longer, more fulfilling, richer and less combative lives (less war) than we have in any previous time in our history.

We only have to look at deVere Group. Our growth and strength exists purely on the global free markets within which we can invest and trade. It provides the securityour clients and our staff demand and the financial freedom to secure a better lifestyle for themselves and their families.

And through our charitable ventures – of which you’ll be hearing much more in the not too distant future – the system of capitalism enables us to raise considerable amounts of money to help those less fortunate than ourselves.

And so the cycle continues – improving living conditions, opportunities and the lives of us all as a global human race. All thanks to capitalism.

Nigel Green deVere Group

Blog written 15th November