COVID-19 has certainly accelerated the gap-expansion between the social classes, although here classesis not really a term used despite there being distinct lines between them. I am of the middle class here, a working person, mortgage, modest savings and the expectation that I will need to work to retirement age and probably beyond. Many of my peers, other middle-classers, are falling away and back into what could be called lower-middle-class and beyond. Some rise, however that is not usually due to effort or strategic planning. Luck plays a hand, inheritance maybe too.

I'm not sure where it will lead, the middle-class decline, the closure of mum and dad businesses owned by the middle class and also upper-middle-class. I presume it will lead nowhere good and will see our economy and standard of living shrink back to that of other countries who have struggled with these issues for some time.

Thank you for responding.