BBC 6 Minute English | POVERTY IN A RICH WORLD | English CC | Daily List...

source: Daily Listening    2016年10月5日
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0:07 Well, in this programme we're talking about wealth.
0:09 The world is getting richer, Harry.
0:11 Really?
0:12 How come?
0:13 Well, according to recent data, the number of people living in extreme poverty has halved
0:18 in recent decades.
0:19 More people own a car and a mobile phone.
0:22 So, that's all very good news.
0:24 More people can have a good standard of living – standard of living is what we call the
0:28 amount of money and quality of life people have in a particular society.
0:34 People in general may have a better life but there's still a lot of inequality in different
0:39 countries.
0:40 Inequality - in other words some people have a lot of money and opportunities and others
0:44 just don't.
0:45 So, individual governments have to find a way of reducing this inequality, to allow
0:50 more people to have the opportunity to improve their lives.
0:53 Yes.
0:54 In this programme we're talking about the gap between rich and poor and you'll learn
0:58 some words which will help you discuss this topic or read about it in the news.
1:03 And now our quiz, Harry.
1:05 Ah, the legendary quiz!
1:07 I'm ready!
1:08 Good.
1:09 Right.
1:10 A recent report by Oxfam and Credit Suisse revealed how divided we all are when it comes
1:13 to wealth.
1:14 A lot of the wealth in the world is in the hands of very few people.
1:18 That's what I'm going to ask you about, Harry.
1:20 How much of the global wealth is owned by the richest 1%?
1:24 Is it: a) 38%
1:26 b) 48% or c) 58%
1:30 Well, it's only 1% of the population, so I would have to guess the lower one, 38%.
1:35 Surely they can't own more than that!
1:37 Well, we'll see if you got the right answer at the end of the programme.
1:41 Now, let's talk about rich and poor.
1:44 As we said, experts have concluded that more people are living better when you look at
1:48t he world as a whole, but in individual countries you can find people with hardly anything to
1:54 eat… …and others with lots of houses, cars, land
1:58 and so on…
1:59 So, Rob, how can this situation be reversed?
2:02 Well, David Bryer from Oxfam mentions a country which has achieved some success in trying
2:07 to make the poor less poor.
2:09 He is talking about Brazil.
2:11 Listen to what Bryer says and tell me: what are the two words he uses meaning 'the least
2:17 money people are paid for the work they do'?
2:20 There are examples we can look to where countries are managing to reduce the gap between the
2:26 super-rich and the rest.
2:28 Brazil has historically very high levels of economic inequality.
2:32 And they've been taking just some really sensible measures – measures around having more progressive
2:36 tax, around investing in a higher minimum wage, investing in central public services,
2:40 you know, these things that all governments can do that start to reverse this tide.
2:46 So David Bryer talks about a 'minimum wage'.
2:49 That's the least a worker receives in payment for work they've done.
2:53 He meant that if people are paid a higher minimum wage, they can eat better, seek a
2:57 better education, and their children can have a better job in the future.
3:02 They can be lifted out of poverty.
3:04 And the economy can grow.
3:06 More people with more money buy more things and factories produce more.
3:11 A factory which produces more will need more workers.
3:14 So, more jobs for all.
3:16 Right.
3:17 Another measure by the Brazilian government which is mentioned by the representative from
3:21 Oxfam has to do with tax.
3:24 Tax is the amount of money you pay to the government depending on your salary and the
3:28 cost of things you buy…
3:30 But we have to admit this, Rob: taxes are not popular.
3:33 That's true.
3:34 Many people don't like paying tax because they don't receive an immediate benefit from
3:39 it.
3:40 Some very rich people try to pay as little as possible.
3:43 But one billionaire who thinks it's important to pay and create conditions for governments
3:48 to fight poverty is Bill Gates.
3:51 The founder of Microsoft earned a lot of money, retired and, with his wife Melinda, created
3:56 a foundation to help the poor.
3:59 The BBC asked him what the very rich have to do to help reduce poverty.
4:04 Let's listen to his answer.
4:05 What does he say rich people have to be?
4:08 The word is an adjective.
4:10 Well, their obligation of course is to pay their taxes, but our advice to them is that
4:19 they all look at taking their wealth and being philanthropic - both in their own country
4:24 and to help the global poorest.
4:27 That's a full-time work Melinda and I do, we find it very fulfilling, we love seeing
4:32 the progress.
4:34 So rich people have to be 'philanthropic'!
4:38 It means they have to help poor people by giving their money.
4:41 And he says he and his wife find this giving to the poor 'fulfilling', in other words,
4:47 it makes them happy and satisfied.
4:49 Well, that's his message to the very, very, very, very rich in the world!
4:53 To the… 1%!
4:54 The 1%...Well, you want the answer to my quiz question now, don't you?
4:58 Yes.
4:59 You asked me how much of the global wealth is owned by the richest 1% of the world's
5:03 population.
5:04 And the options I gave you were: 38%, 48% or 58%
5:08 And I guessed 38% based on the fact that I couldn't imagine them earning more than that.
5:13 I like your thinking, Harry, but I'm afraid the correct answer is actually (b) 48%.
5:19 The wealthiest 1% will soon own more than the rest of the world's population – that's
5:23 according to a study by anti-poverty charity Oxfam.
5:26 I think it's truly shocking that such a small number of people can own so much.
5:31 You're right.
5:32 It's an amazing statistic.
5:33 OK, well, we're almost out of time but let's remind ourselves of some of the words that
5:37 we've said today, Harry.
5:39 standard of living inequality
5:42 minimum wage tax
5:46 philanthropic fulfilling
5:49 Well, that's it for today.