On the Edge

A multifaceted work addressing the issues raised by living with global capitalism. The editors are respectively Chief Executive of the Industrial Society and Director of the LSE, so the book is prodigiously well informed and draws on equally authoritative figures with divergent views of the theme such as Vandana Shiva, Paul Volcker and Polly Toynbee. It begins with a scene-setting conversation between the editors, who also sum the book up together at the end. The emphasis of their views diverges in a stimulating fashion, with Will Hutton emerging as the more circumspect of the two. Both are sceptical of current cliches and work through their own positions in considerable detail. The upshot is that the current system should be allowed to continue but with modifications, especially to the global financial system.