Baby-boomers richest ever generation

Britain's over-50s are richer than any other age group and wealthier than a string of countries, new research shows.

Figures from Abbey Savings reveal the UK's older residents have more money than the gross domestic product (GDP) of every country on the planet outside America.

In fact, even if you combine the GDP of Germany, France and the UK, British over-50s are still better off as they benefit from "an unprecedented level of personal wealth", Abbey calculates.

"The 50-plus segment of society is already transforming the way we live and work. They hold 60 per cent of all savings and are responsible for over 40 per cent of all consumer demand," said Reza Attar-Zadeh, head of savings at Abbey.

"If personal wealth and population continue to grow at current rates, the 50-plus demographic will become even more dominant."

Abbey calculates, if current trends continue, the GDP of Britain's over-50s will overtake that of the USA soon and by 2012 be six times as high as the US' figure.

In the last five years alone the personal household wealth of the 50-plus generation has increased 45.6 per cent to more than £5 trillion.

Over-50s now control 75 per cent of the UK's wealth despite accounting for just 34 per cent of the population.