Robert Peston Books

'Robert Peston's compelling account of global financial meltdown is a must-read..' - The Observer Former economics editor of BBC news explains the recent global economic mess and how to escape it - in his characteristically straightforward way. 'How do we fix this mess? I don't know. But don't stop reading now. Perhaps if we have a clearer understanding of what went wrong, we'll have a better idea of what needs to be done. This book is a map of what needs to be fixed.' The record-breaking unbroken growth between 1992 and 2008 wasn't the economic miracle that it seemed. It was based on a number of dangerous illusions - most notably that it didn't matter that the UK and US year after year consumed more than they earned. But we couldn't go on increasing our indebtedness forever. The financial crash of 2007/8 and the subsequent economic slump in much of the west was the moment when we realised we had borrowed more than we could afford to repay. So who got it wrong? Bankers, investors and regulators? And were they greedy, stupid or asleep? What was the role of government? And what part did we, as consumers, play in all this? How do we get through this difficult period of transition to a more sustainable economy, one based on investment and exports, rather than on borrowing and consumption? With the same probing lucidity he brought to WHO RUNS BRITAIN?, Robert Peston takes us step-by-step towards a common sense way to fix this mess.

THE GRIPPING DEBUT THRILLER FROM THE UK'S TOP POLITICAL JOURNALIST, ROBERT PESTON. 1997. He thinks he knows the rules. But when Gil's estranged sister Clare dies in a hit-and-run, he begins to believe it was no accident.

ITV's political editor Robert Peston lifts the lid on credit crunch Britain and the rise of the super-rich.

Amidst a shifting political landscape, Britain grapples with uncertainty and potential threats under a new Prime Minister and government. The narrative explores the balance between necessary change and the preservation of established norms, delving into the implications of these transformations both domestically and internationally.

Has the West gone bust - economically, politically and socially? And what can we do to fix it?

As the world falls apart, a deadly conspiracy comes together...London, 2007. It's summer in the City: the economy is booming, profits are up and the stock market sits near record highs.But journalist Gil Peck is a lone voice worrying it can't last. Deep in the plumbing of the financial system, he has noticed strange things happening which could threaten the whole economy. But nobody wants to hear it: not the politicians taking credit for an end to boom and bust, not the bankers pocketing vast bonuses, not even Gil's bosses at the BBC, who think it's irrelevant.When Gil gets a tip-off that a small northern bank has run out of money, everything changes. His report sparks the first run on a UK bank in 140 years. The next day, Marilyn Krol, a director of the Bank of England dies in an apparent suicide.For Gil, it's personal. Marilyn was his lover: was his scoop connected to her suicide? Or is there something more sinister in her death? Gil is determined to find out.The more he investigates, the more he is drawn into the rotten heart of the financial system, where old school ties and secret Oxbridge societies lubricate vast and illegal conflicts of interest. The whole economy has been built on a house of cards, and Gil is threatening to bring it down.When simply reporting the facts can make or break fortunes, Gil has to ask himself: is he crossing the line between journalist and participant? Are his own conflicts of interest making him reckless? And in a world ruled by greed where nothing and no-one is too big to fail, what price will he pay for uncovering the truth?

'A manual for our times that everyone should read.' Matthew d'Ancona