The UK Inflation-Unemployment Trade-Off

One more tentative step towards better data visualisations. This is a motion chart of the famous UK phillips curve - the relationship between inflation and unemployment.

Before you press the start button on this little application, click on the little bubble within the chart. If all goes to plan, then you should see the chart trace out the inflation and unemployment rates since 1991.

What does this application tell us?

First, in the early 1990s, the trade off was very bad; lots of unemployment and inflation.

Second, the Conservatives managed to reduce unemployment without actually increasing inflation. This was a major achievement.

Third, Labour managed to keep both unemployment and inflation down, at least until the crisis.

Finally, inflation has shot up since the crisis began. Unemployment is up too, but it hasn't reached the levels experienced during the 1990s recession.

(Finally, two things; first this is a flash based application. It won't work on an Ipad. Second, I have had some technical problems with this thing. It may not work on any machine apart from my own. If so, I am sorry, but I have reached the limits of my abilities with this kind of thing. Let me know if there are any problems, it would be useful to get some feedback)