At the end of the 1980s, the CBI produced a report entitled: "Towards the twenty-first century - prospects for the UK in the 1990s". It identified the key trends likely to occur amongst consumers in the 1990s, some of which are highlighted below: 1. People expect to get richer and to consume more material goods; but they are also likely to want to look beyond materialism with an increasing inter- est in quality of life.
Economic factors are likely to lead to the emergence of more "super-rich", a larger "noddle class" and possibly an increasingly impoverished underclass. 3. Some will move beyond materialism through participation in various forms of non-established religions, meditation and relaxation, while others will seek refuge in drugs. 4. Demographics are likely to lead to more old people and fewer people seek- ing their first job. 5. Political decisions will increasingly be made in Brussels and in other inter- national groupings rather than Whitehall. 6. Political power in the UK will be dominated by whoever can best persuade the electorate that it can marry continued economic prosperity with an improved quality of life.