Ownership is at the heart of conservatism. It is a main foundation of a free society. From the baby’s first protective instincts towards a prized soft toy to the adult’s sense of stability in a home they own, ownership is a fundamental state that usually bestows a sense of security and well-being. Roots go with traditions, family property helps create family bonds and fond memories, a sense of place helps a feeling of belonging.
Socialists try to take property away from people on grounds of inequality. Conservatives want more people to own property. Socialists level down by high taxes and bans. Conservatives level up by providing incentives and opportunity for more to own. Socialism drives the rich away, makes it more difficult for others to become better off, and creates the pocket money society. People can only keep what the state does not take and should be grateful for the remains. The socialist state prefers it if you live in a rented ‘social’ house, depend on earnings from employment or on state benefits, and have no savings or private pensions to sustain a decent lifestyle. At the same time socialism creates a class of public sector rich who enjoy better lifestyles based on access to state privilege and higher state salaries. In communist countries the children of the elite often attend better schools, the elite have their chauffeured cars and zil lanes, and access to foreign travel and even foreign investment others are denied. Socialist governments in democratic societies adopt some of these characteristics.
Economic growth is important to the success of an economy. Growth generates the new jobs needed to raise living standards and do new things. It boosts the value of properties, businesses and shares which people own, allowing them to invest more in promoting the new ideas and new goods and services of the future. Growth in living standards requires new ways of doing things that are faster and use less resource. There needs to be a constant striving for better and cheaper. The luxuries of yesterday need to be the commonplace items of today. In the 1950s tvs and cars were the luxuries of the better off, today practically everyone has one. Only the well paid had mobile phones in the 1980s but they are now near universal and are also very powerful hand computers. Few took flights 70 years ago as they were expensive. Now, many have access to cheap travel.
The right to own
Surveys show many people who rent a home would like to own one. They also show few who own want to rent, with little barriers should they wish to switch. The main constraints on more people owning are the availability of mortgages and the level of house prices relative to incomes.
There are various ways government can help people achieve home ownership. Any tenant of a Council or state financed quango who has followed tenancy rules and paid the rent on time should be eligible to buy their home at a discount. The proceeds from the sale should be reinvested in new social housing construction.
It is a myth that these sales reduce available housing as the same family lives in the home after sale as before. The injection of new capital by buying the home from the state means there is more money available for social home provision. The state can spend the proceeds of the sale on new build to expand the overall stock.
The Government should promote self build. Councils should make planning permissions available for self-build. They can also free land from their holdings to sell it to people who would like to self build.
