The desire to earn enough to own property or land is one of prosperity’s driving forces. Ownership is also one of life’s greatest sources of security.
"Private Property Is A Natural Fruit Of Labour, A Product Of Intense Activity Of Man, Acquired Through His Energetic Determination To Ensure And Develop With His Own Strength His Own Existence And That Of His Family, And To Create For Himself And His Own An Existence Of Just Freedom, Not Only Economic, But Also Political, Cultural And Religious."
- Pope Pius XII (1876-1958)
Private property does not only enjoy the support of Catholic social teaching, it has also been a central component of the conservatism of Margaret Thatcher and George W Bush.
For President Bush, asset ownership makes “every citizen the agent of his or her own destiny”.
The desire to own a home or a slice of capital drives much economic activity. It provides families with a sense of security with which to plan for the future. It also supports independence from over-mighty government. “One Nation”, the 1950 Tory book edited by Ian MacLeod and Angus Maude, suggested that private property was an “equipoise” (or counterbalance) to political power.
Margaret Thatcher’s right-to-buy your council house
Things that are owned by someone tend to be much better looked after. The council houses that Mrs Thatcher sold to their tenants were always very easy to identify on an estate. New doors and well-kept gardens characterised homes that had been sold. The new owners knew that they would benefit from any investment in their properties. If they wanted to sell their houses they would command a higher price if they had bought new window frames or a new kitchen. There were benefits for the whole community of this. Ownership gives people a long-term interest in the success and upkeep of their neighbourhoods. Tenants, on the other hand, always at risk of being relocated by their state landlords, have much less incentive to improve their house or to build community.
The Tragedy of the Commons
The neglect of ‘unowned’ assets is captured in an old English proverb. The proverb warns that a pig with two owners is sure to die of hunger. It has also been said that “no-one has ever washed a rented car”. The absence of property rights is at the root of many ecological problems. Garrett Hardin’s tragedy of the commons shows how unowned natural assets (like the ozone layer or rare creatures) tend to be over-exploited.
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