Thursday 27 April 2017

YPP (London) meet-up, tomorrow Friday 28 April

We'll be at The Brewmaster from 5.20 onwards or so - if you think you'll turn up later than 6.30, please get in touch gmwadsworth@gmail.com or 07954 59 07 44.

Leicester Square Tube Exit 1, turn left and left again into the alleyway (St Martin's Court). We put a yellow YPP leaflet on the table so that you can find us. It'll be nippy so dress warm.

Topics: the General Election.

Saturday 22 April 2017

Reader's Letter Of The Day

From yesterday's Evening Standard:

Developers on rely high house prices

Regardless of how liberal planning laws are, developers will cap their output at a level which does not lead to any significant falls in prices [Letters, April 18]. If they can sell new homes to wealthy overseas investors, then so much the better.*

This is not a housing crisis — it has been deliberately engineered. After 1945 UK housing policy was to limit rents, protect tenants, cap house prices indirectly by capping mortgages at two-and-a-half times earnings and ensure a ready supply of social housing. This led to a rapid increase in owner-occupation, the nigh-extinction of the landlord class and a small and stable banking sector. This was eventually reversed.

London First may call for more houses to be built but the backers on its website — banks, large landowners and property developers — are the very people who will do anything to ensure that rents and prices in London stay sky-high.

These people know full well that simply building more homes in itself solves nothing.

Mark Wadsworth​, Young People’s Party.


* They edited down my original opening paragraphs which explained the more subtle point:

Real-world evidence shows us that rents and prices in every country in the world are the highest in the largest cities. When more people will move into the new homes, this means a larger pool of potential employees and customers for businesses, which in turn means more job, leisure and social opportunities, all of which lead to yet a self-reinforcing cycle of even higher rents and even higher prices.

Real-world evidence also shows us that - regardless of how liberal planning laws are - developers will cap their output at a level which does not lead to any significant falls in prices. If they can sell the new homes to wealthy overseas investors who will leave them empty or merely collect the rent from younger workers, then so much the better. If prices show any sign of dipping, then projects are simply mothballed.

Thursday 20 April 2017

YPP (London) meet-up, tomorrow Friday 21 April

We'll be at The Brewmaster from 5.20 onwards or so - if you think you'll turn up later than 6.30, please get in touch gmwadsworth@gmail.com or 07954 59 07 44.

Leicester Square Tube Exit 1, turn left and left again into the alleyway (St Martin's Court). We put a yellow YPP leaflet on the table so that you can find us.

Topics: Two people have put themselves forward to stand at the snap General Election - any more takers?

General Election 2017

If anybody is willing to stand as a YPP candidate in their constituency and has a few hours to spare to get all the signatures and form filling done, please get in touch.

YPP has £1,000 in the kitty which we will divide up between people willing to stand and use to pay towards their £500 deposits (which has to be paid in cash in advance).

We have previously gone to the bother and expense of getting leaflets approved, printed and taken to the Post Office. This costs another £1,500 - £2,000 per constituency and doesn't seem to make any difference.

Thursday 6 April 2017

YPP (London) meet-up, tomorrow Friday 7 April - alternative venue

A few of us will be at The Vintry (Abchurch Yard, Off Abchurch Lane, London EC4N 5AX) from 6.00pm onwards.

I shall be wearing a yellow tie for the heck of it.