... a world where we insist that society is built upon a foundation of poor people, and where we insist that the poor amongst us are further impoverished through insisting they live together in "
cheaper homes", which by definition create
impoverished and disadvantaged area's, is this a modern form of
social cleansing as The National Housing Federation is quoted as
saying.
To explore the reasoning we have
essential reading from the think tank
Policy Exchange, the logic underpinning the 50 page report is based upon land costs ...
Area Total per hectare Total per home
London £3,000,000 £100,000
South East/East/South West £900,000 £30,000
Other regions £450,000 £15,000
... to be fair to Policy Exchange there is no recommendation to cut into the standards of design and construction, at least not just yet, as it states ...
We should build to Parker Morris standards (created in 1961, these set a minimum floor space for each property size).
- In one, two and three bedroom dwellings, one flushing toilet is required, and it may be in the bathroom.
- A semi-detached or end-of-terrace house for 4 people should have a net floor area of 72 square metres.
- A dwelling for three or more people should have enclosed storage space for the kitchen of 2.3 cubic metres.
- Dwellings should be fitted with heating systems that maintain the
kitchen and circulation space at 13 degrees Celsius, and the living and
dining spaces at 18 °C, when the external temperature is −1 °C.
Now the proposals have little effect upon the super-rich, cost is less important to those who build their personal
gated properties.
It is with the
middle classes and particularly the
professional-managerial class of Britain [and other developed countries of the world] that will benefit from the
ghettoization of the poor amongst us, the other side of this particular coin is the gentrification of existing social housing, an effect will be to underpin or in some cases increase property values though I do not see this aspect as of great importance, it is the creation of modern serfdom.
Without a lessor group of people to underpin the mobile middle classes what is the point of the middle classes, and if the lessor group are not segregated into their
21st century ghetto how do the middle classes manage their aspirational lives.
Part of the middle/professional-managerial class are our politicians, the hinge pin that enables our middle classes to engineer society as an illusionary
21st century version of the middle ages, the ultimate beneficiary of which are the super-rich who continue to own the majority of wealth whilst standing at the
Orchestra Podium directing society to internal conflicts that fails to address the real problem of our 21st century world, the provision of universal justice.
In Wales, we have political powers devolved to the Assembly Government, whereas Policy Exchange would advocate politics coercing social housing providers to ghettoise the less fortunate amongst us, I would encourage a policy that further integrates people into society through the prevention of social housing providers from building social housing in discrete,
detached from others, estates. Social housing providers should be obliged to purchase dwellings within the current housing stock.
