Seniors 'hoarding housing' that young people could use, UK group says raise taxes on people who won't move out of their house: "a proper land tax, to reflect the social cost of occupying housing, particularly housing that is larger than one's needs".
10/18/11, "Charity calls for help freeing up family homes," BBC
"Older people should be encouraged to move into smaller homes to help tackle the "housing crisis", a charity says.
The Intergenerational Foundation calls for tax breaks to encourage downsizing and help free up some of the estimated 25 million unused bedrooms in England.
More than half of over-65s are in homes with two or more spare bedrooms, which could be used by families, says its report based on government figures.
Ministers said they did not believe in "bullying" people out of their homes.
The foundation (IF) is a new group set up to campaign on financial issues, particularly those affecting younger people, such as affordable housing
- and job prospects.
It says that while many people are living longer and staying in what was once their family home, younger families are being squeezed into smaller properties.
"The 'housing crisis' is increasingly an issue of how our housing stock is shared between younger and older generations," said IF co-founder Angus Hanton.
"The divide between the housing 'haves' and 'have nots' has moved from being one dominated by wealth or class to one
- dominated by age."
"It is perfectly understandable that retired people cling to their home long after it has outlived its usefulness as a place to bring up a family in," said report co-author Matthew Griffiths.
"But there are profound social consequences of their actions which are now causing real problems in a country where new house-building is almost non-existent."
IF suggested encouraging older people to downsize by exempting over-60s from stamp duty when they sold to move to a smaller home.
The campaign group also urged the government to consider replacing council tax with "a proper land tax, to reflect the social cost of occupying housing, particularly housing that is larger than one's needs".
Housing Minister Grant Shapps said: "Whilst this report makes interesting reading, we do not agree that people should be taxed or bullied out of their homes.
"Instead we will work with families to ensure that housing becomes more affordable over time."
He pointed out that £13m was being provided to councils to make it easier for tenants to move from larger to smaller homes. "...
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Linked on the IF site: "Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations," FRFG
"On 17th of May, 2011, the European Commission awarded FRFG a certificate for an outstanding project with regard to the hosting of a European Voluntary Service project. FRFG was awarded this certificate together with Mrs. Marisa Quaresma dos Reis.... She was in charge of the issue 1/2010 of the IGJR and organised an international conference on
- "Ways to Legally Implement Intergenerational Justice" in Lisbon, Portugal."
UN has "Special consultative status" to a number of groups including:
"Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations," page 30
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10/17/11, "What the Occupy protests tell us about the limits of democracy," Washington Post, Anne Applebaum, opinion
"Democracy works only within distinct borders and among people who feel themselves to be part of the same nation. A “global community” cannot be a national democracy. And a national democracy cannot command the allegiance of a billion-dollar global hedge fund, with its headquarters in a tax haven and its employees scattered around the world."...via Hot Air
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