Tony Blair: An old warmonger with ideas
Monday 30th May 2022
Too often for my liking, I am accused of resembling Tony Blair both in speaking style and looks.
I even had Cherie Blair eyeing me up across a room once, much to my concern.
I never have been a fan of the lying old warmonger, thinking to date the best thing he did for the country was to make not wearing a tie to work acceptable. However, this report from the grandly titled ‘Tony Blair Institute for Global Change’ has some excellent ideas about how to increase access to mortgages for First Time Buyers.
There are two key suggestions:
The first is to make Mortgage Insurance the norm on mortgages with a high loan to value. Those over 80%. Though why limit it to that percentage, I ask?
I am sure my wife and I had a form of Mortgage Insurance on our first mortgage when we borrowed £50k on a £60k purchase back in 1991. Those were the days! So, it is hardly a new idea but it does seem to have gone out of fashion in the UK.
The second idea, is to encourage long-term fixed rate mortgages which are commonplace in other developed countries. Japan now offers 50-year fixed rate mortgages which can be inherited by the next generation. Perhaps we can learn from this.
Far better to reform mortgage access than the stupid 'Help to Buy' scheme which has simply pushed up prices even further and lined the pockets of greedy housebuilders.
Or the latest daft Tory notion to sell Housing Association properties to tenants.
The whole basis of these ideas are established on the assumption that the proportion of home ownership in this country should be increased.
I had thought this was a Tory agenda in their belief it would boost the numbers inclined to vote for them.
Surely, Tony Blair is not a Tory - or am I missing something?!
https://institute.global/policy/bringing-it-home-raising-home-ownership-reforming-mortgage-finance
Photocredit: https://kennardphillipps.org/category/photomontage/
Share this article
k L E D