The 1980 'Right to Buy' Revolution
Margaret Thatcher's 'Right to Buy' policy allowed millions of council tenants to buy their homes at a massive discount, permanently changing UK property.
Introduced in the Housing Act 1980 by Margaret Thatcher's government, the 'Right to Buy' policy was one of the most transformative and controversial housing policies in UK history.
It gave secure council tenants the legal right to purchase their council home at a massive discount to market value. Over two million homes were sold off. While it created a massive new class of property-owning citizens and generated huge personal wealth for families, critics argue that the failure to build replacement council housing directly led to the severe shortage of affordable social housing the UK faces today.