A Mandarin Class so bankrupt that they are recycling failed polices from past centuries.

I have insufficient contextual information to assess this piece out of Britain. From The King of Spain is belatedly singeing many a landlord’s beard… by Mr Ed.

It appears that the Conservative Party has abandoned its Classical Liberal principles to subscribe to social justice theory. They appear to be modifying leasing contract law so that, effectively, they will be simultaneously diluting the principles of property ownership as well as fostering a system of rent control across the county. An idea so inane, it seems incomprehensible. I think I must surely not understand what is being proposed, but my first couple of reach outs to those who should know, indicate that I am not misunderstanding the circumstances.

I had been thinking of Prime Minister Mays as a tragic example of the Peter Principle. She seemed a decent person who had risen past her point of competency just at a time when Brexit required the most gifted of operators. But if she is behind this inanity, a lot of other less charitable interpretations come into play.

From Mr. Ed.

Centuries ago the Kings of Spain forbad landlords to remove tenants at the end of their tenancy contract (at least in Castile) – the Kings wanted to be seen as the “friends of the poor”. This was the true start of the decline of Castile and it spread to Latin America – where landlords just became interested in collecting-the-rent rather than improving their estates (as it was not lawful for them to remove tenants). Soon rents became “customary” – fixed under the “just price” doctrine, close kin of the “fair wage” doctrine.

Spain and Latin America lagged behind the Common Law world not because Spanish is somehow an inferior language to English – but because Spanish law became inferior to the Common Law which was based upon Freedom-of-Contract not “Social Justice” with its “just price”, “fair wage” and “security of tenure” (regardless of contract). The government of British Prime Minister Theresa May now seeks to copy the “Spanish Practices” of centuries ago – by making contracts meaningless. For example, if a tenant can not be removed after the term of their contract (their tenancy) is over then only a fool would let out a property in the first place. What is intended to “reduce homelessness” will end up increasing it.