As you know, dear reader, the New Economics Foundation is one of my very favourite institutions - a source of endless 'hand-to-face' moments, squeals of delight at ignorance and general 'do these greenie lefies really believe that' occasions.
It seems I'm not alone and the venerable Adam Smith Institute gets a similar pleasure - here commenting on NEF's solution to the housing supply problem:
Well, if you work for the nef, you suggest that taxation on property development should be raised. Quite ignoring that taxing something produces less of it. You then insist that private sector organisations shouldn't be allowed to get planning permission. No, really, reducing supply is well known to reduce prices, isn't it? Finally, we'll bankrupt most of the current developers by taking away their land banks which already have planning permission.
Oh, and joy of joys, they also reinvent the collaterialised debt obligation (CDO)* but this time it's the government's housing benefit payments that provide the collateral.
Great stuff.
*CDOs were at the bottom of the the foetid pile of dingos kidneys that is the US banking system, since you ask
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