British Parliament in 1774 retaliated against American colonists with a series of laws we call the Intolerable Acts. The Quartering Act expanded the power of royal governors to house troops wherever they wanted.
Even King George III, though, didn’t think he could force homeowners to house strangers — this imposition was generally made on inns and public accommodations.
From the London School of Economics comes a much more intrusive idea: Instead of building new homes to address a housing shortage, the United Kingdom should “redistribute our existing housing stock” in the name of saving the environment and reducing inequality. Specifically, they want to go after folks who have an extra bedroom or “excessive” square footage.
Professor Ian Gough and research assistant Charlotte Rogers lay out the case for “Solving the housing crisis without building new houses,” at the…
