They sold the housing stock off to the people that were actually renting the council houses, increasing home ownership and enriching a generation of working class people.
They sold them off partly because they had been poorly built and maintained. They were essentially outsourcing the maintenance costs to the residents and making them pay for the privelege. The units are mostly valued well below the surrounding stock, so unless they pay exhorbitant rents or move to the country they were no better off.
And for every person who made a bit of money from it, there was another who ended up having to sell back to the council for a reduced amount when they started knocking these things down in the 2000's.
Which is all well and good if the council replenishes their stock of council housing. I.e. if they use the sale money to buy or build more, so having it be a permanent mechanism to help people lift themselves out of poverty.
But they didn't. What they did instead was sell them off without getting any more, and used the money to cut taxes. Which is fine for the generation who benefited from that round, but means the safety net is no longer there for future generations.
Well, steps are being taken to free up council houeses now - EG fixed duration tenancies (rather than council houses for life), kicking out union Fat Cats like Bob Crow [1] and other people that could afford to live in private accommodation.
who then sold them to private landlords or their wealthy children who inherited their council house did so - One of my sisters friends is one of the few who did the right thing actually gave up her right to buy her deceased mums council flat (at a 30% discount)
