Ross Clark Ross Clark

Fretting over ‘land inequality’ is a waste of time

As if the nation is not already mired in enough scandal, now comes the revelation that half the land in England is owned by just 25,000 individuals and organisations (1% of the population!). How wrong and elitist that sounds when placed beneath a Guardian headline which implies it is a yet another measure of horrible inequality and deprivation. According to Labour MP John Trickett “The dramatic concentration of land ownership is an inescapable reminder that ours is a country for the few and not the many”.

But it means nothing at all. We are not an agrarian society. Fewer than one per cent of the population are employed in agriculture. In addition to farmworkers there are a few allotment-holders, like Jeremy Corbyn, who satisfy some of their own food needs. As for the rest of us, we are quite happy to buy our food with money we have earned in other occupations.

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