Alan Murie is Emeritus Professor of Urban and Regional Studies at Birmingham University. A former Director of the Centre for Urban and Regional Studies and Head of the School of Public Policy at the University of Birmingham, he has been involved in research and written widely on Housing, Housing Policy and related issues in the UK and Europe, including privatisation of housing and the Right to Buy in different parts of the UK.

The Right to Buy has had a massive impact on Housing in the UK for 35 years and in 2015 there were proposals to extend it. But what is the Right to Buy policy, how has it developed and what has its impact been? What evidence is there about the wider and unintended consequences of the policy? How are the proposals to extend the policy in England likely to affect future housing provision and what alternatives are there? In The Right to Buy, Alan Murie provides an authoritative account of the origins, development and impact of the policy across the UK and proposals for its extension in England (and decisions to end it in Scotland and Wales). Presenting up-to-date statistical material the book engages with debates about transfers to private renting, the impact on public expenditure and on the current housing situation, addresses the proposals for new legislation and details the potential impact of these. It is an essential read for anyone interested in this highly topical issue.