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New report says community ownership of public assets will capitalise civil society

Finance | Vibeka Mair | 15 Nov 2010

Charities and communities owning public services should exist in every community, according to a new report on community rights for an asset owning democracy by ResPublica and Nesta.

The report warns that as spending cuts become more severe there will be an "unprecedented mass divestment" of state assets including libraries, swimming pools, community halls, council offices, courts, police stations, prison buildings, roads, ports and Whitehall assets.

It says public assets – when desirable – should become community assets, owned mutually or by individual shareholders or stakeholders in association with communities.

“These public goods,” the reports says, “can, if properly directed and organised, capitalise both civil society and the bottom 10 per cent of society which currently has negative net wealth.”

The report identifies five types of social asset ownership, including community ownership, co-operative and mutual ownership and charitable ownership .

Elsewhere, the report welcomes the creation of the Big Society Bank, but warns it will not, by itself operate on the scale necessary to supply sufficient capital to generate a widespread community assets effect.

“The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) in the US provides a valuable model of how a banking system, as part of its licence to operate, can be expected to play a responsible part in addressing the needs of poor communities without undermining commercial operations.

“The introduction of a UK CRA, the subject of a current ResPublica research report, would offer a means for the Big Society Bank and other social investment agencies to truly grow to scale, and for the additional contributions of a private venture philanthropists to become a mainstream rather than a marginal activity.”

The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) in the US requires commercial lenders to lend in deprived communities.

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