The "American Dream" is a term that we've heard thrown around for many generations as a symbolic representation of exactly what Americans can achieve in life with equality of opportunity. However, nobody really talks about the British Dream, despite the fact that it does exist.
For as long as history can recall, the British dream has been to own our own home. So much so that many of our European neighbours truly struggle to understand why British people are so obsessed with owning a home. Many people across the world are largely content with renting their home for as long as need be, however, that's never quite been enough for the people of the United Kingdom. As is often said, an English man's home is his castle.
I feel that's a testament that this Conservative government truly understand and an idea that Labour and Jeremy Corbyn will never be able to get to grips with. As a socialist, the idea of owning something is an alien concept for Jeremy Corbyn. However, that's a very different perspective to that of the British people. With that in mind, whilst it's far from perfect, Help to Buy is a fantastic effort by this government to provide the people of our country with exactly what they want.
For those unacquainted with Help to Buy; it's basically a government scheme that allows anyone to step on to the property ladder with as little as a 5% deposit to put down on their new home. The idea was first unveiled by George Osbourne back in 2013 and saw the government pledge to provide loans of up to 20% of the value of a home when buyers put in 5% and obtain a mortgage for rest.
Of course this doesn't solve the housing crisis in our country and there's little point in pretending that it does. House prices are still rising and the fact of the matter is that many people still don't have the means to take advantage of Help to Buy. What's more, there's still a lot of stigma around house buying and an awful lot of miss-information out there. Including the fact that many people still think that an empty house sells faster than a lived in house. Ideas like this are simply out of date and more than doing their part in contributing towards the UK's housing crisis.
Back to the point of the matter here and let's not pretend that David Cameron and George Osbourne can wave a magic wand and solve the country's housing crisis. However, Help to Buy is a clear acknowledgement by the government of the British dream and something that I believe Labour under Jeremy Corbyn will never be able to understand.
It's this understanding of what "middle-England" voters want out of life that won the Conservatives an overall majority in the 2015 General Election and is what will keep winning them many elections to come. Jeremy Corbyn's socialist ideology has never believed in ownership and never will do. However, owning their own home is something that all British people strive towards. For as long as the British Dream remains, the Conservatives are undeniably going to continue picking up the votes of ordinary people.
In all though, Help to Buy isn't a magic remedy for Britain's housing crisis, but it is an example of the Conservatives acknowledging the silent majority in this country and their British Dream.