Essex research shapes new UN report on land and housing rights

Research from Essex Law School has contributed to a new United Nations report examining the relationship between land, property and the right to adequate housing.

The report, authored by the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, Professor Balakrishnan Rajagopal, is being presented to the UN General Assembly this week. It is the first UN report to focus on how private property (land) relates to a social right (housing).

Dr Koldo Casla, Senior Lecturer in Law and member of the Human Rights Centre, advised Professor Rajagopal in the preparation of the report. His research on the social function of property provides a key reference point in the analysis.

The report argues that fulfilling the right to adequate housing requires moving away from the idea of land as a commodified asset for investors to speculate over. Land ownership and use should be regulated to ensure that land serves the social function of securing adequate housing for all.

“In essence, the social function of property refers to the notion that private property serves public and community interests and not merely the interests of the holder of property rights. In other words, the social function requires a balance between individual and collective values and interests concerning rights, freedoms and responsibilities.” (para. 14)

The connection between the social function of property and the human rights recognised in international law is articulated in an academic paper by Dr Casla published in Human Rights Quarterly in 2023, and in the forthcoming book The Social Right to Property: Social Function and Human Rights (Edward Elgar, expected early 2026).

“By definition, ownership is the dividing line between those who have and those who do not. In a world of rampant wealth inequalities, the social function of property calls for a democratic approach to ensure that everybody participates in the decision-making process concerning ownership on the basis of equality, with the involvement of those who own and those who do not own property.” (para. 53)

The Special Rapporteur’s report also cites work produced by other Essex colleagues, in particular Professor Ting Xu’s research on communal property rights, and Dr Sobia Kaker’s work on housing conditions in informal settlements in Pakistan.

Image credit: Room of the United Nations General Assembly. Taken by Jérôme BLUM on 23 November 2006. Panoramic made from 3 photos.