ABSTRACT
Land is the fundamental asset on which humans and other land animals depend. The way it is distributed, planned and managed largely determines the nature of human settlements and affects the well-being of the population. Earlier chapters showed that town planning in some form has occurred since the beginning of cities. But professional planners (of whatever kind) are only cogs in the machine, and the official planning system just part of the machinery. The governance of land varies greatly between countries. It stems from deeply embedded cultural attitudes that shape the actions of landowners, users and the policies of the state. Neo-liberals perennially question whether governance (in the sense of official planning diktat) is actually needed. It is vital to confront this widespread instinct, stemming from conventional economic thinking, with convincing arguments. So we start with this most basic of questions.
