answers.input_text: short
answers.span_text: 1980
questions: when did the right to buy scheme start
name: Right to Buy
contexts: The Right to Buy scheme is a policy in the United Kingdom ( with the exception of Scotland since August 1 , 2016 ) which gives secure tenants of councils and some housing associations the legal right to buy , at a large discount , the council house they are living in . There is also a Right to Acquire for assured tenants of housing association homes built with public subsidy after 1997 , at a smaller discount . About 1,500,000 homes in the UK have been sold in this manner since the introduction of the scheme in 1980 .