I agree totally, take me for instance... I moved in with my then partner, who was at the time renting this place. I didn't like the idea of it being council owned, and having to ask their permission for everything we might want to do, besides which, it would be pointless to invest money in a house which someone else owned. So like many others in the street - we bought it, a 3-bed semi, very well built by a tiny local council, with a massive garden, in a nice area. Even better, it had just been put through a back to bare brick, full refurb, which had taken 6 months of hell. I am free to most of the maintenance and repairs, and can do them at much lower cost than it would have cost the council. As I own the place, I tend to look after it, much more carefully than if I rented the place. I'm not sure what councils charge in rent, but I suspect it is generally less than what it costs/is worth. So my owning is a saving for me and a saving for the council too.
Prior to the NHS, health care in the UK was a disjointed complete mess, relying in many cases on charity and goodwill, it was also much more limited back then. It's not as instant as when it was first set up, but it's a darn sight more effective, in the range of what it can do now, as well as the treatment being often much more expensive generally.
Back then dentistry often involved being given the 21st birthday present, of all your teeth out in one session, and a set of false teeth, by way of an investment.
