Good Parks-Bad Parks (how do we know?)
Friday, 9 April 2021
Saturday, 20 March 2021
20th March 2021
In memory of Lord Graham of Edmonton (Lord Ted) who was the President of PHOJC and passed away one year ago today. A true friend to all Park Home Residents and is sadly missed. RIP
Friday, 19 March 2021
19th March 2021
RESIDENTS HAVE DONE IT. THERE IS MOVEMENT ON THE 10% COMMISSION CHARGE
Congratulations to all campaigners from the Park Home Owners JUSTICE Campaign. Since 2014, 30,000 plus residents petitioned, campaigned, rallied, wrote letters and attended meetings in Westminster to obtain an Independent and Transparent review of the 10% Commission Charge.
I am so happy to tell you that your perseverance has paid off. Yesterday (18th March ) along with Mr. Turner of PHPF, Mr. Pye of IPHAS and Mr. Doick of NAPHR, I received an email from MHCLG informing that the Department has commissioned The University of Liverpool, with the support of Sheffield Hallam University to carry out the research of the 10% Commission Charge in early April 2021.
I have been asked to attend a meeting to put forward the views of our Justice Campaign and have happily agreed. I have also been asked to suggest four park home residents who would be prepared to be part of a residents focus group and put forward their reasoning as to why we should not pay the 10% Commission Charge. This has been done and four residents will be participating.
I am also very pleased to inform you that our President, Sir Peter Bottomley (who supports our campaign) has written a letter on behalf of our campaign to another authority and a copy of that letter will be sent to the researchers.
This is just the beginning, but we have at last got what we campaigned for. Now, we have to hope that the researchers will agree that the 10% is an archaic charge for which the site owners do nothing. It steals your equity and seriously undermines the amount of care you can purchase if you need to move to a residential/nursing home.
We must now all sing from the same hymn sheet if we want change – because the industry will certainly put up a concerted fight.
IMPORTANTLY. WE HAVE ALWAYS MAINTAINED THAT ANY ABOLITION OR CHANGE IN THE 10% COMMISSION CHARGE MUST NOT BE REFLECTED IN THE PITCH FEE – AND I WILL CERTAINLY PUSH THIS POINT.
Tuesday, 9 March 2021
Thursday, 11 February 2021
Friday, 15 January 2021
January 15th 2021
APPG meeting.
Thursday, 14 January 2021
January 14th 2021
Important News for all
JUSTICE Campaign Members. A new President and our push forward to bring
about the RPI to CPI you have been promised and the Independent and Transparent
Review of the 10% Commission charge
(with nothing added to
the pitch fee
*
A NEW PRESIDENT for
the Park Home Owners JUSTICE Campaign.
Following the sad passing in 2020 of our loyal President, Lord Ted
Graham of Edmonton; we have looked very carefully for the right person to hold
this position. Lord Ted was a true friend of the park home community and
left some very large shoes to fill.
This was a very daunting task but I feel sure that Lord Ted would share
our pleasure as PHOJC welcomes "Father of the House of
Commons" Sir Peter Bottomley MP as it's new President.
Sir Peter, who is the MP for Worthing has been an MP
continuously since 1975 and is also the Vice Chairman of the APPG (all party
parliamentary group for park homes.)
Our JUSTICE Campaign has always recognised the need to have a good
relationship with those within the walls of Westminster and we have been
fortunate to have had the ear of many MPs when we succeeded in changing the law
to stop "sale blocking."
We are now very proud to announce officially that the "Father of
the House of Commons" is our President and I believe that like Lord Ted,
Sir Peter will be a great help as we try to get what thousands of residents
have campaigned for - ie the change from RPI to CPI and the 10%
Commission Charge - but we must remember that he has his other parliamentary
work to complete.
I know that many residents wrote to Lord Ted, but I must respectfully
ask that if you need to write regarding either the RPI to CPI or the 10%
Commission charge - UNLESS YOU ARE ONE OF HIS CONSTITUENTS - please only email
the JUSTICE Campaign at phojc1sm@gmail.com PLEASE
DO NOT WRITE TO SIR PETER PERSONALLY ON THOSE OR ANY OTHER SUBJECTS RELATED TO
PARK HOME PROBLEMS.
*
Calling all Residents
to help
with our fight to
get action from Government on
THE 10% COMMISSION
CHARGE AND RPI TO CPI.
WHY ARE WE ALL
STILL WAITING and WHAT CAN WE DO? IS WHAT I AM BEING
ASKED BY RESIDENTS ACROSS THE UK WHO ARE FED UP WITH THE GOVERNMENT'S
STATEMENT
"WHEN PARLIAMENTARY
TIME ALLOWS."
Since 2014, Park Home Residents, Peers, MPs and friends of the JUSTICE
Campaign have petitioned the Government, Rallied at Westminster, attended The
Three Nations Rally, delivered a petition of 30.000 plus to Downing Street, attended
and voiced their opinions in the Palace of Westminster, eventually to be
told that the annual increases in pitch fees currently based upon the Retail
Price Index (RPI) would be changed to the lower Consumer Price Index
(CPI) and that the Review of the 10% Commission Charge paid
to park owners upon the private sale of park homes would take
place.
Many campaign members who have fought for six years now ask what
our JUSTICE campaign can do to make the Government honour
their promises. Well, due to COVID we cannot arrange
another lobbying rally or meeting in London - but - we can ask
the Park Home & Holiday Caravan magazine and the Park Home News magazine
which goes out on a monthly basis throughout 2021 to publish a letter that
park home residents may send (if they wish) to the Prime Minister with copies
to The Housing Minister and your own MP.
I have already written to the Prime Minister on behalf of our
JUSTICE Campaign requesting a meeting. This of course
may not be granted but with your help, our fight to get that which has been
promised by the government will continue in earnest.
On January 15th The Park Home and Holiday Caravan Magazine
will publish our story and the template letter that is laid out below. In
addition, the template will also be published in Paul Baker's Park Home News
magazine. This begins its distribution across England, Scotland and Wales
in early February. This Magazine is sent out in batches every month of
the year which will ensure that the PM's office is continually bombarded with
residents letters. There are 80,000 copies that will be distributed to
2000 parks across England, Scotland and Wales. But we will not stop
there. Tony Turner's Park Home Policy Forum will post the template letter
to its membership and I have requested NAPHR, IPHAS and PHRAA to help residents
by posting to their membership. It will of course also be published on
our own web site and facebook pages. and published on the PHOJC website and
facebook pages.
Thousands of JUSTICE Campaign supporters fought for these changes and If
you want to see RPI to CPI brought in and a favourable change to the 10%
Commission Charge; please copy the letter to your neighbours and together we
can inundate the Downing Street Offices. When sending to the Prime
Minister, please also send a copy to the Housing Minister and your own
MPs office - if I may also suggest - please ask your own MP to bring up
the delay in the 10% Commission charge and the change from RPI to CPI in Prime
Minister's questions. WE HAVE DONE IT BEFORE AND WE CAN DO IT AGAIN - BUT
IT NEEDS ALL OF US TO PULL TOGETHER.
Best wishes and I hope that you all stay safe and well in 2021
Sonia
Suggested
letter to send. If you have problems copying this
letter, please contact phojc1sm@gmail.com and you will be
sent a copy to print off.
Your Address
Date:
The Prime Minister
10, Downing Street
London
SW1A 2AA
Dear Prime Minister
Reference: Park Homes and promised legislation
I am a supporter of the Park Home Owners JUSTICE Campaign whose members
have - since 2014 - rallied in London, delivered petitions to Downing
Street, had meetings in the Palace of Westminster and received your
Government's promise that RPI would be changed to CPI on the monthly pitch fee
paid to the site owner. In addition, your Government promised an
independent review of the 10% commission charge payable from the residents
equity to the site owner on the sale of the residents park home. You will
see evidence below that these problems have been addressed and promises made
since 2014.
30th October 2014, Sale of Park Homes Debate. Annette Brooke MP
said. " I beg to move that this house calls on the government to set up a
review of the current fee of up to 10% of the price of a park home payable to
the site owner."
Question put and agreed to. Resolved, "That
this House calls on the Government to set up a review of the current fee of up to 10
percent of the sale price of a park home payable
to the site owner."
22nd October 2018 The Requirement to Pay
Commission. Policy Reviews.
The Government’s response to the review, published on 22 October 2018,
consequently confirmed that the Government will commission research to gather
relevant data to enable a detailed assessment of the likely impacts of a change
to the 10% commission charge on residents and site owners. The Government
intends to commission the research later in 2019.
13th January 2020, Esther McVey MP said. "We
made a commitment in October 2018 to change the pitch fee review inflationary
index from the Retail Price Index (RPI) to the Consumer Price Index (CPI)
having considered the responses of residents and site owners to our review of
park homes legislation. The required primary legislation will be introduced
when parliamentary time is available."
Hansard. House of Lords. Mobile Homes 3/09/20 Lord
Teverson said. "Are the Government looking further at
the 10% commission fee on the sale of mobile homes or park homes on these
sites, which is still highly contentious?"
Lord Greenhalgh said........." There
is currently no data available to accurately measure any of those impacts,
which is why the Government has committed to undertake research to gather the
relevant data. We have undertaken some initial scoping work to identify gaps in
the existing evidence base to ensure that the research is thorough and
comprehensive."
May I respectfully ask if the magic words "WHEN PARLIAMENTARY
TIME ALLOWS" is before or after the next General Election?
I do appreciate that your Government is dealing with Brexit and Covid;
However, those magic words "When Parliamentary Time allows" is
wearing rather thin. Therefore, I would ask that you please direct your
relevant Minister to implement the necessary primary legislation to allow the
change from RPI to CPI on the pitch fee to become law and - whilst it may
already have been started - may I respectfully ask that you inform me as to
when the review of the 10% commission
charge will be finished and explain what input I can have as a park
home resident into the eventual findings of that review.
Neither RPI to CPI or the findings of the 10% commission review will of
course affect you personally - but it does and will continue to affect the
lives of some 85,000 park home residents in the electorate. I think you
must agree that six years has been a long time to wait and many park home
residents are sadly no longer with us. Please Prime Minister, honour your
Government's decisions on these subjects - and may I respectfully ask that you
do not authorise a standardised letter on this subject to be sent from you or
your MPs.
Respectfully
Your Signature