Know thy place, peasants
And it's not in the courts
The true workings of our class-entrenched island have been laid bare this week with the Court of Appeal telling leaseholders they can’t have their say but the Lord Asset-Classes of this world most certainly can.
A small band of fleeceholders with very deep pockets are whining about their human rights being taken away by the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act (LAFRA) 2024 and are asking for a judicial review of the upcoming legislation because …. violins at the ready, LAFRA harms their ‘right to enjoy their private property interests in leaseholders’ homes because it does not strike a fair balance between them and the leaseholders’. Oh, the irony.
When leaseholder campaigners including the Leasehold Knowledge Partnership and Sir Peter Bottomley quite reasonably asked to give their side of the story and talk about how leaseholders’ human rights are being infringed by freeholders, they were turned down.
Just to put this into perspective. There are FIVE MILLION leaseholders who are being bled try by freeholders’ vampiric practices, leading to financial and mental health ruin. If you were to include people’s families then at a very conservative estimate this translates to TEN MILLION people being affected by the leasehold scandals, of which there are many.
And who are these millionaires who hold such power? The Earl of Cardigan, The Duke of Westminster and Long Harbour to name three of the SIX represented by seven KCs and eleven junior barristers.
The judge didn’t allow a 600 page submission by LKP and Sir Peter Bottomley detailing leaseholders’ experiences at the hands of freeloaders. Apparently, it was ‘burdensome for them to answer LKP’s evidence about their poor treatment of leaseholders’.
If they want to learn about burdensome perhaps they should think about poor leaseholders being treated as cash cows through opaque service charges and major works not to mention the thousands and in some cases, hundreds of thousands of pounds demanded for lease extensions to your ‘home’.
We can only hope the freeholders’ judicial review from 15 to 18 July will fail and the Government begins to bring in the long-awaited reforms.
More English profiteering shit…
This time in the form of sewage.
Surfers Against Sewage has organised a paddle out/swim tomorrow at 11am (Sunday, May 25) at Seabrook/Hythe opposite the garage.
Please come along. You don’t need to go into the sea but your presence will send a message to Southern Water that we’re sick of them prioritising profiteering over investment in infrastructure.
Talking of being sick. just a couple of days ago, a member of the public noticed sewage emerging from a pipe in Sandgate via a suspected leak. I hope no swimmers got ill.
I hope to see some of you there but if not happy Bank Holiday!