The worst ever Christmas cracker joke
Hello Lovely People,
I wanted to present the worst Christmas cracker joke ever.
Okay, it may not be the typical cheestastic joke in the vein of What do you get if you eat too much tinsel? Or Why is Parliament like ancient Bethlehem? (Answers at the bottom of the page).
But if you’re a freehold investor or developer, they must be full of mirth and joy that their lobbying has paid off. Here it is:
What do you call a Bill to ban leasehold houses? A Bill that doesn’t ban leasehold houses.
So our wonderful Government has, after five years of promising to ban leasehold houses, finally drawn up the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill that doesn’t actually include a single line about banning leasehold houses.
Apparently, it’s because they were ‘rushed’, despite years of deliberating on recommendations from the Law Commission, and promised the wording to ban leasehold houses will be added in later as the Bill passes through Parliament.
Funnily enough not many people believe them after they had promised to ban leasehold flats too - there are around 5.5 million in England and Wales - and their freehold investor and developer donors didn’t like that plan and so this was also dropped from legislation.
Don’t get me wrong, leasehold campaigners have done amazingly well to get this far when a third of Tory donations come from developers. The Bill is a start and will help many leaseholders on short leases by banning the ridiculous calculation of marriage value and hopefully ensure all ground rents will be at a peppercorn rate. It’s currently passing through Parliament with many greedy freehold investors and developers squealing loudly to anyone who will listen about their troughs being taken away. Let’s hope the Government ignores them and begins to drive the final nail into this particular rentier capitalism coffin.
Along with all the leasehold campaigners, including the brilliant National Leasehold Campaign, we hope to keep the pressure up to ban the whole rotting stinking system by taking Fleecehold on tour, so fingers crossed for next year.
Thank you for reading and I wish you a very happy festive time and a brilliant 2024.
Michele xxx
* Tinsillitis. It takes a miracle to find three wise men there.