Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:31 pm on 5 June 2018.
I thank you very much for those points. I certainly know that you, for many years, have been a champion of the park home residents within your own constituency. I know we've had meetings to discuss the concerns that your constituents have been raising with you as well.
I do hope that the fact that there is this backstop of the residential property tribunal will give some assurance to people—those people who are managing sites, and the owners of the sites, but also owners of the park homes as well—that any increases in pitch fees will be reasonable and proportionate, and certainly anything above the consumer price index would be something that would necessarily have to be taken to the tribunal.
I think it's important to remember that CPI was agreed when the Mobile Homes (Wales) Act 2013 came into force, and it was chosen as CPI because we realised that many residents are on fixed incomes from pensions or benefits, and those themselves are linked to CPI. So, that decision was undertaken in the first instance in order to be fair to the residents. Again, we have the five-year period now in terms of moving down to the 5 per cent, which will be halving the commission rate, and it will be, certainly, the lowest commission rate in the UK. So this will give businesses time to adjust, but also home owners time to consider their options as well.