Hansard

I am pleased to speak in this debate to address an issue that affects many of my constituents in Midlothian North and Musselburgh and thousands more people across Scotland—our park home residents, many of whom are not receiving the support that they deserve. I thank Murdo Fraser for bringing the motion to the chamber for debate.

Back in 2011, when I was first elected, I convened a cross-party group on park homes that was formed to manage changes to legislation to correct anomalies that were seen as being unfair and unreasonable to residents. That was achieved successfully, but it now seems that those changes did not go far enough and that both legislation and enforcement need to be revisited.

Many of my constituents who reside in park homes are elderly or retired and they are almost consistently treated unfairly by their site owners. As I said, the Scottish Government has taken steps to improve conditions for park home residents, but I believe that more can and should be done to provide further protections for that vulnerable group.

We are all too aware of the energy crisis that has gripped our constituents’ lives as prices continue to rise, but it is hard to believe that some park home residents do not have fair and transparent access to the utilities that they pay for. If they purchase utilities from the site owner as part of their written agreement, no specific charges can be identified. That bypasses the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets maximum price limits, which are there to protect customers. That lack of transparency leaves park home residents open to exploitation. A simple step that our Government could take is to ensure that residents have clarity and openness in relation to how their utility bills are calculated. Site owners must be constrained from profiteering from their residents’ energy use.

Unfortunately, that is not the only common issue that residents face. The restrictions to qualifying for home adaptation grants have left many in the most appalling circumstances. I will share the story of a constituent who was given the most heartbreaking news. They had just had their second leg amputated, but because they lived in a mobile home, they did not qualify for financial help to install home adaptations, because the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 states that any home that is not a permanent structure does not qualify. It is outrageous that anyone can be left trapped and isolated following a life-altering illness, and we must close that glaring loophole.

Following that correspondence, I reached out to the Scottish Government, which assured me that it was conducting a review of the adaptation system. I look forward to the outcome of the review, and I hope that it will bring welcome news to park residents across the country.

It is also vital that park home residents are included in wider discussions; their voices must be heard. Currently, that can be done via residents associations, which allow residents to organise and create dialogue with their site owners. I was pleased to meet the Scottish Confederation of Park Home Residents Associations this morning, where we discussed the importance of residents associations and how SCOPHRA can assist residents in creating their own associations. However, my constituents informed me that some site owners still refuse to consult with residents associations, and co-operation cannot be enforced. I encourage the Scottish Government to investigate where the legislation can be tightened to ensure greater co-operation between site owners and residents. Simple mutual respect seems to be lacking.

Park home residents are not asking for special treatment; they are asking for fairness, stability and the ability to enjoy their home without unnecessary hardship. By working together, we can ensure that every resident—every one of our constituents—can live with dignity and security.