Why is it that whenever leasehold reform is discussed there is an assumption the poor, honest leaseholder is being fleeced by the wicked freeholder?

While I can appreciate to the casual observer the risk of lease forfeiture for "small" debts may seem a big stick with which to crack a very small nut, it needs to be borne in mind that people who wilfully withhold their service charge are being subsidised by their neighbours and sanctions need to exist to prevent those who are of the opinion they have better things to spend their money on than to pay what they rightfully owe.

The sum of £500 might not seem very much but in a small block this would mean an extra £167 would need to be found by the three neighbours of someone who would rather have a week in Spain than pay.

Habitual bad payers are a problem where I live and I am sure this is true of many other flat-blocks in the area.

When the law is weakened to allow those who refuse to pay to simply get away with it, what is the Government and Brighton Pavilion MP David Lepper going to do to protect those of us who do pay?

-Marion Tuck, Dyke Road, Brighton