Petition: Amend PCSC Bill to withdraw power to seize vehicles used as mobile homes

[Tookey]

That's an interesting reply which suggests the relevant local authorities have passed bye-laws rather than any action by FoQ themselves. If you intend to pursue it further, I would be writing to the local authority where this car park is located with a FOI request for chapter and verse on the when and how the bye-law was made. A quick search of the minutes of the ANOB Joint Management Committee suggests that illegal raves may well be one of the reasons for the overnight ban.

The online minutes are here ...

JAC Papers | Quantock Hills AONB

www.quantockhills.com

To be honest and slightly ashamed but between work and home commitments I suspect I have not got the time to pursue this with the commitment I suspect it would require. I will keep up communication with Chris if he chooses to.

 

[st3v3]

The reply I received;

'Dear Guy, thank you for your email – and for your appreciation of Friends of Quantock and the work they do. The “no overnight camping” signs in parking areas on the Quantocks are provided and installed by the AONB Service where the landowners who own the parking areas have indicated this is their policy. As you are no doubt aware some overnight users have a harmful impact (unlike you) in respect of waste/litter particularly and this is not considered an acceptable burden for the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.'

I will post my reply shortly

My reply, great, I see that you understand a minority spoil things so I shall carry on stopping for the odd night and I'll do my best to police the idiots. Do you have a number I can call when my comments fall on deaf ears?

 

[maureenandtom]

The thing is – historically authorities responsible for instituting byelaws, TROs, Off Street Parking Orders and other restrictions don’t always abide by the rules for making restrictions. I know all the arguments about not stopping where we aren’t wanted and all that. And we’ve seen during the pandemic these powerful people not feeling bound by rules. They don’t need to if they’re never challenged. That's their power.

Remember the guy who was moved on in the middle of the night because he had the effrontery to park in a layby – near Buttermere I think? https://wildcamping.co.uk/threads/1970s-bylaw-used-to-ban-camping-in-lake-district.81887/

The police officer moving him on quoted a Lake District Authority bylaw. Not everyone believed the byelaw existed so someone asked the Lake District authority under the FoI for sight of this byelaw.

Of course, it didn’t exist, as the questioner thought, but that didn’t stop the Lake District spouting what can only be described as a load of lies.

If you believe this body with the authority to make byelaws then you’ll believe that the only legal place for us to park is in a formal campsite. That’s what they said. Formal campsite only.

The FoI number is there if anyone wanted to question the authority further. They took 16 days to look up the accurate answer. There’s no byelaw but it’s the law of the land. Unspecified law of the land. Formal campsites only. Move when we tell you. You'll never know the byelaw doesn't exist, will you?

If we give authority an inch then they’ll take every opportunity to use those inches. Do you see they didn’t answer the FoI query simply by saying the byelaw didn’t exist; they had to try justifying themselves. I’d recommend signing the petition.

 

[trevskoda]

Looks like he was not doing anything wrong then, vh taxed and ins plus only resting and not camping.

 

[Debroos]

The thing is – historically authorities responsible for instituting byelaws, TROs, Off Street Parking Orders and other restrictions don’t always abide by the rules for making restrictions. I know all the arguments about not stopping where we aren’t wanted and all that. And we’ve seen during the pandemic these powerful people not feeling bound by rules. They don’t need to if they’re never challenged. That's their power.

Remember the guy who was moved on in the middle of the night because he had the effrontery to park in a layby – near Buttermere I think? https://wildcamping.co.uk/threads/1970s-bylaw-used-to-ban-camping-in-lake-district.81887/

The police officer moving him on quoted a Lake District Authority bylaw. Not everyone believed the byelaw existed so someone asked the Lake District authority under the FoI for sight of this byelaw.

Of course, it didn’t exist, as the questioner thought, but that didn’t stop the Lake District spouting what can only be described as a load of lies.

If you believe this body with the authority to make byelaws then you’ll believe that the only legal place for us to park is in a formal campsite. That’s what they said. Formal campsite only.

The FoI number is there if anyone wanted to question the authority further. They took 16 days to look up the accurate answer. There’s no byelaw but it’s the law of the land. Unspecified law of the land. Formal campsites only. Move when we tell you. You'll never know the byelaw doesn't exist, will you?

If we give authority an inch then they’ll take every opportunity to use those inches. Do you see they didn’t answer the FoI query simply by saying the byelaw didn’t exist; they had to try justifying themselves. I’d recommend signing the petition.

According to that email no one is allowed to stop in a layby at any time as permission has not been asked for!

View attachment 99728

 

[Val54]

The thing is – historically authorities responsible for instituting byelaws, TROs, Off Street Parking Orders and other restrictions don’t always abide by the rules for making restrictions. I know all the arguments about not stopping where we aren’t wanted and all that. And we’ve seen during the pandemic these powerful people not feeling bound by rules. They don’t need to if they’re never challenged. That's their power.

Remember the guy who was moved on in the middle of the night because he had the effrontery to park in a layby – near Buttermere I think? https://wildcamping.co.uk/threads/1970s-bylaw-used-to-ban-camping-in-lake-district.81887/

The police officer moving him on quoted a Lake District Authority bylaw. Not everyone believed the byelaw existed so someone asked the Lake District authority under the FoI for sight of this byelaw.

Of course, it didn’t exist, as the questioner thought, but that didn’t stop the Lake District spouting what can only be described as a load of lies.

If you believe this body with the authority to make byelaws then you’ll believe that the only legal place for us to park is in a formal campsite. That’s what they said. Formal campsite only.

The FoI number is there if anyone wanted to question the authority further. They took 16 days to look up the accurate answer. There’s no byelaw but it’s the law of the land. Unspecified law of the land. Formal campsites only. Move when we tell you. You'll never know the byelaw doesn't exist, will you?

If we give authority an inch then they’ll take every opportunity to use those inches. Do you see they didn’t answer the FoI query simply by saying the byelaw didn’t exist; they had to try justifying themselves. I’d recommend signing the petition.

View attachment 99728

This is where our lack of a representative body means we continue to lose out. Clearly the LDNP response isn't factually correct. A representative body could have sought legal advice on the correct position and the counsel's opinion could have been shared with the relevant Chief Constable and the LDNO advising them to train their staff. I know that would probably spark a move to create a by-law but at least that could be monitored by a representative body and appropriate representations made.