Sorry, I need to vent. Second home owners!

[Querlouse]

I live in a small village in a quiet farming area. One of the old cottages was bought by a family from London about 18 months ago, they spent a long time getting planning permission but have now started works.

They are coming down and meeting mates there every weekend. Yesterday I walked past (footpath runs alongside house) and there were two massive flashy Landrovers not really relevant cars outside and three blokes, at least two women and four kids all hanging out in the big garden. The house is currently uninhabitable so they aren't staying there permanently.

Dh says just forget about it but its really annoying me! Our village is generally really old and we've had no cases of cv so far.

It's not OK to drive 3 hours from London to a village then meet mates is it??

You really don’t think the police would be interested do you?

Also it was the married mistress who visited Fergusson. He stayed in his home but had no worries about mixing households.

I think a lot of people have s problem with second home owners full stop. The op said the house wasnt complete, so it could be that they are going there to do some work on it and only staying a few days. They arent mixing with townsfolk, just staying at the property then leaving. So for me, the only concern would be that there seem to be two families there. But...perhaps they are already a merged family with this other family? We dont know this.

I actually dont have a problem with Gordon Ramsey either, seems like he spends a lot of time in this home in Rock? So not really a second home? Ie in that he hardly goes there? Is he not entitled to decide which home he should be in? Perhaps he sees this home more as a first home and the London home as a work home. Perhaps his family were already there? In terms of nhs capacity, the place he is at now should have enough capacity for all the houses nearby, which would normally have occupants in.

Also, I think the Police did a lot of scaremongering tactics...saying things like "if you go to Wales /Cornwall you will be turned back", which is absolute bolloxs. They may have turned back a few people, but as the days and weeks have gone on, there is no such barrier and people getting stopped everwhere, they just havent got capacity. Early days they were stopping people, but as more people have been driving to work etc and walks, they just havent got capacity. Lots of people have commented the roads are busier. In the next county to me, local parks are open, lots of people parking up and walking etc, police nowhere to be seen.

@TabbyMumz the visitors are having BBQs. And making day trips.

Would you do that?

Sleeping pup....yes they've had a bbq in their property, I dont see this as being a problem, once they are there. Bbqs dont pass on covid to anyone. Think the op said they are there for the weekend as she thinks it's a 3 hour drive from London to get there. Dont think she could know for sure where they have driven from unless they have told her. From what the op said, this property is in quite a remote area. They arent mixing with villagers or anything. So again for me, the only concern would be the mixing of families, but we dont know for sure they they havent already mixed?

I think this thread does show how we have moved through the gears to being happy with a police state. People want to report these people to the police. We have criminalised driving to their own property. If we carry on like this, people will not go back to work. They will be afraid of their neighbours and distrustful of the police and the state that has brought this upon them. It’s not “healthy” to live like this and it just shows what power the state has assumed and how people simply don’t question it.

No Tabby I don't think BBQs can pass covid, it was in reply to you saying the visitors

"could be staying a few days and doing some work on the house"

No they are doing day trips and jollys.

OP knows they come from London from her dealings on the Parish Council.

And no you're not meant to drive 3 hrs into the remote countryside second gaff or not. As the scottish health advisor debacle demonstrated. .

And yes possibly they all live in a commune in London so not mixing families. But I wouldn't bet on it.

But really it's neither here nor there what your particular concerns are. We ALL KNOW they shouldn't be doing this. And whilst the majority sweat it out with limited social contact they have country BBQS. Neil Ferguson obvs thought he was quite special too.

Having said that, villagers seem to be doing more mixing in my village than any incomers. A walk before lunch showed quite a lot of mixing going on. One rule for Londoners and villagers just do what they want?

oh get real @BubblesBuddy. Don't be so dramatic.

It's about people taking the piss.

The point of lockdown is well, lockdown. They don't want people travelling around the country, if it is not essential.

It has been interesting to see who thinks the rules don't apply to them. Its a form of arrogance.

We have criminalised driving to their own property.

Yes it's 3hrs away. And it's A LOCKDOWN.

Oh hang on I did say earlier that ONLY 2nd home owners should be allowed to drive long distances to solve the question. Sorry my bad. @BubblesBuddy

"sleepingpup

No Tabby I don't think BBQs can pass covid, it was in reply to you saying the visitors"could be staying a few days and doing some work on the house"

"No they are doing day trips and jollys."

No, think the op said weekends and the house needs work on it, so not there just for the day, but a few days. Dont think many people would drive for 6 hours in one day to go to their house?

"And no you're not meant to drive 3 hrs into the remote countryside second gaff or not. As the scottish health advisor debacle demonstrated. ."

But this is my point....why not? What harm are they actually doing?

"And yes possibly they all live in a commune in London so not mixing families. But I wouldn't bet on it."

"But really it's neither here nor there what your particular concerns are. "

Well its a thread and we all get to comment on what we think.

"We ALL KNOW they shouldn't be doing this. And whilst the majority sweat it out with limited social contact they have country BBQS. Neil Ferguson obvs thought he was quite special too."

You are really hung up on the bbq arent you? Would you be happier if they just went there and didnt have the bbq?

Bubbles I assume you live in a nice leafy green area where people have gardens and kitchen islands.

If you were in London 6 weeks ago, you would have heard ambulance sirens about every three minutes. More frequent than landing slots at Heathrow. It was serious. That i why we had lockdown. The main crisis may have passed in London, but could equally reoccur. There are apparently still major problems in the North West, whilst we need to do everything we can to avoid overwhelming small rural hospitals.

As always there seems to be an assumption that there is a class of people for who rules don't apply.

Sorry. We are one country, one society and we look out for each other. I don't want the bloke in the filling station catching CV, because some plonker from London thought he was more special, then passing it to his vulnerable mum.

Lockdown will almost certainly be eased after Sunday, but step by step and in line with emerging knowledge and experience. And we all need to comply. A second wave, especially in the autumn will be devastating, socially, but especially economically. It might even hurt those in living in the home counties gin belt and the prats who visit their second homes.

House is uninhabitable Tabby, suppose they could be camping.

Not 'hung up' on BBQS. But let's not swing this that "they're doing work on the house". Which would be maybe a tiny bit of a better reason to travel 3 hrs into the country. But not really.

When People decamped to their summer homes in Italy and France before lockdown there was then a noticeable rise in the virus in those places.
That is the harm they could be doing. I can't be bothered to explain the point of lockdown past this.

And actually come to think of it, perhaps I AM hung up on BBQS. I would LOVE a bloody BBQ with my mates right now.

Sleeping pup...I'm sorry but I just cant get excited about people driving to their own home and having a bbq there. She said "every weekend" or "for weekends" not sure which and "house uninhabitable so not staying there permanently", which to me means they could be staying overnight. Still cant see why someone would happily drive 6 hours in a day just for a bbq...every weekend!!! Makes much more sense that they are staying overnight and doing some work on it whilst there. Still I could be wrong. On this thread people are really hung up on people driving somewhere quiet and keeping away from people, whereas on another thread lots and lots of people are saying they go to the shops several times a week just for one or two items, which to me arguably puts more people at risk.

I suspect Tabby has a second home, she's protesting really quite hard about this.

Just as lockdown commenced, the police put up a tweet of a car they'd stopped, the occupants of which were driving for a day out, canoeing on a river. Picture showed canoes on the roof of car and there were lots of tut tutting going on.

Thinking about that now, what does it matter, if they were driving from their house to somewhere remote, spending a few hours on a river, then going home?

what remote like Snowdon Tabby?

Well you’ve managed to get digs in about Londoners, second home owners and owners of flashy cars ( wealthy people presumably) all in one post. Bravo. It actually makes me relieved to no longer live in a village

artisanparsnips

"I suspect Tabby has a second home, she's protesting really quite hard about this."

Nope. Havent.
Just cant see the need for the excitement over it, when there is worse stuff people are doing.

sleepingpup

"what remote like Snowdon Tabby"

Actually, if you've even been to Snowden...its pretty damn remote!!! Its just the parking that is rubbish, there is no car park for more than about 4 cars, which is why you saw pictures of cars parked down the road. It was an ideal photoshoot for the press. Once people get on the mountain, you could walk for miles and not see anyone.

You're right Tabby no point getting excited.

There's always piss takers and entitled piss takers. Or "critical thinking risk assessors" As I now like to call them.

Shame for 70 year old neighbour next door who hasn't been out in 7 weeks though. Which actually has always been the point.

Hence why when the police put up a camera, they only managed to video 2 people and a dog!!

yeah been to Snowdon Tabby.And the press made it all up. Hope there was no nudging in the car park.

Yes I do have a big garden but I cannot understand your argument needmoresleep. I am well aware of sirens in London as DDs have told me. DD2 has been upset by it all.

What’s that got to do with anything - other than making Londoners wanting to escape? Which, according to DDs, if they can, they have. Which I totally understand. I’m also aware it’s not what was intended but it’s too late now. Lots have decamped. The op doesn’t like Londoners who travel in big cars and have second homes! So that’s where opinion differs as to whether lockdown means everyone. Where I live it definitely doesn’t. It’s an out of the way village and households appear to be mixing and some have done for weeks. Older working DCs (doctors themselves) have turned up to the medical Professor’s home, an elderly man (around 75) has constant visits and weekend stays from adult children, DCs on furlough have turned up in several households and bbqs have taken place. Several grandparents have had grandchildren round. And that’s just what I know about! So it makes me think it’s a minority taking it seriously here! I’m one of them but plenty of walkers and cyclists have appeared and people sit and eat lunch in the woods and by the side of footpaths. I don’t care about any of this but if I did I would be a wreck by now! So I ignore it.