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The Government must require SRA/Law Society/CILC/CILEX to all sort out a ban on referral fees, full stop. No financial payment must go from a law firm/company to an estate agent (no advertising, no gratuity, no commission). Otherwise, you will just end up with indirect referral fees. Fines for any breach too - minimum £50,000.

It is wrong to say being a Developer’s preferred lawyers is always wrong. Nonsense. my Firm is on many a development. But I terminated a preferred solicitor relationship with a very famous house builder, as they were not treating their customers properly, and being a solicitor, our duty is the opposite, to put our cleints' best interests at heart, so we instantly stopped accepting buyer instructions from them. Proven to be the right decision.

But what is meant by ‘cozy’ anyway. As in the solicitor will not obey their own professional Code of Conduct? MPs are surely not peddling that are they? No Government regulation exists, but it is the fault of others? That gem.

Conveyancers keep their files for 12 years + so their advice will always be available to see, and other than some volume style companies, I cannot imagine too many are guilty of failing to inform buyers of what the lease says in all respects. Though it is shocking that a buyer can get as far as the conveyancer without knowing anything about leasehold….Rightmove, estate agents, surveyors, mortgage advisers, mortgage companies, …only then conveyancers. SOLUTION? NOgt ocmmonhold for goodness sake....Key Facts documents at every stage to be allowed to sell a leasehold (and freehold with a management charge).