Successful Campaigns

10/12/21 FINALLY, A WIN FOR WILD ANIMALS After decades of campaigning and years of waiting, Born Free welcomes UK Government plans to end the legal import of trophies from hundreds of wild animals, shot for ‘fun’. Read more here: https://www.bornfree.org.uk/news/uk-trophy-import-ban

12/09/22 It's been almost two years since we started our campaign to stop the proposed merger between Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead, and University Hospital Sussex, but finally we have received the news we have all been working towards. All work on the merger has been stopped and we have been informed that this is not a pause but a final decision not to go ahead with the merger now or in the future. Recent whistleblowing by consultants at USH and the subsequent CQC reports highlighting significant ongoing patient safety concerns have proved that merger with them would have been a disaster for QVH. We want to thank each and every one of you that has been involved in supporting us during our fight to save these internationally respected specialist services. We now need leadership put in place that understands and values this unique hospital and its staff. Not a leadership team that is willing to sell it off the highest bidder, instead a leadership team that will fight for its future by building on its strengths and working with like-minded organisations. Thank you all for helping us to get our voices heard!

08/10/19 - Great news! It is with great elation that I am writing this after my out of country application for a spouse visa has now been approved. Throughout this trying and stressful time we would not have had the courage or strength to continue the battle had it not been for the overwhelming support received by you all. I will be returning home shortly to my much loved home Arran to once again continue the life my husband John and I have built and will yet again be a familiar face in our wee shop 'The Sandwich Station'. The heartache experienced by seperation from not only one's home but the love of your life, soulmate, friends and community is one that can never be conveyed in words! I hope that we will all continue to stand together and fight for the countless others that have been placed in a similar position. Let us hope that in so doing we can lay the foundations for a society that is strengthend in bond and unity allowing people from all walks of life the freedom to love who they so wish, live where they are wanted but above all help build on the compassion that we all share. Many thanks to you all, let this be only but the beginning of a bright and beautiful future. Lizanne

Transport for London has banned adverts for holiday let companies that take homes away from Londoners, following a successful campaign against the anti-tenant adverts by Generation Rent. New advertising guidelines will mean that any advertising that encourages removing homes from the private rental market will be banned from the TfL estate. The victory comes after over 8000 renters signed a Generation Rent petition asking TfL to drop adverts from short term lets company Hostmaker. In the adverts, Hostmaker told landlords they could increase their yield by 30% by ditching tenants and switching their properties to short term lets.

02/05/18 A message from Grahame: Thanks so much for signing Pauline's petition. I am really pleased to let you know that Pauline has just been granted 30 months leave to stay! So people power really can work! We still have some mountains to cross but we can at last relax a bit now and admire the view! Over 100,000 signatures in less than 10 weeks is amazing. Knowing there are so many good people out there has given us great strength. Apparently the Home Secretary received some 16,000 tweets from petition signers over just the past 2 days (LOL!). Thanks also to 38 Degrees who have been brilliant! Without this support I'm sure Pauline would have been just another case to brush under the carpet! Whilst the decision does not mitigate for the injustices Pauline has suffered (as clearly described by our barrister) it will at least allow the long recovery process to begin. We can now start planning the rest of our lives - including a long-awaited honeymoon! I really hope that lessons can be learned so others don't have to go through the same nightmare. I for one will one work tirelessly to this end. Keep well and thanks again. Grahame (& Pauline) x

We won! In a decision that set a new national precedent, a government planning inspector granted permission to keep Kirkby Moor wind farm running until 2027. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-49515965

01/10/18 - We won! Housing Minister James Brokenshire has just announced a ban on dangerous combustible building materials, like the cladding that was used on Grenfell tower. The government has chosen to put people before profit and you were a part of making that happen, so thank you. So many lives were turned upside down after the Grenfell tragedy. Since then, we’ve been campaigning hard as ‘Grenfell United’ for justice and change, to make sure no families have to go through what we did. Your signature on our petition helped us pile the pressure on the government before the announcement when it really mattered. Here’s what Ahmed Elgwahry, who lost his mother and sister in the fire, had to say: “It is heartbreakingly too late for our families but we’re one step closer to making sure other families across the country can go to bed at night safe in their homes.”

On the 3rd December 2020 the Environment Secretary announced plans to ban live exports following Britain’s departure from the EU. This ban is dependent upon the result of an eight-week consultation, beginning today, which seeks views on ending the export of live animals for slaughter and fattening where the journeys begin or transit through England or Wales. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-55167473 Due to this awful trade, animals must endure excessively long journeys, and frequently experience pain, exhaustion, stress and overcrowding. Having campaigned to put an end to this suffering for over 50 years, we are delighted to hear that the Government plans to ban live exports at long last. Echoing our sentiments exactly, George Eustice, Defra Secretary of State, called the trade a “cruel and unnecessary practice”, in a press release on the announcement.