Land Registry Shake Up Threatens Businesses and Jobs Warns X-Press Legal Chief

March 25, 2014 - PRLog -- A shake-up of Her Majesty’s Land Registry (HMLR) could have a devastating impact on the businesses that provide property search document services to solicitors and conveyancers and lead to the loss of a hundreds of jobs warned Christian Lister, Operations director for Cheshire’s X-Press Legal Services.

The Warrington-based businessman, who is also chairman of the Association of Independent and Personal (Search) Agents (IPSA), was speaking after responding to two Government consultations at which he challenged plans that would effectively enable HMLR to take over the work of companies like X-Press Legal.

“The fear is that HMLR will be given wider powers that will effectively enable it to offer the services that are currently being provided by highly professional companies like X-Press Legal,” he said. “It would be a form of privatization-enabling HMLR to move into the provision of property search documents, which are used by conveyancing solicitors, mortgage lenders and every prospective home buyer.

“Giving these changes the go-ahead will sound the death knell for one very successful business sector which has pioneered public sector information re-use and would result in a very significant number of job losses,” added Mr Lister who has taken time out of his role at X-Press Legal to voice concerns on behalf of his industry sector.

Mr Lister added: “I also find it quite concerning that the Government can support open-data and public sector information re-use as championed by the Right Hon Francis Maude, Secretary of State for the Cabinet Office. Because, both of these new proposals will restrict fair and transparent access to data.”

Mr Lister expects a result from the consultation responses in approximately twenty days.

“We are hoping that our argument will convince the powers-that-be that the existing system we have is perfectly acceptable,” he explained. “However we will remain on stand-by, pending legal action, until we have the outcome of the Government consultations.”

ENDS