The group, Hedgeline, represents people who feel their homes and lives have been blighted by their neighbours' overgrown hedges and trees.

Leylandiis, the root of the problem

Following the government's decision to omit legislation to tackle the problem in Tuesday's Queen's speech, deciding instead to concentrate on reforming the Lords, Hedgeline's founder member Michael Jones says he is hoping that one of the 171 MPs who support his case will introduce a private (or privet?) members bill to tackle the problem root and branch.

Mr Jones, who has spent six years in a legal battle with neighbour over a Leylandii tree, wants the power to prune large hedges which block out light and cause structural damage to neighbouring property.

He is also concerned that overgrown hedges reduce house values. Who he says, would want, "to buy a house next door to a Leylandii freak"?

Earlier this year planning minister Richard Caborn said he was considering whether "some form of intervention" was necessary to control the use of the Leylandii, following a number of high-profile court cases.

The Leylandii, a fast-growing Cypress, can reach up to 100ft high and is widely blamed for sucking the goodness from soil, killing nearby grass and flowerbeds.

Many hedge abuse victims suffer emotionally and financially

Speaking to BBC News Online Mr Jones said many hedges grow to, "dramatic or worrying proportions - it may not be in size, it could be in position" and that at present those affected are powerless to take any action.

He said many homes have to be shored up due to damage from Leylandiis and that, "building societies are not now giving mortgages for shored up homes".

'A shoulder to cry on'

He believes that size of the problem is just being acknowledged and that hundreds of people have called his helpline, some in obvious distress.

"We are more than a helpline ... we give you a shoulder to cry on, and frequently they do weep, but sometimes they shout in rage and frustration."

Must of the people who call, he says, are elderly, "weak and vulnerable and unable to cope with their neighbours".

Should MPs fail in pushing through hedge control legislation, Mr Jones already has a back-up plan. One peer, he says, "has promised to introduce it into the House of Lords".