TENANTS TO UNITE

Evening Post, Volume XCIX, Issue 138, 11 June 1920, Page 7

TENANTS TO UNITE

RENTPAYERS' RROTECTION LEAGUE

INAUGURAL MEETING,

The bad weather last evening was against a- large attendance at a public meeting in the Trades Hall to consider the formation of a Rent-payers' Protection League, but those present wero plainly of one , opinion, that there was .ample work for such a. league. Mr. L. Glover, who occupied the chair, said it was,not necessary for him to go into the details which pointed to the need of forming a protection league, for complaints were heard on every side. The league should aim at the protection of the interests of all rentpayers, and the curbing, in part, of the operations of landlords, and should impress upon the Government the necessity of providing additional housing accommodation. It was possible, he considered, to .enrol 5000 to 10,000 people in Wellington, and with aii organisation of -that strength it should be possible to exercise an effective check upon, landlords extracting exorbitant rents from tenants. Mr. H. Dyson referred to a previous meeting 'held in the Town Kail, and to the number of .inquiries which bad been made at the Trades' Hall day after day. Never a day passed but half-a-dozen or more inquiries were made, and those inquiries and complaints, comin.e as they did, gave the imprc-Bsion that there, was a great opportunity of getting something done if those individuals were combined in an organised body. The League would not solve the housing question, but it would help to bring the scandal to a. head. Mr. J. Read said that were the League properly organised effective -pressure could be brought to bear upon the Go-, vernment to take adequate steps to meet ths present situation. He mentioned sp.ecific cases in which tenants had been j.shamefully treated, and expressed the opinion that had. the working class realised their power earlier, the present state cf affairs would' never have come about. [ Mrs. Catlow said that the women of Wellington would warmly welcome the formation of the league. Mr. R. M'Keen said ithat if the league achieved- nothing beyond the giving of advice to individuals who were troubled and knew not which way to turn in the face of their housing troubles, it- would be worth while. The league could not hope to dictate terms—"Do this, .and dn that"—to the landlord, to the City Council, or to the Government, but it could., by a system of the widest publicity, turn public opinion against the offending landlord or body." Adverse comment- was passed by the speaker upon ths City Council for its alleged failure to carry oat its duties in the matter of insisting that houses should be put in proper order. The tenant, Mr. R. M'Keen held, wasgiven no real protection under the Act, and the returned" soldiers but little. LEGAL ADVICE TO TENANTS. Mr. D. R. Howitt then formally moved that the league be formed. He considered that such a. body would b9 of the greatest ■ value to parties to tenement oases at the Magistrate's Court, and lie." thought that arrangements should be made for tenants to receive legal advice through the league. Mr. R. Sprowel, who seconded the motion, said that he thought that one of the objects of the league should be to endeavour to. bring about the repeal of the clause of the War Regulations which denied a. Magistrate the right to deal with cases in which a, greater rent than £2 per week was paid. He also considered that a tenant should have the right of appeal in tenement cases, and in instances where a Magistrate ordered that the rent should be reduced why should not the tenant be given the right to demand a refund of the amount overpaid. Mr. A. L. Monteath referred to a previous tenants,' association formed in 1915, and the lesson learnt from that association was that if any success were to -be met with the members must be willing to put their hands in their pockets and give the league their backmg' "DIRECT ACTION." Mr. T. Brindle said that the League had something more to do than to interpret laws—it should-endeavour to instil into tenants something o£ the fighting spirit, something of the courage that would enable the tenants to sit tight when notices were served to quit. "When we hear of cases of intended eviction or cases of the charging of exorbitant rent, the league has to be there," he said. Resolutions had been passed.,- meetings had been held, but all to no purpose, .and now more potent means should be employed—in other words, direct action. . The motion was put to the meeting, ' and carried unanimously. Mr. H. Dyson was elected secretary to the league, and the following .were appointed a committeeto draw up rules and to report to a later meeting: — Messrs. L. Glover, R. Sprowel, P. Eraser, A. L. Monteith, J. M'Kenzie, T. Brindle, R. M'Keen, and Howitt, and Mrs. A. Catlow. A further meeting will be held next Thursday evening in the same hall.