FAIR RENTS

Evening Post, Volume CXXXIV, Issue 99, 23 October 1942, Page 4

FAIR RENTS

SERVICEMEN'S RIGHTS

IMPORTANT AMENDMENT

An important amendment to the Fair Rents Amendment Bill made by the Legislative Council yesterday was subsequently approved by the House of Representatives. The amendment safeguards the rights of servicemen and their dependants whether they are owners or tenants of dwelling-houses, giving them preference of occupancy over people who are not servicemen or their dependants. Where both parties in such a dispute are servicemen or their dependants the decision is left to a Magistrate.

The amendment provides that a landlord who is not a serviceman cannot obtain possession of a dwelling-house from a tenant who is a serviceman or the wife or widow of a serviceman so long as the tenant pays the rent, takes reasonable care of the premises, and is not a nuisance to the neighbours. CASE OF TWO SERVICEMEN. When the landlord is a serviceman and the tenant is a serviceman or the wife or widow of a serviceman or a dependant of a serviceman and the landlord wants to return to his own house which he occupied before commencing his service, the Court may refuse to make an order for possession after considering the relative hardship of the two parties. It will not be necessary, however, for the landlord to find alternative accommodation for the tenant or to prove affirmatively that his hardship' is greater than the tenant's.

When a serviceman wants possession of his own house to resume living in it and the tenant is not a serviceman or the wife or widow of a serviceman or a dependant of the serviceman, the landlord will have an absolute right to an order for possession.

Following an explanation of the amendment by the Attorney-General (Mr. Mason), the Leader of the Opposition (Mr. Holland) said he thought the -new provisions were an improvement, but they confirmed the view he had expressed previously that more time should be taken over Bills.

The Prime Minister (Mr. Fraser) replied that there was nothing unusual in the course events had taken. There had never been an Opposition that had not complained about lack of time for settling legislative problems. EFFECT ON MORALE. Commendation of the provisions of the Bill dealing with ex-servicemen was expressed in the Legislative Council by the Hon. W. Perry (Wellington), and he thanked the Government for adopting in the Bill suggestions made by the Returned Services' Association. An important result of the Bill, he said, would be the excellent effect it would have upon the morale of the fighting forces, because of the protection it gave to the wives and families of servicemen.