Page 332 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 20 February 1990
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On 26 July 1989 the ACT Legislative Assembly established a Select Committee on the Tenancy of Commercial Premises to:
(1) examine difficulties currently being encountered by tenants of privately subleased commercial premises so far as those difficulties arise out of the contractual relationship between landlord and tenant;
(2) consider whether the commercial tenancy relationship should be regulated by legislation and if so, in what manner; and
(3) consider whether the Business Leases Review Board should be established along the lines of the draft Business Leases Review Ordinance, 1984.
At the outset I would like to thank the other members of the committee, the committee staff, Hansard staff, and all who placed submissions before us, also both New South Wales and Victorian landlord and tenant organisations and the governments which ensured that our deliberations in both States were first class.
This committee has had not one but three committee secretaries to the inquiry. I would like to say how much more difficult it is for any committee to work with not one but three different committee secretaries. I hope that this procedure will not be ongoing in the future. I understand that plans are well in place to address the issue. However, the commitment of each of these people was first class and may I extend to each of them my very special thanks. I wish to thank Cameron Kent who was with us until 30 November, John Cummins, and Cheryl Scarlett, who came to us more recently and acquitted herself admirably in the putting together of this report.
As you are aware, Mr Speaker, the perceived problem has been around for some considerable time. In fact, legislation to regulate commercial tenancy relationships in the ACT was first mooted in 1975, but lapsed with the change of government at the Federal election that year. Again, in 1983, as a result from complaints from lessees, the then Federal Minister for Territories and Local Government proposed that a Business Leases Review Board be developed and the Business Leases Review Ordinance 1984 was drafted. With the establishment of the ACT Legislative Assembly, there was renewed interest in addressing the issues relating to commercial tenancy practices. This led to the establishment of a select committee to investigate a range of issues.
The committee conducted four public and three in camera hearings, received 27 submissions and took evidence from only 35 witnesses. Procedures were put in place to conceal the identity of people who gave evidence in closed session,
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