Page 2070 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 28 May 1991
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I have been toying, I must say, with altering Mr Connolly's amendment to make it cover tenants as well. But my view is that it would be a difficult situation usually to prosecute a tenant who has, without any cupidity and perhaps through lack of foresight, lack of information and ignorance, not lodged a condition report. In most circumstances it is to the tenant's disadvantage not to lodge it; in most circumstances it is to the landlord's advantage not to lodge it. In that circumstance I think that we will be able to explain to the real estate industry why the penalty falls on the landlord rather than the tenant. So, the Government will support this amendment as put forward by Mr Connolly.
I come back to Mrs Grassby's comments. My advice is that the rental bond office procedures will include the checking of condition reports to ensure that both parties have signed. And, as Welfare Rights proposes, reports not signed by tenants can be forwarded back to them to give them another opportunity to endorse or dispute them. This will be an administrative procedure, and it does not need to be included in the legislation. That will be a strict instruction to the bond office which will actively assist tenants to get their condition reports accurately completed.
Amendment agreed to.
MR CONNOLLY (8.17): That was the first amendment on the sheet circulated by me. I will now formally move the second amendment, which is - - -
Mr Collaery: It is consequential.
MR CONNOLLY: It is consequential. We have spoken to the whole matter. Indeed, as the Attorney just said, it is to make it abundantly clear that the tenant would not be prosecuted. On behalf of the Opposition, we welcome Mr Collaery's response to Mrs Grassby's concerns about the position where a condition report is returned not signed. While Mrs Grassby had foreshadowed that there may be some possibility of an amendment, we are satisfied that, as the Attorney says, this will be dealt with administratively and there will be some clear guidelines in the office to ensure that that occurs. That is an appropriate position to leave it at at the moment. I move:
Page 6, lines 13 and 14, omit "this section", substitute "subsection (3)".
Amendment agreed to.
Clause, as amended, agreed to.
Remainder of Bill, by leave, taken as a whole, and agreed to.
Bill, as amended, agreed to.
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