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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 3 Hansard (6 March) . . Page.. 612 ..

Leases (Commercial and Retail) Bill 2000 [No 2]

Detail stage

Debate resumed.

MR STEFANIAK (Minister for Education and Attorney-General) (4.08): I move amendment No 8 circulated in my name on the purple sheet [see schedule 1 part 1 at page 679].

This amendment is to item 3 on page 10, in the table of disputes to which the act will apply. It is being amended to ensure that disputes about variations to leases made after 1 January 1995 are also disputes to which the act applies. This reflects the existing law and meets the expectation within the markets that this will occur.

Amendment agreed to.

MR STANHOPE (Leader of the Opposition) (4.09): I move amendment No 1 circulated in my name [see schedule 4 part 1 at page 720].

This amendment is consequential on amendment No 23. This item will make reference to sections 105, 114B or 114E. Those are provisions that I propose by later amendment be incorporated within division 12.4. Division 12.4, the new part that I propose be inserted, deals with the procedure for termination of a lease by the lessor. The aim of the part is to prevent what might blatantly be referred to as a lockout. The part sets out in detail the circumstances in which a lease might be terminated. It requires the lessor to give written notice of termination to the tenant, and then sets out a procedure whereby the termination notice might be put into effect. If the termination is disputed by the lessee, the lessor requires a magistrate's order agreeing to the termination. It is a provision which gives significant comfort to the tenant in circumstance where a lessor seeks to act unilaterally to exclude a tenant from premises rented by him.

MR STEFANIAK (Minister for Education and Attorney-General) (4.12): The government will be agreeing to Mr Stanhope's amendment. We will also be moving a small amendment to insert a new clause 107C, "Abandonment", which is relevant to what Mr Stanhope is doing. I give notice of that. Mr Stanhope is well aware of that. We agree to his amendment.

Amendment agreed to.

MR STEFANIAK (Minister for Education and Attorney-General) (4.13): I move amendment No 9 on the purple sheet circulated in my name [see schedule 1 part 1 at page 679].

Item 9 is being amended to permit a breach after 1 January 1995 to be a dispute to which the act applies. This is similar to my amendment No 8.

Amendment agreed to.

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