Clause 4. — (Interpretation.)

Part of Orders of the Day — Government of India Act. – in the House of Commons at on 5 May 1920.

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Photo of Mr William Graham Mr William Graham , Edinburgh Central

I beg to move at the end of the Clause to add the words: This Act shall also apply in the case of a house of an assessable rental exceeding twenty-one pounds where in virtue of the duration of the let the owner is responsible for any portion of the occupiers' rates. There is so much agreement on this Bill that it is quite unnecessary to occupy more than a minute or two in explaining this Amendment, which stands on the Paper in the name of my right hon. Friend the Member for West Fife (Mr. Adamson) and myself. The Bill provides for the recovery of the excess of assessment paid by the owners of small houses in Scotland from the assessing authority where, by reason of any change in the occupancy of the dwelling, the house owners are unable to recover such assessment from the tenant. On that and the other Clauses of the Bill, there is no disagreement at all among Scottish Members, and personally I am more than grateful to my right hon. Friend opposite for having met us in substance on the two other points which were presented by way of Amendment in Committee. Attention was then directed to a class of house proprietors in Scotland whose interests appeared to us to be not quite fully protected by this Bill. A difficulty arose from the joint operation of the House Letting Act of 1911 and the much more recent Rents Restriction Acts. Clearly, as the text of the Bill indicates, its provisions apply only to houses which are within the limits of the House Letting Act of 1911. It may be argued that in Scotland very few houses of a rental of £21 or upwards have been let for periods of less than one year, and hence no proprietors would be in the position of being liable for the occupiers' rates. Representations, however, have been made to us, not merely by small householders in Scotland, but also by a number of representative organisations and bodies, to the effect that, partly because of War conditions, and partly because of conditions preceding the War, an increasing number of houses in Scotland of a rental of £21 and upwards, have been let for periods of less than one year, and that, under the terms of Section 345 of the Borough Police (Scotland) Act of 1892, the owners become liable for the occupiers' assessment. I am obliged to confess that there are obvious lines of reply, which I may venture to anticipate, on the part of the Government. They may suggest, first of all, that these proprietors of houses of a rental of £21 per annum and upwards are well able to take care of themselves, and that, if they fail to make a stipulation which, clearly protects their interests, they have only themselves to blame. It may be argued also, that probably, in the light of decisions in the Courts, Section 345 of the Act of 1892 has not the force which some of us would attribute to it. Within the past day or two I hare read the Section again. It consists of only about three lines, but there is not the slightest doubt that there is no optional element within it; it is a compulsory Section, saying that the owners of premises and houses let for periods of less than one year are liable for the occupiers' assessment.

This Amendment is designed to meet a real grievance, and to give to the owners of such houses, who are, many of them, quite small people belonging to the industrial classes in Scotland, exactly the rights which are accorded to proprietors of houses up to the £21 limit. It has been strongly urged that, in a matter of this kind, where the recovery of an excess assessment is concerned, there can be no real reason for drawing any distinction between proprietors up to £21 and proprietors above that sum, who, for the reasons which I have just quoted, happen to have let their property for a period of less than one year. I venture to suggest, also, that this Amendment is one which is quite democratic in character, and which may worthily come from these Benches. My fear is that many small proprietors, unaware of this Clause in the 1892 Act, may come silently under its burden, and it is particularly that class of small proprietor which I have in mind in proposing this Amendment.