§
Lords Amendment: In page 32, line 30, at end insert new Clause "A"—
A.—(l) Where a tenancy is held on trust, occupation by all or any of the beneficiaries under the trust, and the carrying on of a business by all or any of the beneficiaries, shall be treated for the purposes of section twenty-three of this Act as equivalent to occupation or the carrying on of a business by the tenant; and in relation to a tenancy to which this Part of this Act applies by virtue of the foregoing provisions of this subsection—
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(2) Where the landlord's interest is held on trust the references in paragraph (h) of subsection (1) of section thirty of this Act to the landlord shall be construed as including references to the beneficiaries under the trust or any of them; but, except in the case of a trust arising under a will or on the intestacy of any person, the reference in subsection (2) of that section to the creation of the interest therein mentioned shall be construed as including the creation of the trust." —[Special entry.]
§ Sir D. Maxwell FyfeI beg to move, "That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment."
This new Clause applies Part II of the Bill to cases where either the tenant's interest or the landlord's interest in business premises is held on trust. Subsection (1) deals with the case where the tenant's interest is held on trust. This provision is necessary if Part II is to give protection to the tenant who is a non-profit making body such as a charity. The Leasehold Committee recommended that such bodies should be covered. That was in paragraph 176, and it has been said that the Government accept that recommendation. Also it applies where the tenancy is vested in the personal representive of the deceased person. Without this provision there would be a risk of a business tenancy being excluded from the protection because the tenant died shortly before the end of the tenancy and there had not been time to vest it in the beneficiary under the will.
Subsection (2) applies where the landlord's interest is held on trust. In Clause 30 (1,b) the landlord can obtain possession at the end of a business tenancy to occupy the premises himself. Subsection (2) of the new Clause enables the landlord or his trustee to get occupation. Without this provision it would be impossible in a number of cases, for example, for a charity to get possession to occupy the premises of which it is the 408 landlord. I do not think this is a controversial matter. I think the Bill requires this addition to fulfil the recommendation to which I have referred.
§ 11.45 p.m.
§ Sir F. SoskiceAt any rate in the case in which the tenancy is held on trust I should think that, speaking for myself, the new Clause does improve the Bill. There is no logical reason why charities should be excluded. Equally is there no logical reason why, when the tenant is a beneficiary in trust, he should not have the rights which Part II of the Bill confers upon him.
I feel somewhat more reservation with regard to subsection 2, but the Home Secretary has explained the objects and I have no any strong objection to it. I will simply ask him if he is quite satisfied that, having introduced this change, he has not, as it were, put out of gear the machinery in Part II. If he can tell us that this has been carefully considered, we would be able to accept this.
§ The Solicitor-GeneralI can give the right hon and learned Gentleman the assurance that the machinery in this, and the way this new Clause links up with the rest of the Bill, have been very carefully considered before the draft was made.