§ 35. Mr. Buchanan asked the Lord Advocate if he will refer to the Scottish Law Commission the law relating to the protection of the consumer against oppressive rental purchase agreements, in the light of the evidence sent to him by the hon. Member for Glasgow, Springburn.
§ The Lord AdvocateOn receipt of the information supplied to me by my hon. Friend I instructed inquiries to be made into these allegations. I have now received a full report from the procurator fiscal. After careful consideration of the report I have reached the view that criminal proceedings are not justified, as no offence appears to have been committed. I am considering what other action may appropriately be taken to deal with the situation to which my hon. Friend has drawn attention.
§ Mr. BuchananI am grateful to my right hon. and learned Friend for the care that he has taken in this inquiry, but will he recognise that the operation of rental purchase agreements in substandard property by Norman Properties is exploiting the more unfortunate and vulnerable sections of our community? Will he take steps to tighten the law so that this type of property owner will be prosecuted as ruthlessly as he persecutes the unfortunate people who get into his clutches?
§ The Lord AdvocateMy hon. Friend has made some abrasive comments about this practice. He is condemning a feature of private enterprise. It is an important matter, on which I should make some pronouncement that may be of assistance to members of the public. Before they complete a contract for the purchase of property, members of the public will always be wise to take legal advice. If they do not take that advice, they should be on their guard against dealing with firms that sell houses on what amount to short-term hire-purchase contracts that are intrinsically unfavourable to the purchaser and carry severe penalty clauses in the event of instalments falling into arrears.