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HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
Regulations
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY, by com- mand of H.E. the Governor, laid on the table Regulations made under:
(a) The Stamp Ordinance, 1921, by the Officer Administering the Govern- ment in Council on April 30th,
1921.
(b) The Stamp Ordinance, 1921, by the Officer Administering the Govern- ment in Council on May 11th,
1921.
(c) The Places of Public Entertain- ment Regulation Ordinance, 1919, by the Governor-in-Council on May 26th. 1921,
(d) The Stamp Ordinance, 1921, by the Governor-in-Council on June 9th,
1921.
Supreme Court Rule
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY, by com- mand of H.E. the Governor, laid on the table the Rule made under the Supreme Court Ordinance, 1873, by the Chief Justice on June 14th, 1921, and moved that it be approved by the Council.
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
Rates
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY moved the following Resolution made under section 31 (1) of the Rating Ordinance, 1901. Ordi- nance No. 6 of 1901 :--
On
Resolved that the resolution made by ⚫ the Legislative Council under section 31 (1) of the Rating Ordinance, 1901. the 7th day of April, 1921, and published in the Gazette on the 8th day of April, 1921, as Government Notifica tion No. 144 be rescinded and that the percentages on the valuation of tene- ments payable as rates on and after the 1st day of July, 1921, be the same as are now payable
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY said Honourable members will remember that when the question of increasing the assessed taxes from 13 per cent. to 20 per cent. was under consideration the financial position of the Colony was such that. even with the increased taxes on liquors and tobacco, it was difficult to see how
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the revenue and expenditure of the cur rent year could be made to balance. Even with the proposed increase of the assessed taxes it was doubtful whether we should arrive at the end of the year without a. considerable deficit. The Government was very unwilling to in-
crease the assessed taxes at a time like
the present when not only the rents paid in respect of domestic tenements are higher than they have ever been before. but the trade of the Colony at the same time is in an unsatisfactory state, and generally, it would be hard for tenants to pay the additional sum required. At the same time it was felt-it has always. been felt-that the assessed tax is one which is spread over the whole com- munity and, in normal times, is a fair
tax, and one that can be borne more easily than other forms of taxation. However, since the resolution was passed the financial position has been found to be more satisfactory than it was in April and, also, we have a reasonable prospect this year of meeting our expenditure by the help of the sale of certain Crown lands. Therefore, it was felt that this increase in assessed taxes might stand over, at any rate for the present. Dur- ing the course of the months that have e-lapsed since it was decided to raise the assessed taxes, various instances have come to the notice of the Government in which landlords have raised the rents of their tenants or given notice to their tenants that rents would be raised by certain sums from the 1st of July, and in some cases it was definitely stated that that rise was caused by the increase in the assessed taxes. Where tenants take the trouble to make the calculation, they
that the increase generally find more than the 7 per cent. by which it had been intended to increase the assess- ed taxes. In some cases the increase in as 20 per cent. the rent was as much and the landlord was obviously taking advantage of the Government having decided to raise the assessed taxes to increase the rent a great deal more than the 7 per cent. he was liable for. That is an unsatisfactory position and it is to be hoped that all landlords who have nade such an addition to rent will now see fit to restore the rent to the original figure.
is
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY seconded.
The motion was agreed to.
HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
452
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H.E. THE GOVERNOR-With your per-
the other is that owners, presumably mission, I should like to take this desiring to provide room for wealthy opportunity of saying a few words on a refugees from Kwangtung, have given per- subject which arises out of some remarks sons already resident in the Colony which the Colonial Secretary made or notice to leave their houses. I have no the general question of increases of rent desire to interfere with the hospitality by landlords. At the beginning of last always given to refugees in this Colony, year I made clear in this Council my but I think you will agree that we owe, own view on the question of the in- in the first instance, certain duties to creases which were taking place in house the permanent residents of the Colony. rents. My view was that it was highly undesirable, if it could be avoided, to I pass now to some rather striking interfere with the operation of the instances of increases in rent. I will ordinary financial principles of supply read to you a letter addressed to the and demand, and there were special Head of the Sanitary Department. (I reasons against interfering between will not mention the names of the
A certain writers):
landlord and tenant.
amount of annoyance caused by in- creases in rent was unjustifiable, because owing to the decrease in the value of money, the landlord was receiving less and he had some right to put up his rents in order to secure an income equival- ent in value to that which he had before. A further point was. I was afraid that if we interfered too much we should check the building of houses, which is a most important point. At a sub- sequent meeting, in order to clear
the up
position. said that the Government would not stand by with folded hands, and allow the shortage of housing accommodation to be exploited unreasonably by the land-
lords. The matter has remained un- touched practically since then. Occa- sional complaints have been made to us of unreasonable increases in rents. In many cases it has been found that the increases
not unreasonable; in others it was found that the landlords on reconsideration were prepared to withdraw the proposed increases.
were
"No. 1, Bowrington Road,
1st and 2nd floors.
Dear Sir, We beg to inform you that the above property is leased to us by the Hongkong Land Investment and Agency Co., Ltd., as from June 1st, 1921, and all rents due on and after that date are to be collected by us.
We take this opportunity to inform you that the above property is taken over by us at a very high price, cost- ing over $90 per house. We are. unless the above premises are vacated therefore, compelled to notify you that
on or before July 1st, 1921, the rent will be increased to $60 (dollars sixty) per month from that date.
Thanking you for acknowledgment of this letter, etc., etc."
I need only add to that, gentlemen that the rent of these premises at the I regret to say, however, that during present moment is $27 per month. In the last few weeks the situation has other words the middle man who farms taken a different turn. It is perfectly -an iniquitous system in itself the clear that it is the intention of a large collection of rents from the Land Invest- number of landlords in this Colony to ment Company, is proposing to raise take advantage of the scarcity of houses the rents by something like 120 per cent. in order to rack-rent their tenants. The Speaking in this place I cannot stig- situation has become more difficult matise that action in the terms which owing to the unfortunate troubles on the I should use in the course of ordinary other side of the border. The number conversation. cau only say I regard of Chinese coming to Hongkong has it as a scandalous outrage on public been very largely increased and we are decency, and it is greatly to be regretted now faced with a double problem. In that a wealthy corporation like the Land the first instance, rents are being raised Investment Co. should. by encouraging I will give you figures to show that the system of farming through a middle- they are being unreasonably raised; and man, allow such scandalous transactions
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