❓ Hon Phil Edman asks about protections for retail tenants in shopping centres regarding operating expenses outside standard trading hours. The Minister clarifies the Commercial Tenancy Act protects retailers from being charged for operating expenses if they choose not to open outside standard trading hours.
AnsweredQoN 165Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
RETAIL TRADING —
OPERATING EXPENSES
165. Hon PHIL
EDMAN to the Minister for Commerce:
Are there protections for retail tenants in shopping centres
against being charged for operating expenses outside of standard trading hours?
OPERATING EXPENSES
165. Hon PHIL
EDMAN to the Minister for Commerce:
Are there protections for retail tenants in shopping centres
against being charged for operating expenses outside of standard trading hours?
AnswerView source ↗
I am glad this question has been
raised because it is extraordinarily providential. The perspicacity of this
member is growing in leaps and bounds and I compliment him on his foresight.
It was only today that a motion was
debated in which—towards the end of the debate when there was not an
opportunity to clarify the matter—it was raised in this house that
retail tenants in shopping centres will be at a parlous disadvantage because in
the future they will have no discretion as to when they open, and that they
will have to meet the outgoings of the shopping centre even if they do not want
to open and do not open. The question asked by Hon Phil Edman gives me a chance to address this question,
because that premise, in fact, is completely wrong—completely wrong. It
makes me wonder how much else of this and the related debate is being fuelled
by false assertions, but when they are raised in the Parliament there is a need
to correct them.
The fact of the matter is that the
Commercial Tenancy (Retail Shops) Agreements Act specifically provides that a
provision in a retail shop lease that requires a tenant to open at any
particular hour is void. Furthermore, there are other protections in the same
act. That act sets out standard trading hours and defines them for the purposes
of allocating operating expenses—also known as outgoings or variable
outgoings. They are 8.00 am to 6.00 pm on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and
Friday; 8.00 am to 9.00 pm on Thursday; and 8.00 am to 5.00 pm on Saturday.
They are the standard trading hours. If a retailer opens within those hours,
then obviously they can be required to pay the centre's outgoings, and
if they choose not to open during those hours, they can be required to pay the
centre's outgoings. But if—this is the proposition—a
retailer chooses not to open outside of those standard hours, a number of
provisions apply. Firstly, they cannot be required to contribute to the
operating expenses of the centre if they do not open outside of those standard
trading hours. I want to make that absolutely clear, because this is a
misconception that has been repeated again and again and I want to nip it in
the bud now. Obviously, if they do open, a calculation of expenses based only
on their lettable floor area can be applied, and rightly so. I thank the
honourable member for the opportunity to correct the misunderstanding that was
exhibited by someone involved in a debate earlier today.
The PRESIDENT : I was listening to hear what ''perspicacity''
meant.
raised because it is extraordinarily providential. The perspicacity of this
member is growing in leaps and bounds and I compliment him on his foresight.
It was only today that a motion was
debated in which—towards the end of the debate when there was not an
opportunity to clarify the matter—it was raised in this house that
retail tenants in shopping centres will be at a parlous disadvantage because in
the future they will have no discretion as to when they open, and that they
will have to meet the outgoings of the shopping centre even if they do not want
to open and do not open. The question asked by Hon Phil Edman gives me a chance to address this question,
because that premise, in fact, is completely wrong—completely wrong. It
makes me wonder how much else of this and the related debate is being fuelled
by false assertions, but when they are raised in the Parliament there is a need
to correct them.
The fact of the matter is that the
Commercial Tenancy (Retail Shops) Agreements Act specifically provides that a
provision in a retail shop lease that requires a tenant to open at any
particular hour is void. Furthermore, there are other protections in the same
act. That act sets out standard trading hours and defines them for the purposes
of allocating operating expenses—also known as outgoings or variable
outgoings. They are 8.00 am to 6.00 pm on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and
Friday; 8.00 am to 9.00 pm on Thursday; and 8.00 am to 5.00 pm on Saturday.
They are the standard trading hours. If a retailer opens within those hours,
then obviously they can be required to pay the centre's outgoings, and
if they choose not to open during those hours, they can be required to pay the
centre's outgoings. But if—this is the proposition—a
retailer chooses not to open outside of those standard hours, a number of
provisions apply. Firstly, they cannot be required to contribute to the
operating expenses of the centre if they do not open outside of those standard
trading hours. I want to make that absolutely clear, because this is a
misconception that has been repeated again and again and I want to nip it in
the bud now. Obviously, if they do open, a calculation of expenses based only
on their lettable floor area can be applied, and rightly so. I thank the
honourable member for the opportunity to correct the misunderstanding that was
exhibited by someone involved in a debate earlier today.
The PRESIDENT : I was listening to hear what ''perspicacity''
meant.
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