Current Issues

How you can help amend tenants rights and get our studio back

As reported in December in The Sunday Tribune and The Herald, The elbowroom (studio 1) was facing closure on December 24th. In July of 2007 Lisa Wilkinson, The elbowroom's director, discovered that the landlords for her business premises would not be renewing her lease as her continued occupation would entitle her to a long term lease. The landlords were happy for Lisa to stay, but didn't want Lisa to have the rights to a 35 year lease. As the legal provision for Lisa to waive her rights had not yet passed into law, Lisa starting contacting the Taoiseach to pressure for change. The bill that was meant to pass in October 2006 was still dormant waiting for a committee to review it. The Dail were about to go on their summer recess and Lisa had to wait until September for any updates.

At that stage, Lisa asked The elbowroom client base to start lobbying The Taoiseach and The minister for Justice, Brian Lenihan. After a huge letter and email campaign, and support from many TD's and senators - especially Pascal Donohue and Emer and Joe Costello, the committee finally agreed to meet on December 12th. Although the bill passed this stage, it still needed to go back to the Dail for the Final Report Stage, with only two days left of the Dail sitting this failed to happen. So on Christmas eve Lisa handed back the keys to her first studio.

Lisa has since been pressurising the ministers responsible for this bill to be heard as soon as the Dail reconvenes in January 2008. The people who are responsible for making his happen are the Chief Whip, Tom Kit, The Taoiseach and Brian Lenihan, along with the other parties chief whips and opposition spokespeople on Justice, namely Emet stag and Pat Rabitte and Paul Kehoe and Charlie Flannagan.

If you would like to support this campaign, all the staff at The elbowroom would be most grateful if you could email or write to the ministers responsible. Contact emails and a sample letter are included below. There is little protection for commercial tenants in Ireland, and people power really does work. So please do what you can. We will have printed versions of the letters at the studio for you to complete your address and sign.

 

Direct your letter to:

The Taoiseach on taoiseach@taoiseach.gov.ie
Brian Lenihan on brian.lenihan@oireachtas.ie
Tom Kitt on minister.kitt@taoiseach.gov.ie

cc copies to The opposition ministers responsible
Charlie Flanagan on Charles.Flanagan@Oireachtas.ie
Paul Kehoe on paul.kehoe@oireachtas.ie
Emmet Stag on emmet.stagg@oireachtas.ie
Pat Rabbite on pat.rabbitte@oireachtas.ie

Insert your address here

 

Dear Ministers,

In reference to (File Ref 07/3127) - Civil Law ((Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2006, the amendment to the Landlord and Tenant act. The studio owned by Lisa Wilkinson, The elbowroom, was forced to shut its main location on December 24th 2007. This has resulted in classes being halved and staff have lost their jobs. I believe you have all promised to give the issue of being able to renounce your rights as a tenant the up most attention. Can you assure me that this bill will be put to the Dail immediately as the landlords are not going to re-rent the premises for a short while, if this law change is indeed imminent.

Furthermore, I find it alarming that there is no protection afforded to commercial tenants ensuring they have the rights to subsequent leases on their business premises. Can you let me know what you intend to do to address this? A landlord at the moment has legal protection to evict a lease abiding short term tenant from a successful business premises and re-rent the property to someone else. This seems grossly unfair.

Time is running out, please let me know when this issue will be resolved.

Yours Sincerely

 

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