191 2.] Tenant Farmers and Sales of Estates. 923 



number of useful farm labourers whom he will not be able to 

 move to his new farm, whilst the greatest difficulty is that 

 experienced by the tenant under present conditions in securing 

 any other holding for occupation. 



If the tenant elects to rent the farm under the new landlord, 

 he is liable to be rented on any improvement which he has 

 executed, without receiving any compensation. Unable to 

 obtain another farm, he may perhaps agree to take the farm 

 at an increased rent, at which he may not be able to farm 

 profitably. 



If to avoid dispossession the tenant decides to buy, he may 

 be induced to bid at the auction up to a high price in order 

 to retain his home, and, if he has executed improvements and 

 farmed the land exceptionally well, the purchase price is often 

 increased accordingly, with the result that he has to buy his 

 own improvements. 



Recommendations of the Committee. — The Committee 

 make the following recommendations : — 



(1) That the period of notice of intention to claim compen- 

 sation for disturbance under Section 11 of the Agricultural 

 Holdings Act, 1908, should be amended. At present the 

 tenant is under an obligation to give notice in writing of his 

 intention to claim compensation under the Section within two 

 months of his receiving notice to quit, or being refused a 

 renewal of the tenancy, and the Committee think that the 

 early receipt by the landlord from the tenant of a notice of 

 his intention to claim often has the effect of prejudicing the 

 tenant in his negotiations with the landlord for a renewal of 

 the tenancy. The Committee are of opinion that the landlord 

 would be sufficiently safeguarded if the tenant were allowed 

 to give notice of his intention to claim at any time up to a 

 date two months before the determination of the tenancy, and 

 the Committee recommend that legislative steps should be 

 taken to amend the Act accordingly. 



(2) That for the one year's notice required by Section 22 

 of the Agricultural Holdings Act, 1908, in the absence of 

 agreement, for the determination of the tenancy of an agricul- 

 tural holding, two years' notice should be substituted. 



(3) That, except when notice to quit is given for one of the 

 purposes referred to in Section 23 of the Agricultural Holdings 



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