Leong Mun Wai on Lease Agreements for Retail Premises Bill
Mandating a Code of Conduct for the leasing of retail space will strengthen small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the retail and F&B sectors, which “for too long have been at the mercy of landlords”, said NCMP Leong Mun Wai in Parliament on Thursday (Aug 3). However, he noted that under the proposed legislation, unfair rent structures will still be allowed as long as both landlord and tenant agree. This includes charging tenants a base rent or a percentage of gross sales, whichever is higher. Mr Leong called for such practices to be “outlawed” in the next iteration of the Code of Conduct. He noted that in Singapore, the power balance has always been tilted in favour of landlords as there is a limited pool of them in the retail sector, since many shopping malls are owned by commercial REITs. He added that a rentier economy tends not to encourage the innovation and entrepreneurship that Singapore needs to compete effectively with the rest of the world.
Mandating a Code of Conduct for the leasing of retail space will strengthen small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the retail and F&B sectors, which “for too long have been at the mercy of landlords”, said NCMP Leong Mun Wai in Parliament on Thursday (Aug 3). However, he noted that under the proposed legislation, unfair rent structures will still be allowed as long as both landlord and tenant agree. This includes charging tenants a base rent or a percentage of gross sales, whichever is higher. Mr Leong called for such practices to be “outlawed” in the next iteration of the Code of Conduct. He noted that in Singapore, the power balance has always been tilted in favour of landlords as there is a limited pool of them in the retail sector, since many shopping malls are owned by commercial REITs. He added that a rentier economy tends not to encourage the innovation and entrepreneurship that Singapore needs to compete effectively with the rest of the world.
Popular Shows
