After battling the legal system for almost six months in a failed effort to block rent increases, seniors from the Bermuda Housing Trust properties will soon have a new legal ally to help them with their struggle.

Seniors from BHT properties including Hayden Trust, Elizabeth Hills and Purvis Park marched on Parliament last October calling on Government to stop increases, which in some cases doubled their rents.

The BHT applied, through their agents, Bermuda Housing Corporation (BHC), to raise the rents for its 82 units on four properties throughout the Island.

Despite the seniors? efforts to prevent the increase, they recently lost an appeal against the Rent Commissioner.

But Shadow Minister for Seniors Louise Jackson said yesterday that Opposition MP John Barritt has now offered the seniors his legal services free of charge.

Mrs. Jackson said Mr. Barritt plans to take the matter back to court in the near future to try and turn back the rent increases which went into effect just before Christmas in 2004.

?Mr. Barritt wrote a letter to the Rent Commissioner in which he stated that the Bermuda Housing Trust was originally formed to give cash-strapped seniors a place to live at rents they could afford, and that was not the case anymore,? she said.

Mrs. Jackson was speaking on behalf of Mr. Barritt who is currently off the Island.

On the advice of Government, many seniors turned to Social Assistance for help.

?They know that even though it?s necessary for them to do this, it is also incredibly degrading,? Mrs. Jackson said.

In some cases rents increased from $300 to $600 and many seniors just cannot afford it, she added.

The BHT originally cited soaring maintenance costs and seven years without rent increases as the reasons behind the increases, which were said to be necessary in order to fulfil its role ? a role which includes developing new properties for seniors.