SERVICES' LANDS BOARD BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

2.46 p.m.

The Chief Secretary (Mr E. B. David): Mr Speaker, Sir, I have His Excellency's consent to proceed with this Bill. I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

Sir, this is a short Bill, and its purpose is to give effect to the understanding reached during the Constitutional Conference in the United Kingdom last year on the future status of the United Kingdom Services' lands in Singapore. It was then agreed that the United Kingdom Services should retain the land they occupied for defence purposes, and that there should be established by legislation a Services' Lands Board and that the titles for land paid for by or on behalf of the Services should be vested in this Board. The Board will also maintain a register of lands made available by the Singapore Government, and any such lands will revert to the Singapore Government on becoming surplus to Service requirements.

The Board would also have the right to acquire further land in accordance with agreed constitutional process, or to dispose of surplus land under title on condition that such land should be offered to the Singapore Government in the first instance.

Agreement was also reached regarding the assets created by the Services on land owned by the Singapore Government but made available to the Services for defence purposes and which subsequently became surplus.

This Bill, Sir, therefore, consequently creates a Board which will administer, within the terms of the Agreement reached in London, all the lands used by the Services in Singapore. The individual clauses of the Bill are straightforward, and I do not think they call for any particular comment. Sir, I beg to move.

Question proposed.

2.48 p.m.

Mr R. Jumabhoy: Mr Speaker, Sir, I would like to have some information on this Bill. Would it be possible for the Hon. the Chief Secretary to inform the House of the area of land at present occupied and held by the Services? How much is being used by them? Is there any surplus?

The second piece of information I would like to seek, Sir, is whether the land which is now occupied by the Services has been paid for by the United Kingdom Government. Has it been lent or has it been given for free use by the Colony of Singapore? I wish to have some information on this.

The third point is this. If the land has been paid for by the United Kingdom Government, then it will be a Board constituted by them, because the land does not belong to us. If the land belongs to us, then the Singapore Government has the right to form its own Board. I am not able to understand myself. May I make my question clearer? If the land which is now occupied by the Services has been paid for by the United Kingdom, then the land belongs to the United Kingdom Government. If that is so, the Board will be entirely composed of members of the Services. I want some information, as I do not know anything about it.

Mr David rose-

Mr Speaker: Mr David, in reply?

Mr David: Sir, as to the factual information for which the hon. Member for Telok Ayer has asked, I am afraid I have not the details at my disposal now. A review is being made of all the lands now occupied by the Services with a view to implementing the terms of the Agreement which I outlined in moving the Second Reading of this Bill. There is a certain amount of land occupied by the Services and paid for by the United Kingdom Government. That land falls into two categories: land which has been purchased by private treaty from former owners. That land at present is held under title in the name of the Chief Secretary Incorporated, because the United Kingdom Services had no entity in Singapore capable of holding land. The bulk of the land, however, occupied by the Defence Services in Singapore and which was paid for by the U.K. Government was acquired under the Land Acquisition Ordinance at the expense of the U.K. Government. The land so acquired will have become Crown land, and therefore, there is no title at present in issue for that land. But it is proposed that titles should be issued for that land when the review to which I have referred has been completed.

Question put, and agreed to.

Bill accordingly read a Second time and committed to a Committee of the whole Assembly.

Assembly immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill.-[Mr David].

Bill considered in Committee.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

2.55 p.m.

Clause 1-

The Chairman: There is an alteration,

In page 1, line 5, to leave out "1958" and insert "1959".

That will be done.

Clause 1 ordered to stand part of the Bill.

Clauses 2 to 7 inclusive ordered to stand part of the Bill.

Bill reported without amendment; read the Third time and passed.