JURONG TOWN CORPORATION (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

5.19 p.m.

The Minister for Finance (Mr Hon Sui Sen): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

In planning the development of the Jurong industrial estate, the aim of the Jurong Town Corporation is to see it evolving into a self-contained new town. As part of the plan, low-cost flats have, therefore, been built so that workers may stay near their places of work. So far, 14,440 units have been completed.

In line with Government's policy to encourage home ownership, the JTC has been selling some of its low-cost flats since December, 1969. To-date, 3,461 units have been sold. It is hoped that such sales will encourage more workers to settle permanently in Jurong and that there would, therefore, be added stability to the workforce there.

The JTC sale of flats has been on terms and conditions similar to those applied by the Housing and Development Board, and elaborated in new sections 36 to 47 introduced under clause 7 of this Bill. Under these terms and conditions, strict conditions to prevent flats sold on instalments from falling into the hands of speculators and profiteers have been imposed. Such stringent conditions apply also to executive flats built in Jurong for middle management.

Flats may be sold only to those buying for their own occupation and owning, by themselves or their spouses, no other residential property. A flat purchased on false pretences will not be registrable and will revert to the Corporation without any refund of payments already made.

The provisions of the new sections as contained in clause 7 of the Bill also simplify formalities for registration of sale, mortgage and discharge required under the Registration of Deeds and Land Titles Acts. These provisions will help purchasers, who would otherwise be put to some inconvenience and high legal costs. Transfers on the death of the owner will normally be allowed. However, should the Corporation refuse such consent, it is required to buy the flat back. If the price offered is considered to be unsatisfactory, the party involved may appeal to the Minister, whose decision shall be final.

The Corporation is empowered to require owners of flats to form management corporations to maintain their flats. If the Corporation's direction in this regard is ignored, it may authorise any company to exercise the functions, duties and powers of a management corporation. The Corporation may also perform these functions itself. The costs of such management and maintenance services will have to be met by flat owners.

Opportunity has also been taken in this Bill to make other amendments to the Jurong Town Corporation Act. The present membership of 15 is considered unwieldy and is to be reduced to nine, including the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman. The quorum required for a meeting of the Corporation is accordingly reduced from eight to five members.

In clause 4, the Corporation's functions are extended so that in the sale of its flats it may provide loans on mortgage at such interest as may be prescribed.

Clause 5 repeals sections 20 to 23 of the principal Act. It also re-enacts, with amendments, parts of section 20 of the principal Act by placing the responsibility of keeping the accounts of the Corporation in a Chief Financial Officer instead of a Financial Officer. This is necessary because of the redesignation of the post. The amended section 20 also sets out the other responsibilities of the Chief Financial Officer.

New provisions relating to the appointment and powers of the Corporation's auditor have also been introduced. The Chief Financial Officer is also required to prepare and submit annually financial statements to the Corporation's auditor who shall audit and report on them.

Further new provisions are introduced under clause 5 requiring the submission to the Minister of annual financial statements and a copy of any report made by the auditor which the Minister will present to Parliament. Provision is made for scrutiny of these reports by the Auditor-General at the same time as they are submitted to the Minister, where the Auditor-General has not been appointed to be the auditor of the Corporation.

Clause 6 of the Bill repeals sections 29 and 30 and re-enacts section 29 which deals with the submission of the Corporation's Annual Report to the Minister by the 31st of March each year and the submission of the Report by the Minister to Parliament.

Clause 2 amends section 2 by introducing a definition of a "flat" which has hitherto not been defined in the principal Act.

Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move.

Question put, and agreed to.

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

The House immediately resolved itself into a Committee on the Bill.-[Mr Hon Sui Sen].

Bill considered in Committee.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

5.25 p.m.

Clauses 1 to 6 inclusive ordered to stand part of the Bill.

Clause 7 -

Mr Hon Sui Sen: Sir, I beg to move,

In page 10, line 31, to leave out "and".

Sir, this is an obvious error.

Amendment agreed to.

Clause 7, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill.

Bill reported with an amendment; read a Third time and passed.