LOCAL GOVERNMENT INTEGRATION (AMENDMENT) BILL

Order for Second Reading read.

The Minister for Law and National Development (Mr E. W. Barker): Mr Speaker, Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time."

This Bill seeks to amend the provisions of the Local Government Integration Act (Chapter 210 of the Revised Edition) which deals with the construction, widening and repair of public and private streets and back-lanes. In view of the massive urban renewal programme that is being carried out to the city and the Government's desire to further implement the Garden City concept, it has been found necessary to make certain amendments to the Local Government Integration Act to empower the Director of Public Works to achieve this objective more readily.

I will now draw Members' attention to the more significant clauses of the Bill.

Clause 3 seeks to add a new section 16A to the Act to facilitate the vesting in the Government of lands which have been set aside as road reserves pursuant to development proposals approved by the competent authority under the Planning Act. All these road reserves will eventually be made up into new or enlarged public streets. It is customary for the owners of lands to agree to surrender part of their lands for road reserves to the Government without charge in consideration of the approval given for their development plans. The new section 16A will facilitate the vesting in the Government of such lands which have been set aside as road reserves.

Clause 5 seeks to amend section 18 of the Act to empower the Government to require a developer or owner of a property constructing a new street to make provision for the planting of trees along the new street. Section 18 of the Act is also amended to require any person erecting any building or planting of any hedge within any land set aside as a road reserve to seek the prior approval of the Director of Public Works.

Clause 7 seeks to amend section 28 of the Act, which empowers the Director of Public Works to acquire premises for the widening of streets, to provide that no compensation shall be payable for the acquisition of any premises for the purposes of street-making when the premises are within the street reserves set aside pursuant to any development proposal approved by the competent authority. Since the owner of the premises has agreed to surrender the land free of charge to the Government, the Government should not pay for the building standing on the premises.

Clause 9 seeks to amend section 58 of the Act to enable the Director of Public Works to construct back-lanes and to recover the cost thereof from the owners of properties fronting these back-lanes. Under the existing provision the cost of constructing back-lanes is borne by the Government.

Clause 10 seeks to amend section 102 of the Act to empower the competent authority to impose interest charges at a rate not exceeding 6% per annum for late payments levied under the Act.

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 E. W. Barker].

Bill considered in Committee; reported without amendment; read a Third time and passed.