BUKIT TIMAH CAMPUS (Allocation)

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BUKIT TIMAH CAMPUS:

(Allocation): 15.

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan asked the Minister for Education (a) who will ultimately decide on whether the NTU or NUS will be given the present Bukit Timah campus, if at all; (b) what will be the criteria used to make this decision; (c) how long will this allocation be for; and (d) whether his Ministry will be prepared to let this campus be "absorbed" into the Botanic Gardens to enhance the latter's size.

The Minister for Education (Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam): Mr Speaker, Sir, Dr Khor has asked who ultimately decides on whether NTU or NUS would be given the present Bukit Timah Campus. The Government decides on who gets to use the Bukit Timah Campus site. NUS and NTU have expressed their interest to use the site for educational purposes. The Government's decision would be based on how the site would be used, the considerations put forward by the universities, and how the public interest would be best served. The Government will announce its decision by the middle of this year.

URA has re-zoned part of the Bukit Timah Campus as an extended site for the

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Singapore Botanic Gardens in the Masterplan 2003. The remaining portion of the Bukit Timah Campus site which is not re-zoned for Park use, is zoned for Educational and Institution use. The typical tenure of leases for educational use is 30 years. The Government will release more details once it makes its decision known.