165
Ly
le
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Date:
Time:
Reporter:
28.11.86
8.30
PMS
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12.30
which one has to face in this particular policy, I mean policy area, as between the public interest, the question of the priority of public works, and a landowner's interest in his land and the complexity of relationship between the Town Planning Ordinance, the Buildings Ordinance,
and it is a very complicated policy area. It is extremely important, I mean for the time being the policy is as stated in the Executive Council paper of '80, but I believe, too, that it is important to review it. I wouldn't at this stage like to anticipate what the
result would be because I don't know what, I mean, apart from anything
else the Executive Council has got to agree any result and Executive Council accepted this some time back and they may wish to stay on the
same course. But reverting to where you said about in fact divergence 13 from a policy, as I say I think probably the best reference is the one I quoted. At the time there seems to be no doubt about it that
the decision was made on the basis of fear of losing a modification
and losing revenue at a particular time by introducing a factor which would be delaying and controversial at a particular time and there are, as seen at that time rather than as now when revenue is much more
buoyant from land, that was a very crucial position for the Branch
and the Secretary to be in.
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CHAIRMAN:
Well, Mr Secretary, I think paragraph 59
is perfectly understandable in a sense. But on the other hand, it is important that once the policy is set, I mean it is fairly obvious from what you said that that policy has not been followed.
I mean,
26 you know, understandable in 1984, there was a major development, the 27 Secretary, the former Secretary wishes that development to go ahead 28 and departed from the policy. That is the concern of this Committee.
It is not so much whether he should or not. He should have gone back
to the Executive Council in view of the major project. I mean, you
know, this is only HK$8 million versus the total project of enormous, hundreds of million dollars and I think departing from that policy
is the concern of this Committee..
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SLW:
I think that also if you re-read the
36 Director of Audit's Report, it makes it quite clear and certainly