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HOUSING AND LAND
plant, components, materials and allied goods. A foundry may be permitted if required.
Revenue
During the 1976–7 financial year, revenue from land transactions in the urban area totalled $271.7 million, compared with $88 million the previous year. In the same period, revenue from land sales in the New Territories was $126.4 million. The demand for temporary occupation of Crown land continues and, when possible, such land is made available under the terms of a short-term tenancy. During 1976-7, revenue from this source of letting was $15.6 million in the urban areas and $17.6 million in the New Territories.
A further $8.6 million in revenue came from letting buildings owned wholly or partly by the government.
Control
The Government is continuing its policy of fencing vacant cleared sites and installing security guards. This has reduced problems of site clearance and interference with the regular Crown land sales programme. The Director of Public Works and the Secretary for the New Territories also have powers to combat unlawful occupation of Crown land and to enable clearances to be effected more quickly, usually without litigation.
Land Office
The-issue, renewal, variation and termination of Crown leases is dealt with by the Land Office, a branch of the Registrar General's Department. Records of transactions relating to land on Hong Kong Island, in Kowloon, in New Kowloon (with a few exceptions) and in the more urban parts of the New Territories are kept in the Land Office. Records relating to transactions affecting other parts of the New Territories and the few exceptional New Kowloon cases are kept at district land offices forming part of the New Territories Administration.
The Land Office has responsibility for the registration of all instruments affecting land; the settling and registration of conditions of sale, grant and exchange of Crown land; and the granting of mining leases. It gives legal and other advice to the govern- ment generally on matters relating to land.
Since early 1975, the Land Office has assumed responsibilities for the enforcement of covenants contained in Crown leases. Assistant registrars inspect certain classes of buildings periodically and, if breaches are discovered, steps are taken to ensure that they are rectified or the lease is modified, usually on payment of a premium.
The Land Registration Ordinance provides that all instruments registered under it shall have priority according to their respective dates of registration. It also provides that unregistered instruments, other than bona fide leases at rack rent for any term not exceeding three years, shall be null and void as against any subsequent bona fide purchaser or mortgagee for valuable consideration. Registration is, therefore, essential to the protection of title, but does not guarantee it.
During the year, the number of instruments registered in the Land Office rose 20.5 per cent to bring the total to 133,638, compared with 110,936 in 1976. More detailed