CIRCULAR.
(Secretary of State to the Governor.)
DOWNING STREET,
469
SIR,
30th December, 1894.
From correspondence which has taken place respecting Colonial Military Lands and Buildings-that is to say, lands the fee simple of which is vested in the Crown represented by the Colonial Government but of which the War Depart- ment has a right of perpetual user for purposes of defence and the Buildings on such lands, in certain Colonies--since my Predecessor's Circular despatch of the 9th of June, 1890, it appears that the exact meaning of the proposals enclosed in the Circular as to the mode of dealing with such lands when no longer required for Military purposes has not been clearly understood.
2. Her Majesty's Government have carefully reconsidered the question and have decided to adhere to the proposals adopted by their predecessors and com- municated to the Colonial Governments in Lord KNUTSFORD'S Circular despatch, and with the view of removing any misunderstanding they have thought it desirable to formulate their proposals in the following terms, viz. :—
"The free surrender to the Colony of all Colonial Military Lands and Buildings no longer required by Her Majesty's Government on the engagement by the Colony that, in the event of lands and buildings being required then or in the future for the defence of the Colony, the Colony shall provide an equivalent for the lands and buildings so surrendered, towards the satisfaction of the above-mentioned requirements, and to that intent the value of the lands and buildings surrendered shall be ascertained and recorded, and any lands and buildings provided out of that value shall be held by Her Majesty's Government on the same tenure as those surrendered."
3. This proposal is based upon the assumption that the Colonial Military Lands in question constitute a permanent Defence Fund of the Colony, the in- tegrity of which ought to be preserved, in kind or value, even though the original lands themselves may be diverted to Civil purposes. Accordingly, whenever such lands which have been set apart for defensive purposes have, from change of circumstances, or from an altered scheme of defence, or from any other reason, ceased to answer the purposes for which they were set apart, and are in con- sequence surrendered by the Military Authorities, their value should be treated as forming a capital applicable, either immediately or from time to time, so far as it will extend, to providing other lands or buildings which may be required in the Colony for such purposes.
4. Effect would be given to the above proposal in the following manner :---
If the Colonial Government should not desire to retain the lands and buildings to be surrendered, they will be sold in the open market, and the proceeds paid into the Colonial Treasury, when the amount would be entered in a special account to the debit of the Colonial Government. In the event of any new lands or buildings being immediately required for the defensive purposes of the Colony the amount of the above-mentioned proceeds, or a sufficient portion of them, would be paid out as required for the purchase of the new sites, and for the construction of the new buildings; the amounts so paid out being entered in the Special Account to the credit of the Colonial Government. Should the new sites, instead of being purchased from private owners, be located on Crown Lands in the possession of the Colonial Government the necessary lands would be given over to the Military Authorities, and credit taken in the Special Accounts for the market value of the fee simple of the Crown Lands so given over.
5. Should new Lands or Buildings not be immediately required for defensive purposes, the above-mentioned proceeds would stand in the special account to the debit of the Colonial Government to be paid out in the same way in the event of funds being ever required in the future for providing lands or buildings for defensive purposes.