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Wednesday, February 24, 1971
FALL EXPECTED IN CAPITAL REVENUE
Significance of Instalment Payments For Land
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Capital revenues are expected to fall in the next financial year
from $310 million in 1970/71 to $196 million, and a reduction in revenue
from land sales is responsible for most of the difference.
Sir John Cowperthwaite, Financial Secretary, said today one reason
for this was that a "substantial part" of the Government's land sales next
year was likely to be either of major urban sites or of industrial sites
and in both cases, payments by instalments instead of by way of lump sum
were generally allowed.
Much of the industrial land would be in the Now Territories, where
most new leases involved a land exchange elerent.
One "interesting and important feature of the extended use of
instalment sales was the annual income from such instalments that the
Government had been building up. Because of the different payments periods,
but the total of annual it was difficult to give an "exact picture"
instalment payments at present on government books was $57 million a year.
On top of that, interest due on outstanding instalments amounted
to $19 million a year, credited to the Interest Head.
Sir John said those were "substantial" figures when one considered that total land sales amounted to $42 million in 1967/68, and $40 million
in 1968/69.
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