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NT Land Exchange Entitlements (Redemption) Bill gazetted
The Government gazetted today (Friday) the New Territories Land Exchange Entitlements (Redemption) Bill which seeks to make land exchange entitlements, commonly known as Letters A/B, redeemable for cash only rather than land after a date to be appointed by the Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands.
All other rights against the Government in respect of a land exchange entitlement will be extinguished after the appointed date.
Under the Bill, an owner of a land exchange entitlement may lodge his claim for payment of redemption money with the Director of Lands.
Redemption money will be payable by the Director to the owner in proportion to his share in the legal ownership of the land exchange entitlement, at the rates set out in the Schedule to the Bill. Any redemption money payable will bear interest from the commencement date of the proposed legislation until the date of payment.
A government spokesman said: "The Letters A/B will not become valueless after the enactment of the proposed legislation, but will be assigned a cash value which will be maintained in real terms. The Bill will be introduced into the Legislative Council on June 5, 1996.
Over the years, about 95 per cent of all the Letters A/B have been redeemed by the Government. It is the Government's intention to redeem all the outstanding Letters A/B as soon as possible.
Sufficient land has been made available in the 1996/97 Land Disposal Programme to absorb all the known commitments. The proposed legislation is therefore intended mainly to deal with those Letters A/B the ownership of which cannot be traced and which are, in any case, likely to exist in such small packets as to make it difficult for their holders to bid in the Letter A/B tenders.
Letters A/B were issued between 1960 and 1983 to landowners in the New Territories whose land was required for development.
Letters A were issued if the land was surrendered to Government before notices of resumption were issued. Letters B were issued if the land was surrendered to Government after notices of resumption had been issued.
Letters A/B holders were entitled to exchange their entitlements, as an alternative to cash compensation, for building land.
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