CO537-1651 — Page 175

7.

(£)

When conditions change and when more of the Island buc.ES suburban, this subject can and no doubt will be re-considered. For the present we favour a policy of gradual extension of Municipal boundaries so as to take in urban and suburban areas (as distinguished from rural areas) as they get built up (or possibly even in advance of that) but we are not in favour of whole sale incorporation of rural areas.

(c) We have considere1 the desirability of making recommendations

for the inclusion within the Municipal limits of certain specified areas but having already made cur recommendations on the principles to be followed in extending the Municipal Boundaries we think the application of those principles should be left to the Singapore Municipal Commissioners.

We do not recommend ny immedis te alteration in the scope of

the Administration of the Town of Singapore either as to area or scope of

duties. If the Singapore Municipal Commissioners consider that any such

alteration is desirable they can of course make their own recommendations

at any time.

9.

We do not consider that our recommendations involve any

alteration in the financial arrangements of the Singapore Municipal

Commissioners.

10.

We have discussed the appointment of a Mayor as unpaid head of

the Municipality, working with a Commissioner as paid Senior Executive

Officer, following the practice in India snl Ceylon. We consider that

the changes which we have recommended are already wide in their scope and

that any such additional change should wait until the result of the

working of the changes already recommended can be ascertained.

new Commissioners can always make their own recommendations on such a

matter.

The

11.

We put forward as a Schedule to this Report recommendations for

statutory provisions for Electoral registors of Municipal Electors.

Dated this 19th day of August, 1946.

J. Laycock, Chairman,

W. Bartley

H.P. Bryson

Lee Chim Tuen

Tan Chin Tuan

N.A. Mellal

F.J. Kemlo

Abdul Aziz bin Ishak

Page 175Page 176