CO129-548-13 Government House and City Development Scheme Ordinance 1934 28-9-1934 - 4-10-1934 — Page 8

Enclosure No.2.

8

ATTORNEY GENERAL'S CHAMBERS,

Hong Kong,

28th September934.

REPORT ON ORDINANCE No.....30..............of 1934 .

1. I have examined the accompanying Ordinance. intituled an Ordinance to make provision for financing and carrying out

a scheme for a new Government House and for the development

of a portion of the City of Victoria, and am of opinion that it is an Ordinance which is not contrary to the Governor's

instructions.

2. The Government House and City Development Scheme

authorised by this Ordinance is essentially a self-contained

unit which will be proceeded with as circumstances permit.

3. The Scheme involves the sale from time to time of

building sites which it is anticipated will yield more than

sufficient to pay for the entire undertaking, although it

may be necessary at certain stages to obtain advances from

the revenues of the Colony.

•

11. To pay into the general revenue of the Colony the

large sums which have been or will be received from time to

time in connexion with such land sales would result in

apparent fluctuations in the normal revenue of the Colony

which it is desirable to avoid.

5.

As, however, the proposal that revenue receipts from

such land sales should pass into a special Fund, instead of

to revenue, and that the expenditure on the Scheme should

be met from the Fund and authorised by Resolutions of the

Legislative Council, involves a departure from the ordinary

rules of Colonial Accounting, the Secretary of State, in

approving the proposal, has required that the Scheme should

be conducted under a special Ordinance which would legalise

the diversion of the revenue from land sales from general

revenue to the Fund and would also empower the appropriation

of the expenditure on the Scheme by Resolutions of the

Legislative Council.

6.

Accordingly, sections 2 and 3 of this Ordinance

authorise the works necessary to carry out the scheme and

empower the Governor to decide from what sources the re-

quired materials are to be obtained and give him control

over the appointment and employment of all persons engaged

in carrying out the scheme, while section 4 gives effect to

the directions of the Secretary of State as regards the

financing of the scheme.

7. In my opinion this is an Ordinance to which His

Excellency the Governor may properly assent in the name of

His Majesty and on His behalf.

Do. Losell

٩

END

Attorney General.

I

ཏ॰། ཨིསྶན

33800

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