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grounds will all be built. Public housing estates are now being constructed

at Yuen Long, Tai Po, Cheung Chau, Mui Wo, Tai O, Sai Kung, and a start

has been made in the process of building Fanling-Sheung Shui into a large

modern town. The completion of an adequate supply of public housing in

these towns should hopefully stop the further spread of unsightly and

insanitary squatting into surrounding lands.

Finally, we have adopted a positive programme to preserve and

develop the countryside for recreation under the Country Parks Authority.

The development programme, which is being administered by the Agriculture

and Fisheries Department, involves an investment of $70 million, of which

$12.4 million is being spent this year in building management centres,

access roads, tree planting and other improvements. In the development

of the country parks, the interests of the villagers will be protected,

and in this respect the advice and co-operation of Rural Committees is

of great importance.

Development of the New Territories has brought with it many

problems associated with the acquisition and clearance of land and the

Kuk has always taken a close interest in these problems. I hope that the

recently revised methods and rates of compensation for the resumption of

land in the New Territories for urban development and for a regular review

of the compensation rates will give landowners greater satisfaction. I

am grateful to the Kuk for its contribution and participation in the

formulation of these new arrangements. As recommended by the Working

Group, compensation rates for land outside the towns are also being reviewed.

These measures together with an updating of other levels of compensation

will go some way to ameliorating the upheaval in the lives of the many

people affected by development.

/It might be