TNAG-0670-FCO40-819-Policy-of-Government-of-Hong-Kong-on-land-in-New-Territories-1977 — Page 30

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新界民政署

北九龍裁判署大廈五樓

九龍大埔道

(56) in NT:4419: IV

Dourdy "/s

:: Ry Exter

NEW TERRITORIES ADMINISTRATION,

NORTH KOWLOON MAGISTRACY BUILDING,

TAI PO ROAD,

PERSONAL & CONFIDENTIAL

* Our Ref.

來函檔號 Your Rel

My ниж

電話 Tel.:

3-866811

RE

REY.

11. bang a com made for Mr. Newart-

KOWLOON.

w Tose

wijken / To see

then include in prote

holy

Hic' visit

jells

25th February, 1977

&ter une have it. We may read the material

Dear John on this teller if the H.U.K. do funda dellation

Foliodon next monta (of. dr. Pansy renderin

Thank you for your letter of 2nd February 1977,

4

I assume you have had mine of 25th January.

Нуст (March)

kim

I attach herewith some notes on New Territories land matters which I hope will be helpful. and exhausting (!) subject.

It is a fascinating

The enclosed is not the whole story and it is complicated. You may well ask, looking at some of the figures, why it is that there is so much fuss from people being cleared and from owners who are losing their land. It stems, I think, from the following reasons:

(i)

(ii)

(iii)

IN(iv)

U MAR 1/7/7

+1

HKK 360/4

N.T.A. 109E

Landowners would like to develop their land when, where and how they please. They regard the Block Crown Lease ((1) in the notes) as an unacceptable imposition. "Expropriation" is the Kuk's present-day term for it.

Landowners who are offered $10 a square foot or a land exchange do not like to see their land alienated to others in front of their noses at $400-500 a square foot. This is understandable but fails to take into account the overall cost of public development in the towns.

The exchange system and waiting time for exchanges is too long several years although explicable. Efforts are being made to reduce this.

Landowners cannot get an in-situ exchange or exchange in their own locality but must take their turn in the queue. This is fair but hard especially if you own land in what is to be the town centre!

3

Mr. J.A.B. Stewart, OBE,

Head of the Hong Kong Department,

Hong Kong & Indian Ocean Department, Foreign & Commonwealth Office,

King Charles Street,

London SW1A EAH,

England.

/(v)

94/2.

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