ENG-1955 — Page 95

PRODUCTION

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fulfilled the building covenant, he is not permitted to sell or mortgage the property; but once he has fulfilled it, he is free of these particular restrictions, except where land has been sold by private treaty at a preferential rate. In cases of this type, the lessee is required not to dispose of the property. If he ceases to use it for its authorized purpose, it reverts to the Crown.

The basic principle behind the disposal of Crown land is that the maximum use shall be made of it, either indus- trially, or for the provision of the greatest possible amount of living space compatible with town planning. Where it is not possible to dispose of land immediately, usually because public services are not yet available or because a site is reserved for some future purpose, the land is not left empty or unused, but is granted on a temporary annual licence. This policy particularly facilitates the development of small industries. The 1954-5 revenue from such licences was $3,379,368.

New development programmes often involve the resump- tion of small agricultural lots. In general the Government's policy is to pay cash compensation for such resumptions, although occasionally other land is granted in exchange.

Shortly after the New Territories were incorporated into the Colony a Land Court was set up to hear the inhabitants' claims to tenure of land, and all existing tenures thereby established were confirmed by the Hong Kong Government and recorded in a single Block Crown Lease. Such holdings are known as Old Schedule Lots. The Land Court completed its work in 1905. All land not recorded in the Block Crown Lease was deemed to be unleased Crown Land, leases of which might be sold at public auction, as in Hong Kong and Kowloon. New Territories lands thus acquired are known as New Grant Lots.

Most of the land in the New Territories is separately classified as either agricultural land or building land, and permission has to be obtained from the New Territories Administration for permission to convert land from one status to the other. In general when applications are received to convert land to building status the Administration re- quires the lessee to surrender his lots and receive in exchange a smaller area of equivalent value in building status. Minor buildings, such as watchmen's sheds, pigstyes etc., i.e.