ENG-1985 — Page 199

11

HERGEHO

用

YORH

古山

ת

Land, Public Works and Utilities

THE setting up of the Sino-British Land Commission in May was the major development in 1985. The main function of the commission is to conduct consultations on the implementa- tion of Annex III to the Sino-British Joint Declaration on the future of Hong Kong which sets down the principles governing land leases and other related matters, following the entry into force of the Joint Declaration. The commission, made up of three senior officials. from each side, is based in Hong Kong and met regularly during the latter half of the year. Another development during the year was the establishment of the Land and Building Advisory Committee to replace the former Special Committee on Land Supply and the former Building Development Advisory Committee. The chairman and eight members of the new committee are drawn from the private sector; most of them represent professional and business interests in the field of land development and building. Its terms of reference provide for it to advise the government on a wide range of issues, including the adequacy of land development programmes and of the policies and procedures relating to land, buildings and the construction industry. The committee has established sub-committees on real estate, land supply and legislation as well as a steering committee to oversee the setting up of a Land Development Corporation.

The primary objectives of the government's lands and works policies are to ensure an adequate supply of land to meet the needs of both the public and the private sector and to optimise the use of that land within the framework of land use zoning and development plans. Hong Kong's limited land resources must be fully exploited if the competing demands for land for housing, commerce, industry, transportation, social services and community facilities are to be met. The Land Development Policy Committee, chaired by * the Chief Secretary, is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the physical development of the territory and for approving, in principle, all major proposals affecting the development or planned use of land.

Policy responsibility for land, public works and private building rests with the Secretary for Lands and Works who heads a branch which, in addition to its policy functions, monitors the performance of the six departments in the Lands and Works group, namely the Lands, Building Development, Engineering Development, New Territories Develop- ment, Water Supplies and Electrical and Mechanical Services Departments. He is chairman of the Town Planning Board and also of the Development Progress Committee which is responsible, among other things, for considering and approving detailed planning briefs and planning layouts for development areas in accordance with standards laid down by the Land Development Policy Committee.

The development of land through public works projects is one of the largest items on which the government incurs expenditure. Projects financed through the Public Works Programme include the formation and reclamation of land; its servicing by the provision of