The Land Acquisition Act 1966 is a Singaporean law on government acquisition of land for public housing projects.
| Land Acquisition Act 1966 | |
|---|---|
| Parliament of Singapore | |
| |
| Passed by | Parliament of Singapore |
| Passed | October 26, 1966 |
| Commenced | June 17, 1967 |
| Legislative history | |
| First reading | April 21, 1966 |
| Second reading | June 22, 1966 |
| Third reading | October 26, 1966 |
| Summary | |
| Government acquisition of land for public purposes and assessment of compensation to those affected by said acquisition | |
| Status: Current legislation | |
Background
editPrior to the Land Acquisition Act 1966, the law for the government acquiring private land was the Land Acquisition Ordinance 1955, which empowered the government to compulsorily acquire private land for public projects. However, it did not prevent landowners from increasing the price of their land, which increased the land acquisition cost and therefore made low-cost public projects to be difficult.[1][2]
In the 1950-60's, the population of Singapore was increasing, which caused informal settlements and shophouses to be overcrowded. This made the government to establish the country's public housing agency, the HDB, and to build HDB residential estates to relocate its population. However, in order to do so, land must be acquired cheaply. Land was also important as the government planned to use it for industrial development as well as to build roads, schools, and community and recreational facilities. To effectuate it, the Land Acquisition Act 1966 was introduced in parliament and was passed on October 26, 1966. It went into effect a year later on June 17.[1]
Impacts
editAfter the commencement of the Land Acquisition Act, it expedited the government's land acquisition programme. In fact, between 1959 and 1984, the government acquired roughly a third of Singapore's land mass (43,713 acres).[3]
References
edit- ^ a b "Govt move to curb land profit in 'boom' areas". The Straits Times. October 27, 1966. p. 4. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
- ^ "PM GIVES DETAILS OF NEW LAND BILL". The Straits Times. December 17, 1963. p. 7. Retrieved September 20, 2024.
- ^ Aleshire, Ilene (October 18, 1986). "Land Acquisition Act to be amended, says ministry". The Straits Times. p. 1. Retrieved September 20, 2024.
External links
edit- Land Acquisition Act 1966 on the National Library Board's Infopedia