St Helena : St. Helena Executive Council Report
Submitted by Saint Helena Herald (Juanita Brock) 23.12.2006 (Article Archived on 06.01.2007)
At the Executive Council meeting held on Tuesday 19 December the following matters were discussed:
PRESS RELEASE
At the Executive Council meeting held on Tuesday 19 December the following matters were discussed:
1. Amendments to the Registered Land Ordinance
The Registered Land Ordinance which was enacted in 1980 and came into operation in the mid 1980’s following the Land Adjudication Project, is working well, but in an increasingly active land market, it is now placing excessive burdens on the administrative staff and senior personnel. Practices and procedures inhibit both delegation and the effective use of computer technology. Whilst it is desirable to make statutory provision for the recently installed Geographical Information System (GIS) that has been developed further as part of the recent OTEP-funded St Helena Environmental Information System, it is also desirable to ensure that the Crown’s guarantee of the accuracy of Land Registry information does not extend to the GIS. In addition, one particular set of provisions in the Registered Land Ordinance which was designed to resolve disputes have found to be unworkable when it was first used and was criticised by the Supreme Court. Executive Council therefore agreed that the Registered Land (Amendment) Bill, which addresses these issues, should be printed and published for public consultation.
2. Customs Fees
Following a review of the current customs miscellaneous fees, Council agreed various changes. The fees for temporary importation and for hoisting a boat onto the wharf will no longer be included in the Regulations. Fees for temporary importation will be abolished because it is impossible to monitor temporary importation, especially of small items. It was also noted that fees for hoisting vessels are now covered under the Port Management fees (Harbours Ordinance). All other fees that relate to the landing of goods anywhere other than the wharf will be increased by the Customs (Miscellaneous Fees) regulations which will come into force on 1 January 2007.
3. Legislative Programme
A preliminary discussion took place on the Legislative Programme for 2007.
Office of the Chief Secretary
The Castle
22 December 2006
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