Singapore legislation
Section 24
Section 24
Obligation to purchase land in certain cases
(1)
Without prejudice to the operation of any other written law relating to the acquisition of land for a public purpose, any owner of land which is allocated in the Master Plan for development for a public purpose may serve on the competent authority a purchase notice requiring the owner’s interest in the land so required for that public purpose to be purchased in accordance with this section, if the owner —
is refused permission under section 14 to develop that land; or
has completed the development of any contiguous land belonging to the owner in accordance with any permission granted by the competent authority under section 14.
(2)
The person serving the notice must certify that the person has the consent of every person known to the person to have an interest in the land.
(3)
The competent authority must investigate every purchase notice so served and, when the competent authority is satisfied with the correctness thereof, the competent authority must transmit the purchase notice to the Minister together with the following information:
the specific public purpose for which the land is allocated;
any written permission granted to the owner of the land to develop it despite the allocation of the land for a public purpose.
(4)
The Minister may reject a purchase notice in whole or in part where, in his or her opinion, the land or part thereof —
is capable of reasonably beneficial use in its existing state; or
will not be required for development for a public purpose within 5 years from the date of service of the purchase notice.
(5)
Where, and to the extent that, he or she does not reject a purchase notice, the Minister must declare that the land referred to in the purchase notice or any part thereof is needed for a public purpose and may order proceedings to be taken for —
obtaining possession of the land or part thereof for the State, the competent authority or any public authority; and
determining compensation to be paid to any person or persons interested therein.
(6)
Such compensation is to be assessed in the manner and according to the principles laid down in any written law for the time being in force relating to the acquisition of land for a public purpose, but account must be taken of any such written permission for development granted as mentioned in subsection (3)(b).
(7)
For the purposes of this section, the allocation of land in the Master Plan as being within —
a green belt; or
a conservation area,does not constitute an allocation for development for a public purpose.