PART II.

State Land.

Chapter I.

Vesting of State land in State authorities and transfer of State land from one State authority to another.

5. —(1) On the operative date all land, which immediately before the operative date is State land and is not then vested in a State authority, shall, by virtue of this subsection, stand vested in the Minister.

(2) All land which becomes State land on or after the operative date and which does not, on becoming State land, vest, independently of this subsection, in a State authority shall, on so becoming State land, vest in the Minister.

6. —(1) If at any time any doubt arises, in relation to any particular State land, as to whether it is vested in a State authority or as to the State authority in whom it is vested, the Minister may, by warrant under his official seal, vest, as on and from a specified date (which may be earlier than the date of the warrant or the operative date) that State land in a specified State authority, and thereupon that State land shall vest in, and, if the said specified date is earlier than the date of the warrant or the operative date, be deemed to have been vested in, the said specified State authority on the said specified date.

(2) No stamp duty shall be payable on any warrant under subsection (1) of this section.

7. —(1) A State authority in whom any State land is for the time being vested may (with, in case that State authority is not the Minister, the consent, which may be general or particular, of the Minister) convey, assign or transfer such State land to any other State authority.

(2) No stamp duty shall be payable on any conveyance, assignment or transfer executed under subsection (1) of this section.

8. —(1) In this section—

“the Act of 1891” means the Registration of Title Act, 1891, as amended by the Registration of Title Act, 1942 (No. 26 of 1942);

“the registering authority” means the registering authority under the Act of 1891;

“person” includes a public officer or body or person referred to in section 78 of the Act of 1891.

(2) Where the registering authority is satisfied that land in respect of which any person is registered under the Act of 1891 is State land and there is produced to him a certificate under the official seal of the Minister certifying that such State land has, by virtue of subsection (1) or subsection (2) of section 5, vested in the Minister, the registering authority shall substitute in the appropriate register the name of the Minister for that of such person.

(3) Where any State land which is registered under the Act of 1891 becomes vested in a State authority by virtue of a warrant under section 6 or a conveyance, assignment or transfer under section 7, the registering authority shall, upon the production of the warrant or conveyance, assignment or transfer, substitute in the appropriate register the name of that State authority for that of the person in whose name such State land was theretofore registered.

(4) A State authority in whom State land is vested may be registered as the owner of that State land under the Act of 1891, and shall be entitled to receive such notices and to make and enter any such application or cautions and do all such other acts as any owner of land or of a right on land (as the case may be) is entitled to receive, make, enter or do under the Act of 1891.

(5) No fees shall be payable in respect of any proceedings in the Land Registry under this section.