§ 18. Mr. Bennasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will now ask for a return of the number of civil servants in Kenya to whom the Governor-in-Council has given permission to own land; and whether he will publish the information.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydThe Governor has furnished me with a return, which I am circulating in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
§ Mr. BennMay I thank the right hon. Gentleman very much for his change of mind in this matter, in that he will recall that a month ago he said that he was unable to publish this figure, which will now be seen with very great interest by hon. Members on both sides of the House?
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydMinisters find frequently that they have to make up their minds on the value of the information if published and the amount of work its preparation would involve a heavily overburdened Government. I was prepared to look into this, and I shall now be interested to hear the comments of hon. Members.
§ Mr. AlportCould my right hon. Friend give the figures and statistics pertaining to African civil servants?
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydNo, Sir, because the majority of African civil servants own land in the native reserve according to tribal law and custom, and formal permission in that case is not necessary.
§ The following is the return:
§ Records before 1939 have been destroyed. Since 1939 civil servants have been given permission to acquire land as follows:—
| (a) farm property | |||
| Europeans | … | … | 94 |
| Asians | … | … | 3 |
| Africans | … | … | Nil |
| (b) residential plots | |||
| Europeans | … | … | 187 |
| Asians | … | … | 121 |
| Africans | … | … | 1 |
§ A plot of 20 acres or over is deemed to be farm property, although some of the smaller plots are used only for residential purposes. A residential plot is under 20 acres. The majority of African civil servants own land in the native reserve according to tribal law and custom. Formal permission is not required for such ownership.