ABSTRACT
The confiscation of an individual’s right of land ownership is a denial of a basic right, but there are occasions when, in the interests of the general public, a reluctant owner must be forced to release his interest in the land, in which case the owner must be compensated. In the case of AG v De Keyser’s Royal Hotel Ltd [1920] AC 508, it was stated:
The denial of the basic right of ownership of land which results from action by the state is justified by the action being in ‘the common good’. It is a means of ensuring that the reluctance on the part of an owner does not prejudice development proposals which are in accordance with the planning objectives of the local authority. In a large number of situations, the threat of compulsory purchase is sufficient in itself to ensure that an owner agrees to sell his interest in land and compulsory purchase action is unnecessary. The power to acquire land does, however, ensure that the local planning authority can use its power to assemble sites for development, redevelopment and improvement which may involve a multiplicity of ownerships. The power of compulsory purchase is not available to the private developer and, therefore, the local authority may well use its power to assemble sites in the single ownership of the authority and then enter into a partnership scheme with a developer who is responsible for financing the project.
