ABSTRACT
This chapter considers how two jurisdictions took a different path. It briefly reviews what the people mean by public assets. The chapter provides examples of public ownership from Hong Kong and Singapore, focusing on land use, housing, state-owned companies, and provision of public transport including airports. It argues that discussion of public ownership in Hong Kong and Singapore provides many insights into a model of fair public ownership. The chapter concentrates on the more tangible assets of property and infrastructure. Either way, the public ownership of land in both Hong Kong and Singapore offers each jurisdiction a significant source of income to benefit society, without depriving private users or investors of the opportunity to generate wealth through their own investment and activities on and above the land. Singapore’s Housing Development Board was born out of the colonial Singapore Improvement Trust whose assets were transferred to the new state at independence.
