Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am informed that as per records held by my Ministry as at 25 May 2026, 19,149 leases have been granted over State lands classified as Non-Pas Géométriques and 6,410 leases have been granted over Pas Géométriques. In addition, 897 leases have been granted specifically in respect of ex-CHA houses situated on Pas Géométriques. Let me hasten to add that those figures are leases that predate my coming into office as Minister of Housing and Lands. We may add five leases ever since I have come at the most. Nothing more than that. With regard to the total rental arrears, I am further informed that as at 31 December 2025, the outstanding amount stands at approximately – hold your horses – Rs1.3 billion. On this figure, Rs647 million has remained outstanding for a period exceeding three years. Now, what I have done in order to proceed with the recovery of those amounts owed to the State. In August 2025, recovery action was initiated as regard campement site leases by notice against defaulting campement site lessees carrying rental arrears totalling approximately Rs43.99 million to effect payment within a period of one month ending 28 September 2025. Following that, as at date, some Rs20 million has been recovered out of the Rs43.99 million for campement site leases. 62 lessees have been referred to the SLO, under my instructions, for legal actions for recovery of arrears in rent and premium due. For industrial site leases – this is where the amounts are quite immense. With regard to industrial site leases and arrears of rental payments, information has been compiled to exclude, inter alia, cases involving ongoing court proceedings and cases where payment facilities have been requested and any other matters that may affect the issuance of notice. Once the relevant statement of claims is generated, notices are issued requiring the lessees to settle all outstanding rentals within a period of one month from the date of such notice. Now, as at the 01 June 2026, 65 notices have been issued to recoup outstanding arrears. And those 65 notices are the lion share of the Rs1.3 billion that is owed. Let me conclude, Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, by saying that many of those lessees over the years have played a very important and interesting - important to them -, but interesting little game. And that game has been to avail themselves of a particular section of the Civil Code. That particular section of the Civil Code states that we cannot, it is time, it is barred by a maximum of three years. And you cannot, once you claim, go further than the three years. So, what they do finally, is not paid. Then you have successive Ministers of Housing, and governments who come in, who do nothing - like our absentees. And what happens is that the debt goes up and then they take advantage of the three years. But this is not going to be the case anymore. Because true it is that the Civil Code says we can go only as far back as three years to claim, but it does not in any way remove the possibility of me cancelling the lease de plein droit. Even if it is a hotel, even if it is a running business, even if it is a beautiful five- star hotel, you owe money to the State, you will pay. Otherwise, I will cancel the lease and you will have no door to knock upon, maybe go to court, but in the meantime, the lease will be cancelled.

Merci, M. le président. L’honorable ministre, c'est hallucinant ! R1.3 milliards, l'argent des contribuables qui aurait dû être dans la caisse de l'État. Déjà qu'on est à court de fonds pour divers projets. Mais, l’honorable ministre a parlé de 3 ans time barred. Et déjà, il y a 650 millions qui ont déjà dépassé 3 ans. Qu'est-ce que vous comptez faire pour faire entrer cet argent ou sinon révoquer le contrat ?

L’honorable député, let me say the following, you see, I have practised law for many years. I myself have taken advantage – Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, will understand what I am getting at – when something the Civil Code is there and helps you out, your client's liability, if ever you represent such clients, you're limited to three years. Fair enough. But as I said, I will not run away from, you pay your three years, but you will get a cancellation of the lease at the same time. However, should you wish to maintain the lease and for it not to be cancelled, you enter into the reconnaissance de dette whereby you accept owing the State the full amount. And you pay whatever you owe. Failing which, you shall lose the industrial site lease and whatever comes and stands on it without any necessity for compensation.

Yes!

Merci, M. le président. L’honorable Ministre, R 650 millions. Combien de ces R 650 millions de contrats ont été renouvelés depuis les dernières années qui ont 3 ans de dette ?

Ever since I have been in office, the answer is none. So, you see, whenever you have situations whereby, they owe money, my main objective, – and those are the instructions I have from Government, and the hon. Prime Minister, – that we have to recover that whatever is owed. So, what I do, in fact, is ensure that they pay what they have to pay. Unless they have been giving facilities by the then Minister of Finance, that is another matter to deal with.

Hon. Seeburn!

Yes, thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir. Being given that there is large amount of rent in arrears from the lease holders, I am referring particularly to the residential lease holders who have been occupying the state land and the pas géométriques for perhaps half a century. Would the hon. Minister consider the possibility of amending the legislation so as to grant the freehold title to those lease holders in order to alleviate the situation and to overcome the problem of rent due at the same time?

The issue that the hon. Member raises is indeed a real issue. My hon. colleague, the hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs, has many times drawn my attention to that particular issue. Let me therefore say that many of those people living in such situations on pas géométriques have lived there for generations and they are continuously in a situation where they have to pay a rent. So, the lease that they have to pay itself, sometimes, is less in terms of total that is recovered than the administrative cost that we have to invest in order to recover it. So, there is a nonsensical situation. I have at some point considered the possibility of selling the land to them. But at the same time, it would also mean many of those are not necessarily those of the low-income group. Many have been successful through efforts, through investment, through energy deployed by their parents and grandparents, and I take note of that. But I do not want to be put in a situation where millionaires who happen to be quite a few among them, not many, would also benefit from a free plot of land when the State should recover money. So, what I am working on at the moment at the level of my Ministry; many plots of land of pas géométriques, - I have said this in this Assembly, I am saying it again, - at one point in time were sold in violation of the law. And all those sales are null and void. They have been resold and sold again and title has passed. But each of those titles that have passed, Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, is null and void because it is inalienable. You cannot alienate; you cannot sell pas géométriques. This is against the law. There was a wrong move by a certain time by a certain minister who sold pas géométriques. And, that was even registered at the Registrar General. Wrong, unlawful. So, what we intend to do is in fact nullify all those sales. We are working on that. Nullify all those sales and give all of them a bail, all of them a buy for 99 years for one rupee. That is a possibility because we would be saving money in the process. But to give away pas géométriques selling it, that is against the law and we will have to correct that wrong in the law.

The next question, hon. Ms Savabaddy! REHABILITATION YOUTH CENTRE – TRANSFER TO MINISTRY OF GENDER - AMENDMENT TO CHILDREN’S ACT 2020