The Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine, has announced that the Land Registry is to launch an ambitious project to facilitate electronic access to its map data. Vectorisation of the index map represents the final phase in computerising over 45m records and will provide customers with a graphical electronic gateway to all land data held by the agency.
The Land Registry index map records the location of some 18m registered land parcels in England and Wales. Based on Ordnance Survey large-scale maps, it is the only source of information which puts the Land Registry’s registers of title in a geographical context. Held mainly in the form of some 400,000 paper map documents distributed throughout the Land Registry’s 24 regional offices, it is currently updated manually.
Computerisation of the index map will convert paper-held map information into electronic format and will require the digital capture of all registered land parcels for display over Ordnance Survey digital map data.
The Lord Chancellor, in making this announcement said: “I want to improve the quality, speed and accessibility of services to consumers and businesses. This includes taking the opportunities offered by new technology. Computerising the index map takes us along that route.”
Peter Collis, Chief Land Registrar, welcomed the project, saying: “Computerisation of the index map ensures we remain on course to meet the prime minister’s target for electronic delivery of government services by 2005. Additionally, with e-conveyancing on the horizon, we face possibly the most far reaching and exciting programme of land reform since the introduction of registration almost 150 years ago.”
References: PLS News 3/1/01
