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Commercial and Economic Land Uses
86. The demand of economic activities for office, retailing, hotel, trading and logistics spaces is huge. The Government will continue to do so through measures such as converting suitable GIC sites in core business districts into commercial use. The two multi-storey carparks at Murray Road in Central and Rumsey Street in Sheung Wan are estimated to be able to provide some 76 000 square metres of floor area. Likewise, the former Mong Kok Market site will be converted for commercial use, providing about 6 400 square metres of commercial floor area. The Government will also convert the use of the government site at Caroline Hill Road as soon as possible to release more commercial floor area.
87. Kowloon East, as an alternative core business district for Hong Kong, has the potential to supply an additional commercial/office floor area of about 5 million square metres. The Government is considering relocating or rationalising the existing government facilities in the two action areas of Kowloon East. Starting from 2014-15, some suitable sites within the action areas will be made available to the market. The Government will also comprehensively develop the concept of a "walkable" Kowloon East in the Kowloon Bay and Kwun Tong Business Areas to improve the pedestrian environment and address traffic issues. We will study arrangements to facilitate the construction of elevated walkways by private property owners and examine the feasibility of facelifting back alleys and linking them to the pedestrian network. In addition, the Government will continue to take forward the Kai Tak Fantasy project and commence studies on its planning, engineering and mode of implementation to take forward the project in phases, with a view to developing a world-class tourism, entertainment and leisure attraction.
88. With its proximity to Hong Kong Island, the proposed East Lantau Metropolis in the eastern waters off Lantau can be linked with Hong Kong Island, Lantau and the New Territories West by transport infrastructure. The metropolis will accommodate new population and serve as a new core business district in addition to Central and Kowloon East. We will seek to start the preliminary study of the metropolis as soon as possible.
89. As at end-December 2014, the Lands Department approved 105 applications for lease modification and special waiver through the revitalisation measures for industrial buildings. It is anticipated that about 1.24 million square metres of converted or new floor area will be available for commercial or other uses.
Long Term Land Supply
90. I met a five-year-old who asked me, "Chief Executive, where shall I live when I grow up? Will there be enough land in Hong Kong?" The Government's term of office is five years, whereas that of the Legislative Council is four. But increasing land supply takes a much longer time. We must address the question raised by this child in a pragmatic manner. Apart from making the right choices of land use, we must also undertake long-term land planning and development.
91. In the medium and long terms, Kwu Tung North and Fanling North New Development Areas (NDAs) will be an important source of housing and land supply for Hong Kong, especially in terms of PRH and HOS flats. The NDAs will deliver about 60 000 residential units, of which 60% will be PRH and HOS flats. It is anticipated that the first batch of residential units will be completed in phases from 2023 onwards. We have commenced the detailed design and ground investigation of the advance works for the Fanling North NDA. We will carry out the advance works subsequently.
92. The Stage Two Community Engagement under the Hung Shui Kiu NDA Planning and Engineering Study was completed in October 2013. It involves about 60 000 residential units, of which more than half will be for public housing. According to the study, the vicinity of the proposed West Rail Hung Shui Kiu Station and the existing Tin Shui Wai Station will be used for commercial development and about 60 hectares of land will be set aside for logistics and related developments. The Stage Three Community Engagement will commence this year.
93. With the completion of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link, Tung Chung will become an important transportation hub for the Pearl River Delta and Western Guangdong. The Stage Three Public Engagement of the Tung Chung New Town Extension Study was also completed. The new town extension will provide about 48 000 residential units, and a commercial hub will be established in Tung Chung East.
94. The URA will continue to redevelop old and dilapidated private buildings through self-initiated redevelopment projects and the Demand-led Redevelopment Project Pilot Scheme. Last year, the URA successfully tendered the San Shan Road/Pau Chung Street project and the Kwun Tong Town Centre project (Development Areas 2 and 3), and awarded tenders for two joint venture projects at Hai Tan Street at the end of the year. These redevelopment projects tendered in 2014-15 will provide about 2 700 units.
95. To better use agricultural land now mainly used for industrial purposes or temporary storage, or which is deserted, the Government will continue to review a total of about 257 hectares of such sites in North District and Yuen Long with a view to ascertaining the feasibility of and scale for residential development on these sites. In this connection, Kwu Tung South, Yuen Long South and Fanling/Sheung Shui Area 30 have been identified for planning and engineering studies. The studies of Kwu Tung South and Yuen Long South have commenced while the study of Fanling/Sheung Shui Area 30 is being conducted in two phases, with Phase One scheduled for completion next year.
96. The "brownfield sites" in Hung Shui Kiu, Yuen Long South and New Territories North have been used for years for purposes incompatible with the surrounding environment. The Government is studying feasible measures, including accommodating some of the users in multi-storey buildings and taking the "brownfield sites" inside the Hung Shui Kiu NDA as a pilot case, with a view to taking forward the development of NDAs.
97. Reclamation outside Victoria Harbour is an important source of long-term land supply. The cumulative environmental impact assessment of the western Hong Kong waters is largely completed. Taking the assessment findings into account, the Government plans to commence a planning and engineering study on the Lung Kwu Tan reclamation at Tuen Mun in 2015.
98. The Government commenced in the second half of 2014 the investigation on and design of the relocation of Sha Tin Sewage Treatment Works to rock caverns and the feasibility studies on relocating three other facilities to caverns. A total of 34 hectares of land will be released for development. We will also commence a pilot study on underground space development in four strategic districts in early 2015.
99. The Government is conducting the Preliminary Feasibility Study on Developing the New Territories North to meet our long-term needs.
100. Since its establishment in January last year, the Lantau Development Advisory Committee has examined in detail the positioning and recommendations for short, medium and long-term economic and community development in Lantau. This seeks to capitalise on the benefits brought by the three-runway system of the Hong Kong International Airport, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and other strategic infrastructure in the area, and to attain synergy with the Greater Pearl River Delta development. In 2015, short-term projects such as the revitalisation of Tai O and Mui Wo, construction of mountain bike trails, improvements to narrow road bends along Keung Shan Road and South Lantau Road, and review of arrangements for closed roads and issuance of closed road permits for Lantau will be rolled out in full swing. In the medium term, we will continue with the development of the Tung Chung New Town Extension, and proceed to commence studies in connection with the reclamation in Sunny Bay and topside commercial development on the Hong Kong boundary crossing facilities of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. In the long term, we will seek support of this Council for early commencement of the preliminary study on the East Lantau Metropolis to look into the development of artificial islands in the eastern waters off Lantau, including the provision of ancillary transport infrastructure to link up to the western part of the New Territories and Hong Kong Island.
Public Participation in Long-term Planning
101. The Development Bureau and the Planning Department are updating the "Hong Kong 2030: Planning Vision and Strategy" published in 2007 to examine the strategies and feasible options for overall spatial planning and land and infrastructure developments for Hong Kong beyond 2030, in the light of our latest needs.
102. The current-term Government is committed to putting an end to the long-standing shortage of land supply. The Government plans to hold multi-party discussion with all sectors of the community, such as professional bodies, environmental groups, local communities and young students, in order to jointly examine the issues concerned, balance competing considerations, break through the bottlenecks and solve the problems.
Construction Industry
103. The Government has been working with the Construction Industry Council (CIC) and members of the sector to promote the healthy development of the construction industry. Following amendment of the Construction Workers Registration Ordinance in 2014, the requirements of "designated workers for designated trades" will be implemented under the construction workers registration scheme in 2017. Skilled construction workers will then be required to register according to their respective skills. This will help further raise the quality of construction works as well as the professional image of construction workers, and attract more people to join the industry. All along, the CIC has mainly provided training for workers to bring them to semi-skilled level. In this regard, the Government will provide $100 million for the CIC to strengthen their work to train skilled workers for the industry. We will make continuous efforts to enhance the professional development of construction workers and provide them with more progression pathways.
104. The construction industry is facing the problem of a severe shortage and ageing of skilled workers. Although the Government and CIC have made strenuous efforts in recent years to train local skilled workers and enhance the industry's professional image, and have attracted many new entrants to the industry, the keen demand has yet to be met. If the shortage of skilled workers cannot be properly dealt with, it will seriously affect the implementation of public housing, hospital, school and public transportation projects, and will also indirectly lead to the escalation of construction costs. To this end, the Government, the construction industry and the community must work together in a pragmatic manner and stay united to embrace the challenges ahead. We must take the most appropriate measures to tackle the problem of acute manpower shortage comprehensively and effectively. On the overriding premise of giving priority to the employment of local skilled workers, safeguarding their income levels as well as promoting training to the construction workforce in a continuous manner, the construction industry needs to import skilled workers in a timely and effective manner to meet the demand.
105. The Government rolled out measures to enhance the Supplementary Labour Scheme last April specifically for the construction industry in relation to public sector works projects. Nonetheless, the relevant measures have yet to fully address the keen demand of the industry for skilled workers. We need to launch further enhancement measures having regard to the unique characteristics of the construction industry. For example, since construction works are carried out in sequential order and may be affected by factors such as supply of materials, progress of upstream work processes and so on, allowing imported skilled workers to work across various public sector works projects can enhance the flexibility of deployment, maximise the productivity of skilled workers and control costs more effectively. The Government will liaise closely with the construction industry and the labour sector on the detailed arrangements of the relevant measures and review their effectiveness in a timely manner. If these measures still cannot effectively resolve the acute shortage problem of skilled workers, we will explore with the construction industry and labour sector the introduction of other more effective and appropriate measures to reduce the adverse effects on Hong Kong's economic and social development. To give priority to local workers in employment, the Government will set up a dedicated Construction Industry Recruitment Centre. The centre will provide career counselling services, conduct on-the-spot job interviews and organise job fairs for local construction workers, and assist contractors in according priority to employing qualified local skilled workers.
Transport
106. A safe, reliable and highly efficient railway service is of paramount importance to the public transport system of Hong Kong. The Government will continue to proactively carry out its duty as the majority shareholder of the MTRCL. We will monitor the MTRCL and require the corporation to strengthen its management to ensure proper delivery of the planning and construction of new railways, as well as the daily operation of existing services. For long-term development, we will, pursuant to the Railway Development Strategy 2014 announced last year, implement seven new railway projects in phases by 2031.
107. The Government will conduct an in-depth study on public transport arrangements in Hong Kong. In tandem with the railway network expansion, we will review the roles of other public transport services. We will also continue to pursue bus route rationalisation.
108. I announced the initiative on Universal Accessibility Programme in August 2012, which aims at expanding the scope of the Government's programme to retrofit existing public walkways with barrier-free access facilities to benefit the public. The Government is taking forward more than 200 projects to retrofit barrier-free facilities, including the three priority projects identified by each DC. It is expected that most of the projects will be completed in phases in the coming four years.
(To be continued)
Ends/Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Issued at HKT 12:10
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