Response by Transport and Housing Bureau on housing issues
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A Transport and Housing Bureau spokesman said,"Housing is the top priority of the current-term Government. At present many families are still living in sub-divided units (SDU) or similar settings. Their living conditions need to be improved."
To solve the problems of proliferating SDUs and rent hikes caused by inadequate housing supply, the Government reiterates that the ultimate solution lies in continuously increasing land and housing supply. There are no other short-cuts. That said, in the course of identification of land and constructing public housing the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) frequently encounters various difficulties and challenges, including that the majority of sites are not "spade-ready"; the considerable time required to complete the relevant procedures for rezoning and planning applications; and longer time required for sites involving difficult or complex conditions, etc. Some projects also involve legal issues (including judicial review applications).
Some in the community opined that the Government could solve the housing problems of those living in inadequate housing by tenancy control, rent subsidy or transitional housing. Tenancy control is highly controversial and there is as yet consensus in the community over this issue. Empirical findings, both local and overseas, suggest an array of unintended effects that the implementation of tenancy control may bring about despite the good intention, some of which are even detrimental to tenants originally intended to be protected by the measures. These unintended consequences include reduced supply of rented accommodation; landlords becoming more selective about their tenants, making the underprivileged more difficult to find rental accommodation; encouraging landlords to adopt behaviours which seek to minimise/mitigate the impact of the control measures (including charging a higher initial rent and demanding high side payments); and discouraging the proper maintenance of rented flats. On balance, as there is yet consensus in the community, and in view of the current tight housing supply in Hong Kong, the introduction of tenancy control may backfire, causing tenants in general to suffer before they can actually benefit from it.
The Government is concerned that any rent subsidy or assistance introduced in a tight supply market could be counterproductive, as the subsidy would most likely lead to upward pressure on rental levels, thereby partially or even wholly offsetting the benefits to the tenants by passing the windfall to the landlords.
In the process of formulating the Long Term Housing Strategy announced in 2014, the Government has looked into the proposal to provide transitional housing on sites which do not have immediate uses. After careful examination, the Government considers this idea not practicable. First of all, given the lack of urban land, suitable urban housing sites should be reserved for the construction of public rental housing (PRH) as far as possible. It will ultimately benefit those inadequately housed households who are PRH applicants. Furthermore, even if sites were available for temporary use, it would take time for the Government to carry out essential infrastructural works such as sewerage before a certain number of transitional housing could be put in place. The time required might not be too much shorter than that for the construction of PRH. In any case, the sizes and the number of such temporary sites are bound to be very limited.
Apart from speeding up public housing construction, in the light of increasing demand for PRH, the HA's Subsidised Housing Committee discussed at its special meeting today how best to focus efforts in allocating limited PRH resources to applicants with more pressing need.
The Government will continue with its multi-prong approach to increase housing land supply in the short, medium and long term, to help meet the demand for housing land.
"To resolve Hong Kong's housing problem, which has been built up over several years, in a down-to-earth manner, the community as a whole must face the issue together, and make the necessary trade-offs and choices," the spokesman said.
Ends/Tuesday, November 1, 2016
Issued at HKT 0:43
Issued at HKT 0:43
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