When I started the review of our Long Term Housing Strategy at the beginning of last year, I was under no illusions about the complexity of the task. Housing is one of Hong Kong's great success stories. In a matter of a few decades, we have changed from a community living for the most part in inadequate and often appalling accommodation, to one in which the large majority of the population is decently housed. We have steadily improved the quality of our public housing programme until it has become a model for other cities and territories. Home ownership, though still low by international standards, has passed the 50% mark. Private developers have invested massively in producing flats for nearly a million households.
2. But the problems are equally obvious. We face a growing population in a limited land area; the rising aspirations of a community which rightly expects better standards than before; long queues for public rental housing; unsatisfied demand for home ownership; a growing number of elderly people, with the special problems this brings; and the risks of property speculation.
3. Since the 1970's, the Government has adopted a consistent approach to these problems. Our philosophy was first codified in the 1987 Long Term Housing Strategy and has not significantly altered. In particular, the Government's commitment to help those in genuine need is as strong as ever. It is the foundation on which our housing policy rests.
4. Some 2.4 million people now live in public rental housing. This housing programme represents an enormous social achievement. This year, Hong Kong marked up an additional achievement in the housing field. Over half of our population now own their own homes, a third more than ten years ago. More than half of Hong Kong's families have been freed from the cycle of paying rents, whether to private landlords or public agencies. Instead they have invested in an asset which can be passed from one generation to the next; they have become stakeholders in the community. This further achievement does not mean that we can become complacent. But it does suggest new possibilities.
5. It suggests that our housing policies have been fundamentally correct. Subsidised rental accommodation has not only provided shelter, but has also enabled many families to prosper. For many families public housing has been a stepping stone to ownership. The introduction of a subsidised Home Ownership Scheme in 1978 facilitated this process. Home ownership is not a dream for the many and a privilege for the few. Rather it is something to which the majority of our community can aspire.
6. This does not mean that the Government can suddenly stop building public rental housing. On the contrary, we must continue to provide public rental housing for as long as there are people who genuinely need it, either now or in the future.
7. While continuing to provide for those in genuine need of shelter, we should also do more to encourage families to own their own homes. After all, every family that moves from public rental housing into a home ownership flat frees up a public rental flat for another family more in need. Measures recently introduced by the Housing Authority to identify better-off tenants and to persuade them to part with the public rental flats which they no longer merit are a step in the right direction. In time, it may be possible for us to contemplate public rental accommodation as ultimately a finite stock, and one which will gradually reduce relative to privately owned homes.
8. We welcome views from all sections of the community on the proposals set out in this consultative document. Some may feel that we have not gone far enough in putting forward radical solutions to the challenges which lie ahead. Others may feel that some of our proposals are too radical. We will take into consideration all views expressed. At the end of the day, we will need to take hard decisions on the difficult issues we face. In particular, we will need to decide how best to help those really in need of basic housing; how to ensure the most equitable use of the huge resources invested by the community in subsidising our public rental housing programme; and how we can help families to meet their increasing aspirations to own their own homes.
9. There are other subsidiary but important issues on which we also need to take decisions, for example, the special needs of the elderly. There are technical questions on land supply and the streamlining of procedures. We also welcome ideas from the private sector on how they may be more actively involved in helping to meet the housing needs of the community.
10. In producing this document, I have been ably advised by a Steering Group composed of a wide spectrum of individuals with a deep interest in and knowledge of housing matters. I have benefited enormously from their advice, and am most grateful for their contributions in terms of time, patience and experience.
11. I would also like to thank those members of the Legislative Council, the Housing Authority and various community organisations who, during the course of the review, wrote to or discussed ideas with me and my colleagues.
12. Finally, I should emphasise that this is a strategic document. It is not intended to tackle short-term problems, such as the recent concern over speculation in residential property, particularly in the luxury flats market, but rather to address the longer-term, strategic issues we face. Inevitably the document omits a great deal of detail. The methods of implementing and the financial implications of many of the proposals will need further work within the Administration, in consultation with the Housing Authority and the Housing Society.
13. To help us reach final conclusions on the way forward, we welcome your comments.
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(Dominic S.W. Wong) |
