Artificial islands off Lantau top 10-year land-supply plan

Artificial islands will be built off Lantau and the New Territories North will be developed under Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s 10-year plan to increase land supply.

Lam refused to say if she will be leading the effort while insisting the government should continue to aim at increasing land and housing supply regardless of who is the city’s leader.

“I believe that no matter if Legco is about to change terms, or the government is changing terms in mid-2022,housing and land supply will remain to be the focus of policymaking,” Lam said.

Lam said the government has already identified 330 hectares of land to satisfy the demand for public housing under the 10-year Long Term Housing Strategy and authorities will aim at strengthening supervision in the coming year. Authorities will also work hard on the studies and planning of Kau Yi Chau artificial islands – the initiative under the Lantau Tomorrow Vision – as well as the New Territories North, to ensure that there will be sufficient supply for the next 10 years.

The development process will be simplified and the Development Bureau’s projects facilitation office’s ability
to approve private development projects will be enhanced.

Asked whether the development process can be speeded up through reviewing the current regulations and ordinances, Lam said she is willing to do so.

But she said she cannot promise to go over the Town Planning Ordinance and Protection of the Harbour Ordinance, given that there are about three months left for this term of Legco and around 11 months left for her term as chief executive.

The ordinances cannot be “changed completely because of land shortage,” although there is always room for improvement for the laws, she said.

Lam said she will not reintroduce the proposal of a vacant firsthand private residential properties tax – a bill scrapped in November 2020 – as it is controversial and complicated.

“I cannot promise you easily that the government will work on the taxation system for the sake of land development,” she said, adding Hong Kong is a free and open market with a simple tax system.

Some lawmakers asked whether Lam is seeking a second term, but she dodged the question, telling them they “do
not have to beat around the bush to ask a question that I will not answer.”

Legco yesterday passed the motion on “reforming the housing policy to resolve the housing problem” proposed by lawmaker Tony Tse Wai-chuen of the architectural, surveying, planning and landscape constituency.

Ann Chiang, meanwhile, slammed the lack of long-term housing policies.

“As a responsible government, long-term planning is necessary,” she said, adding the housing policy should preview the next 30 years.

Real estate and construction sector lawmaker Abraham Shek Lai-him suggested splitting the duties of the Transport and Housing Bureau into two bureaus.

He said the workload of Secretary for Transport and Housing Frank Chan Fan is too heavy.

But Chan said reorganizing the duties of bureaus is very complicated as it involves preparation and law amendments, but noted that the government will continue to listen to opinions from different sectors on the issue.
carine.chow@singtaonewscorp.com