Secretary for Development Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor yesterday hinted at a swift decision on two heritage 'hot potatoes'. She pledged not to leave decisions on the future of the former government headquarters and Ho Tung Gardens to the next administration.
Lam made her comments in a radio interview in which she urged the public to get behind chief executive-elect Leung Chun-ying's plans to restructure the government, which would see a new culture bureau take over responsibility for heritage conservation.
Leung takes office on July 1.
The west wing of the former government headquarters has been earmarked for demolition to make way for grade-A offices, despite the pleas of conservationists to retain all of the government's former base.
'We are proactively considering maintaining the integrity [of the former government headquarters site],' she said, without elaborating.
The government controversially allowed a one-year protection order on Ho Tung Gardens, the Peak mansion built by tycoon Robert Hotung in 1927 for his second wife, to lapse in January. Since then, the government has been in talks with Hotung's granddaughter, Ho Min-kwan, who wants to demolish the mansion to build 10 homes. Lam did not give any further clues as to the progress of the negotiations, except to say she did not intend to hand either issue over to her successor.
Lam is widely expected to take over as chief secretary, but in common with others tipped to join the new administration, she remained tight-lipped when asked about it, and declined to say whether she planned to stay in government after her term of office expired.