Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen has agreed to remove a potentially illegal structure from a flat he owns in Mid-Levels after being told to either prove it did not break the law or take it down.
In a statement issued last night, Tsang (pictured) said he would have glass panels on a balcony on the MacDonnell Road property dismantled 'to put things beyond doubt'.
His decision came after the Buildings Department sent him a letter asking him to 'take the initiative to remove the large glass panels ... or appoint an authorised person to substantiate that the works comply with the requirements of the relevant regulations'.
Pressure had been mounting on Tsang over the glass-panelled balcony after a string of his senior officials were caught with law-breaking structures on properties they own, among them Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Stephen Lam Sui-lung and Secretary for Education Michael Suen Ming-yeung. Business leaders and politicians have been similarly exposed.
The latest high-level controversy piles more pressure on development chief Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor to come up with a clear policy to tackle the long-standing and widespread problem as soon as possible.
Yesterday, the Buildings Department said the Mid-Levels building which houses Tsang's flat - owned through a company - was among hundreds that had been targeted in a large-scale operation to remove all immediately 'actionable' unauthorised building works in 2006.