Lee, 73, is proud of his long involvement in the construction industry, which he views as a backbone of the local economy. After graduating from the University of Hong Kong with a degree in civil engineering in 1964, he joined the government as an apprentice engineer on a monthly salary of HK$800.

He worked for the government for 38 years, progressing from engineer and project manager all the way up to secretary for works and retired as permanent secretary for works in 2002. During that time he has involved in the planning of many new towns, the HK$120 billion airport at Chek Lap Kok and related infrastructure projects.

After retirement, he was still keen to serve the public and helped to set up the industry council, of which he became chairman.

The industry has 344,557 registered workers, together with some other civil engineers, surveyors, project managers, senior management.

That is more than 10 per cent of the total workforce in Hong Kong.

There are a lot of reasons for recruitment difficulties. Higher education levels and more career choices may have led young people and senior executives to be reluctant to join the industry as many would prefer white-collar jobs. The council has done a lot to change that attitude.

We have issued a guideline to require companies to have better salary arrangements to prevent non-payment.

For young people, we offer them comprehensive training courses to train them as highly skilled workers with qualifications. We also arrange for skilled workers to attend international competitions in carpentry, painting and other technical work to show our workers can compete in the international arena.

The whole idea is to raise the technical proficiency and reputation of construction industry employees and hence attract more talent to the industry. In a recent survey, 27 per cent of people said they would like to join the construction industry, up from only 7 to 8 per cent four years ago.

I think we have to focus on three major areas, namely image, status and pay. We have done a lot, such as hosting seminars for university graduates, to promote the true image of the construction industry and establish a positive, progressive and professional image for senior management in the construction industry.

Status is also another important element. A clear career path with good positioning among youngsters' peers will add to that. We have been establishing certification and registration of construction practitioners over the years to recognise the professional status of their skills and competence.

Lastly, remuneration adds to the appeal for new blood. Competitive pay is, anyhow, an important consideration when we are talking about driving youngsters to the industry. Nowadays, a senior project manager can earn about HK$48,000 to HK$52,000 a month - that is better than in my day.

A key issue is to increase the productivity of the local construction industry. Now we can build a typical floor in six days and there is room for speeding up.

I would also like to see the safety of workers improve. In the past 20 years, the number of injuries per 100 workers has decreased by 90 per cent. However, the number of deaths remains at 20 a year.

It is of utmost importance to make sure the construction project will be finished within budget and on time. Good management and preparation would meet such a target and usually 90 per cent of works could be completed on time and within budget. Bad weather and heavy rain would be a problem.

There can be many reasons which may cause project delays and cost overruns. They can be unforeseen, difficult ground conditions, inclement weather, manpower shortages, poor contractor performance, design changes during construction, inflation of material and labour costs, disputes, poor coordination, tight delivery programmes, etc, and more often, a combination of these factors. Without any direct involvement in the MTR projects, I would not wish to comment on the actual reasons for the delay.

The construction has no direct relationship with the Hang Seng Index but has a strong linkage with the macroeconomic cycle. When the economy is good, more building projects happen, and vice versa.

A prime example was the economic crisis in 2007 to 2008 that saw construction volume in Hong Kong sink to a decade low of only HK$120 billion.

That bounced back with the economic growth in both 2013 and 2014, with the value of all construction works reaching HK$190 billion each year. Looking ahead, the value of local construction work should reach HK$240 billion a year by 2024.

Our buildings are better quality. With the growth of personal wealth, people would like to own or rent a better home or office. However, in terms of space, the average Hong Kong person is living in a smaller space. According to a UN report, the floor area per person is less than 20 square metres for all the African countries and for three-quarters of the Asia-Pacific markets, including Hong Kong. It is because we have an increased population.

Technology wise, more robots and computer systems have been introduced to improve the safety of construction sites and the progress of works.

Another major evolution is that of green concepts. Nowadays, many buildings use environment-friendly construction materials that can reduce heat, while many buildings would have balconies.