Looking at Mr Lau and the other committee members’ business interests and political affiliations explains why they pay lip service to conservation while going all out on development. Lantau is but a swathe of real estate to make money from.
Of the 20 members on the committee, six are members of political or economic bodies closely tied to mainland interests, such as the Consultative Committee on Economic and Trade Cooperation between Hong Kong and the Mainland, and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. One is a deputy to the National People’s Congress. On the business front, 10 have declared interests on Lantau.
The committee includes a chief executive of AsiaWorld-Expo in Lantau; a non-executive director of the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong and chairman of Lai Sun, a property developer and investor in Zhuhai’s Hengqin special economic zone; a deputy chairman at China Travel Service; a senior manager at Link Asset Management; a general manager at major developer Henderson and son-in-law of Heung Yee Kuk strongman Lau Wong-fat, whose family has extensive landholdings in Lantau. Mr Lau Ping-cheung himself is a project director at Shui On’s SOCAM Asset Management.
Committee members have visited the Pearl River Delta cities, meeting mainland officials and inspecting development zones. They have made no trips to learn about preserving natural heritage or managing tourism in places that have done it successfully.
Never mind the simple pleasures of Hong Kong residents who value Lantau for its hiking trails, beaches, forests, vegetable farms, villages and relatively fresh air. Lantau is set to be part of the Pearl River Delta development zone for mainland investors, tourists and shoppers. If Hongkongers want to escape to the countryside, they can follow Mr Lau’s priceless piece of advice: go to the mainland.