Hong Kong leader forecasts proposals will provide over 1 million homes in next three decades but no ‘quick fixes’ offered
- Hong Kong faces a shortfall of 3,000 hectares of land for housing, economic and recreational developments over the next three decades, Carrie Lam says
- Proposed Northern Metropolis near the border with mainland China could provide up to 926,000 flats
Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor revealed in her policy address on Wednesday that Hong Kong faced a shortfall of 3,000 hectares of land for housing, economic and recreational developments over the next three decades to 2048, much higher than an initial estimate of 1,200 hectares in a long-delayed review of a planning study.
But she indicated in her speech that the administration had already identified about 4,100 hectares from major projects – including Lantau Tomorrow Vision, a massive reclamation scheme in waters east of Lantau Island, and parts of a proposed “Northern Metropolis” – over the 30 years.
“The solution to address the housing problems of people in Hong Kong more thoroughly rests not on ‘quick fixes’ to deal with the current situation, but rather on the determination to sustain land supply,” Lam said.
During a question and answer session after her address, the chief executive estimated her blueprint could produce up to 1.1 million homes by 2047, two years ahead of the target set by Xia Baolong, director of the cabinet-level Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, for the city to eradicate substandard living. She said the figure was more than 30 per cent of the existing number of homes in Hong Kong.