Hong Kong policy address: ‘Light Public Housing’ scheme of 30,000 bigger temporary homes proposed to help bridge supply and demand gap
- Chief Executive John Lee’s first policy address pledges to tackle housing crisis with 30,000 new temporary flats available to tenants for longer
- Lee says it is hoped the temporary homes and other measures will cut the housing waiting list from 6 to 4½ years.
A new “Light Public Housing” scheme designed to create 30,000 better transitional homes in Hong Kong in a bid to bridge the supply and demand gap was promised in the city leader’s first policy address.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said solving the city’s housing problems was top of the government’s agenda.
He said the larger temporary flats, built on short-term sites, would be offered with cheaper rents for longer and that it was hoped the drive would help reduce the waiting time for public housing from 6 years to 4½ years by 2026-27.
“We need breakthroughs in housing supply and solutions to address the long-term problem of housing shortages,” Lee said. “Our aim is to let residents see hope by being housed earlier and living in a bigger home.”
The policy address commitment was in line with President Xi Jinping’s expectation that Lee’s administration would tackle housing problems and Hongkongers’ desire for larger homes, which were highlighted in a speech delivered during his visit to the city on July 1.