Hong Kong approves HK$9.8 billion ‘light public housing’ scheme funding in 2 minutes. One lawmaker says lack of debate gives ‘bad impression’
- Legislative Council’s Finance Committee approved the request in less than two minutes on Friday with no members objecting
- Funding will go towards building 13,000 temporary homes on nine sites in second stage of scheme, which aims to serve families on public rental flat waiting list
Hong Kong legislators have swiftly approved a HK$9.8 billion (US$1.25 billion) funding request to construct the second batch of government-built temporary flats, with a lawmaker warning that the lack of debate over the motion might give the public a “bad impression”.
The Legislative Council’s Finance Committee approved the request in less than two minutes on Friday with a show of hands that drew no objection.
Lawmaker Michael Tien Puk-sun said the lack of discussion over the project’s hefty price tag was not ideal, especially when his colleagues spent almost 90 minutes debating a HK$1 billion injection into a government scholarship fund at the same meeting.
“It is disproportionate. It gives a bad impression to society,” he said.
The committee gave the project the green light after the Public Works Subcommittee, which had convened for a two-hour meeting about three weeks earlier, voted by an overwhelming majority not to discuss the project further on Friday.
The HK$9.8 billion funding will go towards building 13,000 temporary homes on nine sites in the second stage of the “light public housing” scheme, which aims to serve families on the waiting list for a standard public rental flat for three or more years.
The legislature last year passed a HK$14.9 billion funding proposal to build 17,000 of the light housing flats in the first phase of the project.
Tien last month asked for greater discussion of the latest funding round, arguing the government had failed to provide sufficient data to show the homes could be built at the Tuen Mun site without creating an extra traffic burden.
Hong Kong officials cut estimated cost of 30,000 flats by another HK$1.69 billion
He said housing officials then gave supplemental information bit by bit before the meeting on Friday.
Tien said he was satisfied with the government’s reply, but added it would have been better if other lawmakers reviewed the details he obtained.
“It would be a healthy discussion if we could go through them during the meeting,” he said.
Kitson Yang Wing-kit and two other lawmakers from the A4 Alliance, a group formed by four non-affiliated legislators, earlier urged for another discussion on the funding approval.
But the three of them eventually approved the project on Friday.
“The request involves around HK$10 billion,” he said. “We think it should be discussed in the Finance Committee as some lawmakers who were not members of the Public Works Subcommittee might not have had their opinions heard
“We have to respect the voting result. Other lawmakers may think that the funding request is not that controversial.”
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He argued the swift approval also showed the efficiency of the legislature.
Lawmaker Doreen Kong Yuk-foon, who earlier expressed reservations about the initiative’s price tag and locations, did not attend Friday’s meeting. Kong said she had requested leave to attend meetings outside Hong Kong.
She had also expected that the funding request would not be discussed on Friday.
“I agree that it is important to solve the subdivided flat problem,” Kong said, referring to the shoebox homes that some low-income families rent before being housed in permanent public homes.
“But there are other solutions that can save money and time. We should be extremely cautious with the public coffers when the economy is gloomy.”
Hong Kong’s light public housing scheme secures HK$14.9 billion funding approval
The government earlier said it had cut the overall cost of building light public housing flats to HK$24.7 billion, 9.6 per cent down on the initial HK$27.39 billion.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, on his visit to the city in 2022 to mark the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to Chinese rule, spoke publicly of his expectation that the administration would tackle the housing shortfall.
Hong Kong aims to build all 30,000 temporary homes by 2027 and cut the waiting time for permanent and temporary public flats to 4½ years.
The waiting time for a permanent public rental flat is currently 5.6 years.
