Tony Tse wants property professionals to speak with one voice

Tony Tse Wai-chuen was elected to the Legislative Council last year as the member representing the architectural, surveying, and planning constituency.

For the 58-year-old, the election capped a career in the property market that saw him being appointed to the boards of property developers Hongkong Land, Emperor Investment, Henderson Land and SEA Group, as well as the Urban Renewal Authority.

He was president of the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors from 2003 to 2004, and later served as chairman of Sunlight Reit.

"I stood for election to the council because I felt we needed as an industry to do more to help tackle property issues that have arisen over the last few years," Tse said in an interview with the South China Morning Post.

"Home prices are high and the city is losing the harbour to reclamation. Also, the town planning of Tin Shui Wai has been criticised for causing social problems."

Tse is now trying to unite the three professional bodies in the property sector - surveyors, architects, and town planners - so that they may speak with one voice on the challenges facing the sector. "My idea is that our voice could be stronger if we presented a joint view on common subjects and made suggestions to the government."

Tse said he broadly supported current housing policies, which were "heading in the right direction". But he sympathised with home seekers who are priced out of the market.