https://www.scmp.com/rss/323370/feed A housing project in Wang Chau, a rural area of Yuen Long in the New Territories, drew public scrutiny in September 2016 after legislative councillor-elect Eddie Chu Hoi-dick made development reform a cornerstone of his winning campaign. Hong Kong's leader Leung Chun-ying later revealed he approved the construction of 4,000 public housing flats displacing three villages instead of simultaneously developing a larger site controlled by rural leaders that could yield 13,000 more flats. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Officials and police officers clearing land for a controversial housing project in Hong Kong’s New Territories were on Wednesday chased off by angry residents refusing eviction from their homes. Lands Department staff, along with private security personnel and police, had arrived in Wang Chau in the morning, breaking windows at an empty house and attempting to put up barriers at an entrance to a village. But the residents from three villages in the Yuen Long area – Wing Ning Tsuen, Fung Chi... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3095222/angry-villagers-hong-kongs-new-territories-set-roadblocks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3095222/angry-villagers-hong-kongs-new-territories-set-roadblocks?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Jul 2020 12:27:57 +0000 Hong Kong lawmakers are not immune from contempt charges if they disrupt Legislative Council meetings, the appeal court ruled as it gave the green light to restore criminal proceedings against ex-member “Long Hair” Leung Kwok-hung. The former opposition lawmaker was set to stand trial over a 2016 incident in which he snatched a folder from a government official during a Legco meeting, until a magistrate two years later found the charge not applicable to a member and concluded his actions were... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3087244/hong-kong-lawmakers-not-immune-legislative-council?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3087244/hong-kong-lawmakers-not-immune-legislative-council?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Jun 2020 16:26:16 +0000 A fresh round of controversy has surfaced over the Wang Chau public housing project in Hong Kong, with lawmakers questioning an unusual drop in development cost from HK$2.39 billion (US$307.3 million) to HK$1.8 billion, even as the legislature approved funding. At the Legislative Council’s Finance Committee meeting on Friday, some pan-democrats raised concerns over the change in estimated cost and whether this reflected a systemic flaw in evaluation, as well as a loss of income for workers. ‘No... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3075159/lawmakers-question-unusual-drop-development-cost?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3075159/lawmakers-question-unusual-drop-development-cost?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Mar 2020 12:24:00 +0000 I refer to your editorial on how necessity drives the plan to build public flats on the majority of the Old Course of the Fanling golf club (February 20). But that assumption cannot be correct. If only half the land taken is to be used for public housing providing 2,000-odd units – then where is the necessity, and why set aside space for private flats at all? Is the golf club an easy target, just like the fully wooded green belts that were taken for private housing? Our need for public housing... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3005842/wang-chau-yesterday-fanling-today-how-government-failure-continues?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3005842/wang-chau-yesterday-fanling-today-how-government-failure-continues?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Apr 2019 10:00:08 +0000 Former opposition lawmaker “Long Hair” Leung Kwok-hung may walk free from a contempt of Legislative Council charge over his snatching of documents from a government official, after a Hong Kong court ruled that lawmakers are protected from such prosecution. The West Kowloon Court sided with the defence in ruling that Leung’s actions against then undersecretary for development Eric Ma Siu-cheung were within the privileges offered by the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance. Leung,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2135728/long-hair-leung-kwok-hung-protected-prosecution-folder?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2135728/long-hair-leung-kwok-hung-protected-prosecution-folder?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 05 Mar 2018 05:59:23 +0000 Residents of squatter villages affected by a controversial housing project in Wang Chau will not be evicted before the Lunar New Year, but occupants of about 80 homes ineligible for compensation could be left without shelter once plans are completed. The reprieve was announced by Ada Fung Yin-suen, deputy director of the Housing Department, during a hearing at the Legislative Council’s panel on housing on Monday afternoon. Lawmakers were asked to endorse the government’s plan to table the HK$2.4... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/community/article/2118664/no-eviction-wang-chau-villagers-lunar-new-year-further?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/community/article/2118664/no-eviction-wang-chau-villagers-lunar-new-year-further?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Nov 2017 12:49:18 +0000 Villagers facing eviction on Thursday over a controversial public housing plan in Hong Kong’s New Territories have threatened to put up a fight that could turn ugly if their requests fall on deaf ears. About 400 residents living in three squatter villages in Wang Chau, Yuen Long, were expected to be forced out after a three-month evacuation order by the Lands Department expired at the end of Wednesday. By 10am Thursday, no department officials had been seen around the three villages: Wing Ning... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2105248/wang-chau-villagers-threaten-bloody-fight-face-eviction?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2105248/wang-chau-villagers-threaten-bloody-fight-face-eviction?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Aug 2017 05:15:30 +0000 Boosting land supply has been the main buzz phrase Hongkongers have heard since Leung ­Chun-ying’s government took over five years ago. Paul Chan Mo-po, who headed the Development Bureau before replacing John Tsang Chun-wah as financial secretary in January, started the job with much controversy and left with some major targets unmet. Chan’s suitability for the job was called into question shortly after he got it in 2012, especially after it was revealed his family owned 18,000 sq ft of farmland... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2100254/former-hong-kong-development-chief-paul-chan-hands-over-long?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2100254/former-hong-kong-development-chief-paul-chan-hands-over-long?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jun 2017 01:32:30 +0000 For a few elite contractors, it seems our government provides an iron rice bowl that no amount of outlandish wrongdoing can break. Why is that? Is it because they are so good that no one else can do it? Is it bureaucratic inertia? Or is it something more troubling? That this keeps happening just makes you wonder. It transpired that lab service contractor Jacobs China, having been found to have altered the data of concrete samples for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge last July, suffered no... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2098579/elite-contractors-can-have-their-cake-and-eat-it-too?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2098579/elite-contractors-can-have-their-cake-and-eat-it-too?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jun 2017 17:43:57 +0000 Residents affected by a controversial public housing development plan in Hong Kong’s New Territories have blocked the entrance to the affected villages after the government’s sudden announcement launching a compulsory acquisition of the land where they built their homes. The villagers also accused officials of bypassing normal procedure and distributing notices of the land resumption three days before it was officially announced in the government’s weekly gazette. They are angry that the notices... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2092719/angry-wang-chau-residents-block-village-entrances-over-sudden?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2092719/angry-wang-chau-residents-block-village-entrances-over-sudden?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 May 2017 13:07:25 +0000 Residents from three villages in Wang Chau have been given three months to find a new home as the government announced it would resume allocating 79 lots in the area to mark its formal launch of its controversial development project. The Lands Department said on Tuesday that 79 private lots covering a total area of about 3.5 hectares would be resumed under the Lands Resumption Ordinance and the Roads (Works, Use and Compensation) Ordinance. Who buys multiple apartments in Hong Kong when most... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2092442/wang-chau-housing-project-set-79-lots-village-residents-vow?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2092442/wang-chau-housing-project-set-79-lots-village-residents-vow?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 May 2017 16:57:59 +0000 More than 60 villagers and activists from Yuen Long’s Wang Chau area marched – some on their knees – from Chater Garden in Central to the office of the chief executive-elect on Monday to protest against what they consider to be an “unjust” housing development plan that will see at least 180 households displaced. What would have normally been a 10-minute walk took more than an hour as three villagers leading the procession got down on their knees and raised their arms every three steps of the way... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2088226/hong-kong-villagers-go-bended-knee-protest-against-government?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2088226/hong-kong-villagers-go-bended-knee-protest-against-government?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Apr 2017 12:00:45 +0000 Business operators on brownfield sites that will be bulldozed to make way for new development may finally be eligible for compensation after years of being squeezed out due to outdated policy, according to a government proposal. Under the current system, businesses that operate on private agricultural land are eligible for government compensation in case of land resumption only if they are covered by a 1982 squatter structure survey or had their licenses issued before 1982. However, the lack of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2086695/compensation-works-businesses-bulldozed-brownfield-sites?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2086695/compensation-works-businesses-bulldozed-brownfield-sites?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 11 Apr 2017 08:02:02 +0000 The government will finally crack down on the illegal occupation of public land across the New Territories, or so officials have claimed. After so many years of turning a blind eye that bordered on criminal neglect, I will believe it when I see it. But if they mean what they say, they shouldn’t just stop at mere enforcement. To demonstrate good faith and sound public policy, they should revive the original target of 17,000 public housing units under the Wang Chau development project in Yuen... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2083278/will-carrie-lam-have-guts-take-back-our-public-land?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2083278/will-carrie-lam-have-guts-take-back-our-public-land?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Mar 2017 18:08:38 +0000 In a hard-fought victory for the government over filibustering opposition lawmakers, the Legislative Council’s Finance Committee on Saturday approved a controversial HK$12.4 billion funding package for more than 9,000 public works projects. Legislators allowed the government to clear a major hurdle to financing controversial projects such as the Wang Chau housing development in Yuen Long and building a tourism hub on Lantau Island, despite protests and drama in the chamber. After three months of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2080168/9000-public-works-get-past-hong-kong-legco-filibuster?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2080168/9000-public-works-get-past-hong-kong-legco-filibuster?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Mar 2017 12:13:35 +0000 Hong Kong’s newly appointed development minister has warned that more than 7,000 public construction projects could be suspended if lawmakers refuse to approve a HK$12.4 billion funding package by April 1. Secretary for Development Eric Ma Siu-cheung was speaking hours after pan-democrat lawmakers locked horns with the government at a Legislative Council meeting on Wednesday over the bundling of 26 controversial projects in with a package of more than 9,400 public works items in the Capital... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2071133/minister-warns-7000-hong-kong-construction-projects-could-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2071133/minister-warns-7000-hong-kong-construction-projects-could-be?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Feb 2017 11:00:30 +0000 Another day, another impasse at the Legislative Council. The government wants lawmakers to quickly approve more than 9,400 public works projects worth HK$12.4 billion. The pan-democrats want to examine 26 items worth about HK$190 million involving controversial projects in Wang Chau, Lantau and the northeast New Territories. The government has refused, saying those items must be bundled together because of contracts and work schedules. It sounds like the government is baying for a fight, hoping... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2068292/pan-dems-are-right-want-separate-wheat-chaff?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2068292/pan-dems-are-right-want-separate-wheat-chaff?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Feb 2017 17:41:08 +0000 A group of lawmakers have criticised the government for bundling 26 controversial public construction projects in with a package of 9,400 items for legislators to decide whether to approve on Friday. They urged the administration to let legislators scrutinise the 26 projects separately, saying they would otherwise stall the meeting to prevent the items being passed by requesting an adjournment and raising as many questions as possible. The 26 projects, involving about HK$190 million, include a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2067570/hong-kong-government-offers-9400-items-legco-approval-all-or?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2067570/hong-kong-government-offers-9400-items-legco-approval-all-or?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Feb 2017 14:37:04 +0000 Here’s a question for undergraduate students in public administration: if officials can evict hundreds of residents and villagers to make way for a public housing development, why can’t they force developers to cough up idle land reserves? Actually, we all know why. But in this day and age, you would think it’s about time to apply equal justice when it comes to recovering land in the public interest. The controversial development plan in Wang Chau is a case in point. It has become a complete... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2057295/land-there-housing-if-officials-remove-their-blinkers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2057295/land-there-housing-if-officials-remove-their-blinkers?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Dec 2016 14:46:48 +0000 A controversial plan by New World Development to build a private residential development in Wang Chau has been rejected by the Town Planning Board, with members citing traffic concerns. During a meeting of the board on Friday, it was also revealed the developer dropped engineering giant Arup as its consultant. The move came after Arup – also hired by the government for a public housing project in Wang Chau – was accused of illegally leaking confidential governmental data to New World. A board... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2056968/private-development-plan-next-controversial-wang-chau-project?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2056968/private-development-plan-next-controversial-wang-chau-project?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 24 Dec 2016 00:01:31 +0000 Hong Kong’s Development Bureau is seeking legal advice on whether a government-commissioned consultancy illegally leaked official data to a private developer involved in a project in Wang Chau in Yuen Long district. The private development was proposed to be next to a site set aside for a controversial public housing project. The revelation came after authorities slapped a three-month ban on engineering giant Arup from bidding on government projects after it was found to have breached a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2050126/hong-kong-government-seeks-legal-advice-leak-confidential?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2050126/hong-kong-government-seeks-legal-advice-leak-confidential?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Nov 2016 08:54:24 +0000 Lawmakers accused the government of being too lenient in punishing a consultancy firm that leaked confidential internal data to a private developer after barring it from bidding on government projects for only three months. During joint housing and development panel meetings at the Legislative Council on Tuesday, lawmakers also criticised officials for their poor attitude and preparation for the hearing. Officials declined to explain the reasons behind the penalty decision, did not present past... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2046119/dont-let-wang-chau-consultants-easy-over-confidential-leak?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2046119/dont-let-wang-chau-consultants-easy-over-confidential-leak?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Nov 2016 05:07:57 +0000 The Wang Chau development scandal is a gift that keeps on giving – if you are a journalist. For the government, though, it’s one embarrassment after another. The latest news sees the government slapping a penalty on engineering consultant Arup for leaking confidential data to a private developer and client. What we know so far: Arup worked on the controversial public housing project in Wang Chau for the government. It was also hired by New World Development to work on a private development... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2045886/government-left-high-and-dry-after-suspending-go-consultant?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2045886/government-left-high-and-dry-after-suspending-go-consultant?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 14 Nov 2016 16:57:49 +0000 A government-commissioned consultancy has been penalised for breaching contract and leaking confidential internal data to a private developer involved in a Wang Chau housing development. Engineering giant Arup will be temporarily barred from bidding on government projects for three months, the Development Bureau confirmed yesterday. “The public works consultancy contract makes clear provisions regulating a consultant’s known or potential conflicts of interest,” a bureau spokesman said. “Without... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2045593/tender-penalised-leaking-confidential-hong-kong-government?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2045593/tender-penalised-leaking-confidential-hong-kong-government?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 13 Nov 2016 14:11:00 +0000 Dozens of villagers, fearing that their homes will be bulldozed to make way for a controversial public housing project in Wang Chau, have lashed out at authorities for “keeping them in the dark” over resettlement procedures. Around 40 residents set out to guard village entrances at 6am on Friday morning after being notified that authorities would enter the village to give formal notice on the project’s infrastructure works. In 2014, the District Council passed a plan to build 4,000 public flats... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2045147/wang-chau-villagers-furious-they-wake-find-notice?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2045147/wang-chau-villagers-furious-they-wake-find-notice?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 11 Nov 2016 06:48:18 +0000 Yuen Long district council on Tuesday voted against suspending the Wang Chau building project, which the government controversially dropped two phases of after meetings with rural leaders. But the administration’s ­decision over the site continued to anger councillors from both sides of the political divide. In 2014 the council passed the plan to build 4,000 public flats on the heavily vegetated green belt site. But many councillors have said the government never told them about the plan to... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2039980/district-council-votes-against-suspending-controversial-wang?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2039980/district-council-votes-against-suspending-controversial-wang?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 25 Oct 2016 13:52:41 +0000 The most influential and admired engineer of the 20th century – who embedded his core values in the pioneering consultancy firm he founded in London in 1946 – must be turning in his grave. Sir Ove Arup was that rare combination of philosopher and visionary structural engineer. His name and his principle of “total design” are embedded in some of the world’s most iconic buildings, including the Sydney Opera House, the Centre Pompidou, in Paris, and HSBC’s Hong Kong headquarters, at 1 Queen’s Road... https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/2038547/grubby-reality-eclipses-ove-arups-soaring?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/long-reads/article/2038547/grubby-reality-eclipses-ove-arups-soaring?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Oct 2016 03:45:00 +0000 Almost 70 per cent of land at a site set aside for a controversial public housing development in Wang Chau, Yuen Long is in private hands, a long-awaited set of feasibility reports shows. The government released the 16 reports comprising some 3,000 pages yesterday amid heightened public concern over the Wang Chau project. The reports were submitted between 2012 and 2014, but the government initially withheld them. Revealed: decision behind Wang Chau rural housing scandal reaches very top of Hong... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2029182/bulk-land-set-aside-contentious-hong-kong-housing-project?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2029182/bulk-land-set-aside-contentious-hong-kong-housing-project?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 18 Oct 2016 15:00:15 +0000 The realities of Hong Kong’s land and housing supply require the government to take a radically different approach to land administration in the New Territories. Yet, our constitutional and political situations require that no such approach can be implemented before March at the earliest. Sadly, it may not be practicable even then. A number of recent development decisions make no sense in the context of a pressing need for land to build public housing. The case of Wang Chau in Yuen Long has been... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2026052/hong-kongs-land-realities-call-radical-approach-anyone?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2026052/hong-kongs-land-realities-call-radical-approach-anyone?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 09 Oct 2016 17:15:15 +0000 Rural leaders castigated for blocking development are seeking professional help to rebuild their tarnished public image and better handle the media. A consultancy firm will be hired to draw up a publicity campaign that could cover issues from how rural leaders should talk to the media, to convincing “outsiders” why they should be allowed privileges in rural land policy. Although their traditional rights are guaranteed under the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution does not give specific... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2026347/hong-kongs-rural-strongmen-plot-pr-makover-rebuild-their?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2026347/hong-kongs-rural-strongmen-plot-pr-makover-rebuild-their?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 09 Oct 2016 00:00:45 +0000 The chief executive blamed “selfishness” on the part of society for threatening the government’s housing targets , amid recent objections to development projects from rural landlords and athletes. “If everyone objects to [housing] due to selfish reasons, there will be no land in Hong Kong for development,” Leung Chun-ying told students at a sharing session on Saturday. Leung was responding to a student’s question about why the government’s targets for public housing could not be met. Touching on... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2026365/hong-kong-chief-executive-hits-out-selfish-opposition?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2026365/hong-kong-chief-executive-hits-out-selfish-opposition?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Oct 2016 13:26:43 +0000 Who was more annoyed with this week’s revelations of alleged match-fixing in Hong Kong football – officials at Pegasus, the team involved, or rivals Kitchee? A much bigger football-related scandal than the Independent Commission Against Corruption’s investigation has been knocked off the local news agenda by the fixing story – the government’s apparent determination to snatch back land granted to Kitchee, a year almost to the day after they opened a training centre. All efforts to stamp out... https://www.scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/2026040/why-hong-kong-governments-bid-scrap-kitchees-training-centre-much?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/sport/hong-kong/article/2026040/why-hong-kong-governments-bid-scrap-kitchees-training-centre-much?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Oct 2016 06:36:15 +0000 A half-hour minibus ride from the nearest train station and a 15-minute walk down an unkempt, dirt-covered path is the shortest trek to a squalid slice of land in the northwest New Territories. In Tseung Kong Wai village near Tin Shui Wai, a maze of sprawling car parks, scrap yards and warehouses has been built thanks to stacks of containers lying around marking out the space and rows of ramshackle structures walled up with metal sheets. Flies hover and vehicles speed by, enveloping the place in... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2025361/hong-kong-brownfield-site-saga-rolls-calls-rise-banish?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2025361/hong-kong-brownfield-site-saga-rolls-calls-rise-banish?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Oct 2016 09:00:15 +0000 At least 400 elderly indigenous villagers in Hung Shui Kiu could lose their livelihoods under a government plan to resume their land to build a new town. Tang Kwan-shing, chairman of the New Territories Open Storage Operators Limited, said some of the 190-hectare brownfield sites in the 714-hectare Hung Shui Kiu new development area were ancestral land collectively owned and rented out for industrial businesses. He added that many co-owners, especially elderly villagers, lived off the divided... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2025357/elderly-livelihoods-stake-hong-kong-government-eyes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2025357/elderly-livelihoods-stake-hong-kong-government-eyes?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Oct 2016 09:00:00 +0000 Trust in the city’s media has dropped to a 10-year low according to a poll by the University of Hong Kong released on Tuesday. The overall credibility rating for local news media was 5.66 out of 10 – a drop from 5.87 in the last poll in April and the lowest since October 2006, when an overall score of 5.6 was recorded. The survey interviewed 1,012 people and was conducted ­between September 19 and 22 – ­coinciding with a controversy over government proposals for a ­housing project in Wang Chau... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/2025062/poll-reveals-trust-hong-kongs-news-media-has-hit-10-year-low-hku?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/2025062/poll-reveals-trust-hong-kongs-news-media-has-hit-10-year-low-hku?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Oct 2016 15:00:15 +0000 Hong Kong could benefit from a capital gain of HK$3 trillion if the city’s government reforms the existing subsidised housing schemes, according to a new report released by a think-tank. Our Hong Kong Foundation (OHKF), headed by former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa, said its proposal would also increase the city’s flat ownership from the current 50 per cent to 80 per cent by encouraging the resale of subsidised flats on the open market. Under the proposal, which was floated last year, owners of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2024932/look-beyond-brownfield-sites-solve-land-shortage-issues-think?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2024932/look-beyond-brownfield-sites-solve-land-shortage-issues-think?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Oct 2016 07:45:45 +0000 The Wang Chau housing saga is an excellent example to illustrate the environmental dilemma over brownfield sites versus green belt land for development. The earmarked area in Yuen Long of mostly brownfield site is not a bad choice for development, given its low ecological value. However, one thing is clear: there should be more rigourous control over the growth of such sites in Hong Kong. In this city of 110,000 hectares, about 40 per cent is protected under the Country Parks Ordinance. As such,... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2023319/why-brownfield-sites-are-greener-option-housing-development?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2023319/why-brownfield-sites-are-greener-option-housing-development?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Sep 2016 03:49:15 +0000 Hong Kong’s development minister has launched a probe into whether a government-commissioned consultant breached any confidentiality agreements after internal data on a Wang Chau project was leaked. The Development Bureau revealed that in March last year the Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD) commissioned Arup, a global engineering firm also hired by many private developers, to carry out a study on designing infrastructure in Wang Chau, Yuen Long, as part of the government’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2023420/hong-kong-minister-launches-probe-possible-breach?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/economy/article/2023420/hong-kong-minister-launches-probe-possible-breach?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Sep 2016 14:15:45 +0000 Brownfield sites in the New Territories go back a long way. Back, in fact, to the mass occupation of government and privately owned rural land for industrial and commercial use, in most cases illegally. It was regularised through the granting of short-term licences and waivers. However, what started as a policy of tolerating in the short term the illegal occupation of government land, and allowing deviation from prescribed use on land parcels not immediately required for development, has... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2022885/do-less-err-less-attitude-lives-hong-kong-government?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2022885/do-less-err-less-attitude-lives-hong-kong-government?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Sep 2016 05:46:14 +0000 Hong Kong’s leader has personally “knocked on the doors” of different people to push ahead developments on deserted rural sites, an executive councillor has claimed while declining to offer details. Cheung Chi-kong, who has also made it clear he would support Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying in seeking a second term, made the remarks on Monday amid continuing accusations the government bowed to pressure from rural landlords to suspend a public housing plan at a Yuen Long brownfield site – a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2022595/cy-leung-has-knocked-doors-wang-chau-housing-projects-senior?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2022595/cy-leung-has-knocked-doors-wang-chau-housing-projects-senior?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Sep 2016 06:00:56 +0000 If you want to destroy a community and its spirit, take away its meeting and recreation places. That’s what the Hong Kong government appears to be doing in North Point on the pretext of providing housing. A basketball court and soccer pitch on a postage-stamp-sized piece of land is up for rezoning so that a 34-storey block of subsidised-sale flats can be built. A new playground has been promised, but no site has yet been mentioned and, given the limited options, it’s likely existing places for... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2022556/theres-no-shortage-land-housing-hong-kong-only-lack-will-act?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2022556/theres-no-shortage-land-housing-hong-kong-only-lack-will-act?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Sep 2016 05:20:46 +0000 Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying called a special press conference to take ultimate responsibility for a public housing controversy that was damaging the image of his government and from which other top officials had already distanced themselves. It is good that he and senior members of the administration faced the media after questions were raised about the scaling back of a housing project in the New Territories to what the government insists is a phased development. But if the press conference... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2022493/political-ambitions-must-not-be-allowed-harm-governance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2022493/political-ambitions-must-not-be-allowed-harm-governance?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Sep 2016 16:31:58 +0000 “You asked me if I agree with my boss. You always agree with your boss. No question about that.” Wait a minute – these words from Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah were neither a statement of loyalty nor an expression of unity. At least not in the eyes of many Hongkongers watching last week’s much-anticipated government press conference on the Wang Chau public housing saga. It was the second time Tsang had said something to that effect in public. The first time was when he was a guest at a... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2022448/you-always-agree-your-boss-doesnt-mean-youre-fully-behind?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2022448/you-always-agree-your-boss-doesnt-mean-youre-fully-behind?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Sep 2016 12:42:24 +0000 Planning officials have come under greater pressure to develop a brownfield site occupied by rural strongmen in Yuen Long. Starry Lee Wai-king, head of the city’s biggest pro-establishment party, on Sunday called on the government to draw up a timetable for the Wang Chau ­public housing project. Her comments came as villagers protested against the project and pan-democrat lawmakers continued to push for a formal ­investigation in the Legislative Council next month. Lee, chairwoman of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2022442/pressure-builds-wang-chau-homes-row-dab-leader-calls?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2022442/pressure-builds-wang-chau-homes-row-dab-leader-calls?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Sep 2016 12:07:25 +0000 As the government is set to start long-awaited studies on developing the city’s sprawling countryside brownfield sites, a rural elder has called for officials to consider exchanging land with the owners of the sites. But land experts said the suggestion was not practical as it would be unfair to other affected property owners and that land exchange often involved prolonged discussions which would stall development projects. A heated debate over brownfield development was triggered after the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/2022296/rural-elder-calls-brownfield-site-exchange-scheme?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/education-community/article/2022296/rural-elder-calls-brownfield-site-exchange-scheme?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 24 Sep 2016 12:15:45 +0000 Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying on Friday night pledged to ramp up the city’s land supply and make tough calls on green-belt sites to benefit lower-income residents stuck in sub-divided flats, while bringing down inflated prices in the private housing market. Facing intense criticism for his controversial handling of a housing project in the New Territories, Leung said that while the potential private housing supply would reach about 93,000 flats in the next three to four years – a record since... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2022130/hong-kong-chief-executive-vows-make-tough-calls-boost?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2022130/hong-kong-chief-executive-vows-make-tough-calls-boost?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Sep 2016 15:45:45 +0000 The head of Hong Kong’s village leaders, who have been at the centre of a housing project controversy, expressed regrets on Friday that some politicians had made use of the “public’s misunderstanding” of rural affairs to smear them. Heung Yee Kuk chairman Kenneth Lau Ip-keung, who will take office as the rural body’s representative in the Legislative Council next month, was speaking amid the recent debate over the government’s handling of a controversial housing project in Wang Chau. A large... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2021974/hong-kong-rural-leader-says-politicians-exploited-public?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2021974/hong-kong-rural-leader-says-politicians-exploited-public?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Sep 2016 06:59:53 +0000 The pan-democratic camp and its allies have a chance of getting four more votes from pro-establishment lawmakers to invoke the Legislative Council’s special powers and investigate the government’s controversial handling of the Wang Chau public housing development plan. That would leave them just three votes short in launching the probe, but the chances of securing them from strong allies of the government ­remain remote. Outgoing lawmaker James Tien Pei-chun told the Post yesterday that four of... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2021721/hong-kong-pan-democrats-hopeful-getting-four-more-votes-bid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2021721/hong-kong-pan-democrats-hopeful-getting-four-more-votes-bid?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Sep 2016 14:45:00 +0000 The weekly meeting involving Hong Kong’s top officials during which a decision was made to defer a key part of a controversial housing project in January 2014 is the government’s high-level clearing house for major issues. The housing project in Yuen Long was one of many issues discussed at the weekly high-level meeting on January 27, 2014, attended by Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah and Secretary for Justice... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2021698/controversial-hong-kong-housing-decision-made-weekly-three-c?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/2021698/controversial-hong-kong-housing-decision-made-weekly-three-c?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Sep 2016 12:15:15 +0000 Initial police investigation showed the six alleged triad members who were arrested for tailing newly elected lawmaker Eddie Chu Hoi-dick, had no connection with the controversial Wang Chau development or with any rural strongmen, as the force continues to establish the motive and trace the mastermind behind the tailing. More details were revealed yesterday – a day after the men with alleged triad links were picked up in a series of raids. Li Kwai-wah, acting senior superintendent of Crime New... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2021691/six-suspected-traid-members-arrested-tailing-eddie-chu-not?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2021691/six-suspected-traid-members-arrested-tailing-eddie-chu-not?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Sep 2016 11:45:30 +0000