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21.
In the old urban areas five of the districts
Kwun Tong, Wong Tai Sin, Kowloon City, Sham Shui Po and
five districts
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Eastern each have about twice the population of the other
Mong Kok, Yau Ma Tei, Central and Western,
Wanchai and Southern. The case for a split of the larger
districts on population grounds seems good. But these
districts have been in existence since the City District
Officer Scheme was established in 1968 and have a coherence
of their own. None of the District Boards wants to split.
Similar opposition to change was encountered in 1980 when
the Urban District Boards were first established.
It was
suggested then that the smaller districts should be combined
Mongkok with Yaumatei and Wanchai with Central and Western.
No change is proposed to the existing ten urban Districts.
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22.
The case of Tsuen Wan is different. This district
has now overtaken Kwun Tong in population and is the largest
of all. It includes not only old Tsuen Wan but Kwai Chung,
from which it is separated by a range of hills, and Tsing Yi
Island. It makes administrative sense to keep it as one
district under a District Commissioner. But the District
Board has agreed that there should in future be two Boards
one for Tsuen Wan town and one covering Kwai Chung and Tsing Yi.
No other change is proposed in the New Territories Districts.