12
伊程
雪味药
Public Works and Utilities
THE government's largest single item of expenditure is normally that for public works, covering as it does the formation and reclamation of land; port and airport works; roads, sewers, bridges and tunnels; the supply and distribution of water; and the construction of public buildings.
For the financial year 1981-2, approved provision of funds for capital works was $4,538 million, some 18 per cent of the government's total expenditure. Of this sun, $889 million was to be spent on roads, $543 million on water supplies and $42 million on public housing constructed by the Public Works Department (PWD) in addition to that built by the Housing Authority.
In view of the wide-ranging changes in the pattern of District Administration, the PWD established an Urban Area Development Organisation, under which one regional office and six divisions were set up in the urban area. Each division comprises a small multi- disciplinary team primarily responsible for the co-ordination and monitoring of works, both public and private, in the district allocated to it.
The organisation also undertook the co-ordination of clearance programmes for the urban area to ensure that their implementation is in proper sequence and on schedules compatible with housing and financial resources.
-
In September a Secretary for Lands and Works was appointed as a first step towards a major reorganisation which will affect the PWD and include the establishment of a new Lands Department.
Buildings
The building boom continued into 1981 but the inflationary pressures on the industry stabilised to some extent, and the rapid acceleration in building costs experienced in the period 1977 to 1979 eased, due mainly to a levelling-off, and in some cases a lowering, of basic material prices. During the 12 months to mid-June 1981 the cost of labour increased by 16 per cent compared with 15 per cent and 25 per cent for the corresponding periods of 1979-80 and 1978-9 respectively. Basic materials increased by 7.5 per cent in cost, (compared with 20 per cent and 58 per cent), and tender prices increased by 11 per cent (compared with 24 per cent and 37 per cent). PWD expenditure on buildings for the same period rose by 41 per cent over the previous corresponding period, representing in real terms an increase of about 27 per cent in building operations.
Among the more notable projects opened in 1981 were the Prince Philip Dental Hospital at Sai Ying Pun, by the Duke of Edinburgh on March 24, and the South Kwai Chung Hospital, providing 1 336 beds for mental patients, by the Governor on October 15.
Other projects completed include an air mail centre at Hong Kong International Airport; markets at Tin Wan, Ngau Tau Kok and Tuen Mun; medical clinics at Lei Muk Shue, Sha