HONG KONG HOUSING AUTHORITY 5524⭑✯
PRESS RELEASE
新聞稿
Friday, December 17, 1976
WORKING PARTY MEETS ON NEEDS OF PUBLIC HOUSING TENANTS
IN 'GREY' AREA JUST ABOVE PUBLIC ASSISTANCE
The Working Party set up by the Government Secretariat to study ways of helping certain low-income tenants of public housing has already held several high-level meetings, a government spokesman said today.
These are the people referred to in the Legislative Council on November 10 by the Secretary for Housing, Mr Ian Lighthody, when speaking about tenants in the "grey area" just above the eligibility limit for
Public Assistance.
Mr Lightbody said then: "For those qualifying for Public Assistance, rents are met by a rental allowance paid under that scheme, and so there is no problem in their case.
"Of more concern are those households which are just above the eligibility limits for Public Assistance and for whom rent payments,
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particularly if they can only be allocated a flat in a new estate, can cause real hardship and consume much more than 20 per cent of income.
"A Working Party has been set up to study the problems faced by such families and to see what can be done to provide relief to them within the scope of the Public Assistance Scheme."
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The government spokesman said: "Useful progress has been made and much now depends on certain essential data which members of the Working Party will not be able to study until after the results of the By-Census become available, hopefully in January.
"We must know the size of the problem and the possible commitment
of public funds."
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