FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 1983
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IN STUDIES OF THE SUB-REGIONS DETAILED STATISTICS ON THE COSTS AND BENEFITS OF EACH OPTION HAD BEEN PRODUCED, AS WELL AS BROAD INDICATIONS OF WHERE AND HOW MUCH GROWTH COULD BE ACCOMMODATED AND WHAT ACCOMPANYING TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE WOULD BE REQUIRED.
THESE NOW HAD TO BE ANALYSED AND COMPARED FOR GUIDANCE TOWARDS KEY DECISIONS.
GIVEN THE VAST QUANTITY OF STATISTICAL INFORMATION WHICH HAD TO BE PROCESSED, COMPUTER PROGRAMMES TO HELP OPTIMISE THE RESULTS WERE BEING USED.
+BUT,
I HASTEN TO ADD, IT IS NOT A SIMPLE FINANCIAL COST/ BENEFIT ANALYSIS BY COMPUTER THAT IS INVOLVED, MR CHAN SAID. IT WAS AN ANALYSIS WHICH, WHILE TAKING THE FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS CAREFULLY INTO ACCOUNT. MUST HAVE REGARD TO MANY OTHER FACTORS, COLLECTIVELY ENCOMPASSED PERHAPS BY THE PHRASE +QUALITY OF LIFE+ AND RELYING HEAVILY ON THE APPLICATION OF COMMON SENSE AS WELL AS MATHEMATICAL TESTS.
+ IN OTHER WORDS, WE WERE APPLYING UP TO DATE PLANNING STANDARDS AND VIEWING THE PROSPECT OF HAVING THE RESOURCES TO IMPLEMENT THEM OPTIMISTICALLY, HE SAID.
A DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY WHICH COULD BE ADJUSTED TO MATCH THE AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES, WAS NEEDED.
MR CHAN SAID +WHETHER THE STRATEGY WHICH WILL BEST SUIT US WILL BE ONE OF CONTINUING DECENTRALISATION, FOLLOWING THE MOST RECENT PATTERN OF NEW TOWN DEVELOPMENT IN THE NEW TERRITORIES- OR, REVERSING THAT TREND, INVOLVES A DEGREE OF CONSOLIDATION WITHIN A RELATIVELY CLOSE RADIUS OF THE MAIN URBAN AREAS AND THE HARBOUR- OR STEER A MIDDLE COURSE BETWEEN THE TWO EXTREMES, I CANNOT YET PREDICT.
+THE NEXT FEW MONTHS' WORK WOULD BE CRUCIAL IN SETTLING THIS GENERAL QUESTION OF DIRECTION, HE SAID.
BROAD INDICATIONS WERE, HOWEVER, THAT A STRATEGY WAS NEEDED WHICH ASSUMED THE RETENTION OF THE AIRPORT AT KAI TAK FOR THE GREATER PART OF THE 1990'S DECADE BUT KEPT OPEN THE OPTION OF ITS RELOCATION THEREAFTER.
IN ADDITION, THERE WERE LIKELY TO BE POTENTIAL DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS WHICH EMERGED AS BEING NECESSARY FOR THE FUTURE OF THE TERRITORY WHATEVER THE STRATEGY FINALLY SELECTED.
IDENTIFICATION OF ANY SUCH COMMON ELEMENTS WOULD ENABLE AN EARLY START TO BE MADE ON THE PLANNING AND DETAILED FEASIBILITY STUDIES WHICH WOULD LEAD TO A PROMPT CONTINUATION OF HONG KONG'S DEVELOPMENT INTO AND BEYOND THE 1990'S.
MR CHAN CONCLUDED: +THE NEXT SIX MONTHS OR SO ARE GOING TO BE EXCITING ONES IN THE FIELD OF DEVELOPMENT PLANNING FOR HONG KONG AND DURING THIS PERIOD THE GOVERNMENT WILL BE MAKING KNOWN THE PRINCIPAL FINDINGS OF ITS STUDIES IN THIS FIELD.
+ I HAVE LITTLE DOUBT THAT THERE WILL BE CONSIDERABLE INTEREST IN WHATEVER EMERGES AND THAT FINAL DECISIONS ON OUR DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY WILL BE INFLUENCED BY A WIDE RANGE OF VIEWS.+