MONDAY, MARCH 23, 1992
SIM
NOW TAKE THE PRESENT SITUATION. WE HAVE CONTACTS BETWEEN CHINA AND THE REST OF THE WORLD, OUR OWN CONTACTS ARE VERY FREQUENT, WE ARE BACK DEALING WITH PROBLEMS IN A MUCH MORE SENSIBLE WAY THAN
WERE BEFORE AND CONFIDENCE HERE IN HONG KONG, FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS, NOT JUST ONE, BUT A VARIETY OF REASONS, CONFIDENCE HERE IS VERY MUCH BETTER THAN IT WAS, AND ONE MARK OF THE WAY IN WHICH THINGS HAVE BEEN DEALT WITH RECENTLY IS THOSE LONG-RUNNING AIRPORT NEGOTIATIONS. VERY DIFFICULT NEGOTIATIONS, SOMETIMES VERY FRUSTRATING, BUT AT THE END OF THAT, WE CAME OUT WITH AN AGREEMENT, WHICH IN MY JUDGMENT IS A WORKABLE, SENSIBLE AGREEMENT WHICH ENABLES US TO GET ON WITH A PROJECT WHICH IS OF ENORMOUS IMPORTANCE TO THE LONG-TERM FUTURE OF HONG KONG AND, INDEED, I THINK OF SOUTHERN CHINA AS WELL.
SO WE
ARE ACTUALLY WORKING ON IT NOW, AND TO THROW IN A FEW EXTRA STATISTICS FOR THOSE WHO ARE TAKING NOTES, TWO MILLION CUBIC METERS OF EARTH HAVE ALREADY BEEN MOVED AT CHEP LAK KOK AND WEST KOWLOON RECLAMATION, 10 MILLION CUBIC METERS HAVE BEEN MOVED THERE AND YOU CAN SEE THE WEST KOWLOON RECLAMATION COMING OUT OF THE SEA ALREADY.
SO, A NUMBER OF CRISES WE HAVE MET OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS, WE COULD LIST MANY MANY MORE THAN THAT I'M SURE AND WE HAVE DEALT WITH AND WE HAVE OVERCOME. I WOULD LIKE ALSO, JUST IF I MAY, TO REMIND YOU OF SOME OTHER THINGS WHICH ARE NOT CRISES, DRAMATIC THINGS, DRAMATIC ANSWERS OVERCOMING THOSE SORT OF PROBLEMS, BUT THE CONTINUING DEVELOPMENT OF HONG KONG AND THAT I THINK IS EQUALLY IMPORTANT, AND AGAIN, SOMETIMES IT'S FORGOTTEN BECAUSE IT'S AN OLD STORY. BUT LET ME JUST GIVE A FEW OF THOSE. TAKE HOUSING FOR INSTANCE, THAT'S SOMETHING WHICH IS ENORMOUSLY IMPORTANT TO MOST OF THE POPULATION OF HONG KONG, AFTER ALL, SOMETHING LIKE HALF OF OUR POPULATION LIVE IN HOUSING WHICH IS, IN EFFECT, SUBSIDISED BY THE PUBLIC PURSE.
SINCE I CAME HERE IN APRIL 1987. SOMETHING LIKE 227,000 APARTMENTS HAVE BEEN BUILT IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR, THAT IS, AGAIN IF YOU LIKE STATISTICS, 130 NEW FLATS EVERYDAY, SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, AND THE PLANS ARE TO BUILD 400,000 MORE BY THE YEAR 2000. SO THERE IS A HUGE ON-GOING PROGRAMME. OR, TAKE EDUCATION, TERTIARY EDUCATION. WHEN I CAME HERE IN 1987 THE NUMBER OF TERTIARY LEVEL PLACES, DEGREE PLACES WAS 5,000. IT'S NOW 10,000, WE'RE GOING UP TO 15,000 IN 1995 AND THAT WILL BE SOMETHING LIKE 18 PERCENT OF THE RELEVANT AGE GROUP, THAT'S THE 17 TO 20 AGE GROUP. SO THAT'S A HUGE IMPROVEMENT.
YOU,
-
OR, TAKE ANOTHER ONE, I'M SORRY TO THROW SO MANY STATISTICS AT BUT I THINK THEY'RE VERY INTERESTING. HEALTH, HOSPITAL BEDS. 1987 - 12,500, 1992 22,000 WITH MORE PLANS FOR THE FUTURE. OR, TAKE ANOTHER ONE, WHICH IS VERY CLOSE TO MY OWN HEART, ENVIRONMENT. 1987 WE WERE SPENDING SOMETHING LIKE $429 MILLION A YEAR ON ENVIRONMENT. THIS YEAR, 1992/92, THAT IS, $2.9 BILLION. FOR BILLION. I AM SURE THERE ARE MANY PEOPLE WHO WOULD ENOUGH, THE PROBLEMS ARE HUGE, BUT IT SHOWS HOW MUCH NOW PUTTING ON THAT.
1992/93
$4.1 SAY THAT'S NOT EMPHASIS WE'RE
THAT'S JUST AN ATTEMPT TO EXPLAIN SOME OF THE THINGS THAT ARE GOING ON THE WHOLE TIME. BUT AS ONE LOOKS TO THE FUTURE IN EVERY SENSE, THOSE SORT OF PROGRAMMES ARE ALSO POLITICAL. I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER AND TO TAKE ACCOUNT OF THE FACT THAT IF WE GOING TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN THE FUTURE, THE ECONOMY IS CRUCIAL TO HAPPENS HERE AND THERETO IT'S WORTH REMEMBERING THAT HONG KONG NOT BADLY.
ARE WHAT
DOES
/AVERAGE GROWTH