XN000022-1973-02-02 — Page 3

2

Friday, February 2, 1973

In addition to its executive responsibility for estates,

the new Housing Authority will advise the Governor on all housing

policy matters.

Its members will all be appointed by the Governor and will

comprise up to 13 unofficial members (of which 8 will be Urban Councillors)

and up to 6 official members. The Secretary for Housing will be the

chairman.

The Authority will have the power to co-opt non-members

to serve on its select committees.

The Bill repeals both the Housing Ordinance and the

Resettlement Ordinance. The work of the Housing Board, which was set

up in 1965 to advise on general housing policy, will also be taken over

by the new Authority.

Existing tenancies and licences created under these two

ordinances will continue, and property vested in the present Hong long

Housing Authority and authorities under the Resettlement Ordinance will

be transferred to the new Housing Authority.

It is intended to retain the financial arrangements under

which the present Housing Authority operates, but the reconstituted

Authority will have to present its programme annually to the Governor

and it will be able to borrow from the Government or from other sources

approved by the Governor.

Among other things, the Bill removes the role of the Commissioner

for Resettlement as a statutory authority for clearing land and transfers

this role to the new Authority.

/The Bill