XN000022-1973-10-17 — Page 49

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Wednesday, October 17, 1973

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In this succession of events it has been the duty of your Government

with the support of Executive Council and Honourable Members, to direct

things within its power as seemed best for the interests of Hong Kong.

But it has been our constant concern not to be diverted from the mainstream

of our social policies as outlined last year and endorsed by this Council.

These required the formulation of long-term plans to break finally

the makeshift conditions forced on Hong Kong by the influx of population in

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the 150s and '60s. This was not only because I believed such an approach

to right in itself, and to accord with the advice of Honourable Members

and the wishes of the public, but also because I was convinced that in

many respects current conditions can only be accepted if the public knows that

their Government is seriously determined to improve them and within a

reasonable timescale. So on no account have we been prepared to permit

the pressing pre-occupations of today to divert us from long term measures

to achieve the essential conditions of an acceptable tomorrow.

Housing

It is with these long term measures that I start.

First of all housing. Of all these social programmes it is the

biggest. Everything that I have seen in the city and read at my desk

during this second year in Hong Kong confirms my conclusion that the inadequacy

and scarcity of housing, and all that this implies, and the harsh situations

that result from it, is one of the major and most constant sources of friction

and unhappiness between Government and the population. It also has in-

plications for our twin problems of crime and corruption. It is therefore

vital that we press on with our target of self-contained homes for all in

a reasonable environment, by the fiscal year 1982/83.

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