XN000022-1973-10-31 — Page 19

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Wednesday, October 31, 1973

This committee will rightly put economics in its proper place as

the most important aspect of modern government," said Mr. Wong.

He emphasised that the proposed committee should cover not only

the long-range plan for stabilising the cost of living "but also the

short-term emergency plans for dealing with devaluation and revaluation

of related currencies as it affects our economy and the most appropriate

way of investing our reserves."

He added: "More specifically the Economic Advisory Committee

should study and recommend measures to stabilise the costs of living

in general and the prices of rice, vegetables and fish in particular.

"It does not serve any useful purpose to keep saying that prices of

esse tist commodity

staples have been stable," he stressed.

Mr. Wong went on to say that just as food was the most important

item in the cost of living, so land was the most important item amongat

the factors of production.

In his view, the future of overcrowded Hong Kong lay in Lantau.

"The development of Lantau which is bigger than Hong Kong will solve the

land shortage problem for good," he said,

Aside from residential and recreational areas, it would provide

industrial land at prices compatible with the development of industries and

put Hong Kong on par with those in Malaysia, Taiwan, Korea and Indonesia,

he said.

/Referring ***