XN000022-1992-10-08 — Page 41

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1992

AND THEN I ALSO FEEL THAT PROBABLY THE GOVERNOR IS NOT TAKING CARE OF THE LOWEST STRATA. YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT SANDWICH- CLASS HOUSING

LOWER STRATA? MERELY? AND SANDWICH CLASS

AND ARE YOU AWARE OF THE FACT THAT THERE IS ALSO THE ARE YOU GOING TO LEAVE THEM TO THE HOUSING AUTHORITY, I'VE HEARD THAT SOME DEVELOPERS ARE TALKING ABOUT THE AND SAYING THAT THIS IS NOT REALLY VERY WISE BECAUSE YOU ARE GOING TO KEEP PRICES UP AND THE PROPERTY MARKET WILL NOT REALLY GO DOWN THAT MUCH.

WILLIAM LEE:

MRS FUNG, YOU HAVE A BARRAGE OF QUESTIONS, LET MR PATTEN ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS ONE-BY-ONE. SPENDING A LOT OF MONEY, SOMB NEWSPAPERS TALK ABOUT YOU AS SANTA CLAUS, IS THIS THE CASE?

GOVERNOR:

NO, I'M NOT SANTA CLAUS BUT I'M FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO BE GOVERNOR IN A COMMUNITY WHERE YOU, BY YOUR OWN EFFORTS, HAVE ACHIEVED SO MUCH THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY MOVE FORWARD IN MEETING SOME OF OUR SOCIAL TARGETS. WHAT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS I DID WHEN I BECAME GOVERNOR IN HONG KONG? ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS I DID WAS TO PUBLISH FOR THE FIRST TIME THE FIGURES FOR OUR EXCHANGE FUND, WHICH TELL THE WORLD AND TELL THE PEOPLE OF HONG KONG JUST HOW MUCH MONEY WE'VE GOT IN THE BANK. WHAT I CAN ASSURE YOU OF IS THAT WHEN I LEAVE HONG KONG IN 1997,

I WILL LEAVE BEHIND HUGE RESERVES WHICH ARE THE RESULT OF YOUR EFFORTS. WE'RE NOT GOING TO SPEND THOSE RESERVES, WE'RE GOING TO LEAVE THEM IN THE BANK FOR YOU, IN ORDER TO PROVIDE THE STABILITY WHICH OUR ECONOMY NEEDS, AND WE WILL BE PUBLIC ABOUT THOSE FIGURES, WE WILL BE PUBLIC ABOUT THOSE RESERVES, JUST SO YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT.

SECONDLY, THERE IS A BIT OF A CONTRADICTION IN WHAT YOU SAID, ALL OF US WANT PRUDENT CONTROL OF PUBLIC FINANCES AND YET ALL OF US WANT MORE TO BE SPENT ON THIS AND THAT. AND YOU WERE SAYING, QUITE PROPERLY, THAT WE HAVE TO BE CONCERNED NOT JUST ABOUT THE SANDWICH-CLASS, BUT WE HAVE TO BE CONCERNED IN PUBLIC HOUSING ABOUT THOSE WITH LOWER INCOMES. I HOPE THAT'S WHAT WE'LL CONTINUE TO BE DOING BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO BE COMPLETING, BETWEEN NOW AND 1997, OVER 100 FLATS A DAY, WE'RE GOING TO BE BUILDING BETWEEN NOW AND 1997, ABOUT 190,000 HOMES OF ONE SORT OR ANOTHER, EITHER THROUGH THE HOUSING ASSOCIATION OR THE HOUSING SOCIETY. WE'RE GOING TO BE SPENDING 41 BILLION OF YOUR DOLLARS, THAT'S A HUGE INVESTMENT IN PUBLIC HOUSING AND HOUSING PROVISION AND I THINK IT DEMONSTRATES THAT WE'RE CONCERNED TO GO ON WITH WHAT HAS BEEN A REAL SOCIAL REVOLUTION IN HONG KONG, PROVIDING DECENT HOUSING FOR ORDINARY FAMILIES.

FEEL

QUESTION:

GOOD MORNING MR PATTEN, CAN YOU TELL ME IF YOU COMFORTABLE IN HEADING UP A GOVERNMENT THAT BASES THE RIGHT OF ABODE IN THE TERRITORY ON THE RACIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PERSON APPLYING FOR THIS RIGHT?

GOVERNOR:

WELL, WHAT WE ARE DOING AT THE MOMENT, IN THE JOINT LIAISON GROUP, IS DISCUSSING RIGHT OF ABODE WITH THE FUTURE SOVEREIGN POWER, WITH CHINA. WE'VE STARTED TO MAKE PROGRESS ON THAT FRONT; WE MADE SOME PROGRESS AT THE JOINT LIAISON GROUP MEETING IN LONDON THE OTHER DAY. IT INVOLVES QUITE COMPLEX ISSUES OF NATIONALITY LAW WHICH WE'VE BEEN DISCUSSING WITH CHINA BUT I VERY MUCH HOPE THAT WE'LL CONTINUE TO MAKE PROGRESS AND BE ABLE ΤΟ COME FORWARD WITH PROPOSITIONS WHICH ARE ACCEPTABLE BOTH TO THE CHINESE SIDE AND TO THE COMMUNITY ON RIGHT OF ABODE FOR THE FUTURE. I REPEAT, IT'S AN EXTREMELY COMPLICATED ISSUE BUT ONE WHICH I HOPE WE'LL BE ABLE ΤΟ NEGOTIATE SUCCESSFULLY WITH CHINA.

/KIT CUMINGS