XN000022-1995-10-11 — Page 40

32 -

"I have personally visited 10 of these THAS, both officially and unofficially, and I am very conscious of their inadequacies, in terms of space and facilities, and the constant struggle to maintain standards of cleanliness and security," he said.

"Plainly, rehousing of existing THA residents is the only real solution. In the meantime, however, we have to improve the living conditions for those who still have to live in THAs."

He said the Secretary for Housing had already made a start with a programme to renovate the THAS which would be retained and to improve their management to achieve a secure and better living environment for all THA residents.

"In parallel, some older rental blocks in the urban fringe areas will be used to house families affected by clearance programmes.

"The Housing Authority is also developing new designs of temporary accommodation, which will provide more space and better-quality living and which will gradually replace the existing type of temporary housing."

On the pledge to reduce the average waiting time to under five years by 2001, Mr Patten warned that this would be no easy task.

"We still have an enormous backlog to make up for, as we clear the temporary housing and squatter areas, for example, and press on with schemes to upgrade the earlier generations of public housing units to meet today's standards," he said.

"We also have new and growing sources of demand for public housing, as we respond to the special needs of vulnerable groups such as the elderly and the new arrivals from China."

Mr Patten said another issue that might have something to do with the problem of waiting lists was the better-off tenants.

"It is plainly wrong that public housing should continue to accommodate tenants who have the financial resources to meet their own housing requirements at the expense of those with a genuine case for rehousing," he said.

"I know that this issue has been the subject of detailed examination by the Housing Authority, and I look forward to receiving their proposals for a comprehensive solution by the end of this year."

Page 40Page 41