TNAG-0270-FCO40-306-Policy-on-housing-and-resettlement-in-Hong-Kong-1971 — Page 59

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When the Board was originally appointed in 1965 it included one Unofficial Member of the Urban Council appointed in a strictly personal capacity. It was hoped to continue this arrangement for the Board's current term, but the Unofficial Member who was appointed in October 1958, sub- sequently retired from the Urban Council and thus there is now no unofficial member of the Urban Council on the Board, although three official Members of the Board are also members of both the Urban Council and the Housing Authority, of the latter of which the Commissioner for Housing is also a member.

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It is not proposed to vary the arrangement of appointing unofficial members of the Board in a personal capacity, but it is now proposed, assuming Honourable Members have no objection, to review the possibility of adding one or two additional unofficial members of which at least one should be a serving member of the Urban Council and to ensure that this situation is maintained, as far as possible, in future.

Government-aided Housing

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Honourable Members may also wish to be informed that as

regards Government-aided Housing:

(a)

(b)

(c)

the Housing Society has recorded its doubts about its ability to fulfil a building programme to house 45,000 persons by March 1975 without additional sites. The Fublic Works Department is already investigating the availability of urban sites for the Society.

The Housing Authority, whilst expecting to be able to finance from its own resources its proposed ten year progressive building programme, has said that it will need Government finance if it is to partici- pate in urban renewal.

There is at present no official intention to include the grant of land for Government-aided housing in the disposal of sites developed under the Filot Urban Renewal Area scheme now in progress.

Conclusion

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Honourable Members will be asked to advise whether the re- commendations of the Housing Board as set out in Annexes A-D should be adopted as modified by the preceding paragraphs of this memorandum and subject, where necessary, to the provision of funds by the Finance Com- mittee of the Legislative Council.

(The Acting Director of Public Works (Mr R. C. CLARKE), the Commissioner for Resettlement (Mr Paul K, C, TSUI), the Commissioner for Housing (Mr D. LIAO) and the Principal Assistant Colonial Secretary (Lands) (Mr D. AKERS-JONES) will attend before the Council for the dis- cussion of this item).

22nd September 1970 (BL 3/4802/69)

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