TNAG-0911-FCO40-1121-Policy-on-housing-and-resettlement-in-Hong-Kong-1979 — Page 54

DRAFT NUCLEUS OF WINDING-UP SPEECH

BOAT DWELLERS IN HONG KONG

1. My Lords, I should like to begin by emphasising that there is

no dispute over the entitlement of the Hong Kong boat dwellers to

apply for public housing. There is no question of their being

denied housing. It is the policy of the Hong Kong Government

The to provide subsidised public housing for all who need it.

problem is to provide it fast enough to meet the demands of a

population that has increased more than seven-fold in the past 35 years, and that is continuing to increase at a rate of over

150,000 a year. In this situation, and despite a housing programme

of which the Hong Kong Government have every right to be proud

shall return to this later it is inevitable that there should have

to be a waiting list, which in turn means that there have to be

priorities. It was this situation which led indirectly to the

incident referred to by my Noble Friend in his question.

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2. The Hong Kong Government's aim is to rehouse everybody who lives

in sub-standard accommodation. This includes not only boat dwellers

but also large numbers of people living in unsatisfactory conditions on land. Within this general policy, priority is given to people

made homeless as a result of fire or natural disaster, or whose homes become dangerous. Some people, too, have to be moved from land that is needed for development, and when this happens they too are rehoused immediately. Otherwise, everybody must take his turn. At present,

there is a waiting list of 6-7 years: if this sounds a long time, I would ask you to bear in mind both the scale of the problem, as shown by the population figures I have just quoted, and the very great

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