TNAG-1136-FCO40-1416-Address-by-Sir-Edward-Youde--Governor-of-Hong-Kong--to-the-L-1982 — Page 101

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annually for purchase by better off public housing tenants, encourage them to vacate their heavily subsidized rental flats,. and by those living in rented private flats who could not otherwise aspire to own a house of their own.

43.

·

In the private sector, the latest figures available

show that three-quarters of new

of new flats occupied last year were occupied by their owners, bringing the proportion of Owner- occupation to about 50% of the total. This movement towards home ownership is one which the Government will encourage,

44.

I am confident that, by the end of this decade, the

housing problem as we have known it will have been greatly

reduced. But our housing standards have in the past had to be

modest and there will always be a need for qualitative improvements to bring older housing up-to-date. There will be no pause in our efforts to make Hong Kong a better place to

I live in.

45.

(b) Social Welfaze

The 1979 White Paper: Social Welfare Into The 1980s, out the aims for future development. It provides that our social security system should ensure that those who are least

able to help themselveu should be · looked after; and that direct services föt 'people who cannot manage without them, particularly the elderly and vulnerable young people, should be developed, and their quality improved."

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(i) Social security

46,

the

Public

Śocial · security benefits available under

Assistance Scheme

Scheme and the Special Needs Allowance Scheme

provide the basic protection of those who are least able to

help themselves. During the last year, a total of some 260,000

people received one' form of cash benefit or another. The level of payment of these benefits has been progressively revised

upwards.

/47.

The