1957-1958 — Page 11

Kong Housing Society has so far played the principal role, and has already housed many thousands of people.

POLICY

So far the Authority's energy has been directed to the planning and construction of housing estates of a conventional, municipal, character, albeit on a substantial scale, developing vacant sites with the type of accommodation thought to be most needed, at widely varying rents suited to the requirements and rent-paying capacity of the various types of applicant likely to be encountered.

Generally speaking, its policy has been to provide flats of a good basic standard that will be a permanent asset to the Colony, and at the lowest economic rents, and its directive was originally interpreted as applying largely to the 'white collar' class of worker, hitherto almost unconsidered by official and private enterprise alike, and enventually to bring down the general level of rents throughout the Colony. The schemes already started, or being planned, represent a capital invest- ment of well over $100,000,000, but it has become apparent that even a programme of these dimensions will fall very far short of meeting the Colony's housing needs.

It is now thought, as investigations into the overall housing problem are extended, and as forward planning receives more attention, that this somewhat narrow conception must be radically altered. The schemes already started, or envisaged, although very beneficial within those narrow limits, will have very little effect on the re-housing of the hundreds of thousands of people now living in sub-standard, over- crowded conditions, constantly subject to the scourge of tuberculosis and severe fire hazards.

The question of slum clearance, which is considered to be an intrinsic part of the wider problem, needs to be closely examined, and it may soon be necessary to tackle, on a planned and methodical basis, this important aspect of housing. Needless to say, an enormous amount of preliminary planning, coupled with detailed social surveys, still remains to be done before even a modest start can be made on this work. There are also many important financial implications to be taken into account, necessitating close liaison with local property owners, without whose co-operation any clearance schemes are doomed to failure. A further natural corollary to this latter problem is the type and quantity of accommodation to be provided by the Authority in the satellite towns,

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