Page 37 of 242
54
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
ADDRESS BY CHAIRMAN.
CHAIRMAN:--Ladies and gentlemen, the meeting is called to order.
MINUTES.
The Minutes of the meeting held on 6th April, 1971, were confirmed.
PAPERS.
The Chairman laid upon the table the following papers:
(1) Report on the work of the Urban Council and Urban Services Department for the month of April, 1971.
(2) Urban Council and Urban Services Department Statistical Report for the period 1st January, 1971 to 31st March, 1971.
(3) Report by the Commissioner for Resettlement on the progress of clearance and resettlement operations for the period 1st January, 1971 to 31st March, 1971.
QUESTIONS.
(1) MRS. E. ELLIOTT asked the following question:-
(a) When will decantation of overcrowded families in Shek Kip Mei to Pak Tin, and Wong Tai Sin to Tsz Wan Shan begin to take place?
(b) To which estates may overcrowded families in Lei Cheng Uk, Tai Hang Tung, Tung Tau, Lo Fu Ngam and Wang Tau Hom go, and when?
THE COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT replied as follows:-
The priority allotted for relief of overcrowding in resettlement estates has, since 1964, been the 5th in the list of eligible categories of persons for resettlement housing. This had the prior endorsement of the Standing Committee of the Whole Council when it met on 16th December, 1963 to discuss the contents and recommendations of the 1963 Working Party's Report. The relative priorities were subsequently confirmed in the 1964 White Paper which received the approval of the Governor in Council on 4th August, 1964 and of the Legislative Council on 16th September, 1964.
(Mr. H. M. G. FORSGATE arrived at this point).
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
55
In its five (so far published) reports, the Housing Board had included specific comments and/or recommendations on the problems of relief of overcrowding in resettlement estates (paragraph 16 of the 1964-65 Report, paragraphs 17-20 of the 1965-66 Report, paragraphs 17-19 of the 1966-67 Report, paragraphs 18-20 of the 1967-68 Report, and paragraphs 32-37 of the 1968-69 Report). In its latest, but as yet unpublished, Report, the Housing Board again included three paragraphs stating its observations and recommendations on the subject. These have all been endorsed by this Council.
As a result of these deliberations, certain proposals, for a partial conversion to be incorporated in the full-scale redevelopment scheme for Shek Kip Mei estate, designed to solve the root of the overcrowding problems in the older resettlement estates, were submitted, considered, and endorsed by the Housing Board and by this Council. Forming integral parts of the proposed Shek Kip Mei redevelopment scheme is the reservation of four blocks in the newly completed Pak Tin estate to accommodate tenants likely to be displaced in the Shek Kip Mei estate, and also the handing over of the management of the whole of Stage II of the Pak Tin estate to the Housing Division of the Urban Services Department under the auspices of the Housing Authority. All these interlinked proposals, and their implications in terms of housing policy and finance are currently under active consideration by Government. It is my sincere hope that the scheme as a whole will shortly be approved.
I take it that this Council as a whole will not let a few individual cases of compassion in Shek Kip Mei, which might have been brought to the attention of individual members, prejudice this great experiment to which the Council stands committed.
In the interim, the department has been working very hard and has produced a paper containing specific proposals for the reservation of quotas in no less than six resettlement estates for the relief of overcrowding. This paper (Committee Paper RM/10/71) was considered in conjunction with another and discussed at great length by the Resettlement Management Select Committee as recently as 28th April. The departmental proposals were not accepted by the Committee-instead, the department was instructed to revise its proposals incorporating all the points made by members at the said meeting and to re-submit in due course.
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Page 37 of 242
54
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
ADDRESS BY CHAIRMAN.
CHAIRMAN:--Ladies and gentlemen, the meeting is called to order.
MINUTES.
The Minutes of the meeting held on 6th April, 1971, were confirmed.
PAPERS.
The Chairman laid upon the table the following papers:
(1) Report on the work of the Urban Council and Urban
Services Department for the month of April, 1971.
(2) Urban Council and Urban Services Department Statistical Report for the period 1st January, 1971 to 31st March, 1971.
(3) Report by the Commissioner for Resettlement on the progress of clearance and resettlement operations for the period 1st January, 1971 to 31st March, 1971.
QUESTIONS.
(1) MRS. E. ELLIOTT asked the following question:-
(a) When will decantation of overcrowded families in Shek Kip Mei to Pak Tin, and Wong Tai Sin to Tsz Wan Shan begin to take place?
(b) To which estates may overcrowded families in Lei Cheng Uk, Tai Hang Tung, Tung Tau, Lo Fu Ngam and Wang Tau Hom go, and when?
THE COMMISSIONER FOR RESETTLEMENT replied as follows:-
The priority allotted for relief of overcrowding in resettlement estates has, since 1964, been the 5th in the list of eligible categories of persons for resettlement housing. This had the prior endorsement of the Standing Committee of the Whole Council when it met on 16th December, 1963 to discuss the contents and recommendations of the 1963 Working Party's Report. The relative priorities were subsequently confirmed in the 1964 White Paper which received the approval of the Governor in Council on 4th August, 1964 and of the Legislative Council on 16th September, 1964.
(Mr. H. M. G. FORSGATE arrived at this point).
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
55
In its five (so far published) reports, the Housing Board had included specific comments and/or recommendations on the problems of relief of overcrowding in resettlement estates (paragraph 16 of the 1964-65 Report, paragraphs 17-20 of the 1965-66 Report, paragraphs 17-19 of the 1966-67 Report, paragraphs 18-20 of the 1967-68 Report, and paragraphs 32-37 of the 1968-69 Report). In its latest, but as yet unpublished, Report, the Housing Board again included three paragraphs stating its observations and recommendations on the subject. These have all been endorsed by this Council.
As a result of these deliberations, certain proposals, for a partial conversion to be incorporated in the full-scale redevelop- ment scheme for Shek Kip Mei estate, designed to solve the root of the overcrowding problems in the older reset- tlement estates, were submitted, considered, and endorsed by the Housing Board and by this Council. Forming integral parts of the proposed Shek Kip Mei redevelop- ment scheme is the reservation of four blocks in the newly completed Pak Tin estate to accommodate tenants likely to be displaced in the Shek Kip Mei estate, and also the handing over of the management of the whole of Stage II of the Pak Tin estate to the Housing Division of the Urban Services Department under the auspices of the Housing Authority. All these interlinked proposals, and their implications in terms of housing policy and finance are currently under active consideration by Government. It is my sincere hope that the scheme as a whole will shortly be approved.
I take it that this Council as a whole will not let a few indivi- dual cases of compassion in Shek Kip Mei, which might have been brought to the attention of individual members, prejudice this great experiment to which the Council stands committed.
In the interim, the department has been working very hard and has produced a paper containing specific proposals for the reservation of quotas in no less than six resettlement estates for the relief of overcrowding. This paper (Com- mittee Paper RM/10/71) was considered in conjunction with another and discussed at great length by the Reset- tlement Management Select Committee as recently as 28th April. The departmental proposals were not accepted by the Committee-instead, the department was instructed to revise its proposals incorporating all the points made by members at the said meeting and to re-submit in due
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