Public opinion on land supply should not be taken lightly
It was reported recently that in just 10 days more than 10,000 people submitted an application for a chance to purchase a subsidized home in a project designated for firsttime local buyers. The Urban Renewal Authority, which managed the Starter Homes pilot scheme, said that nearly two-thirds of the applicants were single; 80 percent of them were aged between 18 and 38. At first sight, it is encouraging that the scheme is effective in addressing the housing needs of young people. However, the figure also reveals the inconvenient fact that even the relatively well-off families cannot afford to buy a flat in the private market. The worrying question is whether the Starter Homes scheme is just a drop in the bucket.
We inevitably come back to the old problem of the land supply shortage. The land shortage issue has persisted and haunted Hong Kong people for years. Fortunately, 2019 will be a good year to make a breakthrough in land supply. Just before the start of 2019, the Task Force on Land Supply released their report on the overall land supply strategy and land supply options to the government. The significance of the report, entitled “Striving for Multi-pronged Land Supply”, is evident in two areas.
Firstly, the report is the outcome of a public engagement process. Land supply and development is a complex issue, which involves different stakeholders. Hence, a large-scale public engagement exercise was held from April to September in 2018. This was to solicit public views on land supply options and other related issues. By extending the engagement channels, the task force, apart from conducting 185 public engagement events, received over 29,000 questionnaires and 68,300 submissions. Furthermore, the task force also put a great deal of effort into collecting quantitative and measurable opinions by conducting a random telephone survey, interviewing 3,011 respondents. Therefore, the report is the fruit of collective opinions and wisdom, which is representative enough.
The recommendation on taking back part of the Fanling golf course for housing when its land lease expires in 2020 is a good example. According to the report, 61 percent of the public offered their support for repurposing private recreational sites. Without this supporting figure, the actual working plan of the government will face considerable political opposition. The public engagement report The author is research officer of the One Country Two Systems Research Institute. played a vital role in promoting the land development plan.
Secondly, the report provides guiding strategies, which is more critical than a series of options, worthy of priority studies and implementation by the government. According to the report, the public generally agrees the land shortage problem is a pressing one. The public determined two crucial and noteworthy strategies. One is that there is no single solution to resolve the land shortage problem; a multi-pronged approach is necessary to break the stalemate of land shortage. Another one is that the creation of more than enough land to build a land reserve is essential to prepare the city for rainy days.
Based on these strategies, the task force developed a package of proposals to the government that can increase the land supply significantly, not only to address the land shortage problem but also to create more than enough land to build a land reserve. This would give the city a buffer and also some planning flexibility. To adopt a multi-pronged land supply strategy, the report suggests the implementation of various land supply options in the short, medium and long term to meet the needs for different land uses at different times. To establish a land reserve, the task force settled on eight out of 18 options assessed, listing them out in no particular order of preference but specifying how much public support there is for each one based on a questionnaire and a telephone survey. The strategy is significant as it serves as a guiding principle for formulating future land development plans. For instance, the proposal to build an East Lantau Metropolis through reclamation is not convincing without the strategy of building a land reserve.
The report is the result of public opinion; there is no reason for the government and society to take it lightly. Indeed, the problem of land shortage demands immediate action; the task force believes the actual land shortfall could be significantly bigger than the 1,200 hectares estimated by the government in the “Hong Kong 2030+: Towards a Planning Vision and Strategy Transcending 2030” study. An old saying tells us: “Where there is unity there is always victory.” The government and society should form a united front and make use of the report as a weapon to strive for a victory in their uphill battle against the land shortage scourge.