Lawmakers slam cost of keeping Covid sites on standby
Lawmakers yesterday accused the government of wasting public money after it was revealed about HK$3.75 million is spent each month to maintain six community isolation facilities unused since the coronavirus pandemic.
They urged authorities to make better use of the sites by turning some over for other purposes as soon as possible.
A Development Bureau paper submitted to the Legislative Council’s Special Finance Committee on Monday said all community isolation facilities built during the Covid-19 pandemic had either been placed into “standby mode” or were used for other purposes.
Monthly expenditure on the six standby facilities stood at about HK$3.75 million in total, covering electricity and maintenance costs, as well as charges for the essential security services provided by contractors.
Some still required outsourced cleansing services, and lighting, air conditioning, fire services and telecoms equipment also had to be maintained, the bureau said.
“Individual facilities may incur additional expenditure if they have to be put to other uses should actual needs arise, and the expenditure incurred may also change from time to time,” the bureau added.
Authorities said the 65-hectare Penny’s Bay facility cost the most, at about HK$1.7 million a month, followed by the one in the Lok Ma Chau Loop, at about HK$1.4 million. Monthly expenditure on the facility at the old Kai Tak Airport is about HK$400,000, and the one in Hung Shui Kiu costs around HK$120,000. The two others – in Fanling and near the boundary crossing facilities island of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge – each cost about HK$65,000 a month.
The bureau said light public housing mock-up flats were located at the Kai Tak site, while the Lok Ma Chau Loop management fees also covered facilities of a central government-aided emergency hospital.
It said the government was reviewing how to gradually make arrangements for the remaining community isolation facilities, releasing the sites in phases or using them for other purposes.
Lawmaker Chan Hoi-yan appealed to the government to at least cut expenditure by half.
“It is a waste of public money to spend about HK$3.75 million basically keeping the facilities on standby mode,” she said.
Chan called on the government to get a team of experts to assess how many facilities should be retained to prepare for a future pandemic, before turning some to other uses to cut costs. She suggested turning the Kai Tak facility into a cultural and creative spot.
Legislator Doreen Kong Yukfoon said flats could be built on the sites to relieve housing shortages. She also asked the authorities to review whether isolation in such centres would be the best option in another pandemic.
The government has put other isolation facilities to different uses. The Tam Mei facility in Yuen Long is now being used as centralised quarters for imported labour for the construction industry, while the San Tin one holds training courses and trade tests for the sector. The Tsing Yi centre is now a base for youth development and national education.