Hong Kong

HC Deb 05 March 1968 vol 760 cc218-9

19. Mr. Rankin

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs if he will inquire into the lack of facilities such as toilets, clinics, drinking water, telephones, schools, and public lighting, provided in Shatin resettlement area Hong Kong, with a view to having them improved.

Mr. Whitlock

My information is that facilities in the Fo Tan resettlement area near Shatin compare favourably with those in other cottage resettlement areas. Since the list of facilities that are available and to be provided is long I am writing to my hon. Friend.

Mr. Rankin

Is my hon. Friend aware that the list of facilities I have given him also represents a lack of houses between last year and the year before of 2,000 in a Colony where at present 300,000 people are labelled as squatters? Is not that a problem of the deepest significance for our Government in view of the present state of affairs in the Far East?

Mr. Whitlock

My hon. Friend knows very well that the housing problem in Hong Kong has been very serious since the war. Much remains to be done, but in the past he has paid tribute to what has already been done. I assure him that the problem will continue to be tackled with vigour. The immediate objective in the cottage settlement he mentioned is to provide permanent housing to meet basic requirements and that the facilities provided there are better than those in existing resettlement areas.

20. Mr. Rankin

asked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs if he will consult with the Governor of Hong Kong, with a view to establishing the urban council as the housing authority for the Colony in order to ensure coordinated planning of house-building.

Mr. Whitlock

No, Sir. The urban council has responsibilities in relation to only part of the Colony and is not the appropriate body to co-ordinate planning of housing development for the whole of Hong Kong. For this purpose Hong Kong has a Housing Board.

Mr. Rankin

As the housing authority of Hong Kong is completely failing in its task, will my hon. Friend consider some other authority? Is he aware that the housing authority is appointed and selected? The urban council is elected, and if it became the housing authority housing might become a topic of public discussion in Hong Kong for the first time.

Mr. Whitlock

The housing shortage in Hong Kong is due to the damage and neglect during the Japanese occupation, the fact that over 1 million refugees have come in from China, and a natural increase in population. Since 1945 the population of Hong Kong has risen from 600,000 to 3.8 million. If my hon. Friend believes that there should be an enlargement of the urban council's responsibilities in this matter, I have no doubt that this will be considered in the current review of local administration.

Mr. Fletcher-Cooke

Have not the Government of Hong Kong done a magnificent job in housing the wave of refugees?

Mr. Whitlock

I agree that they have done a magnificent job, and my hon. Friend has paid tribute to them.