Lawmakers and trade unions Friday continued to urge Chief Executive Donald Tsang to do something about the housing needs of ordinary people, as land auction prices continue to set new heights despite previous government efforts to curb sky rocketing prices.

The Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions (FTU) tabled its proposals for the October Policy Address, calling on the government to commit to the construction of 200,000 additional rental housing units per year to ease the burden on low income families.

Wong Kwok-hing, lawmaker from FTU also suggested a building program for middle-income families whose earnings are too high to qualify for public housing but who still cannot afford homes of their own. He also recommended that 4,000 to 5,000 flats be built every year under the Home Ownership Scheme.

At a separate meeting, lawmaker Pricilla Leung of the Professional Forum called on the government to develop a long-term housing policy to address housing needs in accordance with population projections and policy, over the next five, ten or twenty years.

Leung said that increasing the land supply is critical as a check on housing prices.

At the same time, she urged the administration to proceed with extreme caution on suggestions for resumption of the Home Starter Loan Scheme. Leung said the government should address the question of availability of accommodation but should not become actively engaged in consumer purchasing schemes. She recalled the "tragic" Home Starter Loan Scheme launched in the mid-1990s, which she said misled thousands who lacked the financial means to buy properties, with the result that there were numerous cases of "negative equity".

Leung proposed a rental allowance for middle-class families not entitled to other types of allowance. She also called on the government to stipulate that certain sites coming up for auction be limited to medium and small sized apartment development, to discourage profiteering by developers wanting to capitalize on the market among wealthy mainlanders. She joined the chorus of those calling for a resumption of the Home Ownership Scheme.

Leung added her voice to the cry that the threshold for the Capital Investment Scheme be raised from HK$6.5 million to HK$10 million. The increase, she argued, would discourage mainland speculators from meddling in the market for middle and low-priced flats.

China Daily

(HK Edition 08/21/2010 page1)