The article reported by “Ming Pao” stated that Mr. Stanley Ho, Director of the Housing Department, mentioned that the current ratio of public housing, subsidized sale flats, and private buildings in Hong Kong is “5:2:3”. With more public housing projects being completed gradually, the authorities will study the possibility of adjusting this ratio to a more balanced level.
Mr. Ho believes that the current housing ladder is diverse, allowing citizens to move up step by step, and there are no plans to increase or decrease it, only adjustments when necessary.
He pointed out that there are still many people living in poor living conditions in subdivided flats, so efforts will first be made to alleviate and solve this through public housing. In the next phase, there will be more room to adjust the ratio of subsidized sale flats to meet the home ownership aspirations of young people.
Furthermore, he revealed that the pace and supply of some housing ladder implementations may slow down and decrease as needed, but the government will maintain a certain degree of flexibility to expedite or increase when necessary.
Regarding the discussion by the task force on the minimum standards for subdivided flats, Mr. Ho mentioned that the government will set height restrictions. The task force also discussed the windows of subdivided flats, stating that units with windows facing the street or rear lanes have good ventilation, while units facing light wells may pose environmental and hygiene issues, which will be further studied under specific conditions.