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for. 1.
$600b railway budget defended as essential 2.
Legco transport panel members stage walkout 3.
'We don't favour property developers' 4.
New site proposed for Girl Guides HQ 5.
Lawmakers walk out over contract announcement 'snub'
6.
Sino, Kerry win Tseung Kwan O project 7.
Professor supports building of bridge to link Pearl
River Delta
1. $600b railway
budget defended as essential The
government yesterday defended its decision to invest HK$600 billion on railway
and infrastructure investment over the next 15 years despite the budget deficit
and the economic Downturn. Deputy secretary for Planning and Lands Thomas Tso
said the government anticipated a huge population growth in the New Territories
in the next 10 years and it was essential to build a rail line to service it.
``Because of the growing population living in the New Territories' western part
in the future, Hong Kong is under pressure to construct a mass transportation
network, such as the West Rail project,'' Tso said. Tso also said the creation
of the HK$2 billion Penny Bay Rail Link, which will connect Yam O station on the
Tung Chung Line to Disneyland on Lantau, would boost the local tourism industry.
``Railways will be a dominant transport tool for carrying visitors to the theme
park rather than by bus and ferry,'' he said. Up to 3 million tourists are expected
to visit the theme park annually. Its first phase opens in 2005. Accountancy-sector
legislator Eric Li earlier criticised the government for wasting resources on
railways and roads while Hong Kong's deficit was HK$65.6 billion for the fiscal
year 2001-02. Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa announced last year in his Policy
Address that he planned to spend HK$600 billion on building 12 railways, such
as the Penny's Bay rail link, the Sheung Shui-Lok Ma Chau spur link and Sha Tin-Central
link, by 2016. The money would also go on highways, including Route 9 linking
Tsing Yi and Sha Tin and Route 10 linking Tuen Mun and North Lantau and the Shenzhen
Western Corridor. The Planning and Lands Bureau earlier predicted that 3.9 million,
or 53 per cent of the projected 7.5 million population in 2010, would live in
the New Territories. [Source:
The Standard, 28 June 2002] 2.
Legco transport panel members stage walkout Two
legislators walked out of a Legislative Council panel meeting yesterday after
claiming the government had insulted the panel by not informing its members of
the winner of the Sha Tin to Central line contract in advance. ``It's a waste
of time attending this meeting. The government didn't even invite the Kowloon-Canton
Railway Corporation (KCRC) to explain the picture to us,'' Democrat Andrew Cheng
said before storming out of the transport panel meeting with Albert Chan Wai-yip.
``I don't know why we're sitting here. This is totally disrespectful to the Legco.
I and Chan Wai-yip will boycott this meeting,'' he said. The government announced
on Tuesday that the KCRC had beaten the Mass Transit Corporation with its bid
to build and operate the line. Panel chairwoman Miriam Lau said last December
that the panel had asked Secretary for Transport Nicholas Ng to hold a closed-door
meeting with the panel before announcing a decision to the public. However, Lau
said Ng had replied only that he would brief the panel in ``due course''. Tommy
Cheung, representing the catering sector, said the government's attitude ran counter
to its promise of greater transparency and more communication with the Legco.
``The government keeps saying it wants to improve the liaison with the Legco,
but whenever there are big announcements, we learn about them from outside,''
he said. Acting Secretary for Transport Paul Tang said it was agreed with the
bidders not to disclose any confidential information. He said the KCRC would consult
the public on whether to add three more stations and install station toilets before
drawing up a detailed construction plan. [Source:
The Standard, 28 June 2002] 3.
'We don't favour property developers'
A main government priority over the next five years will be to change the general
impression that it favours big developers, the new secretary for housing, planning
and lands said yesterday. "It is unfair to label the Government as pro-business
or pro-something," said Michael Suen Ming-yeung. "There must be some
reason why such an impression has formed. My way to deal with it is to be seen
to be fair to all. "People can see for themselves what the Government has
done and they will be convinced that we are not favouring big developers. It is
my objective in the five years . . . to come up with policies which are perceived
by everybody as fair. "Hong Kong is a society with great transparency. It
is impossible for the Government to side with the developers without being exposed
by the public. People should not bury themselves in such pointless worries."
He also urged people not to overlook the contributions by developers to the economy
of Hong Kong. "Without developers, Hong Kong would not have been so successful,"
he said. Mr Suen hinted he might not aim to fulfil Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa's
target to have 70 per cent of families owning their own homes by 2007, saying:
"There was no need to set a rigid target and then achieve it in a prescribed
time. The proper attitude is to let the market [take its course]. I won't say
[the target] is a mistake. But we have to be prepared to amend it in the light
of changing circumstances." He said he would be prepared to step down if
the legislature passed a no-confidence motion against him, referring to the piling
scandals in 2000 which prompted such a motion against outgoing director of housing
Tony Miller. [Source:
SCMP, 28 June 2002] 4.
New site proposed for Girl Guides HQ
A new headquarters is being proposed in Yau Ma Tei for the Girl Guides. Up to
25 storeys high, it would provide the group with steady revenue from hostel services.
The Guides yesterday applied to the Government to build on the new site, saying
it would make the organisation more self-sufficient. The site, on the corner of
Ferry Street and Jordan Road, would allow for construction of 300 hostel rooms.
The quest for a new headquarters has dragged on since 1993. The existing five-storey
Guides headquarters in Gascoigne Road has been unable to cope with a rapid expansion
in membership. Between 1981 and last year, membership grew from 18,000 to more
than 43,000. The existing headquarters provide only six rooms for a maximum of
30 guests. The Government turned down plans to rebuild the headquarters in Gascoigne
Road because of likely traffic problems. Sir David Akers-Jones, chairman of the
Guides Development Committee, yesterday warned that the lack of a guaranteed source
of revenue would limit the Guides' growth. He said both the Boy Scouts and YMCA
have large hostels in Yau Ma Tei and Tsim Sha Tsui respectively, providing them
with sufficient revenue to reduce their reliance on government subsidies. "At
the moment, the Guides are just breaking even," he said. The new proposal
would improve the Guides' financial position, requiring less government help,
he added. The group presently relies on government subsidies to operate. [Source:
SCMP, 28 June 2002] 5.
Lawmakers walk out over contract announcement 'snub'
Two lawmakers stormed out of a Legco panel meeting yesterday over ''disrespect''
shown to legislators by not informing them of the $26 billion Sha Tin to Central
rail link decision before it was made public. The administration on Tuesday announced
it had awarded the contract to build the 17.1km line to the Kowloon-Canton Railway
Corporation, ahead of the Mass Transit Railway Corporation. Liberal Party legislator
Miriam Lau Kin-yee, who chairs the Legco panel on transport, said officials had
not briefed panel members despite promises last year to do so. Acting Secretary
for Transport Paul Tang Kwok-wai said legislators were not briefed due to the
commercially sensitive nature of the project, such as how the decision would affect
the companies' shares. He also said the companies had agreed not to disclose details
of their bids before it was made public. Just before walking out with fellow Democrat
Albert Chan Wai-yip, transport policy spokesman Andrew Cheng Kar-foo said the
failure was disrespectful. ''The two reasons officials just gave us are pretty
ridiculous - commercial sensitivity and stock markets - this must be the first
time I have heard these two excuses here,'' he said. ''If you come to Legco before
you make the announcement, do you really think it will affect the stock market
that much?'' It is the third time in two months the Government has failed to inform
Legco before going public on major issues. Early this month, lawmakers at a housing
panel were outraged when they were not briefed on the announcement of the resumption
of Home Ownership Scheme flat sales. Last month, another Legco committee complained
it was not told the results of an investigation into recent bird flu outbreaks
before it was made public. [Source:
SCMP, 28 June 2002] 6.
Sino, Kerry win Tseung Kwan O project
A consortium of Sino Land and Kerry Properties has outbid five rivals to secure
a 1.5 million-square-feet residential development at Hang Hau Station on the Tseung
Kwan O MTR extension. Sino Land owns a 60 per cent stake in the joint venture
while Kerry Properties holds the balance. The project is estimated to cost HK$3.5
billion. MTR Corp (MTRC) announced yesterday the Sino-Kerry consortium had met
all tender requirements and had offered the best financial terms. The consortium
would have to pay a land premium of HK$1.27 billion to the Government, an up-front
payment of HK$350 million and a decoration fee of HK$60 million to MTRC. A Sino
Land spokesman declined to disclose the profit-sharing terms it proposed to MTRC
but said the consortium would turn over ownership of the shopping centre on completion.
Sino Land chairman Robert Ng Chee-siong said: "With the opening of the Tseung
Kwan O line in August this year, Tseung Kwan O new town will undoubtedly become
one of the most desirable residential areas." Kerry Properties chairman Edward
Kuok Khoon Loong said: "We are confident that this will be another quality
and distinctive development." The initial development plan would comprise
six residential towers with landscaped podium and a club house, the group said.
Kerry Properties said the consortium would work together with MTRC to agree on
the final details of the project. A formal development agreement with the consortium
was expected to be signed within the next few weeks. The Hang Hau Station project
will provide a total developable area of 1.53 million sq ft, including a 37,600
sq ft shopping centre and more than 2,000 units in six residential blocks. The
tender closed on Monday. Other bidders included Cheung Kong (Holdings), Sun Hung
Kai Properties, Henderson Land, Nan Fung Development and Kowloon Development.
MTRC said the Sino-Kerry offer supported the well-proven MTR model of integrated
railway and property development. Sino Land and Kerry Properties are also engaged
in a 50-50 joint-venture residential development in Tsuen Wan, which is expected
to be released for sale later this year. [Source:
SCMP, 28 June 2002] 7.
Professor supports building of bridge to link Pearl River Delta
Professor Chyau Tuan from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, speaking at a Better
Hong Kong Foundation press conference, urged the Government to go ahead and build
a bridge between the SAR and the western part of the Pearl River Delta as soon
as possible. Hong Kong will lose out if the bridge does not go ahead, he believes.
The merits and pitfalls of building a 29km bridge connecting Hong Kong with cities
such as Zhuhai and Nansha have being hotly debated by business leaders such as
Sir Gordon Wu of Hopewell Holdings and Canning Fok of Hutchison Whampoa. The Pearl
River Delta's eastern region has 30 per cent more land area and four times more
foreign investment than the western region, however, and critics of the bridge
proposal say it should not go ahead as the western region is underdeveloped. But
Professor Tuan sees the underdevelopment as the region's potential. If Hong Kong
does not build the bridge, the western delta will not lose anything but Hong Kong
will stand to lose many potential investment opportunities, he warns. [Source:
SCMP, 28 June 2002] | 
