Hong Kong authorities will consider lowering the proposed minimum regulatory standards for subdivided flats and extending the grace period to three years for owners to rectify their properties, the housing minister has revealed.
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Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho Wing-yin also said on Sunday that the government would focus on constructing public homes on larger sites instead of building individual blocks on narrower or steeper plots, to enhance efficiency.
Ho said authorities were likely to adjust proposed regulations targeting “shoebox homes”, referring to small living spaces notorious for their hygiene and safety hazards, after the government received about 2,200 submissions during a two-month consultation that ended last week.
She noted that many political parties and advocacy groups hoped the regulation could be implemented in a gradual manner and had expressed concerns that owners and tenants could be left with insufficient time to adjust to the new rules.
“Initially, we proposed a grace period of between 12 to 24 months. We received submissions suggesting a grace period of 36 months to buy time for owners and tenants to deal with moving house and building works,” she told a radio programme.
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Authorities aimed to have the legislature pass the bill within the year, a move that would establish new minimum standards for subdivided flats, including a proposed size of at least 86 sq ft.