November is the time for congregations in our tertiary institutions. After years of hard work, students complete their studies and move on to the next stage of their lives. This year, I see that several vice-chancellors of the institutions have encouraged the graduates to make good use of their time to enrich their lives and further equip themselves for their careers after graduation. A couple of days ago, the Vice-Chancellor of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Professor Joseph Sung, said in a congregation that he hoped the graduates would be “knowledgeable, full of vision and tolerant in the face of various social and political issues”. I am deeply touched by his speech. Since May this year, the filibustering and the unco-operative movement in the Finance Committee (FC) and the Public Works Subcommittee (PWSC) of the Legislative Council (LegCo) have affected the deliberation of funding applications submitted by the Government, resulting in the delay of a number of works projects indefinitely. The six months lost has adversely affected Hong Kong’s economy in the long run.
In the last legislative session, the Government originally planned to table to the LegCo 39 new public works projects at an estimated value of some $43 billion. However, the FC ended up approving only 13 of them, involving $3.6 billion in total, which accounted for only 8 per cent of the originally planned amount of funding applied for the new works projects, and was also a far cry from the $160 billion and $90 billion approved in the previous two sessions respectively. In addition, deliberation for 21 projects has been postponed to the current legislative session. This has not only resulted in at least six months’ delay for the projects, but also incurred an additional cost of more than $1 billion. If we look at the PWSC’s work progress in the last month or so, we note that the funding application for “Strategic Studies for Artificial Islands in the Central Waters” has yet to be approved even though it has gone through a total of five meetings in the previous and current legislative sessions. What is even more frustrating to me is that the latest PWSC meeting was cancelled due to the violent clash at the LegCo Complex in the early hours of November 19, resulting in the loss of another valuable session, and the situation is getting out of hand.
In the current legislative session, we expect to submit funding applications for more than 80 new public works projects to the PWSC for endorsement, involving some $71 billion in total, which include 21 projects carried over from the previous session due to filibustering. If the situation continues this year and the number of new projects approved is similar to that of the previous session, we estimate that the expenditure on infrastructure will decrease by more than $20 billion annually two years from now.
Since the total construction volume of Hong Kong amounts to $180 billion at present, such a drastic decrease will seriously affect the livelihood of all in the construction industry, especially the workers. As expenditures in the construction industry account for more than 7 per cent of Hong Kong’s GDP, other related sectors such as material supply, merchandising and logistics industries will also suffer, thus seriously undermining employment and the overall economic growth of Hong Kong. With the delay in the completion of infrastructure projects, we will not be able to enjoy the convenience and benefits brought about by the projects.
Investment in infrastructure can drive the economy, create jobs, improve people’s livelihood and enhance Hong Kong’s competitiveness in the long run and lay a solid foundation for our sustainable development. According to the reports published by the World Economic Forum over the past five years, Hong Kong tops the chart as far as infrastructure is concerned. With keen competition from various global economies nowadays, we will lag behind if we do not make sustained progress. It is not an easy task for Hong Kong to come out on top in terms of infrastructure development. In recent years, the Government has invested about $70 billion in public works each year. If the sum is reduced by some $20 billion each year, it will amount to a decrease of nearly 30 per cent, which will definitely have a major impact on Hong Kong. The best way to maintain our competitiveness is to continue the momentum of infrastructure development.
The six months lost has already done a lot of damage to Hong Kong, and further impact will emerge gradually. As the saying goes, “We share the same roots. Why do we have to torment each other?” I hope that LegCo Members will put the overall interests of the community before their political wrangling and work with the Government to lead the sustainable development of Hong Kong and take our economy to new heights.
23 November, 2014
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