There are 5442 old commercial and residential buildings in Hong Kong over 50 years old

Hong Kong China News Service, April 24 (Xinhua) Ning Hon-ho, Secretary for Development of the Hong Kong SAR Government, said on the 24th that as of the end of last year, there were a total of 5,442 commercial and residential buildings in Hong Kong that were 50 years old or above.

Hong Kong China News Agency Picture

According to statistics, the authorities issued mandatory building inspection notices to 3,716 buildings, repair orders to 954 buildings, and demolition orders to 4,340 buildings; however, 2,020, 283, and 2,777 buildings failed to comply with the notices or orders overdue.

A fatal fire broke out in a building in Yau Ma Tei, Hong Kong, causing the public to pay attention to the safety issues of old buildings. Ning Hanhao said that the Buildings Department will continue to review law enforcement priorities and optimize enforcement models to enhance law enforcement effectiveness, including strengthening prosecution work to enhance law enforcement and deterrence, and when conducting relevant prosecution work or selecting target buildings for large-scale operations, Priority will be given to buildings with higher fire/public safety risks or threats.

The SAR government is making every effort to review the Buildings Ordinance and crack down on illegal activities through measures such as simplifying prosecution procedures, lowering prosecution thresholds, and increasing penalties. Ning Hanhao said that the government will propose revision proposals within this year and consult the industry and the public. (over)

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