This Sept 12, 2023 aerial photo shows landslide caused by a rainstorm at a Redhill Peninsula luxury estate in Tai Tam in Hong Kong. (PHOTO PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY)

HONG KONG – Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has said his government is serious about tackling the problem of illegal structures built on residential properties, while also stressing that it must have to be pragmatic “as to how we approach this problem”.

“If you look at the number of households, then you are talking about a very big number. Then pragmatically, we have to think of a way to address the problem,” he said on Friday when asked about government responses regarding sea-front mansions that illegally occupied government land.

The CE was speaking to the media after visiting Tsuen Wan in the western New Territories to gauge views on the upcoming Policy Address from local residents.

READ MORE: HK govt to take legal action over unlawful structures

Stressing that the government is serious about solving the issue of illegal structures, he said, “But we have to face the reality that there are at least 40,000-odd private buildings. Each building, of course, is multi-storey.”

I must emphasize that ensuring one's house has no illegal structure is the responsibility of the house owner. That must be made very clear.

John Lee Ka-chiu, Chief Executive, HKSAR 

The special administrative region government is adopting the policy of taking action based on safety risk. 

“For illegal structures that we assess to have a safety risk, that may cause problems to society, then of course, they will be the ones we will deal with.” 

He emphasized that it is the responsibility of the owners to ensure that their houses have no illegal structure. “The law specifically requires that anybody who has an illegal structure and when they are told, they should restore it.”

If any safety risk is found, it has to be addressed immediately, Lee said. 

“If it is not done quickly, then the government will, of course, come in to do it, but then we'll ask the person to of course shoulder the costs as well as taking legal action as the case requires. That's the policy.”

Regarding unauthorized works at a Redhill Peninsula luxury estate in Tai Tam, the CE said the secretary for development had already indicated that they would take action again according to the risks they had identified.

ALSO READ: HK activates protocol for relief work after torrential rain

If the people responsible cannot address the issue immediately, “we will rectify immediately for the sake of safety”, he said.

“But we have to also be pragmatic as to how we approach this problem. But I can assure you that for those identified problems, we will take all possible means to ensure that safety is first of all protected, and then the person concerned will face the legal consequences,” the Hong Kong leader added.