Due to the short-term nature of transitional housing it is not suitable to be included in the housing supply, Secretary for Transport & Housing Frank Chan said today.

Mr Chan told lawmakers that after several years of effort, the Government has identified about 350 hectares of land which can produce 330,000 public housing units for the coming 10-year period and meet the estimated public housing demand of around 301,000 units in the period.

He pointed out that public housing production in the five-year tenure of the current-term Government is expected to reach 96,500 units, which is 30,000 units more than the previous five-year period.

To achieve the above 10-year public housing production, various government departments are striving to take forward relevant work and to improve internal co-ordination, with a view to completing the necessary land forming process and handing over the sites for development in time.

Mr Chan noted the Government endeavours to optimise the development potential of each and every public housing site and to expedite the development process.

When the relevant housing supply is not yet available, the Government has been actively taking forward the implementation of transitional housing through better use of short term vacant land and buildings with a view to providing transitional housing to people with pressing housing needs.

Transitional housing can alleviate the hardship faced by families living in inadequate housing and have been waiting for public rental housing for a long time.

Mr Chan stressed that transitional housing's short-term nature means its timing and supply amount are not stable and will change at times.

“Therefore, it is not suitable to include transitional housing in the housing supply in the next 10 years, nor is it suitable to include transitional housing in the housing ladder,” he added.