Hong Kong treasury minister Christopher Hui denies bowing to pressure from property developers as government ditches vacancy tax plan
- Treasury chief says move is in best interests of the city as housing bureau cites economy as one reason for halting bill
- Under proposed law, developers who left flats empty for more than six months could have been forced to pay fine equivalent to two years of rental income
Hong Kong’s treasury minister on Saturday denied the government had bowed to pressure from property developers, a day after the housing secretary revealed he would shelve a bill to tax vacant flats.
The move to stop pushing the draft legislation has led to questions over the administration’s determination to resolve the housing crisis.
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu told a radio programme: “As my colleagues and I do our job, our standpoint has always been very simple.
“It is to consider things from Hong Kong’s perspective. If you have to consider so many [other] things, a lot could not be done.”
Hui said it would be difficult to estimate the loss of government revenue from the move. “It is difficult to cite an exact figure and say that this is the consequence of a government policy. It’s more important to consider how to promote economic development through public measures.”
He dismissed suggestions the government had bowed to pressure from property developers, who had strongly opposed the proposed vacancy tax law, officially called the Rating (Amendment) Bill 2019.
