56-494: 90.9% Chinese 4.5% South Asian Yuen Long New Town is a new town in the northwest New Territories , Hong Kong. It was developed from the traditional market town of Yuen Long Town ( 元朗市 ) from the late 1970s onwards. As it is located in the centre of Yuen Long Plain , the town occupies the best location for villages in the surrounding area to sell their crops and fish. To the west is Ping Shan , south Shap Pat Heung , east Kam Tin , and north Nam Sang Wai . Yuen Long Town
112-449: A commercial and financial centre in the region. In consequence, most of the work opportunities remained in the urban areas, forcing residents in the new towns to travel between the new towns and the city centre every day. From the 1990s on, when Hong Kong had almost no more substantial secondary industries, the industrial buildings were repurposed into offices and warehouses , or even rebuilt as residential apartments. The new towns planned in
168-586: A key role in ensuring harmony in policy formulation and implementation. The current Secretary is Chan Kwok-ki . The Financial Secretary is responsible for preparing the Government Budget in accordance with the Chief Executive's agenda in the policy address, ensuring fiscal policies are in accordance to the Public Finance Ordinance. The secretary has to estimate of revenue and expenditure before
224-529: A railway station had its town centre planned near it. Tsuen Wan New Town was distinctive in having more than one town centre, situated around Tsuen Wan station and Kwai Fong station , and later also around Tsing Yi station after Tsuen Wan New Town had expanded to Tsing Yi. With the exception of Tin Shui Wai New Town, the only new town without a clear town centre, the new towns’ town centres became vibrant business and cultural hubs of their areas. Transport
280-507: A supporting town for the then- newly constructed airport in Chek Lap Kok . At present, there are nine new towns in all. New Town development slowed in the 2000s, on account of unexpectedly slow population growth. Indeed, even the development of North Lantau New Town was hindered : the population of North Lantau New Town was just 80,000 in early 2010s, less than half of the 200,000 originally planned. No additional new towns were established in
336-777: Is elected by an Election Committee , a 1500-member electoral college consisting of individuals and bodies (i.e. special interest groups) elected within 40 functional constituencies defined in the Basic Law. The winner is then appointed to the position by the Premier of the People's Republic of China . The Chief Executive is responsible for implementing the Basic Law, signing bills and budgets, promulgating laws, making decisions on government policies, and issuing Executive Orders. Then Chief Executive, Carrie Lam , began exercise of her unfettered residual powers of law-making by decree on 4 October 2019, under
392-687: Is headed by the Chief Secretary of Hong Kong , who is the most senior principal official of the Government. The Chief Secretary and the other secretaries jointly oversee the administration of Hong Kong, give advice to the Chief Executive as members of the Executive Council , and are accountable for their actions and policies to the Chief Executive and the Legislative Council . Under the " one country, two systems " constitutional principle,
448-571: Is led by the Secretary for Justice (Hong Kong) ( Legal Department and Attorney General before the transfer of sovereignty). The Secretary for Justice (SJ) is responsible for all prosecutions in Hong Kong, drafting all government legislation, and advising other policy bureaux and departments of the government on a vast array of legal issues. The department consists of the Prosecutions Division,
504-467: Is set to rise by 6.7 percent to HK$ 776.9 billion (US$ 99.23 billion). The Chief Executive is the head of the Region and head of government of Hong Kong. The Basic Law designates a system of governance led by a Chief Executive and an Executive Council , under the principles of separation of powers , with a two-tiered system of semi-representative government and an independent judiciary. The Chief Executive
560-494: Is vital for the new towns, and thus is planned with care. Before the development of new towns, most areas in the New Territories were poorly connected; new development required both roads and public transport. To ease the traffic between the new towns and the urban area, new roads and highways were built. For example, Tuen Mun Road and Tolo Highway were two principal highways built in the late 1970s and early 1980s to connect
616-784: The Emergency Regulations Ordinance , Chapter 241 of the Laws of Hong Kong, bypassing the legislature. As of 1 July 1997, the Chief Executive of Hong Kong officially replaced the Governor of Hong Kong as the head of the government for Hong Kong following the handover . The Chief Executive is assisted by the Chief Secretary for Administration and the Financial Secretary , and other secretaries who heads policy bureaus. The secretaries for each government affairs are appointed by
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#1732847770521672-561: The Hong Kong Science and Technology Park . Only new and improved companies can operate in the area. Yuen Long Park is located southwest of the town with pagoda , accompanied with Yuen Long Stadium , Yuen Long Theatre and Yuen Long Swimming Pool . This area is a less bustling region within the town. Before Tai Lam Tunnel was opened, the Castle Peak Road and Tuen Mun Road forms the arteries of traffic with urban Kowloon. If
728-528: The Legislative Council each year, and to deliver an annual budget to the Legislative Council, outlining the government's budgetary proposals and moving the appropriation bills. The current FS is Paul Chan Mo-po . The Secretary for Justice is responsible for prosecutions and legal matters and heads the Department of Justice . The current Secretary for Justice is Paul Lam . The hierarchical structure of
784-472: The State Council of China on the nomination of the Chief Executive. The Secretary for Justice (SJ) is responsible for legal matters of the government and prosecution for criminal cases in the territory. The Independent Commission Against Corruption and Audit Commission report directly to the Chief Executive. The current Chief Executive is John Lee . The Executive Council decides on matters of policy,
840-460: The slums of nearby Ngau Tau Kok . Thus, in the late 1950s, Kwun Tong became the first developed satellite town. Around the same time, the government also began to develop Tsuen Wan as a satellite town. In 1967, using a similar concept on a smaller scale, it also built Wah Fu Estate , which lay to the west of Aberdeen in Pok Fu Lam , in a remote corner on the southern side of Hong Kong Island. In
896-514: The 1950s to accommodate Hong Kong's booming population . During the first phase of development, the newly developed towns were called " satellite towns ", a concept borrowed from the United Kingdom , of which Hong Kong was a colony . Kwun Tong , located in eastern Kowloon , and Tsuen Wan , located in the south-west of the New Territories , were designated as the first satellite towns, when
952-598: The 1950s, most of the population in Hong Kong lived in Hong Kong's urban area, namely the central and western parts of the Kowloon Peninsula and the northern coast of Hong Kong Island. After the Second World War , however, the population boomed. The drastic growth was due to prolonged political unrest in Mainland China , which brought a large number of refugees to Hong Kong from the 1950s to the early 1970s and led to
1008-480: The 1970s to build New Towns in other areas as well. As part of this second phase, the development of Tai Po New Town , Yuen Long New Town and Fanling-Sheung Shui New Town began in 1976, 1977 and 1978 respectively; the extension of the Tsuen Wan New Town to Tsing Yi Town also began in the mid-1970s, and was regarded as part of the second phase of new-town development. The third phase of new-town development
1064-598: The 1980s and 1990s had either no more industrial areas (e.g. Tin Shui Wai New Town and Tung Chung), or industrial areas with only high-value-adding industries allowed (e.g. Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate 將軍澳工業邨). Typically, a new town was planned and developed around a town centre, which was the town's business, cultural and traffic hub. For example, in the town centres of Tuen Mun New Town and Sha Tin New Town, one can find shopping centres, public libraries, theatres, government offices, parks, and bus terminuses. Any new town with
1120-631: The 1980s, the road network was drastically improved by the late 1990s. It was not until late 2003 that the West Rail line was completed. These improvements spurred new waves of town development in the 2000s. Under government plans, the western new town is mainly residential. There are three public housing estates (including one Interim Housing ) in the area. Industry is concentrated on the North side of Yuen Long New Town, namely Yuen Long Industrial Estate and Tung Tau Industrial Area . These areas are managed by
1176-617: The 2000s and early 2010s, and new-town development was restricted to further development of the ones already developed. In response to excess housing demand since the late 2000s, however, which resulted in extremely high housing prices and rents as well as very long queues in pending for public housing, government considered to add to the number of new towns again. In the early 2010s, the government proposed to build new towns in Hung Shui Kiu , Kwu Tung , North Fanling and Ping Che - Ta Kwu Ling . The proposals are matters of heated public debate; if
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#17328477705211232-745: The 2010s, hoping thereby to increase the supply in the private housing market and provide more flats for public housing . For example, Hung Shui Kiu New Town , Kwu Tung North New Town and North Fanling New Town have been proposed by the government and currently under public consultation. Land use is carefully planned in new towns, and development sets aside plenty of room for public housing projects. Highways, tunnels, bridges and railways have been built for accessibility. The first few new towns, such as Tuen Mun, Sha Tin, Yuen Long and Tai Po, were intended to be self-reliant, each having not only residential areas but also commercial, industrial and recreational areas, such that residents would not need to travel between
1288-541: The Chief Executive from within or outside the civil service . The system was portrayed as the key to solve previous administrative problems, notably the co-operation of high-ranking civil servants with the Chief Executive. Under the new system, there are 3 Secretaries of department and 13 Directors of Bureaux. The system is aimed at raising the accountability of the civil service, so the political appointees are responsible for all their job aspects and will step down if they make any failure. All heads of bureaux became members of
1344-714: The Civil Division, the Legal Policy Division, the Law Drafting Division, the International Law Division and the Administration and Development Division. The current fifteen policy bureaux is a result of the 2022 government reorganisation , which added, expanded, and re-titled several bureaux. Currently, nine bureaux reports to the Chief Secretary for Administration , and the other six reports to
1400-725: The Executive Council, and came directly under the Chief Executive instead of the Chief Secretary or the Financial Secretary. The government released a report on the Further Development of the Political Appointment System on 17 October 2007. Two new layers, deputy directors of Bureaux and Assistants to Directors (AD) would be added to the political appointments. Each Director of Bureau will be assisted by
1456-616: The Government is, in law, exclusively in charge of Hong Kong's internal affairs and specified external relations . The Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC), from which the Hong Kong government is financially independent, is responsible for Hong Kong SAR's defence and foreign policy , while decisions made by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress can, in certain circumstances, override territorial judicial processes. The Hong Kong SAR government replaced
1512-583: The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government ) is the executive authorities of Hong Kong . It was established on 1 July 1997, following the handover of Hong Kong . The Chief Executive and the principal officials are appointed by the State Council of the People's Republic of China in accordance with the outcome of local processes. The Government Secretariat
1568-400: The Hong Kong population lives in these newly developed areas. After the government had built a new town on Lantau Island in the 1990s, the pace at which it developed new towns slowed in the 2000s, owing to lower population growth . As demand rose in the housing market and it became difficult for residents to buy new homes, the Hong Kong government suggested that new towns be built again in
1624-601: The Ombudsman and Public Service Commission report to the Chief Executive directly. The Human Resources Planning and Poverty Co-ordination Office, Administration Wing and Legal Aid Department are under the Chief Secretary for Administration's Office. The Office of the Government Economist and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority are under the Financial Secretary's Office. The Department of Justice
1680-406: The administration's own admission, the announcements were poorly handled, and there was widespread criticism of several key aspects, namely the nationality and experience of appointees, the transparency of the recruitment process and the level of officials' salaries. The Chief Secretary for Administration is responsible for assisting the Chief Executive in the supervision of policy bureaux and plays
1736-531: The city centre, lowering both residents’ travel expenditures and the burden on the transportation system. For this reason, the government planned industrial areas near all the new towns it planned before the 1980s: The idea did not work, however. In the 1980s, when the new towns were developing at their highest pace, secondary sector industries in Hong Kong began moving to the Mainland China, where costs were much lower, and Hong Kong gradually emerged instead as
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1792-457: The entire new town had been built; the estimated population in Sha Tin rose to 500,000 in the planning of the early 1970s. In the corresponding areas, land was reclaimed to create new space for some of the new towns. These newly developed towns, maturing in the 1980s, provided new homes to more than 1 million Hong Kong people. The first phase having succeeded, Hong Kong government proposed later in
1848-666: The expiry of the Chief Executive's term of office. In a system popularly called the Principal Officials Accountability System introduced by then Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa in July 2002, all principal officials, including the Chief Secretary, Financial Secretary, Secretary for Justice, heads of government bureaux and the Director of the Chief Executive's Office would no longer be politically neutral career civil servants, but would all be political appointees chosen by
1904-492: The former British Hong Kong Government (1842–1997) in 1997. Despite gradually evolving, the general governmental structure was inherited from British Hong Kong . On February 28, 2024, the Financial Secretary of Hong Kong, Paul Chan , announced the Special Administrative Region’s (SAR) government budget for the fiscal year 2024 to 2025 (“2024–25 Budget”). Under the 2024-25 budget, total government expenditure
1960-459: The government as part of the urban area. The first phase of new town development was unveiled in 1973, including Tsuen Wan New Town , which as a satellite town was not brought to full-scale development, and also Sha Tin New Town and Tuen Mun New Town . These new towns were intended to accommodate a few hundred thousand people each. For example, according to the first plan in 1961, the government planned to accommodate 360,000 people in Sha Tin once
2016-611: The government secretariat and government departments in Chief Executive John Lee 's administration since 1 July 2022 is as follows: The Office of the Chief Executive is responsible for ensuring the Chief Executive receives the best advice and support for formulating and co-ordinating policies. It is headed by the Director of the Chief Executive's Office, who would sit in meetings of the Executive Council. The Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office , Independent Commission Against Corruption , Audit Commission , Office of
2072-404: The introduction of bills to the Legislative Council and the drafting of subordinate legislation. The Council consists of 21 principal officials and 16 non-official members. All members are appointed by the Chief Executive from among the senior officials of the executive authorities, members of the Legislative Council , and other influential public personnels. They serve for a period no longer than
2128-473: The late 1960s and the 1970s, another stage of new-town developments was launched and the term "new town" was officially adopted. As most flat lands in Kowloon and Hong Kong Island had already been developed, the government proposed to build new towns in New Territories, a largely rural area at that time. Kwun Tong, as the first satellite town, was not considered as a new town, as it was part of Kowloon and regarded by
2184-596: The new town, Long Ping and Yuen Long , located near Long Ping Estate and eastern end of the town respectively. Light Rail route travels along the main road ( Castle Peak Road , commonly known as "Yuen Long Main Road" by locals) located at the centre of the town. Yuen Long station is the interchange station of Tuen Ma line and Light Rail. 22°27′45″N 114°01′09″E / 22.4626°N 114.0193°E / 22.4626; 114.0193 New towns of Hong Kong The Hong Kong government started developing new towns in
2240-433: The new towns and the city centre for work and leisure. To this end, a few industrial estates, such as Tai Po Industrial Estate and Yuen Long Industrial Estate , were built to provide work opportunities for the residents in the nearby new towns. Although the government successfully turned most of the new towns's town centres into vibrant commercial and cultural centres in their areas, the overall objective of self-reliance for
2296-588: The new towns failed, since most residents still had their jobs in Hong Kong Island and Kowloon; the objective became impossible to accomplish when most of Hong Kong's secondary sector industries had moved to China . The British government had developed new towns in the United Kingdom to help relocate displaced populations after the Second World War . This experience influenced the colonial Hong Kong government's development of new towns in Hong Kong. Before
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2352-518: The new towns in western New Territories and eastern New Territories to New Kowloon; tunnels (e.g. Lion Rock Tunnel and Tate's Cairn Tunnel ) and bridges (e.g. Tsing Yi Bridge ) were also built to shorten travel times. Public transport was also developed. Many new towns were planned with new railway lines (e.g. MTR stations in Tsuen Wan New Town, Tseung Kwan O New Town, Tung Chung and the Ma On Shan Rail for Ma On Shan ). The Kowloon–Canton Railway
2408-400: The objective that the new towns should be self-reliant. Besides residential areas, then, the government included commercial, industrial and recreational areas in the planning of the new towns in the first two phases, such that the new towns could provide their residents with enough job opportunities. The attempt, if successful, could minimise the need for transportation between the new towns and
2464-433: The one hand, the government began to provide public housing, and on the other hand it proposed to develop “satellite towns” in undeveloped areas in order to make more lands available for the increasing housing need. At first, it identified Tsuen Wan and Kwai Chung as sites for the first satellite towns, but it then found that Kwun Tong , located in then-underdeveloped eastern Kowloon, would be attractive to people living in
2520-589: The only links to Kowloon, the traffic between these new towns and the urban area was highly congested, prompting the government to study new road and rail links. The situation improved when Tai Lam Tunnel opened in 1998. These new towns in the north-western New Territories were finally connected to urban areas with direct railway service when KCR West Rail (now part of the Tuen Ma Line ) opened in 2003. New towns’ residential areas have both private and public housing. When new towns were first developed, land reclamation
2576-484: The proposals are adopted, construction work is expected to begin in the mid-2010s, and its first phase to end in the early 2020s. The planning of the new towns was, in colonial history, the first major attempt at horizontal coordination among government departments. Regarding it as a cornerstone of Hong Kong social policy, the colonial government aimed to alleviate urban overpopulation and improve quality of life for ordinary citizens. It planned all new towns carefully, with
2632-479: The rapid advance of Hong Kong's economy from the 1970s to the early 1990s. The government in the 1950s originally had no plans to deal with the problem of housing the increasing population, until the Shek Kip Mei Fire in 1953 destroyed the homes of 58,203 people in a shanty town . The government, for the first time, built public housing to accommodate the victims and found a change in housing policy essential. On
2688-520: The two new appointees and constitute the political team, who would ostensibly work closely with bureau secretaries and top civil servants in implementing the Chief Executive 's policy agenda in an executive-led government. As with the principal officials, these two new posts may be drawn from within or outside the civil service, and appointees may or may not have a political background. Eight new Under-secretaries were named on 20 May, and nine Political Assistant appointments were announced on 22 May 2008. By
2744-471: The two roads are closed due to accidents or any other reason, it would affect the traffic of Yuen Long. The Tai Lam Tunnel, Tuen Ma line and the Light Rail Transit (LRT) provide alternative routes to residents of Yuen Long. Some bus routes connected urban area and Yuen Long New Town together by New Territories East highway networks before Tai Lam Tunnel opened. There are two Tuen Ma line stations in
2800-403: The urban area in Hong Kong was still relatively small, restricted to the central and western parts of Kowloon Peninsula and the northern side of Hong Kong Island . Wah Fu Estate was also built in a remote corner on the southern side of Hong Kong Island, with similar concepts but at a smaller scale. Plans to develop new areas were continued in the late 1960s and 1970s, when the name “new town”
2856-663: Was a traditional market town in the area also known as Yuen Long San Hui today, within the Yuen Long District in the New Territories. The market town and the adjacent Long Ping Estate , Yuen Long Industrial Estate , Tong Tau Industrial Area, YOHO Town , etc. developed into the Yuen Long New Town in the 1970s and early 1980s. The Hong Kong Government first put Yuen Long New Town on the list of new towns in 1972 and planned several large-scale housing estates . The first development started in 1974. In 1978, Yuen Long New Town
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#17328477705212912-756: Was an important way of gaining land to build on. Large areas were gained by land reclamations in Sha Tin, Tsuen Wan, Tuen Mun, Tai Po, Tsing Yi, Ma On Shan, Tin Shui Wai, Tseung Kwan O and Tung Chung – 7 of 9 new towns, with Fanling-Sheung Shui New Town and Yuen Long New Town being the only exceptions. Government of Hong Kong High Court District Court Magistrates' Court Special courts and tribunals: Chief Executive Elections Legislative elections District council elections Consular missions in Hong Kong Hong Kong–China relations Hong Kong–Taiwan relations The Government of
2968-418: Was electrified in the early 1980s in order to provide convenient transport to the new towns at Fanling-Sheung Shui, Tai Po and Sha Tin. New towns in the north-western New Territories were connected by Light Rail Transit , although at the time they remained the only new towns without direct railway service to the urban areas. Because there was no railway transport, and Tuen Mun Road and Castle Peak Road were
3024-542: Was officially adopted. As most flat lands in Hong Kong Island and Kowloon had already been developed, the government proposed to build new towns in the New Territories, a largely rural area at that time. The first phase of new-town development, which began in 1973, included Tsuen Wan , Sha Tin and Tuen Mun . With the success of these new towns, and the experience gained from building them, the government launched further stages of new-town development in subsequent decades. To date, nine new towns have been built, and about half of
3080-406: Was proposed in the 1980s, including Tseung Kwan O New Town , Tin Shui Wai New Town and Ma On Shan , the last of which was officially considered as an extension of Sha Tin New Town. The fourth phase of new-town development, so far the last, commenced in 1996 and developed North Lantau New Town (only Tung Chung was developed, although originally the plan included the area near Tai Ho Wan ), as
3136-436: Was put on the list of second generation new towns. It served as a secondary administrative centre. Although the new town started in the 1970s, it was developed much more slowly compared to the other new towns due to its long distance from urban Kowloon . Commuters needed to travel via other areas like Tuen Mun or Shek Kong with no rail transport. With the rapid development of an adjacent new town, Tin Shui Wai New Town , in
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