A group of construction workers have staged a demonstration at an upscale residential estate undergoing renovation in Hong Kong to demand that the contractor involved in the deadly Tai Po fire settle their unpaid wages, with two climbing up the erected scaffolding as part of the protest. About 15 workers on Wednesday held banners and…
A Hong Kong court has ordered the buildings authorities to reconsider the licence renewal application of a construction company linked to five workplace deaths across three accidents, ruling that officials failed to provide adequate reasons for their refusal. The High Court’s Madam Justice Yvonne Cheng Wai-sum ruled in favour of Aggressive Construction on Wednesday, although…
Hong Kong’s new Legislative Council held its first meeting on Wednesday, with lawmakers focusing on follow-up work after last November’s deadly fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, which claimed the lives of 161 people and displaced nearly 5,000 residents. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu and government officials outlined priorities including rehousing the displaced…
Hong Kong’s newly elected lawmakers, many of them fresh faces on the political scene, held their first meeting on Wednesday, with officials pledging to address policy gaps exposed by the deadly Tai Po inferno, from tightening oversight of maintenance project tenders and raising homeowner voting thresholds to imposing a smoking ban at construction sites. Wednesday…
Three homeowners at Hong Kong’s Redhill Peninsula have received fines totalling HK$275,000 (US$35,270) for their involvement in illegal building works. The Buildings Department said on Monday that the fines were handed down by Eastern Court last Thursday after the owners of three detached houses in the affluent neighbourhood pleaded guilty to carrying out unauthorised building…
Owners of a private housing estate in Tuen Mun have voted overwhelmingly to terminate their renovation contract with Prestige Construction and Engineering Company – the same contractor responsible for works at Tai Po’s Wang Fuk Court, in the aftermath of the deadly blaze At a general meeting held on Friday night at Elegance Gardens, 96.45…
Strengthening risk oversight in major maintenance projects in the wake of the deadly Tai Po fire is a top priority for Hong Kong lawmaker Julia Lau Man-kwan, who represents the architectural, surveying, planning and landscape sector. In an interview with the Post, Lau, who is also president of the Hong Kong Institute of Architects, pledged…
There are matters we need to sort out quickly arising from the Tai Po fire tragedy but also systemic issues that need to be tackled if we are to avoid a repeat of the disaster. The fact is that Hong Kong faces two sorts of ageing problems: old buildings and the old people who live…
Hong Kong’s development chief has vowed to tighten building safety laws to punish those exploiting loopholes, warning that authorities will show no leniency towards the construction sector that has come under public scrutiny after the deadly Tai Po fire. Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho also said on Saturday that the government would take over…
The Hong Kong Bar Association has proposed introducing targeted legislation to criminalise bid-rigging and make key construction safety guidelines legally binding, following the city’s deadliest fire in seven decades. The association formed a task force to review existing legislation after the Tai Po fire last month, with one of the preliminary goals being to criminalise…