The northern metropolitan area is the largest urban development plan in Hong Kong, and infrastructure is the top priority.
This Wednesday (12th), Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor explained the planning progress of the metropolitan area and explained more infrastructure and service facilities, but still did not mention the timetable for such projects.
The government must speed up the implementation of the blueprint. In addition to starting construction as soon as possible, it must constantly review the manpower needs of various industries.
At the Legislative Council Q&A session, Carrie Lam proposed that more railway stations will be built in the northern metropolitan area, government offices will be relocated, and the Sha Tau Kok Pier in the restricted area will be opened for tourism.
Hospitals are the community facilities that Lam Cheng mentioned more frequently. For example, the expansion project of the North District Hospital has already started and will be completed in 2028, and the central hospital in the metropolitan area will be built in Kwu Tung North. The number of beds in the planned Hung Shui Kiu Hospital is expected to increase.
The government also plans to allocate land to private hospitals in the area, but the number of hospital beds has not yet been determined.
New hospital already planned
In fact, Lin Zheng's speech this time is probably the extra 500 hospital beds at Hung Shui Bridge.
The expansion of the North District Hospital and the construction of Hung Shui Kiu Hospital that she mentioned were already within the two 10-year development plans of the Hospital Authority, but the number of hospital beds was relatively small.
In addition, the development plan also includes the expansion of Pok Oi and Tin Shui Wai hospitals.
As for the Kwu Tung New Hospital, the Director of the Development Bureau, Wong Wai Lun, also outlined it in November last year.
In terms of the number of hospital beds, there are currently about 1,650 hospital beds in Tin Shui Wai, North District and Pok Oi Hospital. The two 10-year plans will add 4,100 beds. As the northern metropolitan area plans to add 2,100 more beds, plus private hospitals, A rough total of 8,000 sheets.
However, this is still far from enough for the 2.5 million population of the metropolitan area. The government will continue to find land to build more hospitals to meet the needs of the population.
The government not only requires the hospital to serve patients in the area, but also medical research and teaching, and the cooperation with the life science industry in Xintian Science and Technology City is in the right direction.
Medical technology is one of Hong Kong's advantageous fields, and the clinical research of the hospital can certainly be matched with the development and application of new equipment and technologies.
On top of this, new private hospitals are close to the border. When the supply and demand of local hospital services are balanced, private hospitals are well-positioned to attract middle and high-income groups from other cities in the Greater Bay Area to patronize medical services, and develop the medical industry from another level.
Increase infrastructure and increase manpower
In addition to adding infrastructure, the government is also eager to train and bring in medical staff to run new hospitals.
Based on the 2017 level, the University of Hong Kong estimates that there will be a shortage of thousands of doctors and nurses in 2030, as well as shortages of other medical and nursing professions.
The government has proposed to increase the number of medical students and introduce non-local doctors, but the HA still has to continuously evaluate the effectiveness of the new policy, so as to avoid repeating the mistakes of Tin Shui Wai Hospital. In the initial stage of operation, due to insufficient manpower, there are facilities that cannot serve patients, and resources are wasted in vain. .
Whether it's a hospital, five new railways, more than 100,000 new homes, and offices, construction has not been started, completed, or put into use in a day. The officials who are talking about ambitious plans at the moment are empty words.
Urban competition does not wait for anyone. Hong Kong's development has lagged behind the Greater Bay Area, the mainland and other cities. The northern metropolitan area is an opportunity to boost Hong Kong's economy.
The government said a month ago that it would be too long to complete the metropolitan area in 15 years, and the sooner it is completed, the better for Hong Kong.
Legislative Council Election | Northern Metropolitan Region is a Touchstone for Candidates Northern Metropolitan Region wants to break the rules and the government is still not ready to lead Hong Kong into a "new era" of housing
