This 2005/06 report, Sustainable Housing: New Horizons is our first Sustainability Report. This report describes the environmental, social and economic performance of the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA), for the period 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2006. Previously we produced Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) Reports covering 2003 to 2005 and Environmental reports from 1999 to 2003.

We believe that communication with our stakeholders is key to our success. As such, we have written this report with our stakeholders in mind: tenants and home owners in our estates, business partners, our staff and government colleagues, green groups, media and the public.

We have developed this report with reference to the Environmental Protection Department's A Benchmark for Environmental Performance Reports, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G3 Guidelines, and the GRI sector supplement for Public Agencies published in March 2005. Where appropriate, feedback on previous reports and emerging issues raised or discussed with stakeholders are incorporated into the Report.

The key sustainability data to demonstrate our sustainability performance was compiled and presented from information available. Qualitative information covers all our direct activities unless otherwise stated. Financial data is recorded according to the financial year ended 31 March 2006. All monetary values are in Hong Kong dollars.

In our previous EHS Reports, we have commissioned independent verification companies to provide external verification of the data and information we have reported. Similarly, third-party verification has been undertaken for this Report. We have also undertaken initiatives to ensure that what we have presented in this Report represent a balanced indication of our actual performance.

For additional information on HA's programmes and sustainability performance, please check our website at www.housingauthority.gov.hk or contact us through the contact details provided below.

We welcome your feedback and enquiries on the Report, please contact:

In line with the development of our first ever Sustainability Report using the GRI Guidelines, we are reporting, for the first time, on key indicators on our economic performance, as well as additional environmental and social indicators. This balanced presentation of our performance would better reflect how we are working towards sustainability as the provider of public housing in Hong Kong.

We successfully divested most of our retail and car park facilities through the Link Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) in year 2005/2006. The divestment would enable us to focus our resources on our core public rental housing (PRH) objectives.

We have also continued to expand on previous years' commitments and have initiated other programmes to ensure that the products and services we deliver reflect our vision of being a sustainable public housing provider.