Mr Fung, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen,

Over the last three days, a number of stimulating addresses were given by delegates from many countries, and numerous discussions of a varied and constructive nature were held on almost every aspect of housing policy, management, planning and design. The task of bringing the threads together in a concluding address is a daunting one. I congratulate Mrs Fanny Law on her ably presented and well-balanced summary of proceedings.

There is no doubt that the true value of a conference such as this lies in the process of mutual education. I am sure that we have all learned some lessons from one another. The exchange of views will help all of us to develop new, revised or better ways of tackling the housing problems we face now and in the next century.

In my closing address, I would like to single out five issues or challenges which are of particular interest and which tie in very well with the theme of the conference: "Housing for millions - the challenge ahead". The key word is "challenge". In his opening address, the Governor of Hong Kong referred to Hong Kong's success story in providing public housing for our population, and then specifically mentioned the major policy review which I am now conducting to plot the course of our housing strategy for the next decade. The underlying important message, and also the first challenge, for every housing administration is that, while we may take pride in our achievements, we cannot be complacent, we must strive to do better by consciously reviewing every policy component, we must rectify undesirable policies and practices, and we must take brave decisions if necessary for the well-being of the community as a whole.

A second challenge, which is specific to many governments, is the need to identify and provide a steady and sufficient supply of suitable land for housing development, together with the basic infrastructure. Here in Hong Kong, our problems are enormous. As many of you know, we are faced not only with a shortage of land in absolute terms, but also with the fact that much of the land we have is difficult to develop. Sometimes we even need to move mountains and reclaim the sea in the literal sense. It must be our resolve, and that of many governments in the world, to fight these or similar problems and difficulties. Indeed we must do all we can to keep the development process, including planning, land formation, provision of infrastructure and compliance with environmental standards, as short as possible, and to maximise the efforts of housing production. Above all, we must avoid falling into the trap of waiting for the provision of near-perfect infrastructural facilities and transport systems before attempting to meet genuine housing needs. A proper balance must be struck if there are urgent housing needs to be met. As Dr Stephen Mayo said in his stimulating keynote address on Monday, we must work towards "removing regulations which unnecessarily hinder housing supply".

The third message I wish to highlight, which was touched upon in the addresses of some speakers, is that both public sector housing and private sector housing have an equally important role to play in society. While the government is responsible for building public housing flats, it may and should sometimes involve the private sector in achieving the public sector housing targets. I find the Malaysian example of requiring private developers in some states to include in their building plans the production of at least 30% of public sector flats an interesting and inspiring development. It mobilises economic resources effectively and also leads to more balanced urban communities. And just as the public sector can benefit from private sector resources, so the private sector itself needs help from a user-friendly government. A steady and sufficient supply of land (as I have mentioned earlier on) and a clear, simple regulatory system will help to sustain private sector construction activities, to the benefit of the community. In short, the private sector and the public sector must work together and contribute in a co-ordinated way to the achievement of housing production targets. I understand this, in fact, to be the spirit of Dr Mayo's "enabling strategy".

The fourth message I find important is the need to inform public housing tenants, in clear and concise terms, of both their privileges and obligations. It may be true, as Le Corbusier said in a frequently-quoted work, that "a home is a machine for living in" and, if so, both the operators and the beneficiaries of these "machines" must be equally responsible for their smooth operation. In the United Kingdom, Local Authority housing tenants benefit from the Council Tenant's Charter, which makes clear what they can expect from a fair and responsive government. We in Hong Kong are now moving towards creating our own document, taking into account our particular circumstances. We believe that successful public housing management is the joint responsibility of tenants and their landlords. I wish to stress that the traffic should not be one way, but both ways.

I turn finally to home ownership, which is the ultimate aspiration of every citizen and which brings with it a sense of belonging and social stability. We have heard during this conference successful home ownership strategies in several countries. In the United Kingdom, the Right to Buy Scheme is enormously successful. To quote the UK Government's own publication on this subject: "a high level of home ownership is good for the country and good for the individual". The Singapore model is another successful one, where the Housing and Development Board pegs the selling price of public housing flats at a level which most Singaporeans can afford, and where the Government's social housing schemes are deliberately designed to promote family values. Several cities in China are also beginning to take measures to encourage public rental tenants to buy at affordable prices the homes which they have previously rented.

Thus it seems that civilised societies throughout the world, whether the values they promote are liberal-democratic, socialist or Confucian, are reaching the same conclusion: that home ownership is a social objective to be promoted and encouraged for its own sake. In Hong Kong, we have been moving in this direction, with a home ownership rate now 52%, and we need to give this greater attention in the future. It is my aim, and that of the Hong Kong Government, to help as many of our citizens as possible to own their living accommodation.

Ladies and gentlemen, Hong Kong has been honoured to host this international conference. We have both enjoyed and benefited from it. You have dealt with many issues during the conference, and I have highlighted a few challenges and messages as reminders for you and ourselves. But in terms of more immediate gain, I believe we have made personal friendships with delegates from many countries. I thank the Chairman of the Hong Kong Housing Authority and the five co-hosts for giving us this excellent opportunity. I thank them and the organising committee for their extremely hard work and efficiency, and congratulate them on an outstanding success. I thank all the delegates for their ideas and enthusiastic participation. And I wish the overseas delegates an enjoyable time during the rest of their stay in Hong Kong, and a pleasant trip home.

Thank you.