HUDC FLATS AT ANTHONY ROAD (Occupancy rate and sale)

[Mr Deputy Speaker in the Chair]

Dr Wong Kwei Cheong asked the Minister for National Development (a) what is the occupancy rate of the HUDC flats at Anthony Road; and (b) when these flats will be sold to the public and what are the estimated selling prices.

Dr Lee Boon Yang (for the Minister for National Development): Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, 36% of the flats at Anthony Garden were tenanted as at 31st January 1988.

Sir, the HDB has no immediate plans to sell these flats to the public. When market conditions are favourable, the HDB will sell the flats at the prevailing market prices.

Dr Wong Kwei Cheong (Cairnhill): Sir, may I ask the Minister of State whether it is the policy of the Government to build HUDC flats for speculation or to provide affordable housing to middle-income wage earners?

Dr Lee Boon Yang: Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, HDB does not build flats for speculation. It builds flats to meet the need. But the process of building flats takes many years - the planning and building of these flats - so sometimes there is a mismatch between demand and supply. In the case of the Anthony Garden flats, at the present moment there is a surplus of HUDC flats. There are, in fact, 946 units available but that should not be taken to mean that HDB is building flats purely for speculative reasons. At the moment, there are applications for such HUDC flats and flats are being sold in other areas.