Public consultation period on Mandatory Building Inspection extended to mid-March

The Government today (January 23) announced that the public consultation period on Mandatory Building Inspection would be extended for six weeks to end on March 15.

A spokesman for the Housing, Planning and Lands Bureau said that in the course of the public consultation, the Government had received some views calling for an extension of the consultation period to give the community more time to deliberate on the proposals and to collate views for submission to the Government. The consultation was originally scheduled to close on January 31.

The Government appreciates that mandatory building inspection is a complex subject and has decided to extend the consultation period in response to the community's request.

The Government launched the public consultation on the implementation details of a proposed Mandatory Building Inspection Scheme (MBIS) and related issues on October 21 last year.

The MBIS proposes that owners of private buildings aged 30 years or above be required to engage qualified inspectors to inspect their buildings every seven years and undertake the necessary repair works as specified by the inspectors.

The Government has also drawn up in this consultation document two options for mandatory window inspection, ie, regular window inspection and one-off window inspection within a specified time by owners.

The Government has also proposed a package of support measures to allow owners to carry out building inspection and maintenance.

Copies of the consultation document and leaflet can be obtained from the Housing, Planning and Lands Bureau (HPLB), the Buildings Department (BD) and various District Offices; or downloaded from the HPLB website (www.hplb.gov.hk) and the BD website (www.bd.gov.hk).

Members of the public are welcome to submit their views by fax (2845 3489), by e-mail (bmm@hplb.gov.hk) or by post (Urban Renewal Unit, Housing, Planning and Lands Bureau, 9/F Murray Building, Garden Road, Hong Kong).

Ends/Monday, January 23, 2006
Issued at HKT 16:49

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