'Major building repairs not one-size-fits-all'

New People’s Party lawmaker Dominic Lee said on Wednesday that authorities should not impose a one-size-fits-all requirement for major repairs on private residential buildings that are 30 years old or more. Under the Mandatory Building Inspection Scheme, owners of such buildings with statutory notices must appoint a registered inspector to inspect and supervise repairs to common areas, external walls and signboards. On RTHK’s In The Chamber programme, Lee suggested revising the scoring system for target buildings under the scheme. He said authorities should consider factors like routine maintenance records and the past performance of property management companies, so that estates with solid structural and maintenance records could defer their mandatory inspections or adopt continuous maintenance plans in lieu of major overhauls. At Wednesday’s Legislative Council meeting, he raised an oral question on assisting property owners in reducing expenditure on building repair works. Edited by Thomas McAlinden