Record 1.37 million people living below poverty line in Hong Kong as government blames rise on ageing population and city’s improving economy
- Official figures put number 25,000 higher than previous year, as poverty rate also hits seven-year high
- Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung denies claims government is not doing enough to combat problem in city
More than 1.37 million people in Hong Kong are living below the poverty line, struggling to survive in one of the most expensive cities in the world on as little as HK$4,000 (US$510) a month, according to official figures released on Monday.
A fifth of Hong Kong’s population is destitute, a seven-year high, while even with government intervention 17.5 per cent of the city’s children are classed as living in poverty.
But despite the number of poor reaching a record high for the second year running, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung denied claims the government was not doing enough, and said an ageing population, an improving economy, and changing demographics had contributed to the high numbers.
The poverty line is set at 50 per cent of median monthly household income before taxation and the government’s policy intervention, which includes social welfare payments, such as allowances for the elderly and low-income families.
In real terms that means a single person with a monthly income of HK$4,000, a two-person household earning HK$9,800, while the threshold for a three-person household is HK$15,000.
