Topic 6: Comment on the pros and cons of privatization of social welfare services in Hong Kong society. Use the "LINK-REIT" as an example to illustrate your answer.
Introduction
The Link-Reit (Real Estate Investment Trust) has long been a controversial issue ever since its launch. The issue in fact concerns the privatization of welfare services. The purpose of this paper is to review the worthiness of privatization in the midst of conflicts of interests among different groups of people in Hong Kong. For a start, the definition of privatization of welfare services will be stated. Then, there would be a brief summary on the privatization development in Hong Kong. As this paper will focus on discussing privatization by using the Link-Reit as an example, the background information of Link-Reit will be given. The merits and demerits of privatization of social welfare services will be reviewed in the context of the Link-Reit.
A 26 segment × 3 exposure (78 frames in total) pa...
English: A 12 segment panoramic image of the Hong ...
English: fu ningEventually, recommendations regarding the disadvantages of privatization will be given. The scope of privatization to be discussed in this paper will be confined to privatization of public housing.
Definition of privatization of welfare services
Privatization of welfare services is defined as the transfer of the provision of welfare services from the public sector to the private sector. Le Grand & R. Robinson (1984) pointed out that any reduction of the roles of the government in welfare provision, such as direct provision, subsidy and regulation, is defined as the introduction of the process of privatization of welfare services. It is a way to enhance the equitable distribution of social resources. A. Walker (1984) stated that privatization takes place when responsibility for a service or a particular aspect of service delivery passes wholly or in part, to the private sector and when market criteria, such as profit or ability to pay,