Lands Department responds to Ombudsman’s direct investigation report on unlawful occupation of government land

Lands Department responds to Ombudsman’s direct investigation report on unlawful occupation of government land      
     The LandsD is pleased to note the Ombudsman recognised the Department’s necessary adoption of a “risk-based” approach to prioritise and handle vast amount of unlawful occupation of government land cases according to their urgency. The Ombudsman also noted that the LandsD has successively introduced a series of measures in recent years, such as the incorporation of multiple data integration and analysis functions into a new database system introduced in September 2025.
      
     The LandsD will continue to leverage the use of technology to enhance its enforcement efficiency and proactively detect irregularities, including making use of the Geographic Information System of its Survey and Mapping Office, aerial photographs taken by unmanned aerial vehicles, and robotic dogs to assist in daily inspections and monitoring, thereby enabling early identification of repeated occupation or larger scale unlawful occupation cases.
      
     The LandsD will actively follow up on the recommendations of the Ombudsman to optimise the handling of unlawful occupation of government land and strengthen enforcement actions. These include continuously reviewing the effectiveness of existing guidelines and the database system, exploring the use of technology to improve enforcement efficiency, enhancing training for frontline staff in investigation and evidence collection, and ensuring that the staff understand and fulfil their leading role when co-ordinating departmental efforts in resolving land issues.
Issued at HKT 21:15

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