The Hong Kong government has confirmed it will not appeal a court decision that quashed approval for a public housing project on part of the historic Fanling Golf Course.

In a statement on Thursday, the government said it had decided against further legal action “having holistically considered legal advice and conducted a cautious assessment.” The decision follows losses at the Court of First Instance in 2024 and the Court of Appeal last month.

The disputed development involved plans for approximately 12,000 public rental flats on a 9.5-hectare site. That parcel forms part of the 32 hectares the government reclaimed in 2023 from the 172-hectare Fanling Golf Course, which is operated by the Hong Kong Golf Club.

The legal challenge was brought by the Hong Kong Golf Club against the government’s approval of an environmental impact assessment (EIA) report that had cleared the way for the housing scheme. The club argued that additional information included in the EIA report had not been subject to proper public consultation.

In 2024 the High Court sided with the club. The government appealed, but a three-judge Court of Appeal panel last month upheld the earlier ruling, finding “unfairness” in the overall consultation process. The judgment noted that the new information “was material that ought to have been but was not included in the EIA report for public inspection” and that the failure to hold further consultation created unfairness.

The government said the ruling clarified that not every addition to an EIA report automatically requires fresh public consultation; the need will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. The Environmental Protection Department will examine the judgment and continue to uphold the “reasonableness, legality, transparency and credibility” of the EIA framework.

Authorities indicated they will review the proposed housing plan on the 9.5-hectare site and announce the way forward in due course.

For the original story please visit Hong Kong Free Press.