The government said it plans to build the city's third medical school in San Tin in Yuen Long, as part of the Northern Metropolis development plan.

In a proposal submitted by the Development Bureau to the Legislative Council, officials outlined the allocation of more than one-third of a 127-hectare plot in Ngau Tam Mei to develop a university town, which will house the medical school.

The project to build the so-called UniTown will begin in 2027 at the earliest.

Covering 46 hectares, the plot is larger than the proposed 30 hectares revealed by Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn earlier.

Speaking at a closed-door press briefing on Wednesday, Development Bureau officials said they decided to arrange more land for local institutions to collaborate with mainland and overseas universities to build schools there, to help boost the SAR's status as an international education hub.

But they did not say how many educational institutions will call the UniTown home.

The University of Science and Technology has expressed interest in running Hong Kong's third medical school.

The government also plans to build a hospital with 3,000 beds near the school.

The hospital will be used to cope with the potential population growth in Yuen Long and North District thanks to the area's development, and to train doctors.

The government also said the development project in Ngau Tam Mei will create about 13,000 housing units – mainly private homes – with the first batch of residents expected to move in from 2034.

The government said it will reveal the cost of the project before construction begins.