Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho said on Tuesday she was deeply saddened by the deaths of a mother and son who fell to their deaths this April and July respectively after being told to move out of their Tin Shui Wai public housing flat for not fully declaring their assets.

She also said more medical professionals may be involved with handling eviction appeals in future.

Under a compassionate arrangement, the two – who each had a history of mental illness – had been allowed to remain in their home in Tin Yan Estate temporarily until they could find a new home, despite losing an appeal.

Castle Peak Hospital had issued a certificate during the appeal process that suggested the pair be allowed to stay in the same flat.

Ho told an RTHK radio programme that the Housing Department had offered assistance to the pair, such as by looking for a social worker and helping them apply for transitional housing after having obtained their approval to do both.

She said officials had been sympathetic to their plight and tried to strike a balance.

"The mother and son applied for a public housing unit in 2012," Ho said.

"In several declarations, they did not declare that they had two plots of land. These two plots were estimated to be worth some HK$700,000.

"If that was added to their total asset value, it exceeded the limit. They had repeatedly failed to mention owning the assets."

As for the 130-strong appeal panel, Ho said more medical professionals could be included going forward.

"The situation of tenants with special needs might not be the same as other tenants that our colleagues usually get in touch with," she said.

"So maybe we have to look at whether we need personnel with a medical background, like doctors, to join the appeal panel – so there will be more medical advice.

"Right now, more than half of the members on the panel are lawyers, with the rest being from the education sector and professionals."

Ho said more training and implementation details will be offered to workers, as some tenants might be more emotionally vulnerable.

She also revealed that in the first seven months of the year, the panel has amended and overturned almost 40 percent of notice-to-quit cases, 26 percent of which were cancelled after appeals were made.