Enacted by the Provisional Legislative Council.

"(2) This Ordinance shall be binding on the State.".

"Chief Executive" (行政長官) means--

"Chief Executive in Council" (行政長官會同行政會議) means the Chief Executive acting after consultation with the Executive Council;

"Chief Judge" (高等法院首席法官) means the Chief Judge of the High Court;

"Chief Justice" (終審法院首席法官) means the Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal;

"Chief Secretary for Administration" (政務司司長) means the Chief Secretary for Administration of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"China" (中國) means the People's Republic of China;

"Chinese citizen" and "Chinese national" (中國公民) mean a person who has Chinese nationality under the Nationality Law of the People's Republic of China in Schedule 4 to the Promulgation of National Laws 1997; (L.N. 379 of 1997);

"Clerk to the Executive Council" (行政會議秘書) includes any person appointed by the Chief Executive to be Deputy Clerk to the Executive Council;

"Clerk to the Legislative Council" (立法會秘書) means the Secretary General of the Legislative Council Secretariat appointed under section 15(1) of The Legislative Council Commission Ordinance (Cap. 443) and includes the Deputy Secretary General and any Assistant Secretary General of the Legislative Council Secretariat;

"committed for trial" (交付審判), when used in relation to a person, means--

1. committed to prison with a view to his being tried before the Court of First Instance; or
2. admitted to bail to appear and stand his trial before the Court of First Instance;

"common law" (普通法) means the common law in force in Hong Kong;

"counsel" (大律師) means a person admitted before the Court of First Instance to practise as counsel;

"court" (法院、法庭) means any court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of competent jurisdiction;

"Court of Appeal" (上訴法庭) means the Court of Appeal of the High court;

"Court of First Instance" (原訟法庭) means the Court of First Instance of the High Court;

"Crown lease" (官契) means any lease granted by the Crown before 1 July 1997, any instrument whereby the term of a Crown lease may have been extended or the provisions thereof varied and any agreement for a Crown lease;

"department" (部門), in relation to the Government, includes bureau;

"District Court" (區域法院) means the District Court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"District Judge" (區域法院法官) means a judge of the District Court;

"enactment" (成文法則) has the same meaning as Ordinance;

"Executive Council" (行政會議) means the Executive Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"export" (輸出、出口) means to take out or cause to be taken out of Hong Kong by air, land or water;

"Financial Secretary" (財政司司長) means the Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Secretary for the Treasury;

"Gazette" (憲報) means--

1. the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Gazette and any supplement thereto;
2. the Gazette published by the Administration on or between 12 October 1945 and 1 May 1946;
3. the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Gazette Extraordinary;
4. the Hong Kong Government Gazette and any supplement thereto published before 1 July 1997;
5. any Special Gazette or Gazette Extraordinary published before 1 July 1997;

"general holiday" and "public holiday" (公眾假期、公眾假日) mean any day which is a general holiday for the purposes of the Holidays Ordinance (Cap. 149);

"general revenue" (政府一般收入) means the general revenue of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"Government" (特區政府) means the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"Government lease" (政府租契) means a lease of land granted by or on behalf of the Government, and includes--

"Government Printer" (政府印務局) means--

1. the Government Printer of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and any other printer authorized by or on behalf of the Chief Executive to print any Ordinance or any other document of the Government;
2. in relation to any Ordinance or any other document printed before 1 July 1997, the Government Printer within the meaning of this section as in force immediately before that date;

"harbour" (海港) means the waters of Hong Kong within the boundaries specified in Schedule 3;

"health officer" (衛生主任) means--

1. the Director, Deputy Director and Assistant Director of Health;
2. any person appointed as a health officer by the Chief Executive; and
3. any person for the time being performing the duties of a health officer under any Ordinance;

"High Court" (高等法院) means the High Court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region established under section 3 of the Supreme Court Ordinance (Cap. 4);

"HKSAR" (特區) means the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China;

"Hong Kong" (香港) means the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"Hong Kong permanent resident" and "permanent resident of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" (香港永久性居民、香港特別行政區永久性居民) mean a person who belongs to a class or description of persons specified in Schedule 1 to the Immigration Ordinance (Cap. 115);

"Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" (香港特別行政區) means the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, the geographical extent of which is the land and sea specified or referred to in Schedule 2;

"import" (輸入、進口) means to bring or cause to be brought into Hong Kong by air, land or water;

"Joint Declaration" (聯合聲明) means the Sino-British Joint Declaration on the Question of Hong Kong done at Beijing on 19 December 1984;

"judge" (法官) means the Chief Justice, a judge of the Court of Final Appeal, the Chief Judge, a Justice of Appeal, a judge of the Court of First Instance, a recorder of the Court of First Instance and a deputy judge of the Court of First Instance;

"law" (法律、法例、法) means any law for the time being in force in, having legislative effect in, extending to, or applicable in, Hong Kong;

"Legislative Council" (立法會) means--

1. the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;
2. the Provisional Legislative Council during its existence;

"Ministry of Foreign Affairs" (外交部) means the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Central People's Government;

"national law applying in Hong Kong" (在香港實施的全國性法律) means a national law applied in Hong Kong pursuant to the provisions of Article 18 of the Basic Law;

"New Territories" (新界) means the area specified or referred to in Schedule 5A;

"offence" (罪、罪行、罪項、犯法行為) includes any crime and any contravention or other breach of, or failure to comply with, any provision of any law, for which a penalty is provided;

"order paper" (議事程序表), in relation to the Legislative Council, includes agenda;

"Ordinance" (條例) means--

1. any Ordinance enacted by the Legislative Council;
2. any Ordinance adopted by virtue of Article 160 of the Basic Law as a law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;
3. any subsidiary legislation made under any such Ordinance except any such subsidiary legislation which has pursuant to Article 160 of the Basic Law been declared to be in contravention of the Basic Law; and
4. any provision or provisions of any such Ordinance or subsidiary legislation;

"People's Republic of China" (中華人民共和國) includes Taiwan, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and Macau;

"police officer" (警務人員) and terms or expressions referring to ranks in the Hong Kong Police Force shall bear the meanings respectively assigned to them by the Police Force Ordinance (Cap. 232);

"Provisional Legislative Council" (臨時立法會) means the Provisional Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"public officer" (公職人員) means any person holding an office of emolument under the Government, whether such office be permanent or temporary;

"public seal" (公印) means the public seal of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"public servant" (公務員、公務人員) has the same meaning as public officer;

"Registrar of the High Court" (高等法院司法常務官) means the Registrar of the High Court and any Deputy or Assistant Registrar of the High Court;

"regulations" (規例) has the same meaning as subsidiary legislation and subordinate legislation;

"road" (路、道路) has the same meaning as street;

"Secretary for Justice" (律政司司長) means the Secretary for Justice of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"sitting", in relation to the Legislative Council, includes meeting;

"solicitor" (律師) means a person admitted before the Court of First Instance to practise as a solicitor;

"State" ("國家") means--

1. the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;
2. the Central Authorities of the People's Republic of China that exercise--
1. executive functions;
2. functions for which the Central People's Government has responsibility under the Basic Law; or
3. any combination of any of those functions; and
3. subordinate organs of any of those Central Authorities that--
1. exercise any of those functions on behalf of those Central Authorities; and
2. do not exercise commercial functions,when acting within the scope of the delegated authority, and the delegated functions, of the subordinate organ concerned;

"statutory declaration" (法定聲明), if made--

1. in Hong Kong, means a declaration under the repealed Statutory Declarations Ordinance or the Oaths and Declarations Ordinance (Cap. 11);
2. in any other common law jurisdiction, means a declaration made before a justice of the peace, notary public, or other person having authority therein under any legal provision for the time being in force in the jurisdiction to take or receive a declaration;
3. in the mainland of the People's Republic of China, means a declaration made before a notary pursuant to his notarial functions;
4. in any other place, means a declaration made before a consul of the People's Republic of China or a person having authority under a statute for the time being in force in the place to take or receive a declaration;

"street" (街、街道) means--

1. any highway, street, road, bridge, thorough-fare, parade, square, court, alley, lane, bridle-way, footway, passage or tunnel; and
2. any open place, whether or not situate on land the subject of a Government lease, used or frequented by the public or to which the public have or are permitted to have access;

"subsidiary legislation" and "subordinate legislation" (附屬法例、 附屬法規、 附屬立法) mean any proclamation, rule, regulation, order, resolution, notice, of court, bylaw or other instrument made under or by virtue of any ance and having legislative effect;

"treaty" (條約) means a treaty, convention or agreement made between states, and any protocol or declaration attached thereto or independent thereof but referring thereto;

"waters of Hong Kong" and "Hong Kong waters" (香港水域) mean all waters, whether navigable or not, included in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;

"years of age" (歲、年歲、年齡) and words of like meaning, when used in reference to the age of any person, means years of age calculated from the date of birth.".

"(3) If an Ordinance--

1. is to commence on a day to be notified in the Gazette, the notice may fix different days--
1. for different provisions to commence (including commence for different purposes);
2. for the same provisions to commence for different purposes
2. is to be repealed from a day to be notified in the Gazette, the notice may fix different days--
   1. from which different provisions are to be repealed (including repealed for different purposes);
   2. from which the same provisions are to be repealed for different purposes,

(1)Where an Ordinance is returned pursuant to Article 17 of the Basic Law, the invalidation of the Ordinance shall as soon as possible be notified by the Chief Executive by notice in the Gazette.

(2)Where an Ordinance is invalidated as referred to in subsection (1), the provisions of section 23 shall apply as if the Ordinance had been repealed.

(3)An Ordinance repealed or amended by an Ordinance which is invalidated as referred to in subsection (1) shall revive and continue in force in its original form.".

"(2)Nothing in subsection (1) shall authorize the Chief Executive to delegate any person to make subsidiary legislation, issue proclamations or to determine any appeal.".

(1)No Ordinance (whether enacted before, on or after 1 July 1997) shall in any manner whatsoever affect the right of or be binding on the State unless it is therein expressly provided or unless it appears by necessary implication that the State is bound thereby.

(2)The repeal and substitution of the former section 66 of this Ordinance effected by section 24 of the Adaptation of Laws (Interpretative Provisions) Ordinance ( of 1998) do not prejudice the operation of section 2A(2)(c), whether before, on or after that repeal and substitution.".

"Victoria" (維多利亞) means the area within the boundaries specified in Schedule 1 to this Ordinance.

2.Modifications

3.Citation of British enactments

4.Construction of reference to British enactment

5.References to subsidiary legislation under British enactment

A reference in any law to any British enactment shall include a reference to any Order in Council, rule, regulation, proclamation, order, notice, rule of court, by-law or other instrument made under or by virtue thereof and having legislative effect.

6.Copies of British enactments

1. is published in the Gazette or purports to be printed by the Government Printer; or
2. is contained in any printed collection purporting to be published or printed by authority,

7.Construction of certain references to Crown

1. Where it is expressly provided in an Ordinance that the Ordinance--

1. affects or does not affect the right of; or
2. is or is not binding on,

2. Subsection (1) does not prejudice the operation of section 2A(2)(c) of this Ordinance, whether before, on or after the commencement of this section.".

The enactments specified in the Schedule are amended as set out in the Schedule.

1.Construction of words and expressions

1. by repealing the definitions of "Colony" and "Hong Kong", "Crown lease", "Kowloon", New Territories" and "public holiday" and "general holiday";
2. by adding--

""Crown lease" (官契) means a Government lease;

"general holiday" and "public holiday" (公眾假期、公眾假日) mean a general holiday within the meaning of section 3 of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1);

"Government lease" (政府租契) means a Government lease within the meaning of section 3 of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1);

"Hong Kong" (香港) means Hong Kong within the meaning of section 3 of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1);

"Kowloon" (九龍) means Kowloon within the meaning of section 3 of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1);

"New Territories" (新界) means New Territories within the meaning of section 3 of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1);".

Section 2 of the Shipping and Port Control Ordinance (Cap. 313) is amended by repealing the definition of "waters of Hong Kong" and substituting--

Section 2 of the Marine Fish Culture Ordinance (Cap. 353) is amended by repealing the definition of "waters of Hong Kong" and substituting--

Section 2(1) of the Merchant Shipping (Safety) Ordinance (Cap. 369) is amended by repealing the definition of "waters of Hong Kong" and substituting--

Section 23(10) of the Merchant Shipping (Liability and Compensation for Oil Pollution) Ordinance (Cap. 414) is repealed and the following substituted--

The purpose of this Bill is to amend the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1) ("the Ordinance") to bring it into conformity with the Basic Law and the status of Hong Kong as a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, and to make other amendments to the Ordinance which facilitate that purpose. The Bill also consequentially amends other enactments which refer to the Ordinance or rely upon definitions set out in section 3 of the Ordinance. The principal provisions of the Bill are described in the following paragraphs.