QUORUM OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL AND ITS COMMITTEES
PDFAs prescribed in Article 75 of the Basic Law and the Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (“RoP”), the quorum of the Legislative Council shall be not less than one half of all its Members. RoP also set out the quorum for the committees of the Legislative Council.
| Council/Committees | Quorum |
|---|---|
| The Legislative Council | Not less than one half of all Legislative Council Members including the President of the Legislative Council (“the President”) |
| Committee of the whole Council | 20 members including the Chairman |
| Finance Committee | The Chairman and other eight members |
| Public Accounts Committee | The Chairman and other two members |
| Committee on Members’ Interests | The Chairman and other two members |
| Investigation committee | Five members including the Chairman |
| Committee on Rules of Procedure | The Chairman and other three members |
| Committee on Access to the Legislature’s Documents and Records | The Chairman and other three members |
| House Committee | 20 members including the Chairman |
| Bills Committees | Three members including the Chairman, or one third of the members including the Chairman, whichever is the greater. |
| Panels | Three members including the Chairman, or one third of the members including the Chairman, whichever is the greater. |
| Select committees | One third of the members excluding the Chairman |
The President and the Chairman of committee have a duty to declare the absence of a quorum if they notice a quorum is not present, at least before starting the meeting and taking any vote. Any Member who notices the absence of a quorum during a meeting can take it to the attention of the President or Chairman. If a quorum is not present during a meeting but no notice is taken, the meeting may continue without its validity being affected.
If the attention of the President is drawn to the fact that a quorum is not present during a Council meeting, a count must be made. If a quorum is not present, the President shall direct the Members to be summoned. The quorum bell is rung to call in the Members until enough Members are present to form a quorum. If after 15 minutes have expired and a quorum is still not present, the President shall adjourn the Legislative Council. The President may call a meeting to complete the unfinished business on the agenda after the Legislative Council has been so adjourned. Where a Member is absent from a meeting so adjourned without a valid reason, the Member shall be liable to pay a financial penalty as determined in accordance with the House Rules.
If a quorum is not present within 15 minutes after the time appointed for the meeting, the Chairman shall cancel the meeting. If the attention of the Chairman is drawn to the fact that a quorum is not present during a meeting, the Chairman shall direct the members to be summoned. If after 15 minutes have expired and a quorum is still not present, the Chairman shall close the meeting.
A division conducted without a quorum present shall be invalid. The quorum bell will be rung to summon Members to form a quorum.
