A 05/06-33

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 28 June 2006 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers

Subsidiary Legislation / InstrumentsL.N. No.
1.Electronic Transactions Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 3) Order 2006151/2006
2.Electronic Transactions (Exclusion) (Amendment of Schedules) Order 2006152/2006


Other Papers

1.No.94- Annual Report 2004-2005
Hong Kong Broadcasting Authority
(to be presented by Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology)

2. Report of the Finance Committee on the examination of the Estimates of Expenditure 2006-07
(to be presented by Hon Emily LAU, Chairman of the Finance Committee, who will address the Council)

3. Report of the Bills Committee on Certification for Employee Benefits (Chinese Medicine) (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2005
(to be presented by Hon LI Kwok-ying, Chairman of the Bills Committee)


II. Questions

1. Hon James TIEN to ask: (Translation)

The "Ngong Ping 360" cable car service between Tung Chung and Ngong Ping ("Ngong Ping Skyrail") had been suspended when wind speed exceeded 90 kilometres per hour (km/h), and according to the Hong Kong Observatory, there was an average of 55 days with gust equal to or greater than 90 km/h recorded at Ngong Ping in each of the past three years. In addition, following the suspension of the trial run of the Skyrail on 17 June 2006 due to system failure which could not be repaired immediately, the company announced the postponement of the launch of the service. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
    (a)the circumstances that necessitate suspension of service of Ngong Ping Skyrail;

    (b)whether it was envisaged at the initial stage of designing this cable car system that cable car service would have to be suspended under such circumstances; if so, whether the relevant details have been disclosed at that time; if not, of the reasons for that; and

    (c)the contingency measures to be adopted when the cable car service is suspended in the situation mentioned above, including measures for handling the flow of visitors?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Economic Development and Labour

2. Hon WONG Yung-kan to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the monitoring of the safety of vegetables and fruits, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)regarding the findings of a survey recently conducted by an environmental concern group indicated that some vegetables and tomatoes on sale in the two major local supermarket chains contained excess pesticide residues and unregistered pesticides, whether the authorities know the registered farms or purchasing stations which supplied such vegetables and tomatoes; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)of the progress of its discussion with the Mainland authorities on the publication on the Government's web-site of the list of registered farms supplying vegetables to Hong Kong, and whether a timetable has been set for the publication of the list; if not, of the risk posed to the public; and

    (c)whether it will set up a vegetable supply tracking system and a mandatory database to be provided by vegetable importers on the information on imported vegetables; if it will, of the implementation timetable; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food

3. Hon LAU Kong-wah to ask: (Translation)

Regarding soccer betting activities, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the respective numbers of persons arrested by the Police so far for allegedly operating or participating in illegal betting on the soccer matches in this year's World Cup Finals, and how the figures compare to those in the last Finals;

    (b)how the Police's law enforcement actions against illegal betting on the soccer matches in this year's Finals, and their effectiveness, compare to those in the last Finals; and

    (c)whether underage persons' participation in legal and illegal soccer betting activities is on the rise; if so, of the details?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Home Affairs

4. Hon CHEUNG Hok-ming to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the unemployed people with low education levels and low skills in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the latest unemployment rate of the above-mentioned people, the estimated number as well as the age and gender profiles of such people at the end of 2008, and how these figures compare to the current figures (in age groups of 10 years each);

    (b)of the proportion of new immigrants in the above estimated unemployed population in 2008; and

    (c)whether in respect of the above-mentioned unemployed people, in particular new immigrants, the Government will adopt measures to enhance their work skills, facilitate their participation in the workforce, and reduce inter-generational poverty; if it will, of the details of such measures, and the roles and tasks to be performed by various bureaux?
Public Officers to reply:Secretary for Education and Manpower
Secretary for Home Affairs

5. Hon Fred LI to ask: (Translation)

In reply to my question two weeks ago, the Government said that in the past three years, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") took 477 fruit samples for tests on pesticide residues, and one papaya sample was found to contain methamidophos. The authorities also said that the number of fruit samples taken for tests was limited because fruits were not considered to be at high risk. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the respective numbers of imported fruit samples taken by FEHD at entry points, wholesale and retail levels for tests in each of the past three years;

    (b)whether the authorities have successfully traced the source of the papaya sample found to contain methamidophos and made arrangements for recalling the papayas in questions; and whether the authorities will consider establishing a tracking and recall system for imported fruits; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)of the rationale and basis for the authorities' statement that fruits not at high risk, and how the authorities can, by acting in accordance with such rationale and basis, ensure that foods consumed by the public are safe?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food

6. Dr Hon KWOK Ka-ki to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that the Government is considering setting up a joint public-private medical centre on Lantau Island while the Hospital Authority is also planning to expand its private healthcare service. Regarding the details of these two projects and their impact on public healthcare service, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the details of its plan to establish a joint public-private medical centre on Lantau Island;

    (b)whether it plans to subsidize public healthcare service with the profits generated from the provision of private healthcare service in public hospitals; if so, how it can ensure that public hospital patients who cannot afford private healthcare service will not be affected, and that implementing the plan will not go against the principle that "every resident should have equal access to public healthcare service regardless of their financial means"; and

    (c)how the expansion of private healthcare service will tie in with the healthcare financing scheme to be implemented and whether this will further drive up the bed occupancy rate of public hospitals, which is already on the high side?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food

*7. Hon Martin LEE to ask: (Translation)

To provide a platform for young people to participate in public affairs, the Commission on Youth has been promoting the setting up of a youth forum in each district since 2004. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the districts in which youth forums have been set up, and when such forums are planned to be set up in the remaining districts;

    (b)of the number and background of the members of each district youth forum, including the respective numbers of those who are working people, young night drifters, non-engaged youths, ethnic minority people and people with disabilities, and the respective numbers of forum members who were nominated by schools and uniformed groups and those who volunteered to join the forum;

    (c)of the activities participated or organized by each district youth forum since its establishment; (d) whether it has reviewed the operation of district youth forums; if so, of the outcome of the review, including the areas in need of improvement; if not, whether there is a timetable for the review; and (e) whether the authorities will explore the feasibility of returning members of district youth forums through elections by young persons aged between 18 and 25, schools or youth organizations in the districts concerned?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Home Affairs

*8. Hon Albert HO to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that Cantonese opera bodies claim that there has been a lack of adequate support for the development of Cantonese opera in Hong Kong, and Ko Shan Theatre, which the Government plans to use for Cantonese opera performances, is not a satisfactory performance venue for Cantonese opera. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has reviewed the effectiveness of its measures to promote the development of Cantonese opera; if it has, of the outcome; and

    (b)whether it has studied the provision of a permanent performance venue for Cantonese opera in other locations, such as the West Kowloon Cultural District; if so, of the details of the study; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Home Affairs

*9. Hon Bernard CHAN to ask: (Translation)

In spite of greater efforts made by the authorities in recent years to promote balanced diet, there are surveys which indicate that vegetables and fruits are still lacking generally in people's diet. Many people, especially children, face the problem of obesity. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has conducted studies on the above issue; if so, of the findings; and

    (b)whether it will step up publicity, such as promoting healthy menus in co-operation with restaurants and caterers, as well as commending organizations which promote healthy diet, in order to provide the public with more healthy diet choices?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food

*10. Hon LAU Wong-fat to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the existing roads which generate excessive traffic noise but cannot be retrofitted with noise barriers/enclosures or resurfaced with low noise material, will the Government inform this Council of the other measures to mitigate the noise nuisances caused by road traffic to the residents nearby; if such measures include traffic control schemes, how the authorities balance the interest of the residents with that of the motorists?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works

*11. Hon Audrey EU to ask: (Translation)

Regarding consultancy studies commissioned by the Government, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the justifications for the Central Policy Unit classifying as internal reference materials and not making public the consultancy report on socio-economic-political development trends in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, which was commissioned in 2003-04 at a cost of $1.3 million; whether it will reconsider making the report public; if it will make the report public, of its details and findings; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)of the titles of the Government-commissioned consultancy studies on socio-economic-political development trends conducted in the past three years but the reports on which have not been or will not be made public, as well as the names of the appointed consultants and the consultancy fees; and

    (c)whether it has guidelines to require all government departments to make public research reports which do not contain sensitive information; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

*12. Hon LEE Wing-tat to ask: (Translation)

According to the World Health Organization's estimates of the global burden of diseases, mental and behavioural disorders represent five of the top ten leading disease burdens. Furthermore, recently there have been a number of media reports on verbal violence and even wounding cases triggered off by trivial matters. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has looked into the sources of stress for the general public, including ascertaining if the current public policies and public administrative measures are major sources of stress for civil servants, employees of subvented organizations, users of public service and members of the public;

    (b)of the resources allocated annually by the authorities for promoting mental health in the community, as well as for public education on the awareness of and ways to handle mental and behavioural disorders, and the organizations responsible for providing and co-ordinating services and initiatives in this regard; and

    (c)whether a Mental Health Council as proposed by the Equal Opportunities Commission will be set up to co-ordinate policy formulation, programme arrangements, research and public education in the area of mental health?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food

*13. Hon Howard YOUNG to ask: (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council whether tour guides are offered free admissions to fee charging tourist attractions of which the Government is a shareholder, or which are managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department at present, such as the Hong Kong Wetland Park, the Hong Kong Disneyland and other exhibition galleries, so that they can take care of the visitors in their tour groups; if so, of the tourist attractions which offer and those which do not offer such concession; if not, the reasons for that and whether it will study the feasibility of offering such concession?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Economic Development and Labour

*14. Hon SIN Chung-kai to ask: (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council of the following items brought to credit in March in each of the financial years from 1997-98 to 2005-06:
    (a)total amount of Government revenue;

    (b)investment income of the fiscal reserves placed with the Exchange Fund; and

    (c)land premium?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

*15. Hon LI Kwok-ying to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that large quantities of rubbish flow into the waterway beside the Riverside Hide and the Boardwalk within the Hong Kong Wetland Park each day during high tide. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has traced the source of such rubbish; if so, of the results; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)where such rubbish is found to originate from Shenzhen waters, whether the authorities have reflected the problem to the Shenzhen authorities and discussed improvement measures with them; and

    (c)of the impact of such rubbish on the ecology of the Hong Kong Wetland Park, as well as the current measures to alleviate such impact?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works

*16. Ir Dr Hon HO Chung-tai to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that the MTR Corporation Limited intends to implement a mutual use programme for Hong Kong's Octopus card and Shenzhen's TransCard, so that the two types of cards can be used in both Hong Kong and Shenzhen. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
    (a)the general arrangements for the programme at the present stage and implementation time; if so, of the details;

    (b)the estimated increase in the daily usage of Octopus cards upon the implementation of the programme; if so, of the estimated rate of increase; and

    (c)the number of people in Hong Kong and Shenzhen who will benefit from the programme?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

*17. Hon Frederick FUNG to ask: (Translation)

The substantial toll increase of the Eastern Harbour Crossing in 2005 aroused widespread public concern about the substantial toll increase of some of the road harbour crossings, the uneven distribution of traffic among various crossings, and the toll adjustment mechanism for Build-Operate-Transfer ("BOT") transport infrastructure facilities. The Government put forward a number of options for improving the distribution of traffic among the three road harbour crossings in April 2005, and indicated at the meeting of the Panel on Transport on 19 December 2005 that it would further consider the option involving a combination of franchise extension and toll rationalization, and would continue its discussion with the tunnel operators concerned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the latest progress of the consultation with various sectors and discussion with the tunnel operators concerned on the above-mentioned problems and solutions, including the response of the tunnel operators concerned, the difficulties encountered in the course of discussion, the expected date for reaching a final solution, and whether it has scheduled a timetable for reaching a consensus on a solution with the tunnel operators concerned; if not, of the reasons for that;

    (b)whether it still favours the option involving a combination of franchise extension and toll rationalization as the solution to the above-mentioned problems; if not, of the option which will be chosen by the Government and its details, and whether further consultation on this option will be conducted; and

    (c)whether it has reviewed the BOT mode currently adopted for the development of transport infrastructure facilities, especially whether there is room for improvement in the toll adjustment mechanism for such facilities; if so, of the details and result of the review?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works

*18. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the promotion of gender equality, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
    (a)as the Equal Opportunities Commission ("EOC") was granted $2 million in 2001 to carry out a study on "equal pay for work of equal value" but has not released the report so far, how the authorities have followed up the work in this respect;

    (b)as EOC proposed to amend the Sex Discrimination Ordinance in 1999, of the reasons for the authorities not having introduced a bill into this Council to amend the Ordinance;

    (c)as only two of the 15 non-official members of the Executive Council are females, and there are only two females among the 19 principal officials, of the authorities' measures to increase the proportion of women at the decision-making level of the Government; and (d) as the authorities have indicated that they intend to raise the existing 25% gender benchmark for the memberships of statutory and advisory bodies (i.e. at least 25% of their members are of either sex) in line with international norms (i.e. between 30% and 35%), of the details of such a plan?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Home Affairs

*19. Hon CHOY So-yuk to ask: (Translation)

In its progress report regarding the motion on "Conservation of Energy" passed by this Council on 14 December last year, the Environmental Protection Department points out that the Architectural Services Department has incorporated green roof or flat roof landscaping into new government building projects wherever possible since 2001, and almost 40 related projects are either being planned or under construction; moreover, the Government will continue to implement green roof or flat roof projects wherever feasible. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the details of the 40 projects and those that involve roof greening;

    (b)among the projects which involve roof greening, of the percentage of the area of the roofs on which greening work has been carried out, in the total roof area, and the average cost per square foot for roof greening; and

    (c)of the criteria for deciding whether green roof projects will be implemented on buildings, and whether such criteria include energy conservation?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works

*20. Hon Albert CHAN to ask: (Translation)

In reply to my question on 15 October 2003, the Administration advised that it had guidelines and measures to ensure that the location of bus stops would not affect road safety, and it would closely monitor the operation of bus stops and initiate appropriate improvement measures where necessary. However, I have still received complaints that many bus stops are located less than 10 metres away from car-park accesses, causing a number of traffic accidents. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the required distance between a bus stop and a car-park access according to the standard adopted by the Administration;

    (b)whether there are bus stops the distance of which from car-park accesses does not comply with the above standard; if so, of the number of such bus stops and the number of years they have been in use;

    (c)of the number of traffic accidents in the past three years which were attributable to a bus stop being located less than 10 metres away from a car-park access; and (d) whether it will consider adopting measures to improve the above situation, such as relocating bus stops further away from car-park accesses; if so, of the details of the measures; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works

*For written reply.

III. Bills

Second Reading (Debate to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading

Certification for Employee Benefits (Chinese Medicine) (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2005 :Secretary for Economic Development and Labour

IV. Members' Motions

  1. Policy on care for the elderly

    Dr Hon Joseph LEE Kok-long: (Translation)

    That, in view of the ageing of Hong Kong's population, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously implement a policy on care for the elderly which is geared to "healthy ageing", to help them enjoy their old age peacefully and comfortably.

    Amendments to motion
    (i)Hon LI Kwok-ying: (Translation)

    To delete "in view of" after "That," and substitute with "in order to enhance the quality of life of Hong Kong's elderly people, and to make preparations for"; to add "in the future" after "the ageing of Hong Kong's population"; and to add "and take measures to improve the existing health care, medical and long-term care services for the elderly, enhance the monitoring and quality of service of homes for the aged, help the elderly participate actively in community activities, improve their living environment and strengthen the prevention of abuse of the elderly, so as" after "which is geared to 'healthy ageing',".

    (ii)Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG: (Translation)

    To add "; specific measures include: (a) formulating a comprehensive long-term care policy, taking into account the population structure, and establishing a mechanism for planning long-term care services in the future; (b) implementing a 'community-based' policy on care for the elderly, injecting more resources to home care services, so as to shorten the waiting time for such services; (c) increasing the places in subvented care-and-attention homes in order to shorten the waiting time and, at the same time, enhancing the monitoring of private homes for the aged; (d) enhancing support services for carers of the elderly, including increasing the places in day-care centres and extending their service hours, so as to alleviate carers' stress from caring for the frail elderly; (e) making coordinated discharge arrangements for elderly in-patients, and providing information and support to enable them to obtain the necessary rehabilitation and care services; (f) drawing up a long-term policy to address the shortage of nursing staff in the social welfare sector to ensure the professional standard of long-term care services; (g) reviewing the existing medical fee waiver mechanism and expeditiously reducing the waiting time for general and specialist out-patient services to ensure that the elderly are not denied adequate medical services due to lack of means; (h) expanding the membership of elderly health centres to provide medical and health services to more elderly people; (i) enhancing the Chinese medicine services in the public sector for the elderly, and bringing Chinese medicine under the coverage of Comprehensive Social Security Assistance; (j) providing 'end of life' support services for those elderly with relatively weaker support network to allay their worry; (k) amending the Domestic Violence Ordinance to expand its application to cover parents, so that the elderly suffering from abuse will be protected under the Ordinance; and (l) providing sufficient financial assistance to the elderly in poverty, and implementing a universal retirement protection scheme so as to safeguard the basic livelihood of the elderly" after "peacefully and comfortably".

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food

  2. Facilitating urban development

    Hon Patrick LAU Sau-shing: (Translation)

    That, while countries and places around the world all consider urban development as the essential element to enhancing competitiveness and are vigorously expediting their pace of urban development, many barriers that hinder urban development still exist in Hong Kong, the competitive edge of which is gradually diminishing; as such, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously review its policies affecting urban development and implement improvement measures, including:

    (a)on the premise of sustainable development, commissioning a comprehensive consultancy study on such issues as planning enhancement, optimum land use, adjustment of development intensity, promotion of urban design, environment-friendly construction, infrastructures, community facilities, redevelopment of old areas, urban revitalization, preservation of cultural heritage, urban greening and air quality improvement, etc, as well as expeditiously implementing various works projects to resolve the unemployment problem in the construction industry;

    (b)setting up a high-level ad hoc committee to co-ordinate the various efforts in facilitating urban development, including extensively and efficiently soliciting public views, complementing the Eleventh Five-year Plan as well as the Shenzhen 2030 Development Strategy in the Mainland, and expeditiously publishing reports on the different stages of Hong Kong 2030: Planning Vision and Strategy; and

    (c)streamlining the approval procedures of the Town Planning Board, Lands Department and Buildings Department to shorten the construction time of works projects and improve the business environment,

    with a view to expediting urban development, improving the public's quality of life, beautifying the environment, promoting tourism, creating job opportunities, attracting investment and boosting economic development, so as to develop Hong Kong into a beautiful and vibrant world city in Asia, thereby enhancing its competitiveness.

    Amendments to motion
    (i)Dr Hon YEUNG Sum: (Translation)

    To delete "and" after "Hong Kong 2030: Planning Vision and Strategy;"; and to add "; and (d) introducing changes to the Town Planning Board by appointing an unofficial member as its Chairman and setting up an independent secretariat, so as to enhance its independence and credibility," after "improve the business environment".

    (ii)Hon Albert HO: (Translation)

    To delete "and" after "Hong Kong 2030: Planning Vision and Strategy;"; and to add "; and (d) enhancing public participation in and the transparency of the approval procedures of the Town Planning Board by, for instance, making public the proceedings of its meetings, and appointing members who are broadly and diversely representative of the community, so that the Town Planning Board can better reflect the public's expectations and interests in the planning intent" after "improve the business environment".

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Housing, Planning and Lands

Clerk to the Legislative Council