The LegCo Reporter 2005-2006		Issue No. 19 (18 May 2006)
At its meeting on 17 May 2006, the Legislative Council passed the following bill: Dentists Registration (Amendment) Bill 2005, with amendments proposed by the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food at Committee Stage. At the same meeting, the Council passed the following resolution: Resolution moved by the Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food relating to the Pharmacy and Poisons (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2006 and the Poisons List (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2006. The following two motions with no legislative effect were also passed by the Council: (1) Motion on "Supporting the conclusions and recommendations of the Public Accounts Committee on the development of a site at Sai Wan Ho", moved by Dr Hon Philip WONG Yu-hong "That, as recently the community is widely concerned that the conclusions made by the Government-appointed Independent Committee of Inquiry on the Sai Wan Ho Development on Inland Lot No. 8955 in its report published on 9 May this year are not in total accord with those made by the Public Accounts Committee ('PAC') in its report laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 15 February this year regarding the development of a site at Sai Wan Ho, this Council reaffirms its support for the conclusions and recommendations of PAC and urges the Government to fully implement the recommendations of PAC." (2) Motion on "Financial assistance to patients of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and their families", moved by Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG Chiu-hung "That, in view of the ex-gratia nature and the anticipated shortfall of the Trust Fund for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ('the Trust Fund'), this Council urges the Government to implement the following measures to assist the patients of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ('SARS') and/or their families: (a) relaxing the Trust Fund's $500,000 ceiling on special ex-gratia financial assistance for each eligible recovered or 'suspected' SARS patient; (b) extending the scope of the Trust Fund to cover also families of the deceased 'suspected' SARS patients; (c) granting special ex-gratia relief payments to families with deceased elderly SARS patients irrespective of whether the affected families had been relying on the deceased for financial support; and (d) injecting additional funds into the Trust Fund."