A 07/08-36

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 9 July 2008 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers
Subsidiary Legislation / Instruments L.N. No.
1.Country Parks (Lantau North (Extension) Country Park Designation) Order 2008190/2008
2.Public Health and Municipal Services (Designation of Public Markets) Order 2008191/2008
3.Public Health and Municipal Services (Designation of Public Markets) (No. 2) Order 2008192/2008
4.Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Amendment of Tenth Schedule) (No. 2) Order 2008193/2008
5.Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Amendment of Tenth Schedule) (No. 3) Order 2008194/2008
6.Mainland Judgments (Reciprocal Enforcement) Ordinance (Commencement) Notice195/2008

Other Papers

1.No. 107-Sir Robert Black Trust Fund
Signed and Audited Financial Statements together with the Auditor's Report and Report by the Trustee on the Administration of the Fund for the year ended 31 March 2008
(to be presented by Secretary for Home Affairs)

2.No. 108-Construction Industry Training Authority
Annual Report 2007
(to be presented by Secretary for Development)

3.No. 109-Construction Industry Council
Annual Report 2007
(to be presented by Secretary for Development)

4.No. 110-Report by the Commissioner of Correctional Services on the administration of the Prisoners' Welfare Fund for the year ended 31 March 2008
(to be presented by Secretary for Security)

5.No. 111-Sir David Trench Fund for Recreation
Trustee's Report 2007-2008
(to be presented by Secretary for Home Affairs)

6.No. 112-The Twentieth Annual Report of The Ombudsman,
Hong Kong (June 2008)
(to be presented by the Chief Secretary for Administration)

7.No. 113-Report of the Public Accounts Committee on Report No. 50 of the Director of Audit on the Results of Value for Money Audits
(July 2008 - P.A.C. Report No. 50)
(to be presented by Dr Hon Philip WONG, Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, who will address the Council)

8.No. 114-The Government Minute in response to the Report No. 49A of the Public Accounts Committee dated April 2008
(to be presented by the Chief Secretary for Administration, who will address the Council)

9.Report of the Committee on Members' Interests of the Third Legislative Council
(to be presented by Hon Mrs Sophie LEUNG, Chairman of the Committee on Members' Interests)

10.Committee on Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region - Progress Report for the 2007-2008 session (12 July 2007 to 9 July 2008)
(to be presented by Hon TSANG Yok-sing, Chairman of the Committee on Rules of Procedure)

11.Report of the Panel on Manpower 2007-2008
(to be presented by Hon LAU Chin-shek, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)

12.Report of the Panel on Public Service 2007-2008
(to be presented by Hon Howard YOUNG, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)

13.Report of the Panel on Administration of Justice and Legal Services 2007-2008
(to be presented by Hon Margaret NG, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)

14.Report of the Panel on Home Affairs 2007-2008
(to be presented by Hon CHOY So-yuk, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)

15.Report of the Panel on Transport 2007-2008
(to be presented by Hon Andrew CHENG, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)

16.Report of the Panel on Development 2007-2008
(to be presented by Hon LAU Wong-fat, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)

17.Report of the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting 2007-2008
(to be presented by Hon Albert Jinghan CHENG, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)

18.Report of the Bills Committee on Race Discrimination Bill
(to be presented by Hon Margaret NG, Chairman of the Bills Committee)

19.Report of the Bills Committee on Independent Police Complaints Council Bill
(to be presented by Hon LAU Kong-wah, Chairman of the Bills Committee)

20.Report of the Bills Committee on Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Amendment) Bill 2008
(to be presented by Hon CHAN Kam-lam, Chairman of the Bills Committee)

21.Report of the Bills Committee on Air Pollution Control (Amendment) Bill 2008
(to be presented by Hon Audrey EU, Chairman of the Bills Committee)

22.Report of the Bills Committee on Product Eco-responsibility Bill
(to be presented by Hon CHOY So-yuk, Chairman of the Bills Committee)

II. Questions

1. Hon Mrs Sophie LEUNG to ask: (Translation)

In early May this year, the State Council promulgated the Draft Implementation Regulations of the Labour Contract Law ("the Draft Regulations") and consulted the public on the Draft Regulations. I have learnt that the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("HKSAR") has also gauged the views of various trades and industries on the Draft Regulations through different channels and relayed them to the mainland authorities concerned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the channels through which or the means by which the HKSAR Government has gauged the views of the factory operators, in particular Hong Kong businessmen who have investments on the Mainland, and the sectors concerned on the above Draft Regulations;

    (b)of the total number of comments on the Draft Regulations received so far by the HKSAR Government and how it has dealt with such comments; according to such comments, what problems the Labour Contract Law has created for the factory operators concerned; and

    (c)apart from setting up the "Task Force to Support the Processing Trade", whether the HKSAR Government will, focusing on the impact of the Labour Contract Law on the factory operators, formulate long-term measures and policies to support the factory operators concerned?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

2. Dr Hon Joseph LEE Kok-long to ask: (Translation)

The Government recommends enhancing primary health care services in the health care reform consultation documents published in the past and this year. Yet, the existing allocation of resources for public health care services focuses primarily on the provision of treatment services, with 85% of the resources being spent on treatment of diseases and only 15% on disease prevention and health promotion. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the authorities' plans to promote the development of primary health care services, and the specific ways to change the existing situation in which treatment services are given more weight in the allocation of resources for health care services;

    (b)apart from implementing the electronic patients' record system to assist private medical practitioners and public medical institutions in treating patients, how the Government will promote the development of community and primary health care services through implementing the system; and

    (c)of the specific plans to utilize the expertise of the health care teams so that they can make an impact on the community in the provision of primary health care services as proposed by the Government?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

3. Hon LEE Cheuk-yan to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the selection and appointment of the first batch of Under Secretaries and Political Assistants to Directors of Bureaux, will the Government inform this Council whether:
    (a)nominations or referrals of candidates for such posts have been made by members of the Appointment Committee and the two Interviewing Panels; if so, whether the members concerned had declared interests, and whether they had withdrawn from the meetings at which the appointment of the candidates nominated or referred was discussed and made; and

    (b)any guideline or code of practice on the avoidance of conflict of interests was drawn up for the selection and appointment of candidates for such posts; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

4. Hon TAM Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)

Property prices have been rising continuously in recent years, and the lending rates for mortgage loans have also started to pick up recently. Many members of the public have relayed to me that they can hardly afford to purchase properties for self-occupation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the respective amounts of loan repayments received so far in respect of the Home Purchase Loan Scheme, Sandwich Class Housing Loan Scheme and Home Starter Loan Scheme; and

    (b)whether it has any plan to introduce new loan scheme(s) for home purchases so as to assist members of the public (especially young people who cannot afford the downpayment but have the repayment capability) who need such assistance in purchasing properties for self-occupation; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

5. Hon Vincent FANG Kang to ask: (Translation)

Some workers in the live poultry trade have relayed to me that in June this year the Food and Health Bureau proposed to the live poultry trade an option of permanent cessation of business and offered a fairly attractive buyout package to live poultry retailers. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has assessed the respective numbers of trades, operators and employees, including monthly-rated employees and temporary employees, in the entire supply chain of live poultry to be affected when the live poultry trade ceases business permanently;

    (b)of the number of government posts the duties of which are related to the supply chain of live poultry and the government departments to which they belong; whether such posts will be deleted following the total cessation of business of the live poultry trade; if so, of the number of posts to be deleted and the government departments involved; if not, how the work of the government officials concerned will be deployed; whether the scope of duties of the Agricultural, Fisheries and Conservation Department will thus be substantially reduced, and have to merge with the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department; and

    (c)whether the local poultry farmers have rented government land at present; if they have, how the Government will deal with such land after the live poultry trade ceases business permanently; whether the Government will accept the trade's proposal to convert the Cheung San Wan Temporary Wholesale Poultry Market into a chilled poultry wholesale centre, and how it will make use of the live poultry retail stalls in the government markets?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

6. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)

As indicated in the Report on Further Development of the Political Appointment System published in October last year, a Civil Service Code ("the Code") applicable to civil servants will be drawn up. The Code will clearly delineate the roles and responsibilities of civil servants under the political appointment system to avoid uncertainty about the responsibilities of politically appointed officials and civil servants, and safeguard the integrity and political impartiality of the civil service. Although the Administration had issued a circular at the end of March on how civil servants should complement Under Secretaries and Political Assistants, the Code is not yet available and some civil servants have indicated that they are at a loss as to what to do. In addition, some former high-ranking officials have pointed out that the Administration has made a number of mistakes in the process of appointing the first batch of Under Secretaries and Political Assistants, and the situation is so deplorable that it has not only agitated the community at large and dealt a blow to the morale of civil servants, but has also made an impact on the integration between these politically appointed officials and civil servants. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
    (a)whether they have assessed the impact of the further development of the political appointment system on the morale of civil servants; if so, of the results;

    (b)when the Code will be published and the reasons for the delay in its publication, and whether they have assessed if civil servants will find it difficult to properly carry out their responsibilities in the absence of a code providing clear guidelines; and

    (c)apart from the Executive Authorities' five points of response at this stage to the request made by Members of this Council that the authorities should review the political appointment system, as mentioned by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs at the meeting of this Council on 26 June, whether the authorities will also conduct an in-depth and comprehensive review, in particular, of the criteria and procedure for appointing and selecting Under Secretaries and Political Assistants, and whether the authorities will appoint the second batch of Under Secretaries and Political Assistants after announcing the results of the review?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Civil Service

*7. Hon WONG Kwok-hing to ask: (Translation)

The legislation regulating chiropractors has been implemented since 1993. However, sick leave certificates issued by them have not been recognized so far. I, together with representatives of chiropractors, met with the then Permanent Secretary for Economic Development and Labour and the Commissioner for Labour on 23 April last year. At the meeting, the Commissioner indicated that a working group had been formed by the Labour Department in conjunction with the Department of Health to discuss matters concerning the issue of sick leave certificates by chiropractors, and that the group had already held seven meetings. The Bureau had also promised that conclusion would be available by the end of last year. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the membership list of the working group, the dates of its meetings held so far, and the contents of discussion at each of the meetings; and

    (b)whether the working group has so far reached a conclusion on matters concerning the issue of sick leave certificates by chiropractors; if so, of the conclusion, as well as the justifications for the conclusion; if not, when the conclusion will be reached?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

*8. Hon LAU Chin-shek to ask: (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the current overnight franchised bus routes between the urban areas and the North District, Tai Po and Tsuen Wan respectively, and list out information such as the frequency, destinations, fare, distance of the journey and estimated total journey time of each bus route; and

    (b)given that some residents in the North District have relayed to me that although the North District is farthest away from the urban areas among the above three districts, there are very few direct overnight franchised bus routes between the district and the urban areas, whether the Government will require the franchised bus companies concerned to operate additional direct overnight bus routes between the North District and the urban areas for the convenience of the passengers who need the service; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

*9. Hon TAM Heung-man to ask: (Translation)

At present, counters of the Companies Registry provide only limited services during the mid-day session (i.e. between 12:30 pm and 2:00 pm) from Monday to Friday, during which each member of the public is allowed to only submit, for filing, a maximum of six documents at any one time. Some people who provide company secretarial services have told me that the arrangement is quite inconvenient for their operation. Moreover, the Companies Registry does not accept cash payments during the mid-day session, which also causes them inconvenience. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
    (a)it will review the procedure adopted by the Companies Registry for handling the filing of documents, including abolishing the practice of providing only limited services during the mid-day session; if it will, of the details of the review; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (b)it will consider reviewing the existing shroff practice of the Companies Registry, including accepting cash payments during the mid-day session or switching to issuing payment notices to members of the public and allowing them to pay later through other means, such as credit cards, electronic fund transfers or PPS; if it will, of the details of the review; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

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

Will the Government inform this Council of:
    (a)in the past three years of assessment, the average percentage of the amount of salaries tax paid by the tax payers (excluding those who paid at the standard rate) in their income, and the highest and lowest amounts of salaries tax paid by them; and

    (b)the latest data on salaries tax for the last year of assessment (using the table below to provide such data)?

    Amount of
    salaries tax
    (HK$)    		Number of persons
    required to pay the
    salaries tax listed on
    the left for the last
    year of assessment    		Percentage of such
    number of persons in
    the work force
    Not required

    1 to 1,000

    1,001 to 2,000

    2,001 to 5,000

    5,001 to 10,000

    10,001 to 15,000

    15,001 to 20,000

    20,001 to 30,000

    30,001 to 40,000

    40,001 to 50,000

    50,001 to 60,000

    60,001 to 70,000

    70,001 to 80,000

    80,001 to 90,000

    90,001 to 100,000

    100,001 to 200,000

    200,001 to 500,000

    500,001 to 1,000,000

    over 1,000,000

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

*11. Hon Andrew CHENG to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the handling of complaints by the Medical Council of Hong Kong ("MCHK"), will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
    (a)what criteria the Preliminary Investigation Committee ("PIC") has adopted for determining whether to take up a complaint; whether MCHK will consider not disclosing the identity of the complainee to PIC members at the initial stage of the investigation to ensure that their decision will not be affected by their preconception about the complainee; if it will not, of the reasons for that;

    (b)the information that the complainant is required to submit to MCHK when lodging a complaint; whether MCHK will inform the complainant of the information required to be submitted, and whether it will assist complaints in verifying the credibility of such documents; whether MCHK will consult experts regarding the information submitted by the complainant and the complainee to facilitate the hearing and ruling; if not, of the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether the complainant and the complainee can obtain all the information submitted by the other party to MCHK and the records of the meetings conducted by the PIC; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

Regarding the proposal to construct a liquefied natural gas receiving terminal in Hong Kong, the Government indicated last year that it had commissioned a professional energy consultant to assist in its studies by evaluating natural gas supply arrangements from different perspectives, which include analyzing the distribution of natural gas resources in the region, supply conditions of the Yacheng gas field, future electricity demand and environmental protection requirements in Hong Kong, etc. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the progress and preliminary results of the above studies;

    (b)whether it will publish the reports of the studies; if it will, when they will be published; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether it will develop plans to increase the proportion of natural gas in the fuel mix for electricity generation, in order to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

*13. Dr Hon YEUNG Sum to ask: (Translation)

Regarding marriages between Hong Kong residents and Mainlanders, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of Hong Kong residents who applied to the Immigration Department for the Certificate of Absence of Marriage Record in each of the past five years and, among the marriages registered in Hong Kong in each of the past five year, the number of cases involving marriages between Hong Kong residents and Mainlanders;

    (b)whether it knows, among marriages between Hong Kong residents and Mainlanders over the past five years, the respective number and percentage of cases in which Mainlanders were separated from or who divorced their Hong Kong spouses before obtaining One-way Exit Permit for settlement in Hong Kong; and

    (c)of the approximate number of children aged 16 or below born to Hong Kong residents and Mainlanders at present; the government departments and legal procedures through which Hong Kong residents and Mainlanders may settle their disputes on the custody of their minor children; and if either the father or the mother of these children abducts them to his/her place of residence across the boundary, through what legal procedures and government departments or organizations the other party may seek assistance?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

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

Regarding the duty on and prices of tobacco products, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it knows the average prices of tobacco products, their actual average prices after adjustment for inflation and the changes in their sales before and after the relevant provisions of the Smoking (Public Health) (Amendment) Ordinance came into operation on 1 January 2007;

    (b)given that the prices of tobacco products have increased at a lower rate than inflation in recent years, resulting in a consistent rise in the sales of tobacco products, whether the authorities will consider increasing the tobacco duty to drive up the prices of tobacco products, so as to curb the growth in their sales; and

    (c)whether the authorities will consider allocating a certain percentage of the revenue from the tobacco duty for smoking cessation services, anti-smoking work as well as treatment of and researches on smoking-related diseases?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

Since the reorganization of the policy bureaux of the Government Secretariat on 1 July last year, the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau ("CMAB") is responsible for coordinating human rights policies, the Home Affairs Bureau is responsible for coordinating the work on civic education, which covers human rights education, while the Education Bureau is responsible for incorporating human rights education into the curricula and activities at school level. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that following the reorganization of its structure, the Committee on the Promotion of Civic Education ("CPCE") has assigned the work on the promotion of human rights education to its Publicity Subcommittee, of the reasons why there is no representative from CMAB, which is in charge of human rights policies, among the official members of CPCE, and whether the authorities will consider including official members from CMAB in the membership of CPCE;

    (b)whether it will make reference to the Guidelines on Civic Education in Schools issued in 1996, include "human rights" along with "democracy", "rule of law", "national education" "globalization" and "critical thinking" as key themes and formulate clear and systematic policies on human rights education; and

    (c)which government department or mechanism is currently responsible for formulating policies on human rights education and coordinating the work of various government departments on the promotion of human rights education, and whether the authorities will consider setting up an inter-departmental committee on human rights education?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

*16. Hon CHEUNG Man-kwong to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the supply and demand of places in schools for social development ("SSD"), will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the following in the past five years:

    (i)the annual numbers of places in and students waiting for admission to SSD, broken down by gender and grades;

    (ii)among the students waiting for admission to SSD each year, the number and percentage of those who withdrew their enrolment applications, broken down by the students' gender and grades as well as the reasons for withdrawing their applications; and

    (iii)the respective annual numbers, broken down by the students' gender, of SSD Secondary 3 ("S3") graduates who continued their studies in S4 in the same school, enrolled in mainstream schools, enrolled in institutions under the Vocational Training Council and attended other courses, as well as the number of students who dropped out of school within the first year of their enrolment in mainstream schools due to poor academic results;

    (b)of the number of classes to be provided in each of the coming five years, broken down by schools and grades;

    (c)as it is known that a residential home, which is adjacent to a SSD and managed by the Social Welfare Department, has at least 16 residential places not fully utilized, whether these residential places can be made available immediately so as to increase SSD places; and whether measures are in place to resolve in the long run the problem of insufficient SSD places to meet the demand; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (d)of the total number of SSD S4 places which will fall short in the coming five years for S3 graduates to continue their studies in the same schools; the measures in place to remove the bottleneck at senior secondary levels; and whether additional senior secondary classes can be provided without cutting junior secondary places (so as to avoid aggravating the acute shortage of junior secondary places);

    (e)given that the New Senior Secondary Academic Structure will be implemented in 2009-2010, whether the authority concerned has assessed the number of additional classrooms and types of facilities required for SSD to operate more senior secondary classes; if assessments have been made, of the details, broken down by schools; if not, of the specific measures in place to assist those schools the premises of which are not well-equipped in operating senior secondary classes; and

    (f)whether the authorities will, having regard to the scale and teaching needs of SSD, consider various options, such as operating senior secondary classes under a "2-2-1" trapezoidal class structure, to assist SSD in addressing the shortage of such classes; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

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

The Hospital Authority ("HA") launched the Advanced Incident Reporting System in 2006 and has implemented a Sentinel Event policy since October 2007 to strengthen the reporting, management and monitoring of sentinel events in public hospitals. HA also makes public these events in its internal newsletter to alert frontline medical staff to prevent the recurrence of the events. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
    (a)it knows what mechanism HA has in place to ensure that frontline medical staff report medical incidents accurately; and

    (b)it will consider requiring, through administrative instructions or even by legislation, that HA must not disclose the places of the incidents and the names of the medical staff involved when making public the medial incidents concerned, so as to encourage medical staff to report such incidents proactively?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

*18. Hon CHOY So-yuk to ask:

There is public concern that the natural environment in the New Territories, comprising important and ecologically sensitive natural habitats, has fallen as a constant target of unauthorized and illegal activities. These activities include, but not limited to, unauthorized land filling and excavation, as well as illegal tree felling. Previous uncovered cases have revealed that as the Planning Department does not have the power to enforce the Town Planning Ordinance (Cap. 131) in areas which are covered by statutory zoning plans but not Development Permission Area Plans ("DPAPs"), there is a large loophole in the existing planning control mechanism. As a result, the Planning Department is not empowered to take action against the above activities, although they are not in line with the planning intention of the zoning plans concerned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the areas on Hong Kong Island, in Kowloon and the New Territories in which existing legislation against unauthorized and illegal activities which violate the planning intention is not enforceable (i.e. areas which are currently not covered by a DPAP), as well as the location of such areas and the land area involved;

    (b)of the number of cases uncovered in the past three years in which enforcement action could not be taken against the relevant unauthorized and illegal activities because of the above loophole; and

    (c)given that there is an increase in the number of cases in which the above loophole in the Town Planning Ordinance is exploited, and the unauthorized and illegal activities involved will damage the environment and affect the future development of the areas concerned, what action the Government will take to plug the loophole, and whether it will consider amending the existing legislation?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

*19. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)

I have recently received views on digital broadcasting standards from members of the public, and have written to the Office of the Telecommunications Authority ("OFTA") to enquire about the matter. OFTA replied that if the satellite master antenna television ("SMATV") systems installed in buildings are upgraded to ones which can receive digital video broadcasting ("DVB") satellite signals, satellite television programmes such as those broadcast on high-resolution integrated channels of the China Central Television ("CCTV"), etc., may be viewed with television sets with built-in DVB decoders, and it is not necessary to install external decoders. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
    (a)television sets with built-in DVB decoders can receive channels (e.g. high-resolution integrated channels of CCTV) broadcast with DVB; if they can, of the works required to be conducted on the SMATV systems of private buildings for receiving such signals; and

    (b)the Government has issued to the trade concerned relevant technical guidelines on the modification of master antenna television systems, and publicized the relevant information among the trade and the public?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

*20. Dr Hon David LI to ask:

According to the Monthly Report on the Consumer Price Index ("CPI") published by the Census and Statistics Department, "the expenditure weights for compiling the 2004-2005-based CPI series are based on the household expenditure patterns obtained from the Household Expenditure Survey conducted during October 2004 to September 2005". Current weight for food items (excluding meals away from home) is 10.08%. Using the 2004-2005 weights, between May 2004 and May 2008, the prices of food items have increased by 30.5% while the Composite CPI has increased by only 10%. There are concerns that there is a potential underestimation of the current Composite CPI using the 2004-2005 weights. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it has taken into account the above potential underestimation in its current calculation of CPIs; if it has, of the details of the methodology and whether adjustment has been made to its calculation; if adjustment has not been made, whether the Government has conducted any study to estimate the degree of underestimation; if it has conducted such a study, of the results?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

*For written reply.

III. Bills

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

1.Race Discrimination Bill:Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

Other Public Officer to attend:Under Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

2.Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Amendment) Bill 2008:Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

3.Air Pollution Control (Amendment) Bill 2008:Secretary for the Environment

4.Product Eco-responsibility Bill:Secretary for the Environment

5.Independent Police Complaints Council Bill:Secretary for Security

Other Public Officer to attend:Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

IV. Motions

  1. Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

    Secretary for Development to move the following motion:

    RESOLVED that the Building (Planning) (Amendment) Regulation 2008, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 124 of 2008 and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 21 May 2008, be amended, in section 5, in the new Third Schedule -

    (a)in Part 2, by repealing section 4(1) and (2) and substituting -

    "(1) On any premises with an auditorium with not more than 800 fixed seats at spectator level, not less than 4 wheelchair spaces shall be provided at spectator level.

    (2)On any premises with an auditorium with more than 800 fixed seats at spectator level, not less than 2 wheelchair spaces shall be provided at spectator level for every 400 fixed seats or any part thereof.";

    (b)in Part 2, by repealing "Division 12 - Bathrooms and Shower Compartments" and substituting -

    "Division 12 - Bathrooms and Shower
    Compartments in Accessible
    Guest Rooms



    55A.Application: Division 12,
    Part 2

    This Division applies to bathrooms and shower compartments in accessible guest rooms required under section 7.";

    (c)in Part 2, in section 86, in the Table -

    (i)in the Chinese text, by repealing "觸覺地面平面" wherever it appears and substituting "觸覺平面地圖";

    (ii)in the English text, in item 6, by repealing "workship" and substituting "workshop";

    (d)in Part 4 -

    (i)in item 1, in the second column, by adding -

    "(d) All guest rooms required under section 7.";

    (ii)in item 3, in the second column, by adding -

    "(e) All guest rooms required under section 7.".

  2. Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

    Hon Tommy CHEUNG to move the following motion:

    RESOLVED that the Building (Planning) (Amendment) Regulation 2008, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 124 of 2008 and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 21 May 2008, be amended, in section 5, in the new Third Schedule, in Part 2, by repealing section 14 and substituting -


      "14.Ramps to be provided

      (1)Ramps shall be provided at all changes in level other than those served by an accessible lift or accessible lifting mechanism accommodating the specific requirements of persons with a disability.

      (2)Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), in respect of a restaurant -

      (a)ramps shall be provided at all changes in level in the usable floor space only if the total horizontal area of such changes in level exceeds 30% of the usable floor space; or

      (b)a removable ramp may be substituted for a ramp to be provided at all changes in level in the usable floor space only if such changes in level do not exceed 300 mm in height.

      (3)If a removable ramp is used as a substitute under subsection (2)(b), the requirements under sections 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19 for a ramp shall be applicable to the removable ramp, as if the removable ramp were a ramp.".

    Public Officers to attend :Secretary for Labour and Welfare
    Secretary for Development

  3. Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

    Secretary for Development to move the following motion:

    RESOLVED that the Building (Refuse Storage and Material Recovery Chambers and Refuse Chutes) (Amendment) Regulation 2008, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 125 of 2008 and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 21 May 2008, be amended, in section 3, in the new regulation 3A(5), by repealing ", boarding house, hostel or dormitory" and substituting "or boarding house".

    Other Public Officer to attend: Secretary for the Environment

  4. Proposed resolution under the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance

    Secretary for Transport and Housing to move the following motion:

    RESOLVED that the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance (Cap. 109) be amended, in Part III of Schedule 1 -

    (a)in paragraph 1B(a), by repealing "30 November 2009" and substituting "13 July 2008";

    (b)by repealing paragraph 1B(b) and substituting -

    "(b) from 14 July 2008, at $0 per litre.".

V. Members' Motions

  1. Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

    Hon Albert CHAN to move the following motion:

    RESOLVED that the Food Business (Amendment) Regulation 2008, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 185 of 2008 and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 2 July 2008, be repealed.

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Food and Health

  2. Valedictory Motion

    Hon Miriam LAU: (Translation)

    That this Council concludes its work and wishes for the smooth formation of the fourth Legislative Council to continue to serve the people of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

    Public Officer to attend : The Chief Secretary for Administration
Clerk to the Legislative Council