A 08/09-7

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 12 November 2008 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers

Subsidiary Legislation / Instruments		L.N. No.
1.	Allowances to Jurors (Amendment) Order 2008	L.N. 240/2008
2.	Antiquities and Monuments (Declaration of Historical Buildings) (No. 3) Notice 2008	L.N. 241/2008
3.	Employees Retraining Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 3) (No. 2) Notice 2008	L.N. 244/2008
4.	Technical Memorandum for Allocation of Emission Allowances in Respect of Specified Licences	S.S. No. 5 to Gazette No. 45/2008

Other Papers

1.	No. 26	-	Construction Workers Registration Authority Annual Report 2007-2008
(to be presented by the Secretary for Development)
2.	No. 27	-	Report of changes to the approved Estimates of Expenditure approved during the second quarter of 2008-2009 Public Finance Ordinance : Section 8
(to be presented by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury)

II. Questions

1. Hon Mrs Regina IP to ask: (Translation)

According to the latest "South Island Line (East) Preliminary Design Stage - Revised Proposal" made by the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL"), the section of the railway from the toll plaza of the Aberdeen Tunnel to Lei Tung via Wong Chuk Hang will be built on viaduct. Many members of the public are dissatisfied with the proposal, as the viaduct railway will generate noise, do damage to the environment and natural landscape, affect the long-term planning of the district in terms of conservation, tourism, commerce and trade, etc. and thus violate the principle of sustainable development. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	as MTRCL had indicated that the tunnel option for that section would delay the whole project by three years, whether the Government has looked into the reasons for that and the ways to prevent such delay; whether it is technically feasible to adopt the tunnel option for that section; if so, whether it knows why MTRCL still proposes the viaduct option for that section;
(b)	whether it has assessed the adverse impact of the viaduct option on the environment of that district and its long-term planning; and
(c)	in what aspects the viaduct option will better complement the overall planning of the development of Southern District than the tunnel option; how the Government ensures that the above railway project will not hinder the sustainable development of the Southern District?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

2. Hon WONG Sing-chi to ask: (Translation)

This September, a medical incident occurred in North District Hospital under the Hospital Authority ("HA"), in which a left mastectomy operation was inappropriately performed on a patient. The incident was caused by a confirmed malignant specimen of another patient being mistaken as taken from that patient. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:

(a)	it knows if HA has assessed whether the above medical incident involved deficiency in the system or human error, what procedures are presently in place to ensure that patients' laboratory and examination reports will not be mixed up, and what improvement measures HA will take to avoid the recurrence of similar incidents in the future;
(b)	it knows if HA will make compensation to the patient concerned and her family regarding the medical incident, and what criteria or mechanism are in place to ensure that the amount of compensation is fair and reasonable; and
(c)	the authorities will consider setting up an independent mechanism to handle matters relating to complaints, litigations and compensation arising from medical incidents?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

3. Hon Albert HO to ask: (Translation)

On the 20th of last month, CITIC Pacific Limited issued a profit warning revealing that the company had incurred huge losses due to the holding of leveraged foreign exchange contracts, even though the company had become aware of the exposure arising from such contracts as early as 7 September. This incident has aroused the concern of the public and investors, and the Securities and Futures Commission ("SFC") has also commenced investigation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it has found out if there are other listed companies in Hong Kong which have incurred losses due to the holding of similar contracts; if so, whether these listed companies have made timely announcements; if not, the reasons for that;
(b)	whether it knows, over the past three years, the number of profit warnings issued by companies listed in Hong Kong, the number of cases of whether listed companies have made timely announcements of price-sensitive information investigated by SFC, and if SFC has imposed penalties on the listed companies of the substantiated cases; if penalties have been imposed, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(c)	whether it will step up regulation on listed companies to ensure that they strictly comply with the relevant legislation and the Listing Rules and disclose information properly to eradicate insider trading, and hence safeguard investors' interest?

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

4. Hon KAM Nai-wai to ask: (Translation)

In its reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council in April this year, the Government said that it would study the designation of "low emission zones" which would deny access to pre-Euro and Euro I buses so as to improve roadside air quality within the zones. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the commencement date of the aforesaid study, its latest progress and projected completion date, and whether it will make reference to the arrangements and experience of other places in the designation of "low emission zones";
(b)	given that the Government has said that the designation of "low emission zones" may shift the roadside air pollution problem to other areas, whether franchised buses will be included in the current incentive scheme for encouraging owners to replace their old-model diesel commercial vehicles; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(c)	of the respective numbers of new buses to be purchased and old buses to be scrapped by franchised bus companies in the next three years; whether it will request franchised bus companies to expedite the pace of replacing old buses, so as to complement the implementation of the "low emission zones" scheme?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

5. Hon WONG Yuk-man to ask: (Translation)

In a US Congress hearing on the 23rd of last month, the former Chairman of the United States ("US") Federal Reserve Board conceded that the market-driven ideology did not work any more. Thereafter, in response to the financial tsunami, the Government has set up the Task Force on Economic Challenges ("Task Force"), and its members are almost exclusively elites of the business sector with no representative from the grass-roots and the small and medium enterprises ("SMEs"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it will review the use, since many years ago, of "big market, small government" as its principle of governance, so as to avoid the situation of its policy being tilted in favour of tycoons;
(b)	what "opportunities" it has identified in this financial tsunami, whether they include massive transformation of industries, integration of the Pearl River Delta Region and return of industrial operations, and of the details of these "opportunities"; and
(c)	why representatives with popular support from the grass-roots and SMEs are excluded from the Task Force; and in the face of extensive business closures and surges in bankruptcies and unemployment to be brought about by the financial tsunami, whether the Government will provide specific estimates on the numbers of businesses closing down and bankruptcy cases in this year for reference of the Task Force, thereby assisting it in formulating concrete proposals to help SMEs and the grass-roots tide over the difficult times, such as converting the existing Support for Self-reliance Scheme to an unemployment assistance scheme without any conditions; if it will, of the specific figures and details of the proposals?

Public Officer to reply : The Financial Secretary

6. Hon WONG Kwok-kin to ask: (Translation)

Since 1 September this year and for 12 consecutive months, the Government has been crediting a subsidy of $300 each month into each residential electricity account for offsetting billed charges for electricity consumed under the same account. Any unused credited subsidy in a month can be carried forward for use in the following months until 31 August 2014 or closure of the account, whichever is the earlier. Therefore, if a customer moves home and closes his electricity account, the unused portion of the credited subsidy cannot be used further. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	as residents in the Lower Ngau Tau Kok Estate will need to be transferred soon due to the redevelopment of the Estate, and the majority of them are elderly persons with a low level of electricity consumption, they will not be able to carry forward the unused portion of their credited subsidy to the account of their new units, of the number of households to be affected, the number of phases by which the transfer exercise will be carried out, the duration of the transfer exercise, and the number of households involved in each phase;
(b)	as residents of the Estate need to be transferred due to redevelopment and are not moving out of their own accord, whether the Government will make special arrangements to allow them to carry forward all unused portions of the subsidy credited to their accounts prior to the removal for further use in the accounts of the units they will move into; and
(c)	whether it will make the same arrangement for all other households moving home within the period during which the subsidy on electricity charges can be used; if not, of the reasons for that?

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

*7. Dr Hon David LI to ask:

The Chief Executive reiterated in his 2008-2009 Policy Address that legislation would be introduced to implement a statutory minimum wage system. In its study report published in 2005, a political party proposed that the statutory minimum wage system should have the effect of encouraging Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA") recipients to return to the labour force and, therefore, the minimum wage should be set at a level such that the total work income of a household would be higher than the amount of CSSA payments the household would receive if all its members did not work. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of the following, broken down by household size:

(a)	the number of households which currently rely solely on CSSA for subsistence, and the median monthly CSSA payments these households receive; and
(b)	the number of households, other than those in (a), which have a monthly household income less than the median monthly CSSA payments currently received by CSSA households of the same size, and the median monthly income of the former?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

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

In connection with fostering the development of the agricultural and fisheries industries, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	apart from zoning lands for agricultural uses under the Town Planning Ordinance (Cap. 131) and strictly regulating changes of agricultural land use, of other proactive measures currently in place to encourage the industry to rehabilitate abandoned agricultural lands and to increase the income of farmers;
(b)	whether it will, by making reference to the successful experience of Japan and Taiwan, proactively examine the establishment of an agricultural development fund to assist the agricultural industry in transforming into one which adopts advanced and new technologies and yields high value-added agricultural produce;
(c)	how it assists local farmers in opening up sales channels for organic produce;
(d)	whether it will consider implementing a pilot scheme to set up quality mariculture farms in vacant industrial buildings; and
(e)	given that it advised, in a paper submitted to this Council in May this year, that the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department planned to set up an experimental hatchery to develop fry hatching and breeding techniques, when such hatchery will be set up?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

*9. Hon LAU Kong-wah to ask:

Regarding the facilities of cycle tracks and the promotion of cycling tourism, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the number of complaints about the existing ancillary facilities of cycle tracks it received over the past three years, with a breakdown by the subject matter of such complaints; whether it has regularly inspected the existing facilities of cycle tracks and carried out improvement works with reference to public views;
(b)	whether it will, by making reference to the efforts of other places (for example Taiwan and Europe) in encouraging cycling tourism activities, study ways to promote cycling tourism, including providing cyclists with information such as suggested routes and notes for guidance; and
(c)	as there were several fatal traffic accidents involving bicycles in recent years, whether it has examined the ways to ensure the safety of cyclists when developing cycle track networks; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

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

Earlier this year, the Department of Health launched in full scale the "EatSmart@restaurant.hk" campaign, under which participating restaurants have promised to provide EatSmart Dishes every day, including "Dish with more Fruit and Vegetables" (which means that either fruit and vegetables are the sole ingredients, or their quantity is at least twice as much the amount of meat in the dish) and "3 Less Dish" (which means that the dish has less fat or oil, salt and sugar). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:

(a)	it has conducted a survey to gauge public response to the campaign, including the percentage of diners in these restaurants choosing EatSmart Dishes; if it has, of the survey results; if not, the reasons for that;
(b)	it has uncovered cases of participating restaurants not keeping the above promise, and what measures are in place to monitor whether these restaurants provide EatSmart Dishes; and
(c)	it will make reference to the recent efforts of New York City in the United States to promote healthier eating habits and encourage participating restaurants to list the caloric content of the dishes on the menu for reference of diners when choosing their dishes?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

Regarding the employment of students with disabilities and those with special educational needs upon their graduation, will the Government inform this Council whether:

(a)	it knows the number and percentage of such persons employed within the first year after graduation over the past three years, the main types of occupations in which they are engaged and their present unemployment rate;
(b)	it has new measures to facilitate or encourage the employment of such persons by various government departments as well as public and private organizations; if so, of the details of the measures; if not, the reasons for that; and
(c)	it has reviewed if sufficient training courses and employment support are currently provided to such persons; if it has, of the review results; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

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

It has been reported that the current financial tsunami has dealt a heavy blow to the recycling industry in that the recovery prices for waste paper and scrap metals have plummeted, thus affecting to varying degrees the workflow of waste recycling activities in the community. For instance, some recyclable waste collectors have ceased operation, some of those participating in the recycling programmes in housing estates have refused to accept certain kinds of metals and reduced the number of basic necessities items that can be exchanged with waste paper, which in turn have discouraged the public from participating in such programmes. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)

whether it has assessed the impact of the financial tsunami on activities to reduce waste and the work to promote waste recycling activities, including the impact on the recycling industry at various levels, the overall quantity of waste collected in the short term and medium term and the implementation of recycling programmes in the community by subvented community organizations and environmental groups; and

(b)

what measures, including those to assist the recycling industry, will be put in place to ensure that such recycling activities can continue to be carried out during an economic downturn?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

*13. Hon KAM Nai-wai to ask: (Translation)

It is learnt that the vehicular tunnel located beneath Garden Road, which connects Cheung Kong Center with Citibank Plaza, is a non-exclusive vehicular right of way and is required to be open for public use. However, the management companies of the two buildings installed vehicle gates and a traffic light near the exits of that access tunnel a few months ago, resulting in a longer journey time for vehicles using that tunnel. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether the above management companies had applied to the Transport Department and the Lands Department before installing the vehicle gates and the traffic light; if so, of the date on which the applications were made and the reasons for approving the applications; if not, whether the Government will examine if the installations are in breach of the terms of the land lease concerned or the relevant provisions of the Road Traffic (Traffic Control) Regulations (Cap. 374 sub. leg. G); if the installations are found to be in breach of the Regulations, whether the Government will institute prosecution, and whether the Commissioner for Transport will order the management companies to remove the above installations immediately?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

*14. Hon CHAN Tanya to ask: (Translation)

Quite a number of tertiary students and graduates have told me that repaying loans under the Non-means Tested Loan Schemes poses a heavy financial burden for graduates. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the respective loan amounts approved under each scheme in the past five academic years, the interest income thereof, and its related administrative expenses;
(b)	of the respective number of cases in each scheme with two or more consecutive quarterly instalments in default during the last academic year, and its respective amounts of principal and interest overdue;
(c)	whether it will make reference to the methods for determining interest rates and calculating interests in the means-tested Financial Assistance Scheme for Post-secondary Students and review the relevant arrangements for the Non-means Tested Loan Schemes; if it will, of the review timetable; if not, the reasons for that;
(d)	of the existing measures to recover arrears from defaulting borrowers and the effectiveness of such measures; whether it has reviewed the ways to recover arrears; if it has, of the review results and follow-up actions; if not, the reasons for that; and
(e)	whether new measures are in place to help borrowers with financial difficulties reduce their financial burden; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

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

The Government earlier indicated that in view of the increasing demand for emergency ambulance service ("EAS"), it was examining various options, including introducing a medical priority dispatch system, for better deployment of resources. Moreover, the Government would replace ambulances by phases so as to maintain the quality of EAS. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the current numbers of ambulances and ambulancemen in each division under the Ambulance Command;
(b)	whether the authorities will, apart from replacing the existing ambulances, consider increasing the numbers of ambulances and ambulancemen to cope with the increasing demand for the service; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(c)	of the details of the above study on the medical priority dispatch system (including the work arrangements for the proposed system)?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

*16. Ir Dr Hon Raymond HO to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that CITIC Pacific Limited has incurred huge losses due to the holding of leveraged foreign exchange contracts, and that the company may need to sell its assets to resolve the problem of liquidity crunch. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:

(a)	it has considered expeditiously buying, at a reasonable price, the shares of the Eastern Harbour Crossing and the Western Harbour Crossing held by the company, so as to adjust the tolls of the three road-harbour crossings, thereby resolving the long-term traffic congestion problem of the Cross-Harbour Tunnel and its link roads; if it has not, of the reasons for that; and
(b)	it has commenced negotiation with the management of the company regarding buying the company's shares of the road-harbour crossings; if it has not, of the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

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

In July this year, the Environmental Protection Department and the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department launched the "Guidelines to Account for and Report on Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Removals for Buildings of Commercial, Residential or Institutional Purposes in Hong Kong" to assist companies or organizations which have signed the Carbon Reduction Charter and become "Carbon Audit‧Green Partners" in conducting carbon audits on their buildings. In addition, in his policy address delivered last month, the Chief Executive proposed to partially subsidize building owners to conduct comprehensive energy and carbon audits and undertake energy efficiency projects. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the current number of companies or organizations which have become "Carbon Audit‧Green Partners";
(b)	whether it has determined the basic qualifications for the personnel or independent auditors commissioned to conduct carbon audits; if so, of the details of the qualifications;
(c)	given that the Government will legislate for the mandatory compliance of the Building Energy Codes, whether it will determine the professional qualifications of "Energy Auditors" or the like, so as to complement the carbon audit campaign and support the development of the profession;
(d)	whether the two aforesaid schemes for energy audits will include residential buildings, and of the implementation timetable for these schemes; and
(e)	whether it has considered including environmental and energy efficiency items in the current building maintenance subsidy schemes, so as to raise the awareness of owners to use green construction techniques such as rooftop greening?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

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

In a study report published on 24th last month, Morgan Stanley, an international investment bank, pointed out that since the outbreak of the financial tsunami, HSBC Holdings PLC ("HSBC Holdings") was the only financial institution in the world whose share price had not experienced a sharp fall. Moreover, it estimated that HSBC Holdings would reduce its dividend payments. As such, it had adjusted downward HSBC Holdings' target share price to $75. On the same day, the share price of HSBC Holdings dropped from $95 to $88 and further to $75 on 27th last month. Some members of the public doubted if the above situation involved short selling activities. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council whether:

(a)	it will investigate if someone had deliberately disseminated news unfavourable to HSBC Holdings and gained profits from the fall of the company's share price through short selling activities; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(b)	it will follow the practice of various financial markets in Europe and the United States to ban short selling activities so as to maintain the stability of our financial system and strengthen investors' confidence; if it will not, of the reasons for that?

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

*19. Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that as Hong Kong has recently been hit by the global financial tsunami, the waste paper recycling industry has shrunk significantly. Due to the lack of orders, major recyclable waste collectors have suspended the collection of waste paper, and it is uncertain when the situation will return to normal. It has also been reported that a waste paper mill has accumulated some 900 tons of waste paper in one week. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it has uncovered cases of recyclable waste collectors dumping the accumulated waste paper in the landfills; if so, how it will handle such waste which has suddenly increased to a large quantity;
(b)	whether it will consider reducing the rents for the government sites which have been leased to recyclable waste collectors on short-term tenancies, so as to help them tide over the present difficult times;
(c)	how the Government determines when it is necessary to coordinate or assist the operation of the recycling industry; and
(d)	given that it has been reported that the shrinkage of the recycling industry will further shorten the life of the three landfills, whether the Government has comprehensively reviewed the current environmental protection policy, so as to prevent our environment from deteriorating as a result of the shrinkage of the recycling industry?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

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

The Administration stated in its reply to my question on 29th October that it "shall write to The Link Management Limited and urge the latter to try to assist small tenants in its properties and provide them with appropriate support measures, so as to help them tide over the difficulties arising from the current financial crisis". In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council whether:

(a)	they have written to The Link Management Limited ("The Link"); if they have, of the date and content of the letter, and whether The Link has replied to the letter; if so, of the details of the reply;
(b)	they will write to the proprietors of other major shopping malls to make the same appeal; if they will not, of the reasons for that;
(c)	they will find out from The Link and the proprietors of other shopping malls the levels of increase in shop rental and the number of tenants whose tenancy agreements have been terminated since this year; and
(d)	they have plans to lower the rental of the shops under the Government in order to help the tenants tide over their financial difficulties; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

*For written reply.

III. Members' Motions

1. Proposed resolution under the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance
   
   Ir Dr Hon Raymond HO to move the following motion:
   
   That the Subcommittee to Study Issues Arising from Lehman Brothers-related Minibonds and Structured Financial Products be authorized under section 9(2) of the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance (Cap. 382) to exercise the powers conferred by section 9(1) of the Ordinance for the purpose of studying issues arising from Lehman Brothers-related minibonds and structured financial products and making recommendations where necessary.
   
   Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

2. Alleviating the burden of fuel costs on the public and relevant trades
   
   Hon Miriam LAU: (Translation)
   
   That, as the drop in international oil prices has accelerated recently, yet the local fuel retail prices have only been reduced to a limited extent, resulting in fuel prices remaining persistently high, which causes people to query whether oil companies are "quick in raising prices but slow in reducing them" and engaging in "price cheating"; in order to safeguard the interests of the public and relevant trades, and to alleviate their burden of fuel costs, this Council urges the Government to:
   
   

   (a)	press oil companies to immediately reduce the local fuel prices according to the level of reductions in international oil prices;
   (b)	introduce a fair competition law to enhance the monitoring and effective regulation of the auto-fuel market, so as to prevent market monopoly and ensure that fuel retail prices are fair and reasonable;
   (c)	request oil companies to re-introduce petrol of 95 octane rating, so as to provide more choices for consumers and reduce their unnecessary burden;
   (d)	strive to explore more supply sources of processed oil to enable real competition in the market;
   (e)	publish more detailed data on the prices of international oil products and the import prices of local oil products, so that the public can more effectively monitor the changes in oil prices;
   (f)	actively consider implementing the introduction of price regulation in the tendering of petrol filling station sites; and
   (g)	reduce the duty on unleaded petrol to alleviate the burden on car owners.

   Amendments to the motion

   (i)	Hon CHAN Hak-kan: (Translation) To add "oil and gaseous fuel" after "yet the local fuel"; to add "oil and gaseous fuel" after "resulting in fuel"; to add "oil and gaseous fuel" after "burden of fuel"; to delete "fuel" after "reduce the local"; to add "of auto-fuel, marine fuel and industrial fuel as well as gaseous fuel" before "according to the level of reductions"; to delete "auto-fuel" after "effective regulation of the" and substitute with "fuel oil and gaseous fuel"; to add "oil and gaseous fuel" after "ensure that fuel"; to add "and assist the development of the local biofuel industry" after "processed oil"; to add "and gaseous fuel" after "the prices of international oil"; to add "and gaseous fuel" after "import prices of local oil"; and to add "and gaseous fuel" after "the changes in oil".
   (ii)	Hon WONG Kwok-hing: (Translation) To delete "fuel" after "yet the local"; to add "of fuel oil and auto liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)" before "have only been reduced"; to add "oil and LPG" after "resulting in fuel"; to add "oil and LPG" after "burden of fuel"; to add "oil and LPG" after "reduce the local fuel"; to add "and LPG" after "reductions in international oil"; to delete "market" after "the auto-fuel" and substitute with "and LPG market"; to add "oil and LPG" after "ensure that fuel"; to delete "and" after "petrol filling station sites;"; and to add "; and (h) increase the number of dedicated LPG filling stations to alleviate the burden on drivers of LPG taxis and public light buses, and increase the number of auto LPG filling nozzles to shorten the queuing time for drivers to refill their LPG vehicles" immediately before the full stop.
   (iii)	Hon Fred LI: (Translation) To add "and at present the pricing information on some fuel products is not transparent enough," after "persistently high,"; to delete "and" after "petrol filling station sites;"; and to add "; and (h) request oil companies to publish the pricing criteria for central liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and domestic cylinder LPG, and review their prices once a month, so as to increase the transparency of the prices of LPG products" immediately before the full stop.

   Public Officer to attend : Secretary for the Environment

3. Supporting small and medium enterprises to tide over the financial tsunami
   
   Hon Vincent FANG: (Translation)
   
   That, being struck by the global financial tsunami, many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and small shop operators in Hong Kong have to face diminishing consumers' confidence and shrinking business turnover, as well as the banks' recent substantial tightening of credit and delayed reimbursement of payment for customers' purchases, resulting in many SMEs and small shop operators which have been operating soundly and steadily being pushed to the brink of collapse; and in particular, for those non-exporting local consumption industries not supported by government policy, including the wholesale, retail, catering and service industries which employ over 1.2 million of the local workforce, should they close down because of the banks' tightening of credit, a severe domino effect will definitely be triggered; hence this Council urges the Government to provide SMEs with more appropriate support, so as to enable them to tide over this difficult period; and the relevant measures should include:
   
   

   (a)	establishing an inter-departmental task force on sustainable development for supporting SMEs and revitalizing the economy to take charge of the study and implementation of policies on supporting SMEs, as well as the formulation of measures to stimulate the economy, so as to enable SMEs to sustain their business;
   (b)	in addition to the existing "SME Funding Schemes" which primarily aim at supporting export enterprises, formulating long-term plans to support the development of the industries engaging in local consumption, including the wholesale, retail, catering and service industries;
   (c)	strengthening the liaison between the Government and the banks with a view to encouraging the banks to provide robust credit facilities and credit card payment services to enterprises which have been operating soundly and steadily, so that they can continue their operation;
   (d)	providing guarantee for SMEs' trust receipts and accounts receivables by the Government, so as to enable them to continue utilizing the relevant financing arrangements;
   (e)	increasing the loan guarantee provided by the Government under the "SME Loan Guarantee Scheme" from the current 50% to 70% or above;
   (f)	extending the insurance coverage of the Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation to include local sales enterprises;
   (g)	waiving the rentals of all food markets, government markets and shopping arcades for one quarter and waiving the hawkers' licence fees for one year to reduce the operational expenses of staple food operators, so as to curb inflation; and
   (h)	holding over SMEs' provisional payment of profits tax for one year.

   Amendments to the motion

   (i)	Hon James TO: (Translation) To add "in anticipation of" after "That,"; to add "the Hong Kong economy is about to enter into recession; and" after "financial tsunami,"; to delete "providing guarantee for SMEs' trust receipts and accounts receivables by the Government, so as to enable them to continue utilizing the relevant financing arrangements; (e) increasing the loan guarantee provided by the Government under the 'SME Loan Guarantee Scheme' from the current 50% to 70% or above; (f) extending the insurance coverage of the Hong Kong Export Credit Insurance Corporation to include local sales enterprises; (g)" after "(d)"; to delete "and (h)" after "inflation" and substitute with "(e)"; and to add "; (f) formulating performance pledges to streamline procedures of government departments for making payments to SMEs which have been awarded government outsourced contracts so that payments will be settled within 30 days upon receipt of demand notes; and (g) repealing the provision that requires SMEs to pay deposits when they bid for government contracts" immediately before the full stop.
   (ii)	Hon CHAN Tanya: (Translation) To add "small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which employ a large number of workers, are the important pillars of Hong Kong economy, and" after "That,"; to delete "small and medium enterprises (SMEs)" after "financial tsunami, many" and substitute with "SMEs"; to delete "and" after "inflation;"; and to add "; (i) discussing with the Central Government and governments of those provinces and municipalities where there is a relatively large number of factories set up by Hong Kong SMEs, with a view to encouraging them to provide more support and concessions to SMEs; (j) providing more support for SMEs, including consultancy services and designated loan schemes, so as to assist them in complying with newly passed legislation and regulations amid the difficult business environment; and (k) further extending the scope of assistance provided under the SME Export Marketing Fund to enable SMEs to launch various types of promotional campaigns with greater flexibility" immediately before the full stop.
   (iii)	Hon WONG Ting-kwong: (Translation) To delete "being" after "That," and substitute with "the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) which account for over 90% of Hong Kong's enterprises are severely"; to delete "small and medium enterprises (SMEs)" after "financial tsunami, many" and substitute with "Hong Kong's SMEs, including manufacturers operating in the Mainland"; to delete "in Hong Kong" after "small shop operators" and substitute with ","; to delete "delayed reimbursement of payment for customers' purchases" after "credit and" and substitute with "delay of settlement period for credit cards"; to delete "; and in particular, for those non-exporting local consumption industries not supported by government policy" after "collapse"; to add ", causing an unemployment crisis" after "triggered"; to delete "more appropriate" after "provide SMEs with"; to delete "which primarily aim at supporting export enterprises" after " 'SME Funding Schemes' "; to delete "provide robust" after "banks to" and substitute with "maintain the original"; to add "drawing reference from the practice adopted during the SARS outbreak in 2003 for the Government to provide 100% credit guarantee for industries with difficulties; (g) further" after "(f)"; to add "and scale" after "insurance coverage"; to delete "to include local sales enterprises" after "Corporation"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(h)"; to delete "curb inflation; and" after "operators, so as to" and substitute with "relieve the pressure on shop operators and the public;"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(i)"; and to add "; and (j) reflecting to the Mainland Government to urge mainland banks to provide Hong Kong's SMEs with the same credit terms and interest rates as those granted to mainland enterprises, extend the domestic sales of Hong Kong's SMEs in the mainland market, reduce tax and tariff, and hold over the implementation of certain provisions of the 'Labour Contract Law' " immediately before the full stop. Amendment to Hon WONG Ting-kwong's amendment Hon Miriam LAU: (Translation) To delete "for the Government to provide" after "2003" and substitute with "to launch a series of new relief measures, including reducing government fees and charges, providing"; and to add "by the Government and extending the period for credit applications by at least one year, and allowing revolving loans for enterprises, at the same time, broadening the definitions of SMEs under the SME Funding Schemes to cover more enterprises and small shop operators, and striving for the Central Government to further expand the Individual Visit Scheme at an early date so as to attract more mainland tourists to spend money in Hong Kong" after "difficulties".
   (iv)	Hon Jeffrey LAM (Translation) To add "Hong Kong" after "That,"; to delete "many small and medium enterprises (SMEs)" after "financial tsunami," and substitute with "industrial and commercial enterprises"; to delete "in Hong Kong" after "small shop operators"; to delete "SMEs" after "in many" and substitute with "small and medium enterprises (SMEs)"; to delete "in particular" after "collapse; and" and substitute with "among them"; to delete "not supported by government policy" after "consumption industries"; to add "proposing," after "(b)"; to delete "which primarily aim at supporting export enterprises, formulating" after " 'SME Funding Schemes' " and substitute with "formulation of"; to add "following the approach of the United Kingdom whereby the Government injects funds into banks and designates such funds as loans for enterprises;" after "(d)"; to delete "SMEs" after "guarantee for" and substitute with "enterprises' "; to delete "local sales enterprises" after "to include" and substitute with "non-export loans, so as to enable more suppliers and service industries to benefit from it"; and to add "reducing various types of business license fees across the board," after "(g)".

   Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
   
   
   

Clerk to the Legislative Council