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A 08/09-27
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 13 May 2009 at 11:00 am
I. Tabling of Papers
| Subsidiary Legislation / Instruments | No.
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| 1. | Food Business (Amendment) Regulation 2009 | L.N. 93/2009
| | 2. | Race Discrimination (Formal Investigations) Rules | L.N. 94/2009
| | 3. | Race Discrimination (Investigation and Conciliation) Rules | L.N. 95/2009
| | 4. | Code of Practice on Employment under the Race Discrimination Ordinance | G.N. 2733/2009
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Other Papers
| 1. | No. 89 | - | Early Retirement Ex-gratia Payment Fund for Aided Primary School Teachers
Audited Financial Statements together with the Report of the Director of Audit for the year ended 31 August 2008
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Education)
| | 2. | No. 90 | - | Early Retirement Ex-gratia Payment Fund for Aided Secondary School Teachers
Audited Financial Statements together with the Report of the Director of Audit for the year ended 31 August 2008
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Education)
| | 3. | No. 91 | - | Securities and Futures Commission
Approved Budget of Income and Expenditure for the Financial Year 2009/2010
| | (to be presented by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury)
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II. Questions
1. Hon Albert HO to ask: (Translation)
A sub-committee of the Law Reform Commission of Hong Kong ("LRC") issued in 1998 a consultation paper on the law relating to guardianship and custody of children, and issued between 2002 and 2005 four reports on related issues, including the report on Child Custody and Access. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that over a decade ago, England and Australia had carried out a reform of the law relating to arrangements for children after their parents' divorce by introducing a joint parental responsibility model, and the aforesaid report recommended that Hong Kong should follow the practices in those jurisdictions, whether the authorities have any plan to adopt the recommendation of LRC to implement Article 18 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child of the United Nations, which states that both parents have common responsibilities for the upbringing and development of their children; and
| | (b) | given that the aforesaid consultation paper has been issued for more than a decade, and the authorities indicated in 2005 that they were carefully studying the relevant recommendations in the four reports, but they have not yet reported to the Panel on Welfare Services of this Council the Government's stance, of the reasons for the slow progress of the study being carried out by the authorities; whether it has assessed if the recommendations of LRC and the relevant consultation outcome still meet current circumstances; whether the Government has a timetable for amending the law concerned?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
2. Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask: (Translation)
The Chief Executive announced in his 2007-2008 Policy Address the implementation of the 10 major infrastructure projects, which will commence one after another within the next few years. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the estimated quantity of construction and demolition ("C&D") waste to be generated by such projects in the next five years, and the respective quantities of such waste which will be transported to public fill banks for reuse and recycling, transported to the Mainland for reuse, and discarded at landfills;
| | (b) | whether it will specify in the building contracts for such projects the quantities of C&D waste which the contractors concerned must reuse; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and of the measures to be introduced to encourage contractors to reuse C&D waste during the construction periods; and
| | (c) | whether it will conduct a territory-wide large-scale and comprehensive environmental impact assessment to explore the impact of the noise, water and air pollution which will be generated by such projects during the construction periods on the overall environment of Hong Kong; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for the Environment
Secretary for Development |
3. Hon KAM Nai-wai to ask: (Translation)
In 2004, the Government incorporated the Chinese history of the period from 1976 to 2000 into the syllabus for the subject of Chinese History at senior secondary level. However, most existing textbooks on Chinese history have simplified and watered down the pro-democracy movement and the June 4th incident which happened in 1989, while the relevant Curriculum and Assessment Guide of the Education Bureau does not even mention these incidents at all. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether the authorities will clearly list the 1989 pro-democracy movement, along with significant events which have far-reaching influence on China, as a compulsory topic in the Curriculum and Assessment Guide for the subject of Chinese History under the three-year senior secondary academic structure;
| | (b) | given that the new senior secondary academic structure will be implemented soon, yet the historical information provided in existing textbooks on the 1989 pro-democracy movement and the June 4th incident is extremely inadequate, and the Education Bureau has recently sponsored the compilation of a teachers' special digest with a detailed account of the May 4th Movement, whether the Bureau will sponsor the compilation of an information compendium on the 1989 pro-democracy movement and the June 4th incident for teachers' reference; and
| | (c) | given that the subject of Liberal Studies under the three-year senior secondary academic structure will have elements to enhance the Chinese culture, civic awareness and national identity, whether the authorities will include the 1989 pro-democracy movement and the June 4th incident as topics for study, so that those senior secondary students who have not selected the subject of Chinese History will also have the opportunity to learn and reflect on these historical events?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education
4. Hon Starry LEE to ask: (Translation)
According to the survey results recently published by a political party, 80% of the respondents indicated that they felt the stress in facing the impact of the financial tsunami, and the number of people who sought medical treatment due to emotional problems had tripled as compared to the number at the end of last year. Moreover, the support hotline set up by the CEASE Crisis Centre of Tung Wah Group of Hospitals in view of the financial tsunami received a total of around 3 000 calls for assistance during the period between October last year and April this year and nearly 50% of the calls involved indebtedness, and the callers included owners of small and medium enterprises who were facing financial difficulty. Furthermore, the number of bankruptcy petitions received by the Official Receiver's Office in the first quarter of this year saw a year-on-year increase of over 50%. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that the longest median waiting time for new cases for psychiatric specialist out-patient service among all hospital clusters under the Hospital Authority was as long as 34 weeks in 2008-2009 (as at end of 2008), whether the Government has any plan to allocate additional resources, so as to shorten the waiting time for new cases for psychiatric specialist out-patient service; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether the Government has allocated additional fundings to non-governmental organizations ("NGOs") after the onset of the financial tsunami for them to meet the increasing demand of the public for emotional support services; if it has, of the additional fundings received by various NGOs and the dates of appropriation, broken down by the name of NGOs; whether the Government will consider making further allocation of additional fundings to NGOs according to their actual needs; if it will, of the details; and
| | (c) | whether it will arrange for professionals to provide assistance for people who have filed for bankruptcy and small and medium enterprises which are going through the liquidation procedure, including assisting them to negotiate with banks on extension of repayment schedules and restructuring of debts?
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| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
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5. Hon Paul CHAN to ask: (Translation)
Since the financial tsunami struck Hong Kong, more and more enterprises are expected to encounter difficulties in their operation. Yet, many of such enterprises are delivering quality products and services, their management are people with competence and integrity, and their modes of business are commercially viable, but they have fallen into financial difficulty only because the economic environment has deteriorated too rapidly. To give enterprises in financial difficulty a chance to turn around, quite a number of countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and some Asian countries have currently put in place statutory procedures whereby such enterprises are allowed to undergo debt restructuring during the "moratorium", so as to protect them from being wound up immediately, thereby preserving the "rice bowls" of many employees. Although the Second Legislative Council had started the scrutiny of the Companies (Corporate Rescue) Bill, the scrutiny work was subsequently held in abeyance on the request of the Government. The Government has announced earlier that it would start afresh the relevant legislative exercise. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the legislative timetable; whether it can manage to introduce the bill concerned into this Council within the first half of the 2009-2010 legislative session; if not, of the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether it has reviewed the reasons for the failure to enact a law on corporate rescue procedure during the Second Legislative Council; whether it has assessed the greatest barrier to the relevant legislative exercise this time, and how the Government plans to overcome such barriers; and
| | (c) | as it takes time to legislate, whether the Government has considered, apart from continuing to implement the Small and Medium Enterprises Loan Guarantee Scheme, immediately adopting other methods and measures to help enterprises in financial difficulty and their staff to tide over the difficult times?
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| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
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6. Hon LEUNG Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)
Although the Government had announced in November 2008 the lowering of the development densities of the above-station property development projects at the Nam Cheong Station and the Yuen Long Station along the West Rail, some residents nearby still relayed to me recently that the development densities of such development projects were still too high. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether the Government and its project agent, the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL"), have ascertained if there are still residents nearby and concern groups having reservations about or objecting the revised schemes of such development projects at present; if so, of the details;
| | (b) | whether the Government and MTRCL have any plan to enhance communication with the residents nearby, so as to ascertain if they generally support the revised schemes; and
| | (c) | whether the Government will assess again if the development densities of such development projects may be lowered further; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*7. Hon Ronny TONG to ask: (Translation)
The Civil Aviation Department ("CAD") is now working to replace the air traffic control ("ATC") system, and the new ATC system is expected to commence operation by the end of 2012. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of CAD's specific plans for the procurement of the various components of the new ATC system, and how it ensures that the new ATC system can cope with the continuous growth in air traffic volume, and comply with the standards of the relevant systems of the airports in the Pearl River Delta Region;
| | (b) | given that PCCW-HKT Telephone Limited has been providing technical operation and maintenance services for the ATC system of CAD since 2006 and is highly conversant with the various specification requirements of the ATC system, what measures CAD has to ensure a level playing field for all bidders to participate in the tendering of contracts for various components of the new ATC system; and
| | (c) | of the expenditure incurred by CAD on software update for the ATC system in each of the past five years, as well as the relevant estimated expenditure for the coming five years; and given the current economic downturn in Hong Kong, whether CAD will reduce the expenditure on the new ATC system, including deferring certain software updating work?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*8. Hon WONG Kwok-kin to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the participation of elderly people in social and public affairs, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the number of persons and its percentage in the population aged 60 or above who had registered as volunteers with the Social Welfare Department as at the end of April this year, as well as the percentage of that number in the total number of registered volunteers;
| | (b) | whether it has compiled statistics on the respective numbers of electors aged 60 or above who cast their votes in the 2007 District Council Election and the 2008 Legislative Council Election, and the respective percentages of such numbers in the total numbers of voters in the elections;
| | (c) | of the number and percentage of the non-official members of various advisory and statutory bodies who are aged 65 or above; whether the authorities will stipulate a minimum percentage of the number of elderly members in the total number of members of such bodies, so as to ensure that elderly people have sufficient opportunities to participate in social affairs and policy formulation work; and
| | (d) | whether it has clearly requested various policy bureaux and government departments to establish specific channels for elderly people to express their views, as well as to extensively consult elderly groups and collate the views of elderly people prior to the formulation of major policies?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
*9. Hon LEE Cheuk-yan to ask: (Translation)
Some voluntary agencies dedicated to serving ethnic minorities ("EM") have complained to me that although the drug abuse problem among EM youths (especially those of Nepalese descent) has become increasingly serious in recent years, such youths often have nowhere to turn to for assistance. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it has collected statistics on the abuse of drugs by EM youths in the past five years; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether it has collected statistics on the provision of relevant services for EM youths by various service units in the past five years, such as the District Youth Outreaching Social Work Teams, overnight outreaching teams, counselling centres for psychotropic substance abusers as well as drug treatment and rehabilitation centres; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and whether it has issued any guidelines to such service units to ensure that such persons have access to the relevant services; if it has issued such guidelines, of the details; if it has not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | given that the drug abuse problem among EM youths is increasingly serious, and the services they need as well as the skills required in providing services to them are different from those for youths of other ethnic groups, whether the Government has considered offering them tailor-made services (including outreaching, counselling and treatment services); if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security
*10. Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung to ask: (Translation)
In reply to my question on 1 April 2009 concerning subsidized care and attention ("C&A") places for the elderly, the Secretary for Labour and Welfare indicated that the Social Welfare Department "does not separately record the waiting time for individual residential care homes for the elderly. The waiting time......varies under different circumstances". In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it has used any means to enable the elderly people who are waiting for such places and their family members to know the circumstances that will affect their waiting time; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether it has adopted the simplest and most direct way to enable such elderly people and their family members to readily enquire about their position on the waiting list and estimate the duration for which they still have to wait, as well as to enable those elderly people who are waiting for admission to specific homes and their family members to enquire about such information; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | of the date when it last reviewed the mechanism and way of releasing information on the "waiting list for residential care services", the "waiting time for residential care services" and the "turn for placement offer for cases applying for residential care services"; whether it has provided channels for the public to express their opinions on the mechanism and way of releasing such information, and how it enabled them to know such channels?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
*11. Hon Tanya CHAN to ask: (Translation)
Recently, the survey results of an environmental group revealed that quite a number of publishers had attached a large quantity of promotional materials to and used unnecessary packaging for the textbook samples they sent to primary and secondary schools, and the relevant expenditure might jack up the prices of school textbooks. Moreover, quite a number of parents have relayed to me that the frequent issue of new editions of textbooks has denied them the opportunity to use old textbooks, and the high prices of textbooks impose a heavy financial burden on them. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that some teachers have relayed to me that at present publishers do not provide textbook prices when they send textbook samples to schools, making it impossible for schools to take into account the price factor when selecting textbooks, and this situation has indirectly increased the financial burden on parents, whether the Government will request publishers to provide information on textbook prices when they send textbook samples to schools; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether it will consider assessing more stringently if new editions of textbooks are really necessary; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | in view of the forthcoming implementation of the new senior secondary academic structure, and that the contents of senior secondary school textbooks will be drastically altered, whether the Government will consider seizing this opportunity to review the existing policies and measures for monitoring and regulating the publication of textbooks; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education
*12. Hon Abraham SHEK to ask: (Translation)
Some members of the construction industry have relayed to me that there has been a trend of ageing construction workforce in recent years and, upon the commencement of various major infrastructure projects, a serious shortage of construction workers is anticipated to emerge at the end of next year at the earliest, or in 2011. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it knows the progress of the discussions conducted earlier between the Construction Industry Training Authority and the Hong Kong Construction Association on issues such as the ageing workforce and entry pay in the construction industry, and when the outcome of such discussions will be announced;
| | (b) | of the details of the Construction Industry Youth Training Scheme jointly run by the Youth Work Experience and Training Scheme and the Construction Industry Council Training Academy, including the support rendered by the Government and the response of young people to the Scheme; how the authorities will step up the promotion of the Scheme, so as to attract young people (including new arrivals and ethnic minorities) to join the construction industry;
| | (c) | which trades in the construction industry are expected to experience a shortage of skilled workers in the coming three years, and the relevant shortfalls; what training strategies the Government will adopt in response to the situation; and whether it will allocate additional resources to provide more training places or trainee allowances for the trades concerned; and
| | (d) | what measures are in place to ensure that priority will be accorded to local construction workers in the recruitment exercises for future work projects?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*13. Hon Fred LI to ask: (Translation)
The results of a survey recently released by the Consumer Council ("CC") indicated that the two major supermarket chains very often substantially raised the prices of some goods before publicizing extensively that these goods were being sold at reduced prices, so as to create a false impression that the goods were real bargains, but the promotional prices of some of these goods were in fact higher than those prior to the price increase, and such practice of raising and then lowering the prices may arouse suspicion of misleading consumers. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
| (a) | at present it has measures and policies to deal with the aforesaid dishonest trade practices adopted by retailers; whether the Customs and Excise Department is authorized to carry out follow-up actions in respect of the retailers concerned; and whether the Government will provide additional resources to CC to step up monitoring the prices of supermarket goods;
| | (b) | it will provide support, through implementing policies such as offering rent concessions, for social enterprises and non-profit making organizations to operate cooperative societies which sell daily necessities, so as to break the oligopoly of major supermarkets; and
| | (c) | it will, in the long run, follow the practice adopted by the United Kingdom and Australia to legislate against the use of dishonest promotional tactics by retailers to mislead consumers?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
*14. Hon LEE Wing-tat to ask: (Translation)
Although the Government has all along pledged support for breast-feeding of babies, among the public accessible government premises as at 22 April 2009, most of those which have babycare rooms are maternal and child health centres and hospitals. Among the Government Offices in Hong Kong, only a total of three babycare rooms are provided in the Central Government Offices and Sha Tin Government Offices, and other government premises have very few babycare rooms. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council whether:
| (a) | the babycare and breast-feeding facilities in Government Offices and other government premises comply with the Advisory Guidelines on Babycare Facilities; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that and whether improvement schemes have been drawn up;
| | (b) | they had received complaints from the public in the past five years that there were not enough babycare rooms in government premises; if they had, of the details;
| | (c) | any member of the public had, in the past five years, requested the managers of government premises without babycare rooms to provide them with rooms for breast-feeding; if so, of the number of such cases, and whether the venues so provided complied with the specifications recommended in the aforesaid guidelines; and
| | (d) | more babycare rooms will be provided in Government Offices and other government premises (e.g. libraries and museums); if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
*15. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)
Some practitioners of the travel industry have complained to me that more and more people are operating, without a licence, travel agents' businesses (including selling air tickets, booking of hotel or guesthouse rooms and receiving inbound tour groups), dealing a heavy blow to the businesses of licensed travel agents. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | how the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, Tourism Commission, Travel Agents Registry and other relevant government departments currently handle and follow up complaints about the unlicensed operation of travel agents' businesses; whether there was a rising trend in the number of complaints received by such departments in the past three years and, among them, the respective numbers of cases which had been and had not been followed up; of the specific reasons for some cases not being followed up and details of such cases;
| | (b) | whether last year, it had conducted any survey on how the businesses of licensed travel agents had been affected by unlicensed operation; if it had, of the survey outcome; if not, whether it will conduct the survey expeditiously and study corresponding solutions; and
| | (c) | what measures are in place to eradicate the unlicensed operation of travel agents' businesses, so as to protect the interests of licensed travel agents?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
*16. Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to ask: (Translation)
I have recently received complaints from members of the public that the numerous types and colours of traffic signs in Hong Kong cause confusion to motorists and as a result, accidents are prone to occur. Moreover, it has been reported that quite a number of property management companies of private housing estates or large shopping malls in districts have recently put up directional signs of all types on government-owned traffic sign posts outside their properties, showing motorists the direction to drive towards the properties concerned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
| (a) | it will consider studying ways to simplify the shapes and colours of traffic signs for the convenience of motorists; and
| | (b) | it has looked into the situation of property management companies putting up directional signs that they designed on traffic sign posts outside their properties, and whether such acts are illegal; if they are, whether the authorities have instituted prosecutions against them, and whether at present there are government departments responsible for inspecting and removing directional signs on roads which have been erected without approval?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*17. Hon Albert CHAN to ask: (Translation)
At the Council meeting on 25 April 2007, I asked a question on curbing the illegal entry of mainland fishermen into Hong Kong waters for fishing. In reply, the Administration said that the government departments concerned would further strengthen the enforcement of the relevant legislation to prevent the illegal entry of fishing vessels from outside the territory for fishing, and would continue to combat such illegal activities. Yet, recently I still received requests for assistance from quite a number of members of the public, who said that the problem of mainland fishing vessels making illegal entry into the waters off Tai A Chau and Siu A Chau for fishing was still serious. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of last year's manning scale of Marine Police officers patrolling the waters south of Lantau (including the waters near Tai A Chau, Siu A Chau, Peng Chau and Cheung Chau);
| | (b) | of the number of cases involving mainland fishing vessels suspected of illegal entry for fishing, and the respective numbers of cases in which the persons involved were prosecuted and convicted last year; and
| | (c) | whether, apart from those law enforcement actions mentioned in its reply to the above question, the Government will consider curbing the illegal entry of mainland fishermen for fishing through increasing law enforcement resources, improving the prosecution mechanism and raising the penalty, so as to protect the interests of local fishermen and conserve the ecology of local waters; if it will, of the details of such measures; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security
*18. Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che to ask: (Translation)
In connection with the provision of social services to ethnic minorities, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the respective numbers of cases in each of the past three years in which the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") provided family and child protective services, clinical psychological service, social security service and probation service to ethnic minorities, as well as the respective numbers of cases in which integrated family services were provided to such people by SWD and subvented non-governmental organizations; if such figures are not available, whether the Government will start collecting the relevant data from this year onwards; if it will not, of the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether SWD had provided training to the staff concerned in the past three years to heighten their sensitivity to the cultural differences between various ethnic groups; if it had, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | apart from establishing regional support service centres for ethnic minorities, how the Government helps them overcome the difficulties they encounter in using social services?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
*19. Hon LAU Kong-wah to ask: (Translation)
Will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the number of Closed Road Permits issued to cross-boundary vehicles by the authorities in the past three years, together with a breakdown by the crossing which the vehicles were permitted to use;
| | (b) | of the respective volume/capacity ratios of various crossings during peak hours, off-peak hours and public holidays in the past three years;
| | (c) | whether it has studied if cross-boundary vehicles are currently too concentrated on using particular crossings to cross the boundary, and if such concentration has caused frequent traffic congestions on the roads in the vicinity of such crossings; if it has, of the outcome; and whether the authorities have adopted new measures to encourage cross-boundary vehicles to switch to use crossings where traffic is smoother for crossing the boundary; and
| | (d) | as the authorities are considering the introduction of an ad hoc quota system for cross-boundary private cars, which will be launched at the Shenzhen Bay Port first, of the implementation timetable and whether they will implement the system within this year?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*20. Hon Frederick FUNG to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the Digital Terrestrial Television ("DTT") officially launched on 31 December 2007, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the respective latest penetration rates of analogue and digital television;
| | (b) | whether it has conducted any survey on the prices of DTT receivers in the past 18 months; if so, of the relevant trend of price movements; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | as some members of the public have noticed that digital television signals are sometimes interrupted due to failure of the transmission stations, whether it knows the number of such failures since the launch of digital television broadcasting, the reasons for the failures and the time taken for repair; what follow-up measures the authorities have taken to reduce transmission station failures?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
* For written reply
III. Bills
First Reading
| | 1. | Dutiable Commodities (Amendment) Bill 2009
| | 2. | Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2009
| Second Reading (Debates to be adjourned)
| | 1. | Dutiable Commodities (Amendment) Bill 2009 | : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
| | 2. | Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2009 | : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
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IV. Members' Motions
- Enhancing the tax system to keep Hong Kong competitive
Hon Paul CHAN:
That, whereas the Hong Kong profits tax system has not kept pace with time and does not offer adequate incentives and concessions to help Hong Kong enterprises and manufacturers upgrade their business to improve their competitiveness; whereas improved competitiveness of Hong Kong enterprises and manufacturers will create more jobs and economic opportunities for the people of Hong Kong; whereas appropriate choice of tax incentives and concessions is a key inducement to drive business innovation and to lure business investment which can in turn improve the overall competitiveness of Hong Kong; and whereas tax issues are becoming increasingly complex yet setting the right tax policy is becoming ever more important to the overall competitiveness of Hong Kong; therefore, this Council urges the Administration to:
| (a) | amend the Inland Revenue Ordinance or otherwise to provide for appropriate tax incentives or concessions or other features to encourage business upgrading, drive business innovation, stimulate business investment and foster economic growth, such tax incentives or concessions or features shall include but not limited to the following:
| | (i) | tax loss carry-back provisions, with appropriate dollar cap for the loss that can be carried back and an appropriate maximum number of years to which tax loss carry-back can be applied;
| | (ii) | group tax loss relief, to be available only to wholly-owned and near wholly-owned subsidiaries within the same group of companies;
| | (iii) | allowance for capital expenditure incurred on plant or machinery physically located outside Hong Kong (e.g. on the Mainland) and which are used in processing trade arrangements producing profits assessable in Hong Kong; and
| | (iv) | profits tax reduction and tax credits on foreign withholding tax, with appropriate anti-avoidance provisions, to make Hong Kong a choice location for regional offices and service centres for group companies;
| | (b) | identify and evaluate further changes, enhancements, initiatives and priorities, as appropriate, in respect of tax policy principles and tax administration practices, in order to further improve the overall competitiveness of Hong Kong's tax system; and
| | (c) | establish a specialist 'tax policy unit', to be staffed by sufficiently senior personnel with relevant technical knowledge and practical experience, to conduct research and provide policy formulation support to the Administration, in order to enable a continued and focused effort at identifying and evaluating changes, enhancements, initiatives and priorities to better Hong Kong's tax policy and tax administration practices.
| | Amendments to the motion
| | (i) | Hon Vincent FANG:
To delete "whereas the Hong Kong profits tax system has not kept pace with time and does not offer" after "That," and substitute with "on the basis of maintaining Hong Kong's simple and low tax system,"; to delete "to help Hong Kong enterprises and manufacturers" after "adequate incentives and concessions" and substitute with "should be offered to industrial and commercial enterprises in Hong Kong to help them"; to add "(a) regularly review and update the legislation and code of practice on taxation in Hong Kong, so as to enhance the clarity and enforceability of the tax stipulations in Hong Kong and, in particular, provide greater certainty in the concept of charging profits tax according to the 'territorial source principle', with a view to consolidating Hong Kong's status as an international financial centre and the regional headquarter of enterprises;" after "this Council urges the Administration to:"; to delete the original "(a)" and substitute with "(b)"; to delete "and" after "profits assessable in Hong Kong;"; to add "and (v) tax deductions for research and development expenditures to be increased to a rate of at least 200%, and full tax deductions for the purchase of trademarks and brand names, so as to encourage product research and development and promote the development of creative industries;" after "group companies;"; to delete the original "(b)" and substitute with "(c)"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(d)"; and to delete "establish" before "a specialist" and substitute with "study the establishment of".
| | (ii) | Hon Albert HO:
To delete "amend" after "(a)" and substitute with "study amending"; to delete "and" after "profits assessable in Hong Kong;"; to add "and (v) provision of tax concessions whereby the costs incurred by companies for employee training and purchase of environment-friendly facilities, etc are deductible from assessable profits and the amount of deduction allowable should be double the amount of the costs incurred, so as to encourage companies to provide in-service training for their employees and protect the environment; (b) study the introduction of a two-tier profits tax system whereby the profits tax rate for those companies with assessable profits of $10 million or above should be raised by 1.5%, while such tax rate for other companies should remain unchanged, so as to achieve a progressive and fair profits tax system as well as increase the government revenue to support the Government in promoting more measures to create employment, stabilize the economy and alleviate people's hardship; (c) abolish the standard rate of salaries tax so that taxpayers will pay their salaries tax according to marginal tax rates on the basis that the higher the income, the more the amount of tax payable and vice versa, so as to narrow the gap between the rich and the poor;" after "group companies;"; to delete the original "(b)" and substitute with "(d)"; and to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(e)".
Amendment to Hon Albert HO's amendment
Hon Ronny TONG:
To add "abolition of the provisional tax, and reduction of the unnecessary economic, operational and administrative procedures and costs borne by the business sector, with the small and medium enterprises in particular; and also study the" before "introduction of a two-tier profits tax system"; and to add "the provisional tax and" before "the standard rate of salaries tax".
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
- Proposed establishment of a Tourism Bureau with dedicated responsibility for handling tourism issues
Hon Paul TSE: (Translation)
That, in order to promote the development of Hong Kong's tourism industry in a more effective and systematic manner, this Council urges the Government to:
| (a) | establish a 'Tourism Bureau' and confer dedicated powers and responsibilities on the 'Secretary for Tourism' to formulate tourism policies and take charge of the business of the Bureau, including coordinating the various organizations which regulate and promote the development of tourism, such as placing the Hong Kong Tourism Board (which is responsible for marketing and promotion), the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong (which is responsible for regulating travel agents) and the Travel Agents Registry (which is responsible for the licensing of travel agents) within the purview of the Tourism Bureau, and immediately review and abolish over-lapping structures and work procedures, so that the departments can focus on their respective responsibilities and cut down expenditure;
| | (b) | confer on the 'Secretary for Tourism' the authority to represent the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government to attend meetings organized by travel organizations worldwide, and directly liaise with the official tourism representatives of various places to handle and promote tourism-related policies and issues;
| | (c) | assign departments with specific responsibilities to take charge of (i) sea and land transport that primarily serves tourism; (ii) hotel business; (iii) the management and development of tourist attractions; and (iv) tourists' protection and complaints, so as to ensure that every tourism-related issue is efficiently and directly handled by a corresponding department;
| | (d) | authorize the 'Tourism Bureau' to take over the jurisdiction on hotel licensing to formulate a licensing regulation and rating mechanism, so as to safeguard the rights of tourists;
| | (e) | formulate a regulatory and rating mechanism for tourist attractions and coordinate and promote the development of new tourist attractions, so as to safeguard the right to know and consumers' rights of both local and inbound tourists;
| | (f) | confer financial power on the 'Tourism Bureau' to handle applications for huge expenses for promoting tourism, determine the establishment and remuneration arrangement of the organizations within the purview of the Bureau, regularly review the accumulated balance of the Travel Industry Compensation Fund and adjust the level of stamp levy, reduce the licence fees of travel agents, and abolish the 'Council Levy' which was previously used for operating the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, so as to reduce the operating costs of the industry;
| | (g) | establish a contingency mechanism under the 'Tourism Bureau' to handle tourism-related crises, review the existing mechanism for issuing 'travel advices' and 'travel warnings' and its efficiency, and arrange Hong Kong tourists stranded overseas to return to Hong Kong;
| | (h) | ensure that the departments under the 'Tourism Bureau' fully seek the views of the representatives of the tourism industry and invite operators of the industry to take part in policy formulation, so that the policies will closely follow the needs of the market; and
| | (i) | strive to encourage and assist community organizations and private enterprises in exploring, conserving and developing tourist facilities, and organizing and promoting tourist events or projects that have local characteristics or are appealing to tourists.
| Amendment to the motion
Hon Fred LI: (Translation)
To add "as members of the Board of Directors of the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, which is currently responsible for regulating travel agents, are mainly from the tourism industry, this has given rise to a phenomenon of people in the industry regulating people in the industry;" after "That,"; to delete "establish" after "(a)" and substitute with "consider establishing"; to delete "and confer dedicated powers and responsibilities on the 'Secretary for Tourism' " after "a 'Tourism Bureau' " and substitute with "or setting up a statutory body"; to delete "and take charge of the business of the Bureau" after "tourism policies"; to add "or the statutory body" after "the Tourism Bureau"; to delete " 'Secretary for Tourism' " after "confer on the" and substitute with " 'Tourism Bureau' or the statutory body"; to add "or the statutory body" after "authorize the 'Tourism Bureau' "; to add "or the statutory body" after "power on the 'Tourism Bureau' "; to add "or the statutory body" after "purview of the Bureau"; to add "or the statutory body" after "mechanism under the 'Tourism Bureau' "; and to add "or the statutory body" after "departments under the 'Tourism Bureau' ".
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
Clerk to the Legislative Council
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