A 08/09-31

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 3 June 2009 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers

Subsidiary Legislation / InstrumentsL.N. No.
1.Ozone Layer Protection Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule) Order 2009114/2009
2.Tax Reserve Certificates (Rate of Interest) (No. 3) Notice 2009115/2009

II. Questions

1. Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the implementation of policies relating to children, will the Government inform this Council whether:
    (a)the authorities have no intention at present to set up a Commission on Children; if they have such an intention, of the timetable; and

    (b)the Government has set up any mechanism specially for coordinating and dealing with policies relating to children at present, so as to deal with the problems arising from the implementation of the Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme, the provision of subsidy to needy students for payment of Internet access charges, and the difficulties encountered by students with specific learning difficulties studying in mainstream schools?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
Secretary for Education

2. Hon Fred LI to ask: (Translation)

At the special meeting of the Panel on Financial Affairs held on 21 May, the Financial Secretary ("FS") revealed that he had appointed a three-member selection team to make recommendations to him on the candidates for the successor of the Chief Executive ("CE") of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority ("HKMA"), and a retired personnel consultant had been appointed to assist the team, and that the selection exercise concerned had already reached the final stage. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)as it has been reported that the selection team had already commenced work at the end of last year, of the reasons for FS not making immediate announcement; and of the relationship between the selection team and the Governance Sub-Committee of the Exchange Fund Advisory Committee;

    (b)of the work procedures of the selection team and its criteria for selecting candidates, as well as the reasons for the selection team not reporting its work to the public; whether any head-hunting agency has been engaged to assist the selection team and whether the aforesaid personnel consultant was providing assistance free of charge; and

    (c)of the reasons for not conducting an open recruitment for the post of the CE of HKMA?
Public Officer to reply : The Financial Secretary

3. Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung to ask: (Translation)

While the Government has reduced in this financial year the rent for short term tenancies of government land by 20% for three months, some operators of temporary car parks operating on government land under short term tenancies have recently increased the parking fees of their car parks. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has surveyed the situation of parking fee revision of these car parks after the rental reduction by the Government; if it has, of the number of car parks which have lowered the parking fees and the percentage of the number of these car parks in the total number of the car parks concerned; if not, whether it plans to do so;

    (b)given that it has been reported that about half of the temporary car parks are currently run by four major tenant-operators, how the Government ensures that the rental reduction of government land will ultimately benefit the many hirers of parking spaces instead of a few tenants of the land; and

    (c)given that in reply to a question of this Council on 11 December 2002, the Government stated that instead of setting the parking fees for container vehicles itself, it would allow the market to determine the fees in order to minimize government interference in the private operators' commercial activities, but some container truck drivers have pointed out that the above measure of reducing rental of government land had already interfered with market operation, whether the Government will consider introducing certain terms (e.g. obliging operators of car parks to reduce the parking fees correspondingly) in its rental reduction next time, so as to ensure that the rental concession will benefit hirers of parking spaces?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

4. Hon Andrew CHENG to ask: (Translation)

Tomorrow is the 20th anniversary of the June 4th massacre. I have learnt that Mr Yang Jianli and Mr Wang Dan, who are democracy activists, as well as Mr Jen Galschiot, who is a sculptor from Denmark, wish to come to Hong Kong to participate in the memorial activities concerned, but they have all been refused entry. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that during the period approaching June 4th each year in the past, a number of democracy activists had been refused entry to participate in the memorial activities concerned, and each time the authorities indicated that they had processed the cases according to the established procedures, of the details of such procedures;

    (b)whether it has previously exchanged information on democracy activists with the mainland security authorities and other government departments for processing applications for entry to Hong Kong by these people; and

    (c)whether there is a blacklist of democracy activists who are barred from entry?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

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

People from the social welfare sector have often relayed to me that the Social Welfare Department, while urging subvented non-governmental organizations not to accumulate excessive Lump Sum Grant Reserves, has itself retained a huge balance in the Lotteries Fund and not used the funds to provide additional subsidized nursing home ("NH") places and care-and-attention ("C&A") home places for the elderly, ignoring the situation that a total of 19 006 elderly people passed away in the past five years while waiting for those places. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the current balance of the Lotteries Fund, the amount of funds allotted to investments between March 2007 and March 2009 and the investment returns, as well as the interest income in the past five years;

    (b)whether the authorities will take the initiative to allocate funds from the Lotteries Fund to fully subsidize the subsidized NH homes and C&A homes currently located in detached buildings to build additional storeys, and to fully subsidize non-governmental organizations to convert the premises of the several dozens of primary and secondary schools which have ceased operation into such homes, so as to optimize the use of land, increase the number of such residential places, shorten the waiting time for places and create job opportunities; if they will, when they will implement the plan; if not, of the reasons for that; which vacated school premises had been converted into those homes in the past three years and when those conversion works commenced; and

    (c)whether the Secretary for Labour and Welfare sought additional funding for the current financial year from the Financial Secretary so as to provide additional residential places to shorten the waiting time and reduce the number of elderly people who pass away while waiting for the places; if he did, when he made the request and the response received; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

6. Hon Vincent FANG to ask: (Translation)

Earlier, an article written by a doctor entitled "Contraband cigarettes and counterfeit cigarettes do more harm to health" pointed out that 50 to 70 per cent of the contraband cigarettes seized by the Customs and Excise Department ("C&ED") were counterfeit cigarettes, and it cited the laboratory results of a primary health services trust fund in London that the tar level in counterfeit cigarettes there was 75% higher than that in genuine cigarettes. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the quantity of cigarettes in respect of which duty was paid, the revenue collected on tobacco duty and the quantity of contraband cigarettes seized by C&ED, since the increase of tobacco duty rate by 50% on 25 February this year; how such figures compare with those of the same period in each of the past three years;

    (b)of the ratio of counterfeit cigarettes to genuine ones in the contraband cigarettes seized by C&ED in the past three years; how the Government currently distinguishes counterfeit ones from genuine ones among the contraband cigarettes; whether it has conducted laboratory tests on the counterfeit contraband cigarettes seized, so as to check whether they contain more harmful substances than genuine cigarettes; and

    (c)given that the former Financial Secretary pointed out in his 1999-2000 Budget Speech that "increasing tobacco duty will only enhance the attractiveness of contraband cigarettes and provide further impetus to smuggling and illegal sale. It would be counter-productive in revenue terms and would contribute little to furthering our anti-smoking policy", whether the significant increase in tobacco duty in this financial year indicates a change of the Government's position on the effectiveness of increasing tobacco duty, and what specific measures are in place to prevent the Government's anti-smoking efforts from failing on the verge of success due to rampant contraband cigarette trading activities?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

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

Some members of the public have relayed to me that the signals of the local mobile phone networks ("local networks") are weak at a number of tourist attractions on Lantau Island such as Ngong Ping, Tai O and Cheung Sha, and their mobile phones at these locations are often connected to the networks on the Mainland ("mainland networks"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether in the past three years it had tested the strength of local network signals at the tourist attractions on Lantau Island; if so, of the test results and the locations which were confirmed to be outside the coverage of the local networks;

    (b)why mobile phones at the aforesaid tourist attractions are often connected to mainland networks; and

    (c)what measures are in place to further improve the quality of local networks, in particular the reception of signals at the tourist attractions on Lantau Island, so as to safeguard the interests of consumers and preserve the reputation of the telecommunications industry in Hong Kong?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

*8. Hon Miriam LAU to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that the financial tsunami and the outbreak of the human swine influenza have dealt a heavy blow to the tourism industry. The number of bookings for inbound and outbound package tours for the coming two months has dropped sharply by 60% to 70% compared with the corresponding period of last year, resulting in a large number of tour guides and leaders becoming underemployed, and more workers in the tourism industry are expected to lose their jobs if the epidemic does not subside. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has assessed the economic losses of the tourism industry which will be caused by the persistence of the human swine influenza epidemic;

    (b)of the immediate measures to stimulate the depressed tourism industry, in order to safeguard the employment opportunities for those working in the industry and help the industry tide over the difficult times, e.g. whether it will offer new special loan schemes to the industry; and

    (c)whether it will make reference to the Skills Enhancement Project launched in 2003 for certain industries which had been hard hit by the outbreak of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and launch similar projects for those working in the tourism industry, provide special allowance to the participants of these projects and launch other government-funded training courses, so that those working in the tourism industry can continue to upgrade themselves during this period of underemployment, with a view to preparing for the future?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

*9. Hon Abraham SHEK to ask: (Translation)

In 2007, the Government established a Steering Committee on Population Policy, chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration, to identify the main social and economic challenges to Hong Kong having regard to the changes to the local population profile in the next 30 years, follow up on the areas that require further study, as well as develop strategies and practical measures for pursuing the objectives of Hong Kong's population policy. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the latest progress made by the Steering Committee on Population Policy in developing population strategies, and when it will put forward relevant new measures and policies as well as consult the public;

    (b)as it has been reported that an academic pointed out that the number of people aged above 60 last year accounted for 17.2% of the population, and based on the current growth rate of the elderly population, the projected elderly population 20 years from now would double the current figure, whether the Government has conducted any study on the corresponding long-term retirement and welfare policies; if so, of the directions, strategies and details of such policies; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether, in view of the ageing trend of the population, the Government will further enhance the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme so as to attract more young elites from the Mainland and overseas to settle in Hong Kong, as well as consider discussing with the relevant mainland authorities the relaxation of the quota for people from the Mainland to settle in Hong Kong; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : The Chief Secretary for Administration

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

It has been reported that a university professor has pointed out that since family carers of patients with Alzheimer's disease are subject to tremendous pressure, they age even faster than the patients. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
    (a)given that the Research Grants Council allocated a funding of nearly $5 million early this year to support a research project on the pressure faced by family carers of patients with Alzheimer's disease, whether the authorities have any plan to fund research projects on carers of other types of family members (e.g. persons with disabilities and young children of single-parent families); if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)whether they have formulated any new measure to strengthen the community support to family carers so as to relieve their pressure; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (c)whether they will consider granting allowance and providing welfare services to family carers; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (d)whether they will make reference to overseas legislation and legislate to protect family carers; if they will, when they will implement the legislation; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

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

The Fifth East Asian Games will be held in Hong Kong in December this year. Most of the construction or improvement works for the competition complexes and venues have been completed, and the Second Hong Kong Games held in May this year also used some of the venues. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether problems were found in the facilities of the relevant venues during the Hong Kong Games held last month; if so, of the details and follow-up work; whether the authorities will hold competitions at other relevant complexes and venues to test if the relevant facilities are operating normally; if they will not, of the reasons for that;

    (b)given that there are press reports that there are still the problems of water leaking from the ceiling and insufficient warm-up pool facilities after completion of the improvement works at the Kowloon Park Swimming Pool, whether the Government will follow up and make improvements; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (c)given that every day at present a large number of heavy vehicles (such as refuse collection vehicles) use Wan Po Road next to the Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground, of the Government's estimated daily traffic volume in that road section during the East Asian Games, and whether it will adopt measures to alleviate the impact of air pollution and noise caused by the traffic on the competitions to be held at that venue; if it will, of the details; and

    (d)of the existing channels through which the authorities collect the views of various sports associations, athletes, staff, referees, the media and the public on the complexes and venues of the East Asian Games; whether the authorities will carry out the relevant improvement works in response to such views; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs

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

The 2008 Annual Report of the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL") reveals that while the company's profits dropped substantially last year, the remuneration of its management and fees for its Board members were raised. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
    (a)the government representatives on the Board of MTRCL supported the proposal of raising the remuneration of the company's management and fees for its Board members at the relevant Board meeting(s); if they did, of the justifications;

    (b)it has looked into why MTRCL had raised the remuneration/fees of the aforesaid persons despite the substantial drop in profits;

    (c)it knows the criteria adopted by MTRCL for determining the fees for its Board members; if it does, of the details; and

    (d)the Government, being the major shareholder of MTRCL, has assessed if this increase in remuneration/fees has undermined public interest; if such an assessment has been made, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

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

I have learnt that quite a number of scholars have criticized the existing mechanism by which the University Grants Committee ("UGC") allocates research funds to funded institutions, saying that the mechanism has caused funded institutions to place emphasis on research work and neglect teaching, and it is also conducive to plagiarism and frauds in research results. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it will review the existing criteria for UGC to allocate research funds, so as to ensure that funded institutions will not, in pursuit of more resources, place too much emphasis on research work; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)whether it knows the respective numbers and the relevant trend of the complaints, received by each funded institution in the past three school years, regarding plagiarism, frauds in research results, listing another person's name(s) as co-author(s) of a work without the original author's prior consent, as well as stealing and publishing another person's research data, together with a breakdown of these numbers by the academic relationship between the complainant and the person under complaint and their positions and, among them, of the number of substantiated cases, the number of published academic articles involving plagiarism and frauds in research results which were withdrawn by the academic journals, as well as the penalties imposed on the persons concerned;

    (c)whether it knows if funded institutions have set up independent and impartial mechanisms for dealing with the relevant complaints, so that the persons concerned dare to lodge complaints without fear of being penalized by the institutions in the future; if they have, of the mechanisms of various institutions; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (d)whether at present it has set up an independent and impartial mechanism to deal with complaints lodged by the persons concerned who consider that their respective institutions have not dealt with their complaints impartially?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

*14. Dr Hon LAM Tai-fai to ask: (Translation)

When compared to the same period last year, the Gross Domestic Product and total exports of goods in the first quarter of this year decreased by 7.8% and 22.7% respectively, while the seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate of the latest quarter rose to 5.3%, indicating that Hong Kong's economy is still hard hit by the financial tsunami. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it will expand the following relief measure which had been implemented before: expanding the territorial coverage and increasing the subsidy amount of the pilot Transport Support Scheme; whether it will implement new measures, including extending repayment period of various loan schemes for tertiary students and partially waiving the interest on such loans, as well as holding over the collection of provisional salaries taxes;

    (b)whether it has projected afresh the monthly unemployment rate and underemployment rate between June and December this year; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (c)of the respective numbers of graduates from universities and other tertiary institutions this year and, among them, the predicted numbers of those who will still be unemployed at the end of this year; and

    (d)as the applications approved up to 18 May this year under SLGS involved only some $10 billion of loan guarantee (accounting for only 10% of the total guarantee commitment of $100 billion), why the Government does not extend the scope of the Scheme to the commercial loans to Hong Kong factories located in the Pearl River Delta Region (the number of which exceeds 50 000 at present), so as to make proper use of the total guarantee commitment and assist such factories in financing?
Public Officer to reply : The Financial Secretary

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

Quite a number of members of the public have recently relayed to me that subsidized residential care services for the elderly, the mentally disabled and the severely disabled are seriously insufficient at present in the New Territories, rendering many of the aforesaid persons unable to receive proper care. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the numbers of residential places provided in the New Territories by various types of subsidized residential care homes for the elderly and residential rehabilitation homes, the number of persons waiting for such residential places and the average waiting time required at the end of each of the past three years, broken down by District Council districts; and

    (b)whether it will consider increasing the number of residential places of various types of homes in the New Territories, so as to shorten the waiting time; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

*16. Dr Hon Joseph LEE to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that the Council of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University decided in April this year to restructure the management of the university, with the number of Vice President ("VP") posts being increased from six to eight starting from September next year. By that time, the university will have the highest number of VP posts among the institutions funded by the University Grants Committee ("UGC"). Moreover, on grounds of urgent need, the President of the university has recently appointed a former employee as VP (Management) not through open recruitment procedure. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
    (a)whether UGC has set a ceiling on the number of senior posts in funded institutions, and if funded institutions are required to report to UGC the creation of such posts to ensure that there is actual need for such newly created posts and to avoid wasting public funds; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (b)whether UGC has demanded funded institutions to appoint senior staff through open recruitment procedures; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

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

I have received complaints from many members of the public about being harassed by debt collection agencies ("DCAs") hired by banks and finance companies, but they were neither debtors nor loan guarantors, and some of them were only new owners of "repossessed residential properties". Since they did not know the details of the loans concerned, and very often DCAs only left behind telephone numbers of stored-value mobile phone cards, which were difficult to trace the identity of the cardholders, they could not contact the creditors concerned to make clarifications, thus resulting in their being harassed by DCAs continually. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
    (a)it knows the number of cases of banks and finance companies commissioning DCAs to recover debts in each of the past three years and, among them, the number of cases of debts recovered successfully;

    (b)it will request that when vetting and approving loan applications, banks and finance companies should consider the particulars of loan guarantors on the loan application forms as confirmed only if the guarantors have signed thereon in person; if it will not, of the reasons for that; and

    (c)it will stipulate that banks and finance companies have to request DCAs, when recovering debts on their behalf, to provide the persons from whom they are recovering debts with the contact details of the parties who commissioned the DCAs, so as to facilitate such persons to make clarifications or complaints?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

*18. Hon Starry LEE to ask: (Translation)

A survey conducted by a political party in April this year revealed that about 60% of the responding parents of students considered that the high prices of textbooks posed a heavy financial burden on them, about 80% indicated that schools did not consult them when selecting textbooks and most parents considered that the Government failed to monitor the prices of textbooks properly. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether the Education Bureau will consider using the prices of textbooks as one of the criteria for drawing up the Recommended Textbook List; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)whether it will call on schools to proactively collect parents' views on the selection of textbooks by schools through holding consultation meetings with parent-teacher associations, conducting questionnaire surveys and distributing opinion forms for completion and return by parents; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (c)whether it will call on schools to adopt parents' affordability as the prime consideration in selecting textbooks, and buy reference books, storybooks and music textbooks for borrowing by students; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (d)whether it will call on schools to state clearly on textbook lists if textbooks of old editions may be used; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (e)given that the Student Financial Assistance Agency provided each eligible student with a grant of $1,000 in the 2008-2009 school year, whether the Government will consider giving the relevant grants to all primary and secondary school students in Hong Kong in the 2009-2010 school year, so as to alleviate parents' financial burdens of school-related expenses in the new school year?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

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

Regarding the arrangements for operators of cross-boundary public transport by sea, land and air to report to the authorities concerned suspected cases of infectious diseases (e.g. the human swine influenza which has broken out recently) found on their vehicles, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)under what circumstances the various operators are required to report such cases on their own initiative;

    (b)which types of infectious diseases are required to be reported, what criteria the authorities use in compiling the relevant list of infectious diseases, the existing mechanism for reviewing and revising the list; and whether the authorities have comprehensively reviewed the mechanism in response to the recent human swine influenza epidemic;

    (c)which units under the Department of Health are responsible for following up the cases reported by the operators, and how these units coordinate other government departments and relevant organizations (e.g. the Airport Authority and the Hospital Authority) to adopt measures to prevent the spread of an epidemic;

    (d)whether the operators' failure to report such cases on their own initiative constitutes a breach of the relevant international conventions; if it does not, how the authorities ensure that the operators will do so or encourage them to do so; and

    (e)whether it has made suggestions to the operators on the ways to keep the personal particulars of their passengers and the period for keeping such information, in order to trace the transmission routes of infectious diseases?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

It has been reported that since the onset of the financial tsunami, the Federal Reserve of the United States ("US") has implemented the monetary policy of quantitative easing to help revive the credit market through capital injection measures such as purchasing corporate bonds, real estate mortgage-backed securities and long term Treasury bonds. Yet, there are comments that although such measures may temporarily alleviate the economic crisis, they may lead to problems such as devaluation of the US dollar and hyperinflation in the medium and long term. Moreover, as Hong Kong maintains a Linked Exchange Rate System ("LER System") with the Hong Kong dollar pegged to the US dollar, substantial devaluation of the US dollar will have far reaching impact on Hong Kong's economy and financial system. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
    (a)it has assessed what short, medium and long term impacts on Hong Kong's economy will be caused by the aforesaid monetary policy of US; if it has, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (b)it will formulate measures to address the negative impact of substantial devaluation of the US dollar and hyperinflation on Hong Kong's economy, if it will, of the details of the various measures; whether it will make reference to the refinements to the operation of the LER System introduced by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority in 2005 to augment the convertibility zone as defined by the exchange rates of the strong-side and weak-side Convertibility Undertakings under the LER System, as well as consider switching to a LER System with the Hong Kong dollar pegged to a basket of currencies; if it will not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : The Financial Secretary

* For written reply

III. Bills

First Reading

1. Occupational Deafness (Compensation) (Amendment) Bill 2009

2. Genetically Modified Organisms (Control of Release) Bill

Second Reading (Debates to be adjourned)

1. Occupational Deafness (Compensation) (Amendment) Bill 2009:Secretary for Labour and Welfare

2. Genetically Modified Organisms (Control of Release) Bill:Secretary for the Environment

IV. Members' Motions

  1. Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

    Hon James TO to move the following motion:

    RESOLVED that in relation to the -

    (a)Consular Relations (Additional Privileges and Immunities) (India) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 73 of 2009;

    (b)Administration of Estates by Consular Officers Ordinance (Variation of Schedule: India) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 74 of 2009;

    (c)Consular Conventions (Application of Section 3) (India) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 75 of 2009;

    (d)Consular Relations (Additional Privileges and Immunities) (Italy) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 76 of 2009;

    (e)Administration of Estates by Consular Officers Ordinance (Variation of Schedule: New Zealand) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 77 of 2009;

    (f)Consular Conventions (Application of Section 3) (New Zealand) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 78 of 2009;

    (g)Consular Relations (Additional Privileges and Immunities) (Russia) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 79 of 2009;

    (h)Administration of Estates by Consular Officers Ordinance (Variation of Schedule: Russia) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 80 of 2009; and

    (i)Consular Conventions (Application of Section 3) (Russia) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 81 of 2009,

    and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 6 May 2009, the period for amending subsidiary legislation referred to in section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1) be extended under section 34(4) of that Ordinance to the meeting of 24 June 2009.

  2. Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

    Hon Paul TSE to move the following motion:

    RESOLVED that in relation to the -

    (a)Race Discrimination (Formal Investigations) Rules, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 94 of 2009; and

    (b)Race Discrimination (Investigation and Conciliation) Rules, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 95 of 2009,

    and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 13 May 2009, the period for amending subsidiary legislation referred to in section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1) be extended under section 34(4) of that Ordinance to the meeting of 8 July 2009.

  3. Proposed resolution under the Race Discrimination Ordinance Hon Paul TSE to move the following motion:

    RESOLVED that in relation to the Code of Practice on Employment under the Race Discrimination Ordinance, published in the Gazette as Government Notice No. 2733 on 8 May 2009 and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 13 May 2009, the period for amending the Code of Practice referred to in section 63(5) of the Race Discrimination Ordinance (Cap. 602) be extended under section 63(7) of that Ordinance to the meeting of 8 July 2009.

  4. Comprehensive review of the accountability system

    Hon WONG Yuk-man: (Translation)

    That the Government of the Special Administrative Region has made countless blunders in the implementation of policies, since TUNG Chee-hwa introduced the so-called accountability system in 2002, accountability of Directors of Bureau is only empty talk; subsequently, Donald TSANG Yam-kuen adds a wretched sequel to the accountability system by appointing the so-called Under Secretaries and Political Assistants at his own discretion; this provides convenience for authoritarians to hand-pick their deputies, which results in a total collapse of the accountability system and is detrimental to the well-being of the people; this Council urges the Government to conduct a comprehensive review of the accountability system so as to implement fundamental reforms to restore its ability to govern; such reforms include:

    (a)establishing a political system which is truly accountable to the people, and expeditiously implementing dual universal suffrage for the Legislative Council and the Chief Executive elections;

    (b)formulating a political parties law to promote the development of party politics, so as to induce political parties to be truly accountable to their constituents;

    (c)establishing an impeachment mechanism for replacing those officials under the accountability system who are derelict of their duties; and

    (d)clearly defining the roles, functions and powers among the Chief Executive, officials under the accountability system and civil servants.

    Amendment to the motion
    Hon Miriam LAU:     (Translation)

    To delete "the Government of the Special Administrative Region has made countless blunders in the implementation of policies, since TUNG Chee-hwa" after "That" and substitute with "since the Government"; to delete "so-called" after "introduced the"; to delete "accountability of Directors of Bureau is only empty talk; subsequently, Donald TSANG Yam-kuen adds a wretched sequel to the accountability system by appointing the so-called Under Secretaries and Political Assistants at his own discretion; this provides convenience for authoritarians to hand-pick their deputies, which results in a total collapse of the accountability system and is detrimental to the well-being of the people" after "accountability system in 2002," and substitute with "the system has not been working satisfactorily"; to delete "so as to implement fundamental reforms to restore its ability to govern; such reforms include" after "comprehensive review of the accountability system" and substitute with ", including"; to delete "establishing a political system which is truly accountable to the people, and" after "(a)" and substitute with "improving the accountability system step by step and ensuring that it is fully implemented and, in line with the decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on issues relating to universal suffrage,"; to add "considering" after "(b)"; to delete ", so as to induce political parties to be truly accountable to their constituents" after "party politics"; to delete "establishing an impeachment mechanism for replacing those" after "(c)" and substitute with "enhancing the accountability mechanism for"; to delete "who are derelict of their duties" before "; and (d)" and substitute with "as well as the transparency of the mechanism"; and to add "further" after "defining".

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

  5. Promoting research and development

    Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou: (Translation)

    That the Task Force on Economic Challenges has identified six economic areas where Hong Kong enjoys clear advantages as the targets of focal development to boost Hong Kong's economic growth and provide job opportunities, and in order to successfully promote the development of these economic areas, Hong Kong must lay a solid foundation for research and development ('R&D'); in this connection, this Council urges the Government to:

    (a)set up committees to make recommendations on policies and various complementary measures for promoting R&D, for implementation by bureaux;

    (b)consolidate and coordinate the existing relevant policies as well as the structures and resources of various related public organizations, so as to more effectively boost Hong Kong's technological R&D business;

    (c)through education and publicity, foster an atmosphere that emphasizes technological research and innovation;

    (d)take the lead in allocating more funding to enhance the capability of technological research, and stipulate the interim and long-term targets that government funding in R&D shall represent a certain proportion of local gross domestic product;

    (e)establish negotiation platforms in conjunction with Guangdong Province and other regions in the Mainland to achieve complementarity of edge, maximal application of R&D results and effective protection of intellectual property;

    (f)formulate policies for nurturing local talents in R&D and systematically bring in overseas professionals under the principle of giving priority to local talents;

    (g)introduce tax concessions and other incentives to encourage private organizations to invest in R&D work in Hong Kong; and

    (h)make optimal use of the land of the existing industrial estates and science park, etc, and expeditiously develop the land in the boundary districts between Hong Kong and Shenzhen for the purposes of technological R&D and talent training, so as to facilitate the establishment of industry clusters.

    Amendments to the motion
    (i)Dr Hon Samson TAM: (Translation)

    To add ", in order to meet the challenges of globalization," after "That"; to add "improve the existing rotation system of administrative officers to nurture a batch of talents with technological R&D mindset, so that long-term technological research strategies can be implemented effectively; (d)" after "(c)"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(f)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g) strive for setting up more state partner laboratories in Hong Kong so that Hong Kong may directly participate in more technological research projects at the state level, and assist the relevant industries to strive for participation in formulating the standards for state products; (h)"; to delete "local" after "nurturing"; to delete "systematically" after "in R&D and" and substitute with "strategically"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(i)"; to add ", and at the same time bring in multinational enterprises to set up R&D centres in Hong Kong to promote the integration of local and overseas technological research capabilities" after "work in Hong Kong"; and to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(j)".

    (ii)Hon Fred LI: (Translation)

    To add ", as Hong Kong has transformed into an economy with emphasis on the services and knowledge-based industries," after "That"; to add ", including testing and certification, medical services, innovation and technology, cultural and creative industries, environmental industry, and educational services," after "clear advantages"; to add "and create conditions conducive to the operation of these six economic areas" after "('R&D')"; to add "which are business-friendly" after "measures"; to add "and the above six economic areas" after "R&D business"; to add "and the above six economic areas" after "research and innovation"; to add ", concessionary land premium, concessionary loans" after "tax concessions"; to delete "; and" after "work in Hong Kong" and substitute with "and operate in the above six economic areas;"; and to add "; and (i) collaborate with the cities in the Pearl River Delta region to enhance the promotion of technological research projects on clean fuels (including electricity generation and transport), green construction, effluent treatment and solid waste treatment etc, which can facilitate the transformation of industries and upgrade the quality of life in the region" immediately before the full stop.

    (iii)Hon Andrew LEUNG: (Translation)

    To add ", in order to maintain Hong Kong's competitiveness in the long run," after "That"; to add "inter-departmental" after "set up"; to add "make optimal use of Hong Kong's comprehensive and effective protection regime for intellectual property rights ('IPR') and consider establishing a 'Patent Trademark Authority' to promote Hong Kong as the IPR service centre in the region, so as to attract local and overseas organizations to allocate more resources to R&D work; (c)" after "(b)"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(d)"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(f)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g)"; to delete "systematically bring in overseas professionals" after "in R&D and" and substitute with "proactively absorb R&D professionals worldwide to Hong Kong to participate in the local R&D work"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(h)"; and to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(i)".

    (iv)Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung: (Translation)

    To add "and to achieve this, basic education must be reformed" after "('R&D')"; to delete "and" after "work in Hong Kong;"; and to add "; (i) increase the education funding for R&D so that the proportion of such funding in the gross domestic product will be comparable to that of the developed countries and places; and (j) revise the primary and secondary school curricula, change the current approach under which instilment is the means and elimination is the goal, as well as expeditiously implement small class teaching and improve the imbalanced teacher to student ratio, so as to lay a solid foundation for R&D" immediately before the full stop.

    (v)Hon LI Fung-ying: (Translation)

    To add "and, at the same time, avoid affecting the resources for providing services to local residents while undertaking R&D in these economic areas" after "('R&D')"; and to delete "set up committees to make recommendations on policies and various complementary measures for promoting R&D, for implementation by bureaux" after "(a)" and substitute with "review the functions of the Commission on Strategic Development, with a view to repositioning it to dovetail with the R&D in the economic areas where Hong Kong enjoys competitive edge".

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

  6. Motion for the adjournment of the Council

    Hon Ronny TONG: (Translation)

    That this Council do now adjourn for the purpose of debating the selection of candidates for the post of Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.

    Public Officer to attend : The Financial Secretary
Clerk to the Legislative Council