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A 09/10-20
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 10 March 2010 at 11:00 am
I. Tabling of Papers
| 1. | No. 76 | - | The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Annual Report 2008-2009, and financial statements and Auditor's report for the year ended 30 June 2009
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Home Affairs)
| | 2. | Report of the Bills Committee on Genetically Modified Organisms (Control of Release) Bill
| | (to be presented by Hon Audrey EU, Chairman of the Bills Committee)
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II. Questions
1. Hon Tommy CHEUNG to ask: (Translation)
The Efficiency Unit ("EU") completed the review of liquor licensing back in 2006 and submitted proposals for legislative amendments to the then Health, Welfare and Food Bureau, with a view to creating a more business-friendly environment for the trade. The proposals include allowing a company or multiple natural persons to hold a liquor licence, so as to avoid the situation of a licensee going on vacation, his departure or death rendering the premises concerned being in breach of the licence conditions or having to cease the sale of liquor and suffer business losses. Some members of the trade have relayed to me that the trade is gravely disappointed as it has been three years since EU put forward its proposals, but the authorities have so far not introduced the relevant proposed legislative amendments. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | why it has still not introduced the bill concerned to this Council to date; whether it has set a legislative timetable in this regard; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | given that the trade has requested the authorities for years to allow a company or multiple natural persons to hold a liquor licence, and the authorities only responded at a meeting of the Panel on Food Safety and Environmental Hygiene of this Council in 2008 that they would make reference to the Karaoke Establishment Ordinance and study the proposals, of the progress and outcome of the study concerned; whether the authorities have consulted the trade on the proposed legislative amendments and of the outcome of such consultation; if the outcome of the study is not yet available, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | of the number of applications lodged with the Liquor Licensing Board by liquor licensees each year from 2006 to 2009 to authorize other persons to temporarily manage the licensed premises concerned, and the average time taken to complete the processing of such applications?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
2. Hon Starry LEE to ask: (Translation)
According to the 2008-2009 Survey of Drug Use among Students ("the Survey") released by the Narcotics Division of the Security Bureau at the end of last month, the number of secondary school students who had abused drugs soared 30% to 20 000 when compared to the 2004-2005 Survey. The number of senior primary school students who had abused drugs exceeded 3 000, and among the schools sampled in the Survey, 90% of them had students who had abused drugs. Some organizations indicated that as shown by the Survey results, 90% of the primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong have been infiltrated by drugs, indicating that primary schools have replaced secondary schools as the front line of this anti-drug war. Yet, it was not until July last year that the Government announced the launch of the community-wide campaign against drug abuse. Moreover, as revealed by the Survey, most of the secondary schools students who had abused drugs believed that using drugs would affect their appearance, harm their health and affect their studies. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the respective measures adopted in primary and secondary schools in the past 10 years for combating the infiltration of drugs into school campus; for early identification and provision of support for primary school students who abuse drugs, of the specific measures put in place by the Government to help primary schools take a more positive attitude in dealing with the problem of drug abuse among their students, so as to avoid the anti-drug efforts on school campus being affected by the worries of schools about their reputation;
| | (b) | focusing on the fact that most of the secondary school students who abuse drugs keep on doing so although they recognize the harm of drug addiction, whether the authorities will review afresh the existing anti-drug publicity strategies and means to fight against the spread of drug abuse, including enhancement of the efforts at different levels in teaching teenagers how to face negative emotions; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; whether they will review afresh the existing supporting measures for assisting teenagers in rehabilitation from drug addiction, including the policy on rehabilitation centres-cum-schools; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | given that the Survey outcome reflect that the situation of youth drug abuse is very serious and spreading in schools, yet no student has been found to have abused drugs since the implementation of the Trial Scheme on School Drug Testing in the Tai Po District in December last year, whether the authorities will consider reviewing the effectiveness of the scheme earlier, so as to achieve more effectively the objective of early identification?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security
3. Hon Ronny TONG to ask: (Translation)
The findings of a telephone survey on the Mandatory Provident Fund ("MPF") Scheme indicate that 70% of the surveyed employees who are 18 years old or above consider that relying solely on MPF is insufficient to maintain basic living after retirement, especially when the investment return on MPF for most employees has shrunk significantly after the financial tsunami, but the Government still stresses that the three pillars of retirement protection, namely the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA") Scheme and Social Security Allowance Scheme, the MPF Scheme as well as voluntary private savings, may sustain and safeguard the retirement life of Hong Kong people. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
| (a) | it has, based on the investment returns of the MPF schemes in the past 10 years, projected the respective amounts of MPF accrued benefits that can be withdrawn in a lump-sum by employees currently aged 45 and 50 with a monthly income of $10,000 when they reach the age of 65;
| | (b) | it has, based on the rates of adjustment in and related benchmarks of various categories of CSSA payments in the past three years, projected the respective amounts of monthly CSSA payments for various categories of CSSA recipients (including elderly people aged 65 or above, people with disabilities and low-income earners) in 2033; and
| | (c) | it knows the number of employees who have participated in the MPF Scheme to date, and the respective breakdowns by age group (from 18 to 39 years old and from 40 to 60 years old) of the numbers of employees whose MPF accounts only carry the employer's contributions and those whose accounts carry both the employer's and employee's contributions, the respective percentages of such numbers in the total population of Hong Kong, the average amount of monthly contributions being injected into the aforesaid two types of accounts, and whether it has projected the amount of MPF accrued benefits that such employees can withdraw in a lump-sum by the time when they reach the age of 65 (calculated on the respective basis that they are currently aged 39 and 60)?
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| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
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4. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the composition of the Legislative Council functional constituencies ("FC"), will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | as recently there are views in the community that functional or community groups which are constituted on the basis of communities or economic entities such as teenagers, persons with disabilities, the elderly aged over 60, housewives, ethnic minorities, discharged prisoners, as well as small and medium enterprises (i.e. those with less than 20 employees and holding business registration certificates), may be more representative, of the detailed statistical information on the aforesaid communities and economic entities in 2004 and 2008, as well as the overall figure of their projected size in 2012; how this figure compares with the registered electorate of the five additional seats for district council FCs as proposed by the Government lately; whether it will examine which electorate base between them is more representative and meets the actual needs of society better; and whether it has considered allocating these five additional seats to functional or community groups comprising the aforesaid persons and enterprises; if it has not, whether it will do so immediately;
| | (b) | whether it knows the numbers of Hong Kong permanent residents among the incumbent directors and managers of licensed travel agents, hotels and airlines, as well as their staff with work experience over five years and between one and five years; if such information is not available, whether it will compile or make an estimate of such figures immediately; whether the Government has considered altering the current electorate base for the tourism functional constituency ("TFC"), which comprises companies only, to one that includes directors, managers, senior staff or even all members of the trade, so as to render the seat for TFC more representative; if it has, of the outcome; if not, whether it will do so expeditiously; and
| | (c) | whether it has assessed the shortcomings of electing Legislative Council Members by geographical constituencies through direct elections and evaluated whether and how the FC election with expanded electorate base can compensate for the shortcomings in this respect; if it has, of the outcome; if not, whether it will do so as soon as possible?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
5. Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to ask: (Translation)
In 2001, the Buildings Department ("BD") implemented a 10-year enforcement programme against unauthorized building works ("UBWs"), which includes undertaking large-scale clearance operations each year to clear in one go UBWs on the external walls and in the common areas of selected target buildings. BD issues more than 30 000 UBWs removal orders on average each year. Yet, some members of the public have pointed out that quite a number of such UBWs still exist despite removal orders having been issued for several years, with more and higher UBWs emerging, and they are gradually becoming urban risks. Regarding the progress of BD's UBWs removal exercise, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the breakdown of the current number of UBWs in Hong Kong by whether or not they belong to the category of immediate enforcement action; the anticipated time needed to complete clearance of all UBWs according to the present progress; what plans the authorities will put in place to remove or deal with the remaining UBWs which belong to the category of non-immediate enforcement action upon completion of the aforesaid enforcement programme by the end of March 2011, as well as the number of such UBWs;
| | (b) | given that some members of the public have relayed to me that there are still many unauthorized signboards and shopfront projections which belong to the category of non-immediate enforcement action in Yau Tsim Mong and Causeway Bay districts, what new measures or proposals the authorities have to prevent such signboards or projections from falling; and
| | (c) | of the current staff establishment at all levels responsible for clearance operations; the respective numbers of civil servants, non-civil service contract staff and staff continuously employed through outsourcing within such establishment; whether the authorities can remove the UBWs concerned as planned with the present establishment; whether the Government will consider recruiting more staff to expeditiously clear the remaining UBWs; if it will, of the number of additional staff required to be employed; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
6. Hon WONG Sing-chi to ask: (Translation)
The redevelopment and planning processes of the redevelopment project at Hanoi Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, which was jointly undertaken by the Urban Renewal Authority ("URA") and a private developer, as well as the circumstances surrounding the sales of its flats, have recently aroused public concern. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council, given that it has been reported that:
| (a) | the Town Planning Board ("TPB") has approved a change of land use of the redevelopment site from commercial use to commercial/residential use, and permitted a high plot ratio of 12.366 for the project, which is higher than the plot ratio of 10 or 9 generally granted to sites for commercial/residential use, whether it knows TPB's justifications for making such decisions, why the sale of serviced apartments under the project was permitted, whether the permission for the sale of such apartments has violated any requirement or guideline, and whether this is at variance with the general procedure for approval;
| | (b) | the aforesaid developer has entered into a partnership with URA's predecessor, the Land Development Corporation ("LDC"), to implement the project in its capacity as an owner affected by the redevelopment, and that among the urban redevelopment projects undertaken by LDC or URA, this is so far the only project in which participation by an affected owner is allowed, whether it knows why the owner is permitted to participate in the project, why the project partner was not determined through public tender, and whether the relevant principles or reasons will be applicable to future redevelopment projects; and
| | (c) | some companies which are connected with the major shareholder of the developer have purchased several residential units under the project during the initial sale in the open market, but the transaction details have never been disclosed, whether the authorities will check all information concerning the property transactions under the project to find out if there are other similar purchases, and investigate the incident to ascertain if the developer has made use of the above purchase to produce confusing market information so as to attract buyers to purchase other residential units under the project?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*7. Hon Mrs Regina IP to ask: (Translation)
There have been comments that being the freest economic entity in the world, Hong Kong has always had a narrow tax base. The government revenue often fluctuates widely as a major part of it is derived from proceeds from land sales, stamp duties and investment return of the Exchange Fund, which are affected by economic cycles and external fluctuations, and its salaries tax and profits tax rates are also at a relatively low level in the world. Such a taxation system fails to guarantee long-term and stable tax revenue and hence is very unfavourable to the Government's provision/expansion of essential social services such as medical services, retirement protection and tertiary education. Such comments have also pointed out that in the long run the Government must broaden the tax base and increase its recurrent revenue to address public aspirations. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that there were on average some seven million departures from Hong Kong for Macao in each of the past three years, and the Macao Government imposes HK$20 departure fee on each visitor, whether the Government will consider raising the existing HK$11 passenger embarkation fee, commonly known as the poll tax; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | given that there have been comments that due to the increasingly intense economic integration of Guangdong and Hong Kong, there were as many as 84 million land departures from Hong Kong for the Mainland in 2009, coupled with the commissioning of various large-scale cross-boundary infrastructural facilities one after another, land departures will definitely continue to rise in the future, whether the Government will re-consider levying a nominal land departure tax/boundary facilities improvement tax of, for example, HK$5; if it will, of the details, and whether it will consider arranging for departing persons to pay such a tax through Octopus terminals during their departure clearance at the land boundary control points; if it will not consider levying such a tax, of the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | whether the Government has other feasible options to broaden the tax base?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
*8. Hon CHAN Kin-por to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the enforcement of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Ordinance (Cap. 485), will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
| (a) | the annual numbers of claims the authorities had filed to the Court to recover contributions to the Mandatory Provident Fund schemes in arrears since 2005 and the number of claims so allowed;
| | (b) | the annual numbers of criminal prosecutions the authorities had instituted against companies (including directors or management staff of the companies concerned) or individuals under the Ordinance since 2005, and among such cases, the respective numbers of companies and individuals convicted, as well as the maximum, minimum and average amounts of fines and/or terms of imprisonment imposed on them; what new plans the authorities have to improve the situation of employers defaulting contribution payments; and
| | (c) | among the criminal prosecutions in (b), the number of companies and individuals who had been prosecuted for more than once under the Ordinance; whether the authorities will consider increasing the penalty imposed under the Ordinance to enhance the deterrent effect; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
*9. Hon Andrew CHENG to ask: (Translation)
A survey conducted by a green group in recent months found that the number of butterflies in the Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve ("the Reserve") located in Tai Po had reduced by 20% in 2009 as compared with that in 2008, and it was even uncovered that some species of butterfly faced the risk of extinction. The group suspected that the sharp reduction in the number of butterflies was related to the real estate development project in the vicinity of the Reserve, and they urged the developer to increase the width of the buffer zone between the real estate development project and the Reserve to 100 metres or above. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it has followed up the change in the number of butterflies in the Reserve; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether it has made clear planning and formulated guidelines in respect of the area and coverage of the buffer zone between the real estate development project and the Reserve; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; whether the authorities will consider the green group's proposal to request the developer to increase the width of the buffer zone to 100 metres or above; and
| | (c) | given that the developer has indicated that the real estate development project will include enhancing a piece of agricultural land to make it a more suitable habitat for butterflies, whether the Government has taken the initiative to ascertain and study if the enhancement project for the agricultural land is more favourable to the ecology of butterflies, and whether the developer concerned will be held responsible if the ecology of the Reserve or butterflies is adversely affected by the real estate development project in the future?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*10. Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che to ask: (Translation)
I have recently received complaints from quite a number of Social Security Assistants that the workload of the Social Security Branch under the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") has increased continuously over the years but there was no increase in its manpower in the past 20 years, resulting in tremendous increase in work pressure on staff. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the respective numbers of Senior Social Security Assistants and Social Security Assistants employed by SWD at present; the average monthly numbers of cases under the social security schemes needed to be handled respectively by an assistant of these two ranks;
| | (b) | of the changes in the manpower of these two ranks in each of the past 20 years and the average monthly number of cases needed to be handled by an assistant each year; and
| | (c) | whether there are any guidelines specifying a cap on the number of cases handled by an assistant per month; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
*11. Dr Hon David LI to ask:
It has been learnt that the Government has since 2000 been implementing the Replacement and Rehabilitation Programme of Water Mains ("the Programme") in four stages, with the final stage scheduled for completed in 2015, for the purpose of replacing and rehabilitating about 3 000 kilometres ("km") of aged water mains throughout Hong Kong. As of December 2009, 37% of the Programme works had been completed. As such, the remaining 63% of the project is to be completed by 2015, requiring a significantly higher level of construction activities in the remaining five years of the Programme. According to the Water Supplies Department ("WSD") web site, stages three and four of the Programme, which comprise replacement and rehabilitation of about 1 850 km of water mains, will cost some 68% of the total estimated project cost of $21.81 billion. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the reason for the discrepancy between the total estimated project cost of $21.81 billion as shown on WSD web site and the total estimated project cost of around $19 billion in money-of-the-day prices as indicated by the Director of Water Supplies at the Public Works Subcommittee meeting on 20 June 2008;
| | (b) | among the estimated 7 700 km of water mains presently under the management of WSD, of the respective lengths of water mains, which were made of different types of pipe materials (including asbestos cement, ductile iron, polyethylene, polyester woven liner, etc.) as at 31 December 2009 and on the completion of the Programme;
| | (c) | whether there are adequate professional and skilled construction personnel in Hong Kong at present to enable the Government to complete the Programme as scheduled, and whether the Government or contractors will need to hire the personnel concerned from overseas; if so, of the number of personnel to be hired and of their skills; and
| | (d) | whether it has assessed if the major infrastructure projects now being undertaken by the Government will have any impact on either the schedule or the cost of the Programme; if it has, of the justifications of the assessment outcome?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*12. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)
It has been learnt that various government departments separately conduct relevant surveys in respect of their policies and programme areas, but there is no standardized mechanism and indicators for conducting surveys. Moreover, although statistical figures of men and women are listed under different situations in the "Women and Men in Hong Kong - Key Statistics" published annually by the Census and Statistics Department ("C&SD"), quite a number of people have pointed out that the areas covered by the survey are not comprehensive and some government departments have even explained that they had not collected gender-based data because gender was not a factor of consideration in executing their relevant policies. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council whether:
| (a) | C&SD has adopted the Gender Mainstreaming Checklist to assess the existing concepts and methods for conducting surveys; if it has, of the assessment outcome; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | they will formulate a standardized mechanism and indicators for conducting surveys, so as to collate and analyze the data collected by various government departments; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (c) | they will require various government departments, when collecting information and data, to include information on both genders, so as to grasp more accurately the situations faced by both genders; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (d) | they will request subvented non-governmental organizations and encourage private organizations to consider analyzing the information they have collected from a gender perspective when conducting surveys; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (e) | they will collaborate regularly with community groups, women's groups as well as the academia and conduct consultation to collect views on the ways to improve the mechanism currently adopted by the Government for conducting surveys and the use of data; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
*13. Dr Hon LAM Tai-fai to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that some members of the tourism industry have urged the Government to consider increasing the number of animal species being shown in Hong Kong, so as to increase attractiveness to tourists. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that the Consultancy Study on the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens ("HKZBG"), which was commissioned by the Government and conducted by a university, was completed in 2003, whether the authorities have implemented all the recommendations proposed in the study report; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and whether they have planned to review again the positioning of HKZBG;
| | (b) | of the reasons for the authorities not introducing larger-sized animals again after the death of the female jaguar "Siu Fa" in HKZBG in 2008; if the reason is that the spaces in HKZBG for keeping animals are limited at present, whether the authorities will consider looking for bigger alternative places to keep these animals; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (c) | of the details of the animals of endangered species brought in from overseas zoos through the arrangement of the International Studbook Keeper by HKZBG in the past seven years; whether HKZBG has planned to introduce animals of other endangered species at present, and of the ways for introducing animals of non-endangered species;
| | (d) | of the details of the animal species brought in by the Government for keeping in other parks under its management in the past seven years;
| | (e) | given that there are approximately more than 4 000 species of mammals in the world at present, whether the authorities have assessed if it is sufficient for HKZBG to keep mammals of 17 species only at present; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; of the reasons for the animals kept in HKZBG are mostly primate; of the criteria considered by the authorities in deciding the animal species to be brought in;
| | (f) | whether the Government has planned to strengthen cooperation with overseas zoos, including exchanging animals for free show; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (g) | of the respective person-times of students and, local and overseas tourists visiting HKZBG in each of the past seven years; of the measures adopted by the authorities for attracting more overseas tourists to visit HKZBG, so as to promote tourism and local economic development; and
| | (h) | whether it will consider building a zoo of substantial scale in Hong Kong; if it will, what factors it will consider and its impact on the Hong Kong economy; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs
*14. Dr Hon Joseph LEE to ask: (Translation)
It has been learnt that at present, patients suffering from age-related macular degeneration ("AMD") receiving treatment in public hospitals under the Hospital Authority ("HA") are required to purchase at their own expenses the medicines in the Hospital Authority Drug Formulary ("the Formulary") prescribed to them. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
| (a) | the number of new cases of AMD patients in public hospitals in each of the past three years, as well as the total number of patients at present, and among such patients, the number of those who have purchased at their own expense medicines in the Formulary prescribed to them;
| | (b) | the current number of the aforesaid patients who do not purchase at their own expense medicines in the Formulary prescribed to them; among them, the number of patients who cannot afford the medicine expenses, as well as the number of those who eventually lost their eye sight as a result;
| | (c) | whether HA or other non-governmental organizations have subsidized those AMD patients who cannot afford self-financed medicines to purchase such medicines; if so, of the eligibility for subsidy, the number of patients subsidized, as well as the amount of subsidies provided; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (d) | whether HA will expeditiously review the existing system of the Formulary to ensure that patients' treatment will not be affected because of financial problems; if it will, of the details and the timetable; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
*15. Hon KAM Nai-wai to ask: (Translation)
It has been learnt that in recent years quite a number of members of the public are very concerned about the planning for open space and green belt in the community. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the respective total areas which have been zoned as open space and green belt under the Outline Zoning Plans at present, broken down by District Council district, and among them, the respective areas of land which have still not been developed according to such land use, as well as the development timetable for such areas of land; if there is no timetable, of the reasons for that;
| | (b) | according to the standards stipulated in the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines, of the respective total shortfalls in the areas of open space and green belt in each District Council district at present; and
| | (c) | of the total areas of private land which have been zoned as open space and green belt; whether the Government plans to recover such areas of land for development as open space and green belt; if so, of the timetables; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*16. Hon Frederick FUNG to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that having considered factors such as economic benefits and short-term urgency, the authorities have decided to defer the commencement of the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Express Line ("WEL") project (formerly known as the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Airport Rail Link), which was one of the 10 major infrastructure projects included in the 2007 Policy Address. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the latest progress of the planning of the WEL project, including the reasons for deferring the commencement of the project, the timetable for its final implementation and whether it will consider shelving the project permanently, etc.;
| | (b) | whether it has considered the impact on the WEL project of the drop in the travellers' demand for domestic flights due to the gradual commissioning of express railway projects on the Mainland; and
| | (c) | of the anticipated impact of the WEL project on the Qianhai area in Shenzhen and the North East New Territories New Development Areas?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*17. Hon Mrs Regina IP to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that the world's first case of a dog infected with Human Swine Influenza ("HSI") was uncovered on the Mainland. The genes of the virus in the infected dog were 99% the same as those in human infections. Experts have pointed out that the virus may spread among dogs and may even be transmitted to humans. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | what information on the transmission of the HSI virus among animals or from animals to humans the authorities have got hold of;
| | (b) | whether the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department ("AFCD") has formulated guidelines to prevent animals under its management or detention from contracting the virus; and
| | (c) | whether AFCD has adopted any concrete measure to prevent the spread of the virus among animals?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
*18. Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the speedboat and/or canoe lifeguard services provided by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department at the beaches and water sports centres under its management, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the names, listed in table form, of the beaches/water sports centres at which such lifeguard services are available;
| | (b) | whether such lifeguard services were ceased in the past five years; if so, of the names, listed in table form by years, of the beaches/water sports centres concerned, together with the numbers of drowning and fatal cases which have occurred at those beaches since the cessation of such services;
| | (c) | whether it will resume the provision of such lifeguard services at the beaches/water sports centres in (b); if it will, when such services will be resumed; if not, of the reasons for that; and
| | (d) | whether the lifeguards providing speedboat lifeguard services at water sports centres are required to possess the qualification stipulated by the Marine Department for using specified government vessels; if so, of the respective numbers of those in possession of such qualification among the lifeguards in the civil service establishment and the seasonal lifeguards at present; the arrangement currently put in place by the authorities to provide speedboat lifeguard services when no lifeguard meets that qualification; and whether it will recruit afresh lifeguards with such qualification in order to maintain the quality of services?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs
*19. Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che to ask: (Translation)
The Education Bureau ("EDB") has formulated a five-year teacher professional development framework, under which teachers of primary, secondary and special schools over the territory are provided, starting from the 2007-2008 school year, with Basic, Advanced and Thematic Courses to enhance their professional capacity in supporting students with special educational needs ("SEN"). Moreover, EDB provides fundings each year for the Learning Support Grant ("LSG") for application by primary and secondary schools to support students with SEN. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:
| (a) | the number of teachers who have received training from each of the aforesaid courses so far and the discrepancies between such figures and the five-year targets set by EDB;
| | (b) | the number of primary and secondary schools which applied for LSG in the 2008-2009 school year and the amount involved; and
| | (c) | the use of LSG by the schools in (b) whose applications were approved, including the number of additional teaching staff or teaching assistants employed, as well as the details of procurement of outside professional services and purchase of teaching resources and aids?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education
*20. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)
It has been learnt that the Hong Kong Disneyland ("HKD") currently employs about 300 persons with disabilities. Regarding the employment of such persons by HKD at present, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council whether it knows:
| (a) | the percentage of employees with disabilities in the total number of HKD's employees;
| | (b) | the respective numbers of employees with different types of disabilities;
| | (c) | the respective numbers of full-time, part-time and temporary employees with disabilities;
| | (d) | the breakdown of the employees with disabilities by post, as well as the percentages of such figures in the total numbers of employees holding the relevant posts; and
| | (e) | how the remuneration packages and work arrangements of employees with disabilities compare with those of able-bodied employees holding the same posts?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
* For written reply
III. Bills
Second Reading (Debate to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading
| | Genetically Modified Organisms (Control of Release) Bill | : | Secretary for the Environment
| Secretary for the Environment to move Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 3 March 2010
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 506/09-10)
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IV. Motions
Proposed resolution under the Public Finance Ordinance
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury to move the motion in the Appendix.
V. Members' Motions
- Advocating a low carbon life
Hon CHAN Hak-kan to move the following motion:
(Translation)
That the governments of various places are actively motivating their people and enterprises to lead a low carbon life so as to address global climate change; in this connection, this Council urges the SAR Government to lead Hong Kong to become a low carbon city through comprehensive policies and setting work targets and timetables, and the relevant measures should include:
| (a) | to study the establishment of an effective mechanism to enable people to calculate carbon emissions in daily life on their own so as to understand their carbon footprints;
| | (b) | to study the introduction of a 'carbon emission reduction bonus point scheme', whereby the purchase of energy-saving products and reduction in electricity consumption can be exchanged into bonus points which can be used to pay fees of government services and facilities, so as to encourage people to save energy;
| | (c) | to study further expansion of the coverage of the 'Mandatory Energy Efficiency Labelling Scheme';
| | (d) | to actively promote the 'Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme', review its effectiveness and study the feasibility of its mandatory implementation;
| | (e) | to formulate effective policies to enhance source separation of waste, facilitate food waste recycling and reuse, and optimize the use of landfill gas;
| | (f) | to expand the scale of the Government's green product procurement and formulate a labelling system in this respect, so as to facilitate the development of a market for green products;
| | (g) | to promote the development of local organic agriculture and fisheries and improve the labelling system for organic products, so that people can purchase agriculture and fishery products with low carbon footprints;
| | (h) | to encourage enterprises to make efforts to reduce carbon emissions, including offering assistance in conducting carbon audits, upgrading emission reduction technology, and obtaining accredited certification, etc.;
| | (i) | to strengthen greening efforts to achieve the objectives of improving cityscape and reducing heat island effects;
| | (j) | to actively develop green transportation, including electric vehicles, and expand cycling tracks to reduce carbon emissions arising from transport needs; and
| | (k) | to step up publicity and education to encourage people to live a low carbon life.
| | Amendments to the motion
| | (i) | Hon Audrey EU to move the following amendment:
(Translation)
To add ", as" after "That"; to add "and develop the environmental industry" after "global climate change"; to add "and quality" after "become a low carbon"; to add "install more escalators" after "electric vehicles,"; to delete "and" after "transport needs;"; and to add "; and (l) to enhance the support for the grassroots and the disadvantaged, so as to reduce the impacts on them caused by the society's transformation process to a low carbon city" immediately before the full stop.
| | (ii) | Hon KAM Nai-wai to move the following amendment:
(Translation)
To delete "the governments of various places are actively motivating their" after "That" and substitute with ", as the Hong Kong economy is gradually showing signs of recovery, and the Financial Secretary has also forecast a surplus of $19 billion in the Operating Account for 2009-10 in the 2010-11 Budget, the Government has the responsibility to allocate more resources to actively motivate"; to delete "lead a low carbon life so as" after "people and enterprises to" and substitute with "save energy and protect the environment, and"; to add "by developing a green economy and leading a low carbon life" after "global climate change"; to add ", improve and develop footbridge and subway networks, and encourage people to make more use of public transportation and mass transit systems, so as" after "cycling tracks"; to delete "and" after "transport needs;"; and to add "; (l) to expeditiously legislate to ban idling vehicles with running engines, subsidize franchised bus companies to replace their high-polluting old-model vehicles, designate 'low emission zones' in areas with serious air pollution and restrict the entry of heavy diesel vehicles with high emissions into such zones, so as to improve roadside air quality; (m) to adopt the World Health Organization's Air Quality Guidelines for setting air quality benchmarks and the timetable for achieving such benchmarks, and amend the Air Pollution Control Ordinance to make 'protecting public health' a statutory requirement; and (n) to expeditiously and directly subsidize people to use compact fluorescent lamps and other energy-saving products" immediately before the full stop.
| | (iii) | Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to move the following amendment:
(Translation)
To add "product-based" after "an effective"; to delete "energy-saving" after "the purchase of" and substitute with "environment-friendly (such as energy-saving and water-saving)"; to add "which is also an eco-labelling scheme" after " 'Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme' "; to delete "and formulate a labelling system in this respect, so as to facilitate the development of a market for green products;" after "green product procurement" and substitute with "to cover all government departments and public organizations, and provide tax allowance or concession, etc. for private enterprises which are willing to procure products with eco-label certification, so that the Government can take the lead in promoting the messages of green consumerism and procurement; (g) to formulate a reliable, independent and widely accepted eco-labelling system to facilitate the development of a market for green products;"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(h)"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(i)"; to add "tying in with green procurement," after "carbon audits,"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete "," after "electric vehicles" and substitute with "and hybrid vehicles, advocate the use of biodiesel"; and to delete the original "(k)" and substitute with "(l)".
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for the Environment
- Establishing a scheme for sexual offences records checks for child-related work
Dr Hon Philip WONG to move the following motion:
(Translation)
That, as employers at present do not have any channel for checking the past sexual offences conviction records of applicants when recruiting personnel for posts which have close contact with children, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously implement the recommendations in the Law Reform Commission Report to establish a scheme for sexual offences records checks for child-related work, so as to enhance protection for children against sexual assault.
| Amendments to the motion
| | (i) | Hon Emily LAU to move the following amendment:
(Translation)
To delete "," after "That" and substitute with "the occurrence in recent years of a number of incidents in which persons who engaged in child-related work committing sexual offences against children has aroused widespread concern;"; to delete "this Council urges the Government to expeditiously implement the recommendations in" after "with children,"; to delete "Report to establish" after "the Law Reform Commission" and substitute with "('LRC') released a report in February this year, putting forward interim proposals for, as an interim measure, the establishment of"; and to add ", and this Council notes the contents of the report; in view of the highly controversial nature of LRC's proposals, this Council urges the Administration to expeditiously consult various sectors and, after balancing the views of various parties, implement as soon as possible reasonable and practicable administrative and legislative measures" after "child-related work".
| | (ii) | Hon Audrey EU to move the following amendment:
(Translation)
To delete ", as employers at present do not have any channel for checking the past sexual offences conviction records of applicants when recruiting personnel for posts which have close contact with children, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously implement the recommendations in" after "That" and substitute with "this Council notes the proposals put forward in the Report released by"; to delete "Report to establish" after "the Law Reform Commission" and substitute with "in relation to the establishment of"; and to delete "so as to enhance protection for children against sexual assault" immediately before the full stop and substitute with "and calls upon the academia, parents, concern groups and the general public to actively participate in discussions and present their views to the Law Reform Commission and the Administration, so as to work out a proposal which can afford protection to children while safeguarding the human rights of former sex offenders and facilitating their rehabilitation".
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Security
Clerk to the Legislative Council
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