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A 09/10-36
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 14 July 2010 at 11:00 am
I. Tabling of Papers
| Subsidiary Legislation / Instruments | L.N. No.
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| 1. | Genetically Modified Organisms (Documentation for Import and Export) Regulation | 96/2010
| | 2. | Intercountry Adoption (Contracting States) Order 2010 | 97/2010
| | 3. | Port Control (Public Cargo Working Area) Order 2010 | 98/2010
| | 4. | Employees Retraining Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 2) (No. 3) Notice 2010 | 99/2010
| | 5. | Smoking (Public Health) (Designation of No Smoking Areas) (Amendment) Notice 2010 | 100/2010
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Other Papers
| 1. | No. 110 | - | Report by the Commissioner of Correctional Services on the administration of the Prisoners' Welfare Fund together with the Director of Audit's report and audited financial statement for the year ended 31 March 2010
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Security)
| | 2. | No. 111 | - | Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, Hong Kong Annual Report 2009-10
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs)
| | 3. | No. 112 | - | Sir Robert Black Trust Fund
Signed and audited financial statements together with the Auditor's report and report of the Trustee on the Administration of the Fund for the year ended 31 March 2010
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Home Affairs)
| | 4. | No. 113 | - | Hong Kong Deposit Protection Board Annual Report 2009-2010
| (to be presented by the Financial Secretary)
| | 5. | No. 114 | - | J.E. Joseph Trust Fund
Report of the Trustee and the signed and audited financial statements together with the Report of the Director of Audit for the period from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Food and Health)
| | 6. | No. 115 | - | Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Loan Fund
Report of the Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Loan Fund Committee and the signed and audited financial statements together with the Report of the Director of Audit for the period from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Food and Health)
| | 7. | No. 116 | - | Sir David Trench Fund for Recreation Trustee's Report 2009-2010
| (to be presented by the Secretary for Home Affairs)
| | 8. | No. 117 | - | Report of the Public Accounts Committee on Report No. 54 of the Director of Audit on the Results of Value for Money Audits
(July 2010 - P.A.C. Report No. 54)
| (to be presented by Dr Hon Philip WONG, Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, who will address the Council)
| | 9. | Report No. 17/09-10 of the House Committee on Consideration of Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments
| (to be presented by Hon Miriam LAU, Chairman of the House Committee)
| | 10. | Report of the Bills Committee on Minimum Wage Bill
| (to be presented by Hon TAM Yiu-chung, Chairman of the Bills Committee)
| | 11. | Report of the Bills Committee on Stamp Duty (Amendment) Bill 2010
| (to be presented by Hon CHAN Kam-lam, Chairman of the Bills Committee)
| | 12. | Report of the Panel on Commerce and Industry 2009-2010
| (to be presented by Hon Vincent FANG, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
| | 13. | Report of the Panel on Public Service 2009-2010
| (to be presented by Hon LEE Cheuk-yan, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
| | 14. | Report of the Panel on Transport 2009-2010
| (to be presented by Hon CHEUNG Hok-ming, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
| | 15. | Report of the Panel on Housing 2009-2010
| (to be presented by Hon WONG Kwok-hing, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
| | 16. | Report of the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting 2009-2010
| (to be presented by Dr Hon Samson TAM, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
| | 17. | Report of the Panel on Economic Development 2009-2010
| (to be presented by Hon Jeffrey LAM, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
| | 18. | Report of the Panel on Health Services 2009-2010
| (to be presented by Dr Hon Joseph LEE, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
| | 19. | Report of the Panel on Environmental Affairs 2009-2010
| (to be presented by Hon Audrey EU, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
| | 20. | Committee on Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region - Progress Report for the period July 2009 to June 2010
| | (to be presented by Hon TAM Yiu-chung, Chairman of the Committee on Rules of Procedure, who will address the Council)
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II. Questions
1. Dr Hon Margaret NG to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that on 19 December last year, a physically disabled hawker holding a valid Itinerant Hawker Licence (Frozen Confectionery) (commonly known as "ice cream vendor") was alleged to have caused obstruction when hawking in the vicinity of the Star Ferry Pier in Tsim Sha Tsui as well as engaged in selling candies named "lollipop", and he was subsequently charged with causing street obstruction and hawking a commodity not specified in the licence. The prosecutor withdrew the charge of causing street obstruction before the trial, while retaining the second charge. The magistrate stated clearly in court that the case was of a minor nature and prosecution was unnecessary. He questioned the enforcement standards of the law enforcement officers as well as the prosecution principles of the prosecutor, and imposed a light penalty of a fine of $100 on the defendant. It has also been reported that some members of the public were dissatisfied with the authorities indiscriminately enforcing the law and instituting prosecution. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that under the current prosecution policy, in deciding whether a prosecution should be instituted, the Department of Justice ("DoJ") must consider if there is sufficient evidence and if the public interest requires a prosecution to be pursued, whether this policy has changed; in respect of the aforesaid case, of the public interest grounds based on which DoJ decided to institute prosecution;
| | (b) | whether the prosecutor in the aforesaid case withdrew the charge of causing street obstruction because of insufficient evidence; if so, whether DoJ has considered if continuing with the prosecution against the hawker for hawking a commodity not specified in the licence would give the public the impression that "if you want to condemn somebody, you can always trump up a charge", resulting in their loss of confidence in the administration of justice; and
| | (c) | whether DoJ will conduct a comprehensive review in the light of the case, with a view to improving the current prosecution policy?
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Public Officer to reply : The Secretary for Justice
2. Hon Alan LEONG to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that at present, quite a number of people stage performances in the streets to entertain the public, and such performances have been well received. Yet in recent years, the authorities have invoked the Summary Offences Ordinance to prosecute these performers, giving rise to worries that the Government tries to limit their room to perform through law enforcement. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether the authorities had, in the past three years, exercised discretion in enforcing the relevant legislation, and gave advice and guidance to street performers, and prosecuted them only when repeated advice was ineffective; if discretion had been exercised, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | given that members of the public have relayed that the majority of street performers stage performances in public space at present, and frontline law enforcement officers, who are often unable to distinguish their performances from begging activities, had decided to institute prosecutions merely based on subjective judgement, whether the authorities will review the existing legislation to define street performance activities clearly, so as to avoid street performers from being prosecuted for begging when they are providing entertainment to members of the public; if they will not, of the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | given that under the "Open Stage" Pilot Scheme launched by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department from July to December this year, participating performers are not allowed to collect money rewards, yet many performers have indicated that the stipulation may impede the development of street art and culture, whether the authorities will review the stipulation so that performers have more room to promote street art and culture on a sustainable basis; if they will not, of the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs
3. Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che to ask: (Translation)
The Social Welfare Advisory Committee ("SWAC") released in April this year a consultation paper on Long-term Social Welfare Planning in Hong Kong to launch the second stage of consultation for the study on social welfare planning, and the deadline for submissions is 31st of this month. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that many organizations, members of the social welfare sector and service users have complained that they did not know when the first stage of consultation had been conducted, of the starting and closing dates of that stage of consultation conducted by SWAC, as well as what consultation activities were held, together with a breakdown of the numbers of participants of the various consultation activities by the category of participants (e.g. frontline management and staff of social welfare organizations, service users, academics and other community members); whether it has assessed if it is appropriate for the present second stage consultation period to last for only three months or so; whether it will request SWAC to extend the consultation period in response to the sector's views;
| | (b) | why SWAC arranged to hold four consultation sessions in May this year on weekdays during office hours from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm, instead of at a time convenient for participation by the sector and service users; whether the authorities will, in response to the sector's views, request SWAC to hold additional consultation sessions at other time slots before the end of the consultation period, consult the 18 District Councils as well as collaborate with them to consult members of the public in various districts; and
| | (c) | why the consultation paper on Long-term Social Welfare Planning in Hong Kong was not compiled by a government department; whether the authorities will implement and follow up the recommendations in the consultation paper; if they will, how the recommendations will be implemented and followed up; if not, of the reasons for that; whether the authorities will reinstate the Five-Year Plan mechanism and compile the White Papers on social welfare as well as set specific targets for social welfare services?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
4. Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that the Chairman of the Hong Kong Housing Society ("HS") indicated earlier that HS was studying the reintroduction of Group B rental estate units ("Group B units"), which are commonly known as "public housing for the middle-class", so as to relieve the housing pressure on the sandwich class, but due to difficulties in finding suitable land, HS would have to use its own land resources to build such units, e.g. changing the land use of the sites concerned from redeveloping Group A rental estate units ("Group A units") for low-income people to building Group B units instead, but it would have to apply to the authorities for lease modification and pay land premium first. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it knows the respective numbers of applications for Group A and B units received by HS, the average waiting time and the natural turnover rates, in the past three years;
| | (b) | whether it knows the redevelopment plans of HS for Group A units in the next five years, the estates and existing number of units involved, and the number of units available after redevelopment; whether the Government has so far received any application from HS for changing the land use of sites from the construction of Group A units to that of Group B units; if it has, of the details; and
| | (c) | whether it will conduct a detailed study on the impact of HS using the sites for Group A units to build Group B units on the applicants for these two types of units and the waiting time of applicants for public rental housing under the Hong Kong Housing Authority; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
5. Hon LEE Wing-tat to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the follow-up work to the passage of the motions by this Council at the meeting of 23 June this year which were moved by the Government to amend the methods for selecting the Chief Executive ("CE") and for forming the Legislative Council ("LegCo") in 2012, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it will recommend to the next term of the SAR Government to adopt the approach of enacting the legislation in one go but implementing it by phases to enable the elections of CE in 2017 and LegCo in 2020 to be conducted by genuine universal suffrage; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether it will suggest the next term of the SAR Government to abolish the split voting system of LegCo in 2016, and how to lower the nomination threshold for the CE election in 2017 and how to abolish all functional constituency seats of LegCo, so that in 2020 the entire LegCo will be returned by universal suffrage which fully conforms with the "universal and equal" principle stipulated in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | given that the Government has undertaken to put forth expeditiously upon the passage of the aforesaid motions proposals at the local legislation level, to address the issue of abolishing appointed District Council seats, whether it will completely abolish such seats in 2011; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
6. Hon WONG Kwok-kin to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that recently property prices are soaring continuously, and have become out of tune with the affordability of the general public, and that difficulty in purchasing a home has become a major problem in the community of Hong Kong. The Secretary for Transport and Housing indicated earlier that the responsibility of the Government at present was only to enable members of the public to "have a place to live". In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it knows the respective current numbers of sandwich class families whose monthly incomes exceed the limit for applying for public rental housing ("PRH") but are below the following amounts: $20,000, $30,000, $40,000, the "average monthly household income" and the "median monthly household income" for the first quarter of 2010, together with breakdowns by the number of family members (i.e., one member, two members, three members, four members, five members, six or more members);
| | (b) | whether measures are in place to enable the aforesaid sandwich class families, which are not eligible to apply for PRH but may not be able to afford a private property, to "have a place to live"; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | given that the Government is conducting a five-month Public Consultation on Subsidising Home Ownership, how the authorities collect the views of such sandwich class families, and whether they will conduct a detailed statistical survey and study on the housing problems and housing situations of such sandwich class families, with a view to bringing up such issues for focused discussion by the community during the consultation period?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*7. Hon WONG Yuk-man to ask: (Translation)
It was reported that an Amenities Assistant III of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department borrowed $200 from his subordinate because he was in financial difficulties, and was later prosecuted by the Independent Commission Against Corruption ("ICAC") for borrowing money without the general or special permission of the Chief Executive. The assistant concerned admitted that he had committed an offence of soliciting advantages in the capacity of a prescribed officer and the magistrate made a rare order that he be discharged absolutely. Regarding ICAC's prosecution policy and its establishment in relation to prosecution, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether the authorities have assessed if the aforesaid case will have impact on the credibility of the Department of Justice ("DoJ") and ICAC; if an assessment has been conducted, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | of the measures and guidelines put in place at present to avoid DoJ and ICAC from overdoing in rectification when making decisions to institute prosecutions; and
| | (c) | whether the authorities have assessed the appropriateness of ICAC's establishment in relation to prosecution work; if an assessment has been conducted, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : The Chief Secretary for Administration
*8. Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung to ask: (Translation)
I have received complaints from quite a number of parents and kindergarten teachers that since the incumbent Chief Commissioner ("CC") of the Hong Kong Girl Guides Association ("the Association") assumed the office, the Association has made use of government funds or donations to organize many activities which served no practical purposes or were not related to the training and mission of the Girl Guides. Those parents and teachers have also pointed out that one of the Association's schemes even recruits male children as members. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it knows the appointment method and tenure of CC, as well as the requirements on the training received and years of work experience;
| | (b) | whether it knows if the Unit Guiders in Hong Kong have the nomination and voting rights to elect CC; if they have, of the number of votes received by the incumbent CC and the percentage of that number in the total number of Unit Guiders in Hong Kong; whether any mechanism is in place for the dismissal of CC; if not, whether it has assessed if the appointment of CC was made in a black box;
| | (c) | of the amounts of government funds, donations and proceeds of charity lottery tickets received by the Association in each of the past five years (set out in the table below);
| Year | Amount of government funds | Amount of donations | Amount of proceeds of charity lottery tickets |
| 2005 |
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| 2006 |
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| 2007 |
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| 2008 |
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| 2009 |
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| | (d) | how the Government regulates how the Association uses the donations or government funds received (including the amount of charitable donations and government funds spent respectively on the anniversary function held in a hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui on 3 November 2009 and the anti-drug related performance activity held in the Hong Kong Coliseum on 25 April 2010, in which CC and 1 000 girl guides participated); and
| | (e) | whether it knows the year in which the Association started to recruit male children as members of the "Uniform Subsidy Scheme for Happy Bee"; given that apart from that scheme, no other scheme or branch of the Association accepts male children/adults as members, whether the Government has assessed if this situation is a breach of the Sex Discrimination Ordinance (Cap. 480); if the assessment result is in the affirmative, when the Government will refer the aforesaid case to the Equal Opportunities Commission for follow up?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs
*9. Hon Albert CHAN to ask: (Translation)
Recently, I have received complaints from quite a number of villagers, who have pointed out that for years the Government have not provided public sewers in some villages, leaving the sewage from such villages not properly treated. Moreover, in some of the villages where public sewers are provided, since sewers are not directly connected to the sewerage facilities of the villagers' residences, the villagers had to spend a substantial amount of money to connect such facilities to public sewers, which had significantly increased the burden on their livelihood. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the number of villages which at present are still not provided with public sewers, and the names and locations of such villages; whether the authorities have planned to provide public sewers to such villages; if they have, of the details of the plans and when the works will commence; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | in those villages which are provided with public sewers, the percentage of the number of households for which the sewerage facilities of their residences are not connected to public sewers in the total number of households in such villages; whether the Government has planned to assist the households in connecting such facilities to public sewers; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | whether it will connect the sewerage facilities in the villagers' residences to public sewers directly when providing new public sewers and implementing sewerage projects in villages; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment
*10. Hon Ronny TONG to ask: (Translation)
In a serious traffic accident which occurred in Sha Tin on 17 May this year, a public light bus ("PLB") collided with a taxi, resulting in one death and six injuries, and the deceased and two of the injured persons were passengers of the PLB. It was reported that as the passenger seats of the PLB concerned were not fitted with seat belts, the three passengers were either killed or seriously injured, while the PLB driver who wore a seat belt had only sustained a minor injury. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the number of PLBs not fitted with seat belts on their passenger seats in Hong Kong at present, and the percentage of such number in the total number of PLBs;
| | (b) | given that it is stipulated under the Road Traffic (Safety Equipment) Regulations (Cap. 374F) that all rear seats of PLBs registered on or after 1 August 2004 are required to be fitted with seat belts, and passengers must wear the seat belts fitted on their seats, failing which they are liable to prosecution, of the respective numbers of prosecution instituted, since the legislation has come into operation, against PLB owners who failed to have their vehicles fitted with seat belts as required and passengers who failed to wear seat belts as required;
| | (c) | whether the Government will make it a mandatory requirement for all seats of PLBs to be retrofitted with seat belts, and whether financial assistance will be provided to owners of PLBs registered before 1 August 2004 and not yet fitted with seat belts; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (d) | whether the authorities will step up law enforcement against PLB passengers' failure to wear a seat belt and increase the penalty for the offence, so as to alert them of the requirement of wearing a seat belt?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*11. Hon WONG Kwok-hing to ask: (Translation)
At present, the Housing Department ("HD") requires all public rental housing ("PRH") tenants, when moving out of their flats, to reinstate the original fixtures and facilities provided by HD at their own cost. I have received complaints from quite a number of PRH tenants that when they move out, they are required to remove basic fixtures altered by them such as flooring, ceiling cornices, window grilles, metal gatesets and custom-made built-in furniture, thereby generating a large quantity of waste. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the number of PRH tenants who, when moving out of their flats, had left the works to reinstate the original fixtures of the flats to HD, and whether it knows the number of PRH tenants who had undertaken such works at their own cost, in each of the past five years, as well as the costs involved;
| | (b) | whether the authorities have assessed the quantity of waste generated as a result of the aforesaid requirement imposed by HD for reinstating the original fixtures; if so, of the total weight of the waste generated in the past five years and the average weight of the waste generated in each of such cases; whether the authorities have separated the waste concerned prior to its disposal; if so, of a list, by type of waste involved, of the ways of disposal adopted by HD; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (c) | whether HD had, in the past three years, recycled and reused those usable items acquired upon recovering PRH flats such as furniture, fixtures and electrical appliances, etc. or donated them to organizations and persons in need; if so, of the details and the number of such items; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (d) | given that there have been comments that the arrangement for reinstating PRH flats to their original state has caused wastage, whether the authorities will review such requirement, so as to reduce the quantity of the waste generated in that regard?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*12. Hon Albert HO to ask: (Translation)
Under the reciprocal notification mechanism implemented since January 2001, the mainland public security authorities will notify the Hong Kong Police of the unnatural deaths of Hong Kong residents on the Mainland, as well as the imposition of criminal compulsory measures on Hong Kong residents by the mainland authorities. Similarly, the Hong Kong Police will notify the mainland authorities of the criminal prosecutions instituted by the Hong Kong Police Force, Customs and Excise Department and Immigration Department against mainland residents, as well as the unnatural deaths of mainland residents in Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the respective numbers of notifications made by the enforcement agencies of both sides in each of the past five years; the number of mainland and Hong Kong residents involved; among them, the respective numbers of those on whom criminal compulsory measures were imposed and those who died an unnatural death, as well as the criminal charges involved;
| | (b) | whether the Hong Kong Police, upon receipt of notifications from the mainland authorities, takes the initiative to assist the Hong Kong people in distress and their families; if so, of the form of assistance and the details; and
| | (c) | whether it has conducted reviews regularly to ensure that the Government renders the support needed by the Hong Kong people in distress and their families through the reciprocal notification mechanism; if so, of the details?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security
*13. Hon CHEUNG Hok-ming to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that in recent months, there have been incidents of abandoned signboards in urban areas falling and injuring passers-by. Regarding the removal of dangerous and abandoned signboards, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it knows the total number of signboards in Hong Kong at present; among them, of the number of abandoned signboards which have been illegally erected and whose owners cannot be identified;
| | (b) | of the number of incidents involving signboards which occurred in the past two years, as well as the resultant casualties;
| | (c) | given that the authorities had allocated $18 million for launching an operation to remove 5 000 dangerous signboards in Hong Kong, when the operation had been completed, and of the details of the continuous efforts made by the authorities to remove dangerous signboards since the completion of the operation; and
| | (d) | of the estimated time required to complete the clearance of all illegally erected signboards in Hong Kong, as well as the expenditure involved?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*14. Hon WONG Sing-chi to ask: (Translation)
In her reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on 23 June this year, the Secretary for Transport and Housing indicated that as at 31 May 2010, there were 21 projects on granted sites for which construction had yet to commence (commonly known as "disposed sites"), involving about 12 000 residential units, and the Government would impose a Building Covenant date in the land leases to govern the completion dates of the projects. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the locations of the projects and the number of residential units involved in each project, as well as the content of the clause on the Building Covenant date included in the land leases (including the scheduled completion dates of the projects);
| | (b) | of the penalties to be imposed on, or the follow-up procedure to be adopted in respect of, those developers who fail to complete such projects as scheduled; the procedure adopted by the authorities for vetting and approving applications for extension of completion dates, and whether the project developers concerned will be required to provide reasons for extending the completion dates and pay any fine to the authorities;
| | (c) | whether applications had been submitted for extending the completion dates of those projects which were completed in the past five years; if so, of the average and the longest duration of such extensions, as well as the reasons for the extensions; and
| | (d) | of the current number of projects which cannot be completed as scheduled in accordance with the Building Covenant date, together with a list, set out according to lot number of such projects, of the names of the projects, of the total numbers of residential units, the scheduled and extended completion dates, the reasons for the extensions and the amounts of fines paid to the Government due to the extension of the completion dates?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*15. Hon IP Wai-ming to ask: (Translation)
To encourage needy persons and low-income employees residing in remote districts to look for jobs and stay in employment, the Government launched on a pilot basis in 2007 the Transport Support Scheme for one year to provide time-limited transport allowance to eligible persons in some remote districts, and introduced in 2008 a number of relaxation measures. Yet, the Scheme stipulates that the total value of personal assets of applicants must not exceed $44,000, including cash values of insurance policies. It has been learnt that quite a number of needy applicants are not eligible to apply for such allowance as a result. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the total number of applicants, since the launch of the Transport Support Scheme in 2007, who were ineligible for transport allowance because the total value of their personal assets had exceeded the prescribed ceiling owing to the cash values of their insurance policies; whether any applicant had been required to return the transport allowance received because of the cash values of their insurance policies, and of the relevant figures; and
| | (b) | given that cash values of insurance policies cannot be readily converted into cash to meet the immediate needs of the livelihood of policy-holders, including payment of transport costs for job seeking, why the authorities have included such cash values in calculating the total value of personal assets of applicants, and whether they have plans to disregard such cash values in the calculation; if they do, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
*16. Hon Starry LEE to ask: (Translation)
The Islamic and Hindu restrictions on diet are religious rules which their followers must observe. The food they eat and even the food handling process (including butchery) must comply with such religious rules (e.g. Hinduism tries to minimize as far as possible the pain and torture suffered by livestock during butchery, while Islam also regulates how livestock is slaughtered for consumption by Muslims). Regarding the provision of food conforming to religious rules to the aforesaid religious followers by schools, hospitals and penal institutions, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the current number of penal institutions which provide such food; the number of complaints they received in the past five years about failure to provide such food, as well as the follow-up actions and outcome;
| | (b) | whether it knows the current number of schools and hospitals which provide food to the aforesaid religious followers that conforms to their religious rules; the number of complaints they received in the past five years about failure to provide such food, as well as the follow-up actions and outcome;
| | (c) | whether the Government will consider issuing guidelines to the aforesaid institutions to remind them of the need to respect different religions and try to provide religious followers with food conforming to their religious rules as far as possible; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (d) | whether the authorities have plans to promote the provision of food conforming to religious rules for religious followers by the aforesaid institutions, so as to create an accommodating atmosphere embracing all religions; if they have such plans, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs
*17. Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to ask: (Translation)
A pharmaceutical dispenser association has earlier pointed out that in the past few months, seven drug incidents occurred one after another in the general out-patient clinics ("GOPCs") of the New Territories East and New Territories West Clusters of the Hospital Authority ("HA"). The association has further pointed out that since pharmacists stationed in out-patient clinics need to handle administrative work, dispensers are required to undertake pharmacists' work in addition to their own work, which has increased their workload drastically, and the risk of dispensing errors has also increased correspondingly, hence posing threats to the lives of the public. Regarding the manpower and establishment of dispensing staff in public GOPCs, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
| (a) | the total number of drug-related medical incidents which occurred in public GOPCs in Hong Kong in each of the past five years, together with a breakdown by HA's hospital cluster;
| | (b) | the existing staff (including pharmacists) establishment and the actual number of staff on duty in the dispensary of each of the day, evening and holiday GOPCs; the average number of days/nights/sessions per week during which the pharmacists therein act as the persons-in-charge of the dispensaries of the various clinics; the number of clinics stationed with only one dispenser; whether there are clinics in which dispensers act as the persons-in-charge of the dispensaries; and the number of clinics which manage to have four dispensers or pharmacists stationing there;
| | (c) | the current number of dispensers qualified to act as "approved persons" or "authorized persons" among the dispensers in public GOPCs in Hong Kong, and the number of those who handle the duties of dispensing medicines in place of pharmacists at present;
| | (d) | the number of new drugs available in public GOPCs in the past five years; the percentage of such number in the total number of drugs; and the number of patients referred in each of the past five years by specialist out-patient clinics to GOPCs for follow-up consultation and collection of drugs; and
| | (e) | the increase in the past five years in the total number of doctors in public GOPCs in Hong Kong; whether the numbers of dispensers and pharmacists have increased correspondingly; if not, of the reasons for that; and the ratio of doctors to dispensers and pharmacists in the public healthcare system at present?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
*18. Hon Abraham SHEK to ask:
It has been reported that more than 20 foreign domestic helpers are often seen at Statue Square in Central engaging in hawking activities such as hair cutting and manicure, etc. for their compatriots, which has aroused public concern about whether it is legitimate for them to take up such work and the negative impact of such activities on environmental hygiene in the public area. In this connection, will the Government inform the Council:
| (a) | of the number of foreign domestic helpers prosecuted since 2008 for violating their conditions of stay in Hong Kong because they were found engaging in illegal hawking activities and, among them, the number of those subject to a removal order as a result;
| | (b) | whether it will consider amending the legislation to impose heavier penalty on foreign domestic helpers engaging in illegal hawking activities in the public area; and
| | (c) | whether it has considered taking any other measure to solve the problem of foreign domestic helpers engaging in hawking activities in the public area with a view to enhancing the mobility, environmental hygiene condition and public safety in the public areas concerned; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security
*19. Dr Hon David LI to ask:
In recent years, the authorities have encouraged government departments and public organizations to publish their annual reports by electronic and digital means, including CD-ROMs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the total number of government departments and public organizations which at present publish annual reports and, among them, the respective numbers of those which publish both electronic and paper reports, and those which publish electronic reports only;
| | (b) | of the quantity of paper saved in the 2009-2010 financial year as a result of publishing annual reports in electronic version instead of paper version when compared to the quantity of paper used for that purpose in each of the past five financial years;
| | (c) | whether the Government will implement additional measures to further reduce paper usage and make a commitment to entirely eliminate annual reports published in paper version; and
| | (d) | of the actual cost saved in the 2009-2010 financial year from publishing annual reports in electronic version instead of paper version?
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Public Officer to reply : The Chief Secretary for Administration
*20. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)
In the consultation paper "Review of the Role and Functions of Public Sector Advisory and Statutory Bodies" published in 2003, the authorities have set a minimum ratio of 25% of non-official members of either gender in advisory and statutory bodies ("ASBs") and stipulated that in general, a non-official member of an ASB should neither serve for more than six years in any one capacity ("six-year rule") nor as a member on more than six boards or committees at the same time ("six-board rule"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that the information provided to this Council by the Secretary for Home Affairs ("SHA") indicates that as at 30 April 2009, 167 non-official members appointed by the Government (representing 3.05% of all government appointed non-officials) had served in the same capacity on the ASB concerned for more than six years, while six persons (representing 0.17% of all government appointed non-officials) were appointed by the Government to serve as non-official members on seven ASBs, of the total number of non-official members appointed by the Government who had served in the same capacity on the ASB concerned for more than six years at present; the reasons for further appointing them; the number of persons currently serving as members on more than six ASBs at the same time; and the reasons for appointing them;
| | (b) | whether it will enact legislation to ensure that various policy bureaux and government departments abide by the six-year and six-board rules in appointing those members; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (c) | given that the United Nations Economic and Social Council Resolution recommended a target for various nations and regions that 30% of their leadership positions be taken up by women by 1995, whether the authorities have considered setting a deadline by which women's participation rates in various ASBs shall all reach 30%; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (d) | given that the data provided to this Council by SHA indicate that as at 30 April 2009, more than 40 ASBs had no female government-appointed member at all, whether the authorities have any plan to give priority to such bodies so that they will reach the target on women's participation rate in (c) as early as possible; if they have such plans, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (e) | given that the Home Affairs Bureau has indicated that it encourages women to contribute their curriculum vitaes ("CVs") for inclusion in the Central Personality Index ("CPI"), of the concrete measures implemented by the authorities in this regard; how many women have included their CVs in the CPI so far?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs
* For written reply
III. Bills
First Reading
| | 1. | Adaptation of Laws (Military References) Bill 2010
| | 2. | Securities and Futures and Companies Legislation (Structured Products Amendment) Bill 2010
| | 3. | Competition Bill
| Second Reading (Debates to be adjourned)
| | 1. | Adaptation of Laws (Military References) Bill 2010 | : | Secretary for Security
| | 2. | Securities and Futures and Companies Legislation (Structured Products Amendment) Bill 2010 | : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
| | 3. | Competition Bill | : | Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
| Second Reading (Debates to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading
| | 1. | Supplementary Appropriation (2009-2010) Bill | : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
| | 2. | Minimum Wage Bill | : | Secretary for Labour and Welfare
| |
| (i) | Secretary for Labour and Welfare to move Committee stage amendments
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(The amendments were issued on 9 July 2010
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 926/09-10)
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| (ii) | Hon Emily LAU, Hon WONG Kwok-hing, Hon IP Wai-ming, Dr Hon LEUNG Ka-lau, Hon Mrs Regina IP, Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che, Hon Cyd HO, Hon LEE Cheuk-yan and Hon LEUNG Yiu-chung to move Committee stage amendments
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(The amendments were issued on 12 July 2010
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 943/09-10)
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| | 3. | Stamp Duty (Amendment) Bill 2010 | : | Secretary for Transport and Housing
| Hon James TO to move Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 12 July 2010
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 946/09-10)
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IV. Motions
Proposed resolution under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance
Secretary for Food and Health to move the following motion:
RESOLVED that the following Regulations, made by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board on 21 June 2010, be approved -
| (a) | the Pharmacy and Poisons (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulation 2010; and
| | (b) | the Poisons List (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulation 2010.
| (The two Regulations were issued on 25 June 2010
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 838/09-10)
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V. Members' Motions
- Motion under Rule 49E(2) of the Rules of Procedure
Hon Miriam LAU to move the following motion: (Translation)
That this Council takes note of Report No. 17/09-10 of the House Committee laid on the Table of the Council on 14 July 2010 in relation to the subsidiary legislation and instrument(s) as listed below:
| Item Number | Title of Subsidiary Legislation or Instrument |
| (1) | Tate's Cairn Tunnel Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule) Notice 2010 (L.N. 67/2010).
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Transport and Housing
- Proposed resolution under the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance
Hon LEE Wing-tat to move the following motion:
That the Legislative Council Panel on Housing be authorized under section 9(2) of the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance (Cap. 382) to exercise the powers conferred by section 9(1) of the Ordinance so as to order the Secretary for Transport and Housing of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to attend before the Panel to produce all the correspondences between the Lands Department and the developer of 39 Conduit Road relating to the Lands Department's enquiry into the property transactions of 39 Conduit Road.
Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Transport and Housing
- Proactively developing social enterprises
Hon Frederick FUNG to move the following motion: (Translation)
That, this Council urges the Government to proactively develop social enterprises, review the various existing support measures, and conduct in-depth consultation with the public and the industry, and at the same time make reference to the relevant overseas experience, so as to map out a development blueprint for social enterprises in the future, formulate support measures on all fronts and offer policy incentives, and provide appropriate arrangements and support in areas such as laws and regulations, financing, management and operation, manpower training, public education and promotion, market opportunity exploration, and procurement of services and products provided by social enterprises, with a view to offering social enterprises extensive and sustainable room for development.
| Amendments to the motion
| | (i) | Hon WONG Sing-chi to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add "in order to narrow social inequality," after "That,"; and to add "; in developing social enterprises, the Government may: (a) set up a 'social enterprise seed fund' with an injection of $500 million, which is to be merged with the funds of the Enhancing Self-Reliance Through District Partnership Programme; and (b) allocate $1 billion to set up a 'social enterprise development loan fund' and, based on a principle of emphasizing both commercial operations and social objectives, grant loans to organizations which intend to set up social enterprises" immediately before the full stop.
| | (ii) | Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add "as the development of social enterprises is still subject to considerable limitations in spite of years of promotion in Hong Kong," after "That,"; and to add ", including: (a) to comprehensively review the role of the Government in the development of social enterprises, so as to formulate targeted support measures; (b) to set up an inter-departmental working group to remove the barriers for social enterprises, so as to provide them with more comprehensive support; (c) to clearly define the meaning of social enterprises, establish criteria for them and introduce a licensing system to facilitate regulation; (d) to provide social enterprises with more resources, including increasing non-repayable subsidies instead of offering only loan support; (e) to explore parcelling out government tender contracts to facilitate bidding by social enterprises; (f) to optimize the use of vacant government premises to create a better operating environment for social enterprises; and (g) to enhance manpower training for social enterprises to boost community economic activities and job opportunities" immediately before the full stop.
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Home Affairs
- Comprehensively upgrading the quality of talents in Hong Kong to complement the upgrading and transformation of small and medium enterprises
Hon Miriam LAU to move the following motion: (Translation)
That talents have been an important element contributing to the vigorous development of small and medium enterprises ('SMEs') in Hong Kong over the years, but for many years, the Government has not formulated a comprehensive policy on nurturing talents to complement the upgrading and transformation of SMEs which employ a large number of employees, resulting in their development being hindered and hence their employees' income cannot improve substantially; as such, this Council urges the Government to:
| (a) | formulate a comprehensive policy on talents training to upgrade the quality of talents in Hong Kong in the long run, thereby complementing the upgrading and transformation of SMEs;
| | (b) | consider relaunching and enhancing the 'SME Training Fund', introduce training programmes for the middle-aged, and enhance the relevant talents nurturing programmes such as the 'Continuing Education Fund', etc.;
| | (c) | increase the opportunities for young people to go overseas for further studies and exchanges and to receive on-the-job training;
| | (d) | increase efforts to attract overseas talents, including formulating complementary measures such as increasing the number of places available in international schools to attract overseas talents to stay in Hong Kong, thereby strengthening the exchanges between Hong Kong talents and their counterparts from other places; and
| | (e) | assist SMEs in upgrading their creativity and innovative capabilities, study the establishment of a fund for industrial upgrading and transformation, and formulate a one-stop programme for enterprise incubation, so as to provide support for SMEs intending to upgrade or transform as well as their employees.
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Amendment to the motion
Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", as" after "That"; to add "quality" after "increase efforts to attract overseas"; to add "quality" after "international schools to attract overseas"; to delete "and" after "other places;"; and to add "; and (f) expand various employment services, training and support schemes, and provide employees with 'training leave', so as to enhance the competitiveness of our manpower resources" immediately before the full stop.
| Public Officers to attend | : | Secretary for Education
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
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- Motion for the adjournment of the Council
Hon Mrs Regina IP to move the following motion: (Translation)
That this Council do now adjourn for the purpose of debating the following issue: the repeated occurrence of tree-falling incidents, and how to prevent the recurrence of similar tragedies.
Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Development
Clerk to the Legislative Council
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