A 10/11-5

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 3 November 2010 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers

Subsidiary Legislation / InstrumentsL.N. No.
1.Human Organ Transplant (Amendment) Regulation 2010143/2010
2.Human Organ Transplant (Appeal Board) Regulation144/2010

II. Questions

1. Hon Paul CHAN to ask: (Translation)

Although the fees of kindergartens and child care centres are regulated under the Education Regulations and the Child Care Services Regulations, it has been reported that recently, a kindergarten had organized various interest classes and catechism classes in the name of a third party and collected fees from students who attended those classes. The catechism classes were allegedly organized by students' parents on their own initiative. Yet, the fees collected had gone into the account of a limited company, the directors of which are the principal and supervisors of the kindergarten. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether the Government has assessed if the practice of the kindergarten referred to in those reports is regulated under the Education Regulations and the Child Care Services Regulations and if such practice is appropriate; if the assessment outcome is in the affirmative, of the reasons for that; if the assessment outcome is in the negative, what follow-up actions will be taken by the Government;

    (b)whether the Government will review the Education Regulations and the Child Care Services Regulations so as to eradicate the aforesaid practice of kindergartens; if it will, when and in what way the review will be conducted; if not, of the reasons for that; and

    (c)of the number of complaints received by the Government in the past three years which involved kindergartens charging fees in a similar manner, as well as the number of complaints involving kindergartens suspected to have contravened the Education Regulations and the Child Care Services Regulations and their contents; among such complaints, of the respective number of cases on which investigation was conducted, which were substantiated, for which prosecutions were instituted and the persons involved were convicted and, in respect of the convicted cases, the names of the kindergartens or child care centres involved and the penalties imposed?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

2. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)

According to a press release issued by the Government on 1 September this year, the Chief Secretary for Administration ("CS") departed for Beijing on 2 September to discuss matters concerning co-operation between Hong Kong and the Mainland with the Central People's Government. The Government issued another press release on the next day, saying that CS had a working meeting with the Deputy Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office ("HKMAO") of the State Council to exchange views on issues on furthering the social and economic development of Hong Kong, including the progress of Hong Kong's participation in the preparation of the National 12th Five-Year Plan and Hong Kong-Guangdong co-operation. It was noted that the meeting between CS and the Deputy Director lasted only one hour, and the Government did not announce the itinerary of CS in Beijing for the remaining seven hours. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
    (a)whether CS met the Director of HKMAO on 2 September to discuss matters in relation to the legislation on Article 23 of the Basic Law; if he did, of the reasons for not giving an account of the meeting and the contents of their talks in the press releases;

    (b)of the number of times in the past two years that the principal officials under the accountability system, after their visits outside Hong Kong, did not give an account of the details of such visits to the public, together with the names of the officials involved, as well as the dates and places of such visits outside Hong Kong; and

    (c)whether the authorities have assessed if the principal officials under the accountability system, after their duty visits to Beijing or other places, have the duty to give an account to the public and the Legislative Council of the persons they have met and the contents of discussions; if the assessment result is in the affirmative, whether the authorities will undertake to adhere to this principle in future by giving an account of the details of such meetings and discussions?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

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

It has recently been reported that the garages of a number of residential buildings were converted into residences or shops by their owners, while some switch rooms of residential buildings were also converted into shops for lease. The affected residents and owners' corporations had repeatedly written to various government departments for assistance during the past 20 odd years, and received a reply from the Buildings Department ("BD") in recent months, saying that as the illegal structures did not affect the building structure and obstruct the fire escapes, they were not categorized as unauthorized building works prioritized for removal; hence BD would only issue letters to the owners advising them to demolish the illegal structures themselves. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the respective roles played by the various relevant government departments in the above matter;

    (b)why the Lands Department does not prosecute the aforesaid owners for violation of land use and order the owners to restore the non-compliant properties to their original use; and

    (c)why BD does not invoke relevant legislation to immediately order the non-compliant owners to demolish the illegal structures?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

4. Hon CHAN Kin-por to ask: (Translation)

The Chief Executive has announced in the policy address just delivered that the Government will adopt a number of measures to enhance private building management, including the proposal of establishing a statutory licensing regime for the property management industry to monitor the operation of property management companies and ensure the quality of their services. It will also strengthen its support for owners of properties in old buildings and embark on a series of initiatives to help owners and owners' corporations ("OCs") better understand their rights and responsibilities. In this regard, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)how it ensures that in implementing the licensing regime for the property management industry, the small and medium property management companies have room for survival;

    (b)focusing on the fact that owners of properties in old buildings are mostly the elderly and the grassroots, what specific new measures the authorities have planned to implement to help these owners form OCs, and of the details of the one-stop professional building management services which will be provided by the dedicated working group to be established; and

    (c)whether it will make it mandatory for property management companies to take out professional indemnity insurance so as to enhance protection for property owners who hire property management companies?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs

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

It has been learnt that in recent years, quite a number of retail shops and traders in markets refuse to accept small-denomination coins (such as 10-cent, 20-cent and 50-cent coins) as payment because banks will charge a handling fee for deposit of such coins. It has also been reported that recently a trader and his customer were involved in a scuffle because the trader refused to accept coins. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that in their reply to a question from a Member of this Council on 4 July 2007, the authorities stated that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority ("HKMA") considered that the demand for and circulation of coins had not been affected by rejection of small-denomination coins, whether they have assessed if the situation is different now; and of the number of relevant complaints received by HKMA in the past three years, as well as the value of the various types of small-denomination coins in circulation and the respective changes in percentage in each year during the period;

    (b)given that I have learnt that rejection of small-denomination coins is very common, whether the authorities will review the existing relevant legislation and take administrative measures to improve the aforesaid situation; and

    (c)whether it knows the situation of provision of free services for coin deposit and exchange by banks to the public at present; and whether the authorities will take any effective measure to encourage banks to waive the fee for those customers who deposit or exchange a small quantity of small-denomination coins?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

6. Hon WONG Ting-kwong to ask: (Translation)

The State Council gave approval to the Overall Development Plan on Hong Kong/Shenzhen Co-operation on Modern Service Industries in Qianhai Area ("Qianhai Development Plan") at the end of August this year. According to the views of the State Council in its approval, the Qianhai Development Plan should fully capitalize on Hong Kong's strengths and explore a system that is conducive to the development of modern service industries, with a view to providing a new experience for the whole nation and playing a pilot role, as well as setting up a co-ordination mechanism led by the National Development and Reform Commission with the involvement of Hong Kong and Shenzhen to resolve the problems encountered in developing the Qianhai Area. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)how the Hong Kong SAR Government will participate in the conceptualization of the Qianhai Development Plan, and whether it will take part in the work at different stages;

    (b)of the latest arrangements about the aforesaid co-ordination mechanism, including when the mechanism will be set up and what its framework will be; and

    (c)while Hong Kong's professional experience in modern service industries will steer the development in Qianhai Area, whether the authorities will, at the same time, examine what actual benefits and development opportunities the development of modern service industries in Qianhai Area will bring to Hong Kong; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

*7. Hon WONG Kwok-hing to ask: (Translation)

The Legislative Council has earlier repealed the Country Parks (Designation) (Consolidation) (Amendment) Order 2010 and as a result the Government is unable to extend the South East New Territories ("SENT") Landfill in Tseung Kwan O. Some residents in West New Territories are worried that as the SENT Landfill cannot be extended, extra burden will be put on the West New Territories ("WENT") Landfill at Nim Wan in Tuen Mun. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the amount of waste handled every day by the WENT Landfill at present and when the landfill is expected to reach its capacity;

    (b)given that it is not able to extend the SENT Landfill, of the estimated amount of additional waste to be transferred to the WENT Landfill for disposal every day after the SENT Landfill has reached its capacity, and whether this will shorten the time for the WENT Landfill to reach its capacity;

    (c)whether the Environment Bureau has considered extending the WENT Landfill; if it has, of the details and the progress of consultation with the residents; whether the authorities will install additional deodorization facilities to tie in with the current situation and utilization of the landfill;

    (d)given the pressure opposing the extension of landfills, whether the authorities will expedite the development of Integrated Waste Management Facilities and increase their scale, while at the same time actively consider making source separation of waste mandatory so as to tackle the problem of solid waste disposal in a multi-faceted manner; if they will, of the details; and

    (e)given that the Government will build an incinerator at Tsang Tsui for sludge treatment in due course and, by then, Tuen Mun will become a focal point for waste disposal in Hong Kong, and turn into a community where land-filling, incinerating and recycling activities are all found, whether the authorities will, prior to setting up various waste disposal facilities, make communal compensation that meets the aspirations of both the residents and the District Council of Tuen Mun, including making adjustments to the planning for Tuen Mun and allocating additional resources to turn Tuen Mun into a community for the development of advanced recycling industry, thereby substantially increasing the employment opportunities there?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

*8. Hon Mrs Regina IP to ask: (Translation)

By publication of the Land (Compulsory Sale for Redevelopment) (Specification of Lower Percentage) Notice in the Gazette in January this year, the Development Bureau specified that with effect from 1 April this year, in respect of three specified classes of land lot, where a person or persons make an application to the Lands Tribunal for an order to sell all the undivided shares in a lot for the purpose of the redevelopment of the lot, the percentage of undivided shares in the lot that such person or persons shall own, otherwise than as a mortgagee, is reduced from the original not less than 90% to not less than 80%. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that when this Council scrutinized the aforesaid subsidiary legislation, the Development Bureau undertook to introduce a mediation mechanism to help minority owners negotiate on a more equal footing with the persons who had applied for compulsory land sale, how the mediation mechanism which is being contemplated will operate, and of the detailed timetable for its implementation;

    (b)given that the Urban Renewal Strategy Review which is being conducted has made a preliminary proposal of a "flat for flat" compensation option for residential property owner-occupiers affected by redevelopment projects, and that I have learnt that the property owners affected by private redevelopments are also very much in need of a similar arrangement, whether the authorities will consider also including this arrangement in the Land (Compulsory Sale for Redevelopment) Ordinance (Cap. 545); if so, of the timetable for the review; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)given that quite a number of owners of old buildings have relayed to me that from time to time they are subjected to harassment suspected to be acquisition-related, whether the authorities have measures in place to ensure that individual owners who, for various reasons, do not wish to participate in the acquisition can continue to live in peace in their own premises; if so, of the details?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

*9. Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that in quite a number of past tragedies relating to psychiatric patients, the patients had not been categorized by the Hospital Authority ("HA") as priority follow-up cases and therefore, healthcare and social workers could not make early intervention and prevent the tragedies from happening. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it knows the current number of cases put under the priority follow-up system; among such cases, the number of those in which the patients were "conditionally discharged" under the Mental Health Ordinance (Cap. 136); among the cases under the priority follow-up system, the respective numbers of cases categorized as priority follow-up and as secondary target for priority follow-up;

    (b)whether it knows the increase in the numbers of cases in the past five years in respect of priority follow-up and secondary target for priority follow-up respectively, as well as the respective numbers of cases removed from these two categories; and whether a case needs to go through an established procedure before it is removed; if so, the details of the procedure; if not, why the authorities have not drawn up such a procedure; and

    (c)whether the authorities and HA have drawn up guidelines on how to take care of or monitor those cases categorized as priority follow-up or as secondary target for priority follow-up, including how to deal with situations where such patients suddenly refuse to comply with the conditions for their "conditional discharge", such as refusing follow-up care, drug therapy or visits by healthcare professionals, etc.?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

*10. Dr Hon David LI to ask:

At the meeting of this Council on 7 May 2008, I enquired whether the Government would consider including elevated outdoor covered walkways and footbridges within the designated no-smoking areas ("NSAs") under the Smoking (Public Health) Ordinance (Cap. 371). In reply, the Government advised that as the Ordinance had only come into force for slightly over a year, it preferred to assess the need and merits of further expanding the scope of NSAs after a more comprehensive assessment of the full effect of the new legislation. Since then, the Government has extended NSAs to include public transport facilities. Given that in his 2009-2010 Policy Address, the Chief Executive advised that the Government would extend the existing footbridge system in Mongkok to join the two MTR stations in the area and the vicinity of Tai Kok Tsui as part of a wider effort to improve the pedestrian environment, will the Government inform this Council whether it has conducted any study on further extending NSAs to include elevated outdoor covered walkways and footbridges; if so, of the results, and whether it will now consider adding these pedestrian facilities to the designated NSAs so as to further improve the pedestrian environment?
    Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

    It has been reported that major cities of the world have for years been committed to promoting the use of bicycle as a form of green transport, and among such cities, the number of cyclists on the roads in New York has increased to approximately 130 000 per day, while London has introduced a self-service bicycle hire scheme with more than 300 docking stations throughout the city and 5 000 bicycles available for rent, the scale of which is second only to Paris; and on the Mainland, there is a similar bicycle rental service in the city of Foshan, and a comprehensive system of bicycle network is expected to complete in five years' time. Yet, quite a number of green groups stated that although the Environment Bureau has portrayed bicycle as a form of green transport in its "I Love Hong Kong, I Love Green" publicity to promote green living, relevant policies and measures are obviously not in place. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it will follow the trend of other major cities in promoting the use of bicycle as a form of green transport, change its policy from positioning cycling as a recreational sport to promoting the use of bicycle as a form of green transport, and establish Hong Kong as a genuine "bike-friendly" city through provision of specific measures and facilities (including building additional cycle tracks and priority access for bicycles in urban areas, introducing self-service bicycle hire scheme with multiple service points, changing motorists' perception on bicycle through education and providing a safe cycling environment for cyclists)?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

      *12. Hon Paul TSE to ask:       (Translation)

      It has been reported that Hong Kong's legislation on controlling the use of "heavy oil" is too lax and vessels berthing at or passing through the port of Hong Kong are allowed to use "heavy oil" with sulphur content ranges as high as between 3.5% to 4%, which is of the poorest quality and most air-polluting (as against the sulphur content of only 0.001% for auto-fuel). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
        (a)given that it has been reported that at present Hong Kong is still using the legislation enacted 30 years ago which regulates dark smoke emission by vessels but not the sulphur content of vessel fuels, of the reasons why the Government has all along not amended the legislation to enhance control of the sulphur content of vessel fuels;

        (b)of the policies proposed and the measures implemented by the Government in the past five years on controlling the problem of air pollution caused by vessels; and whether the Government had assessed in each of the past five years the impact of the pollution caused by vessels on local air quality; if it had, of the assessment results; if not, whether it will make the assessment as soon as possible; and (c) given that it has been reported that at present, vessels entering waters such as the North Sea and the Baltic Sea must use fuel oil with sulphur content below 1.5%, whether the Government had, in the past five years, compared Hong Kong's legislation on controlling the use of vessel fuels with that in other economically developed countries, and whether it had reviewed such legislation and tightened the control of vessel fuels; if it had, of the progress of the review; if not, whether it will conduct the review immediately?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

      *13. Hon LEUNG Yiu-chung to ask:       (Translation)

      Regarding poverty of the elderly in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council whether the following statistics are available; if not, of the reasons for that:
        (a)the number of elderly persons aged 60 or above (the "old age" category of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA") Scheme) who received CSSA allowances and the number of such cases from the first quarter of 2000 to the second quarter of 2010, together with a breakdown by household size;

        (b)the number of recipients of Old Age Allowance from the first quarter of 2000 to the second quarter of 2010, together with a breakdown by age (i.e. aged 65 to 69 and 70 or above);

        (c)the number of elderly patients who were granted fee waivers under the medical fee waiver mechanism of public hospitals and clinics from the first quarter of 2000 to the second quarter of 2010, together with a breakdown by age (i.e. aged 60 to 64, 65 to 69 and 70 or above);

        (d)the number of elderly persons with chronic illnesses from the first quarter of 2000 to the second quarter of 2010, together with a breakdown by age (i.e. aged 60 to 64, 65 to 69 and 70 or above) and type of illness; and

        (e)the number of elderly persons aged 60 or above from the first quarter of 2000 to the second quarter of 2010, together with a breakdown by type of housing?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

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

      Since 3 July 2000, the then Mass Transit Railway ("MTR") Corporation and the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL") have respectively collected an extra charge of $0.1 for each Octopus journey from passengers ("the collection arrangement") to fund the project of retrofitting platform screen doors or automatic platform gates at 30 underground stations as well as eight aboveground and at-grade stations ("the retrofitting project"). The expenditure of the retrofitting project is about $2.3 billion, half of which is contributed by passengers through the collection arrangement, and MTRCL had collected $730 million as at the end of 2009. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
        (a)given that in their reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on 9 June 2010, the authorities stated that according to the estimate by MTRCL with reference to its financial records of the past few years, the collection arrangement will continue until 2017 to enable full recovery of the retrofitting project cost, whether the Government knows if there is any change to the cost of the retrofitting project at present; if there is, of the latest estimation and the reasons for such a change, as well as when the collection arrangement will last;

        (b)whether it knows the accrued amount collected by MTRCL to date through the collection arrangement; whether the amount is sufficient to cover half of the expenditure of the retrofitting project; if so, of the progress and timetable of the retrofitting project; if not, whether MTRCL will revise its original option of sharing half of the project cost only and put in more resources to speed up the progress of the retrofitting project in order to protect passengers' safety;

        (c)whether it knows the details of the works which MTRCL decided in 2008 to carry out at the eight aboveground and at-grade stations of the pre-merger MTR system, including the progress, timetable and expenditure, etc. of the works (list by the name of the stations); and

        (d)of the number of accidents of passengers falling onto rail tracks due to various reasons in each of the past five years and the number of passengers involved; among them, the number of accidents which happened at stations without platform screen doors or automatic platform gates as well as the number and percentage of passengers involved?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

      *15. Hon Cyd HO to ask:       (Translation)

      Some children, due to congenital or acquired diseases, have unfortunately become physically handicapped (including visual impairment, hearing impairment or intellectual disability ("ID")). These children may be admitted to the special child care centres of the Social Welfare Department ("SWD"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
        (a)of the number of children who need to study in special child care centres in the past three years; among them, the respective numbers of those with hearing impairment, visual impairment, mild ID, moderate ID, severe ID or other disabilities (list in table form);

        (b)what assessment procedures a child has to go through to enrol in a special child care centre;

        (c)what qualifications do teachers at special child care centres possess (including the number of teachers and the special education courses that they have studied) (list in table form); and whether children studying in special child care centres receive different training according to their disabilities;

        (d)of the respective numbers of children who were admitted to mainstream primary schools, schools for the visually impaired and special education schools after completing the three-year programme offered by special child care centres since their establishment in 2006 (list in table form);

        (e)given that the Ebenezer School and Home for the Visually Impaired ("Ebenezer School") had organized a pre-school programme in the past for students to be enrolled in the Ebenezer School, of the difference between the said programme and that provided by SWD's special child care centres; and whether special child care centres also offer training on braille reading and on "the use of tactile sense to replace visual sense"; and (f) whether SWD and the Education Bureau have established the special child care centres after taking into account professional advice from the education sector?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

      *16. Hon Abraham SHEK to ask:

      The Financial Secretary announced in the 2009-2010 Budget to inject HK$63 million to conduct a one-year Internet education campaign, the "Be NetWise" campaign, to promote the safe and healthy use of the Internet among young students, their parents and teachers. More than 500 temporary Internet Ambassadors were recruited to coordinate and promote relevant activities and services under the campaign. The campaign was launched in September 2009 and ended in August 2010. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
        (a)of the number of requests from the public for home visit technical assistance and the actual number of home visits made by the Internet Ambassadors during the campaign, with a breakdown by District Council district;

        (b)of the number of activities held under the "Be NetWise" campaign and the themes of the activities, including large-scale promotional events, roving exhibitions, training courses, school talks and inter-school activities, etc., with a breakdown by month and District Council district;

        (c)whether the Government will review the effectiveness of the "Be NetWise" campaign; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

        (d)given that the Government indicated at the meeting of the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting on 12 April 2010 that a new organization would be set up to design tailor-made programmes to enhance the technical know-how of parents and students and their knowledge about the safe and healthy use of the Internet, of the progress and details of such work, including the date of commissioning of the organization, staff establishment and programmes to be launched, etc.; and

        (e)apart from setting up the new organization, whether the Government has other measures to continue to promote the safe and healthy use of the Internet among young students, their parents and teachers after the "Be NetWise" campaign ended in August 2010; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

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

      It has been reported that the number of complaints about light pollution has continued to increase in recent years and, as the Government has not yet introduced relevant legislation, the Environmental Protection Department can only adopt an advisory approach when handling complaints concerning commercial signboards, etc., but such an approach is ineffective. It has been learnt that regarding legislation on light pollution, the Under Secretary for the Environment has indicated that a proposal on controlling light pollution could be made in the third quarter of this year at the earliest. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
        (a)of the numbers of complaints received in each of the past three years by various government departments about light pollution involving government departments and private organizations respectively;

        (b)given that the Government had indicated in its reply to my question on 18 June 2008 that relevant government departments (including the Leisure and Cultural Services Department) had put in place various guidelines to avoid causing light nuisance to the residents, but there are still incessant reports about serious light pollution problems in government venues (e.g. the soccer pitch in Po Kong Village Road Park and Tsing Yi Promenade, etc.) in recent years, whether the Government, in the past three years, had reviewed the causes of these complaints involving government venues, assessed if the various departments had followed the relevant guidelines, reviewed if the existing guidelines could match the public's increasing awareness of environmental protection, and enhanced the coordination among various departments to address the problems of light pollution;

        (c)among the complaints involving private organizations in (a), of the number of complaints handled using the advisory approach, and whether the Government had assessed the effectiveness of this approach; if it had, of the effectiveness of the approach and the number of complaints with improvements made after being dealt with using this advisory approach;

        (d)whether, in the past three years, the Government had participated in activities relating to reduction in light pollution organized by community organizations, and whether it had liaised with community and business organizations to collect relevant views; if it had participated in such activities and liaised with these organizations, of the numbers of such occasions and the contents; and

        (e)when the report on controlling light pollution will be completed and published; and when the Government will conduct public consultation on introduction of legislation to control light pollution, and when it will formally initiate the legislative procedure?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

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

      The authorities have set up 16 District Support Centres for Persons with Disabilities ("DSCs") in 2009, but I have learnt that most of these centres still do not have their own premises for their operation and need to borrow workplaces from other service units, thereby affecting their operation. So far, most DSCs still do not have a definite date for relocation. Quite a number of members of the sector told me that they worried that the 24 Integrated Community Centres for Mental Wellness ("ICCMWs") to be set up at the end of this year would face the same problem. Regarding the lack of premises for operation of units providing community rehabilitation and support services, will the Government inform this Council:
        (a)among the 16 DSCs, which DSCs have already moved into their own premises for their operation at present;

        (b)whether service units (including DSCs and ICCMWs) which have not been provided with their own premises for operation are required to comply with the original requirements of the Funding and Service Agreement ("FSA"); whether the authorities have implemented any measure to temporarily lower those requirements in response to the difficulties encountered by those units due to the lack of premises for their operation; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

        (c)what long-term measures the authorities have put in place to address the problem of the lack of premises for operation of units providing newly developed services; and

        (d)what rehabilitation services will be provided by the authorities in the next five years, and whether they have started to identify premises for these welfare facilities?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

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

      In reply to the questions raised by Members of this Council on 27 May and 11 November last year and 13 January this year, the Secretary for Labour and Welfare indicated that there was no need for the Government to enact an ordinance with the same legal effect as the Protection of Children and Juveniles Ordinance (Cap. 213) to protect the legal rights of the elderly. On the other hand, the Government and the Elderly Commission made further efforts in September 2008 to implement the "Pilot Neighbourhood Active Ageing Project ? Caring for Elders" mainly by adopting the three-pronged approach of education, prevention and support to prevent elder abuse and suicide. Nevertheless, I have received complaints from quite a number of elderly support groups that the support provided for the elderly by the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") is grossly inadequate. As SWD's Family Life Education Resource Centre has persistently failed to provide enough copies of the pamphlet on "Prevention of Elder Abuse ? Theatre of the Guardian Angel of the Elderly" and refused to reprint the pamphlet, frontline workers have encountered difficulties when conducting promotion and education programmes in this respect. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
        (a)whether it has assessed if the authorities and the Elderly Commission have still pushed through the aforesaid Project even though there is insufficient funding and lack of financial means for printing the aforesaid publication;

        (b)why SWD has still refused to reprint the aforesaid publication even though it was well aware that there was insufficient stock; whether the Government has investigated if maladministration is involved; if the investigation result is in the affirmative, how the Government will deal with the matter; if the investigation result is in the negative, of the reason for that; and

        (c)whether SWD will expeditiously reprint the pamphlet on "Prevention of Elder Abuse ? Theatre of the Guardian Angel of the Elderly"; if it will, when it will be reprinted and made available to the public; if not, the reasons for that?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

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

      Recently, quite a number of patients suffering from Thalassaemia major have relayed to me that for years, they are only able to receive Desferrioxamine injection drug therapy because of financial problems; yet, most of them do not receive injections of this drug on time because of work. Quite a number of patients have also stated that they suffer from serious side effects after receiving injections of this drug, while the same therapeutic effect can actually be achieved just by receiving Deferasirox oral drug therapy, which has a minimal effect on their quality of life. Nevertheless, since Deferasirox has not yet been listed as General Drugs of the Hospital Authority ("HA"), they have to pay a lot of money to buy Deferasirox. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
        (a)the number of cases received by HA in each of the past three years regarding patients with Thalassaemia major requesting for the listing of Deferasirox as General Drugs;

        (b)the reasons why HA has still not listed Deferasirox as General Drugs; and

        (c)whether HA will consider listing Deferasirox as General Drugs in the near future to enable more patients with Thalassaemia major to receive Deferasirox therapy, thus reducing their pain in the treatment process; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
      Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

      * For written reply

      III. Members' Motions

      1. Releasing LIU Xiaobo

        Hon WONG Yuk-man to move the following motion: (Translation)

        That, as the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to LIU Xiaobo, who struggles for human rights in China through peaceful, rational and non-violent means, is a significant, epoch-making event that will definitely produce profound and far-reaching impact on the progress of democratization in China, this Council urges the Central Government to release LIU Xiaobo and all political dissidents immediately.

        Amendments to the motion
        (i)Hon Albert CHAN to move the following amendment: (Translation)

        To delete "as" after "That," and substitute with "given that"; and to add ", appeals to the Central Government not to harass LIU Xiaobo's family members through various means, and demands that the Central Government, while pursuing economic development, should also converge with the world as far as possible on social, cultural and human rights issues, etc., understand and accept the universal values which are widely and internationally recognized, including respect for human rights and protection of the freedom of speech, so as to expedite the progress of democratization in China" immediately before the full stop.

        (ii)Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung to move the following amendment: (Translation)

        To add "; this Council also appeals to the Communist Party of China to put an end to one-party dictatorship, hold national elections by universal suffrage and return the political power to the people, so as to facilitate the democratic development of China" immediately before the full stop.

      2. Formulating an animal-friendly policy

        Hon CHAN Hak-kan to move the following motion: (Translation)

        That the keeping of pets among Hong Kong people has become increasingly common, and there is also a growing concern about the rights of animals; however, the animal welfare policy in Hong Kong lags far behind the standards of other developed places in the world, and cases of animal cruelty keep occurring; tens of thousands of animals are euthanized every year, and there is still insufficient activity space for the integration of human beings and animals within the communities; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to formulate an 'animal-friendly policy' to ensure that the rights of animals can be safeguarded; the relevant policy measures should include:

        (a)by making reference to the present animal protection legislation in developed places, to review and amend the existing Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance for the purpose of catching up with international standards, and to classify the intentional abandonment of animals as animal cruelty, as well as to explore the provision of compulsory psychological counselling and courses on animal protection to convicted persons;

        (b)to establish 'animal police' teams specially tasked to investigate cases of animal cruelty and abandonment, enhance the training of frontline enforcement officers on handling cases of animal cruelty and their awareness of such cases, and set up a 'dedicated hotline for reporting animal cruelty', with a view to curbing the situation of animal cruelty and abandonment from becoming prevalent;

        (c)to request the Department of Justice to pay close attention to the sentencing for cases of animal cruelty, and where sentencing for the cases concerned cannot fully reflect their seriousness, to seek sentencing guidelines by applying for reviews of sentences to the relevant courts, so as to truly reflect the social concern about offences of animal cruelty;

        (d)to improve the existing management mechanism for the sale and registration of animals, including reviewing the licensing and regulatory mechanism for the sale and breeding of pets and stepping up the monitoring of the sources of animals, so as to combat problems such as unlicensed animal breeding and illicit animal import;

        (e)to improve the hygiene conditions in the animal management centres under the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and enhance the transparency of stray animal management by allowing Members and animal rights organizations to conduct regular inspections, increase the number of qualified animal adoption organizations and expand the scope of animals for adoption to reptiles and amphibians, so as to facilitate the adoption of animals by a greater number of people and organizations;

        (f)to co-operate with District Councils and animal rights organizations to fully implement the 'Trap-Neuter-Return' programme, and use humane means to deal with the problem of stray cats and dogs;

        (g)to provide subsidy to the public for neutering their pets, and train more veterinary health care personnel to meet the social demand for the services concerned;

        (h)to introduce appropriate measures, including identifying sites for constructing more parks for pets, and exploring the opening of various recreational venues such as parks and beaches partially or at specific time slots, so that members of the public can bring in their pets;

        (i)to actively identify suitable locations for the provision of public toilets for dogs, increase the number of dog excreta collection bins on street side and step up the frequency of cleaning and washing, with a view to improving environmental hygiene;

        (j)to explore the regulation of hospice service for animals through licensing;

        (k)to step up publicity and education for the public on animal care and responsible pet ownership, and set up an 'animal protection fund', so that organizations can make applications for organizing more animal welfare activities; and

        (l)to enhance people's understanding of endangered animals and relevant regulatory systems, and require that animal traders must provide appropriate labels for identifying endangered species, as well as to provide buyers with points to note on keeping endangered species, with a view to strengthening the management of endangered animals.

        Amendments to the motion
        (i)Hon Miriam LAU to move the following amendment: (Translation)

        To add ", given that" after "That"; to add ", online sale" after "unlicensed animal breeding"; to add ", employ animal capture devices that inflict the least injury" after "the 'Trap-Neuter-Return' programme"; to add "in all districts in Hong Kong" after "including identifying sites"; to add "at the same time, to step up inspection and prosecution against owners who indiscriminately allow their animals to excrete anywhere;" after "improving environmental hygiene;"; to add "and adoption" after "more animal welfare"; to delete "and" after "activities;"; and to add "; (m) to examine the extension of the microchipping and licensing schemes to cats, so as to help owners reclaim their missing cats, prevent the abandonment of cats by irresponsible owners and institute prosecutions against them; (n) to examine the establishment of public animal hospitals or clinics to provide pet owners with affordable animal treatment services; and (o) to examine the setting up of a mechanism for monitoring food products for pets and relevant labels, so as to safeguard the quality and safety of food products for pets" immediately before the full stop.

        (ii)Hon Fred LI to move the following amendment: (Translation)

        To add "mankind should co-exist peacefully with animals and nature, and" after "That"; to add ", establishing a licensing system for professional breeders to ensure that commercial breeders have adequate breeding knowledge and ethical standards," after "breeding of pets"; to add ", permit eligible members of the public to directly adopt animals," after "animal adoption organizations"; to add "(f) to explore the provision of subsidy to recognized animal adoption organizations, so that they can have sufficient resources for keeping abandoned animals, thereby reducing the number of animals eventually euthanized;" after "people and organizations;"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g)"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(h)"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete "hospice" after "the regulation of" and substitute with "funeral"; to delete the original "(k)" and substitute with "(l)"; and to delete the original "(l)" and substitute with "(m)".

        (iii)Hon WONG Kwok-hing to move the following amendment: (Translation)

        To add ", given that the awareness of protecting precious and endangered wild animals in Hong Kong is inadequate, and the Government's measures in this regard are out-dated, while" after "That"; to add ", with stray cattle in the New Territories left to live or perish on their own" after "within the communities"; to add "(a) by making reference to and studying the successful experience of foreign places in protecting and conserving endangered wild animals, to adopt positive environmental conservation measures to salvage endangered wild animals in Hong Kong, such as Romer's tree frogs, black-faced spoonbills, common birdwings, Chinese grassbirds, Hong Kong newts, Chinese white dolphins and horseshoe crabs, so as to protect the precious ecological resources of Hong Kong;" after "policy measures should include:"; to delete the original "(a)" and substitute with "(b)"; to delete the original "(b)" and substitute with "(c)"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(d)"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(f)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g)"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(h)"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete the original "(k)" and substitute with "(l)"; to delete "and" after "more animal welfare activities;"; to delete the original "(l)" and substitute with "(m)"; and to add "; and (n) to join hands with the relevant District Councils, rural committees and conservation organizations to expeditiously explore various proper arrangements and measures on handling the miserable stray cattle in Hong Kong that are left to live or perish on their own, to provide support by allocating appropriate resources, and to tackle the relevant issues as early as possible through the following measures: (i) to actively and expeditiously explore the identification of suitable sites for stray cattle in Hong Kong, so as to enable them to live in a safe and natural environment without having to wander around any more, while at the same time ensure the maximum safety of both human beings and cattle in their co-existence; besides, to actively explore the development of the above-mentioned sites as green eco-tourism projects; (ii) to allocate resources for neutering the stray cattle in the New Territories, so as to avoid the incessant breeding of stray cattle; and (iii) to actively study the introduction of effective measures, including providing additional resources to support those volunteers and non-profit-making voluntary organizations which are keen on adopting stray cattle in Hong Kong, so that they can have sufficient means to provide the stray cattle adopted by them with basic nutrition and attention" immediately before the full stop.

        (iv)Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to move the following amendment: (Translation)

        To add ", given the continuous urbanization of Hong Kong, the room for survival of wild animals has been reducing gradually; at the same time" after "That"; to delete "however," after "rights of animals;"; to add ", however," after "policy in Hong Kong"; to delete "still" after "and there is" and substitute with "highly"; to add "(a) to review and amend the policy on managing wild animals, so as to provide them with reasonable and safe room for survival, and at the same time protect the public from being disturbed or hurt;" after "policy measures should include:"; to delete the original "(a)" and substitute with "(b)"; to delete the original "(b)" and substitute with "(c)"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(d)"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(f)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g)"; to delete "fully implement" after "District Councils and animal rights organizations to" and substitute with "examine the full implementation of"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(h)"; to add "in need" after "to the public"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete the original "(k)" and substitute with "(l)"; to delete "and" after "animal welfare activities;"; to delete the original "(l)" and substitute with "(m)"; and to add "; and (n) to co-operate with neighbouring regions, and step up the studies on and the monitoring of zoonotic diseases, in particular those transmittable to human beings, thereby protecting the health of animals while enhancing epidemic prevention" immediately before the full stop.

        (v)Hon Alan LEONG to move the following amendment: (Translation)

        To add ", although" after "That"; to delete "however," after "rights of animals;"; to add ", which are nearly 80% of the animals captured," after "thousands of animals"; to add "by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department ('AFCD')" after "are euthanized"; to add "and the life of such animals is not given due respect; there is also no marked alleviation of the problem of stray animals, showing an urgent need for reviewing the relevant policy," after "every year,"; to add "adopt the practice of "Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return" for handling the problems of stray animals, increase the number of channels for the public to directly adopt captured animals, so as to reduce the need for euthanizing animals, and" after "urges the Government to"; to add ", and to empower the court to issue orders forbidding repeated offenders or convicted persons involved in serious cases from keeping animals" after "to convicted persons"; to delete "the sale and breeding of pets" after "regulatory mechanism for" and substitute with "pet shops, on-line animal trading and breeders,"; to delete "the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department" after "animal management centres under" and substitute with "AFCD"; to add "set up animal shelters and adoption centres under AFCD," after "conduct regular inspections,"; to add "direct" after "to facilitate the"; to add "and reduce the need for euthanizing animals" after "people and organizations"; to add "and funeral" after "regulation of hospice"; to add "encourage animal owners to provide their animals with basic training," after "responsible pet ownership,"; to delete "animal welfare" after "for organizing more"; to delete "; and" after "activities" and substitute with "on animal welfare and rights;" and to add "; (m) to examine, on humanitarian grounds, the enactment of legislation on prohibiting the breeding and importation of animal species suffering from genetic diseases that cause them pain, such as Scottish Folds suffering from osteochondrodysplasia; (n) to foster co-operation among AFCD, the Lands Department, the Housing Department and other relevant government departments, so that when clearing villages, they will pay attention to the fact that residents therein normally keep a number of animals, and hence they should make a detailed record of all animals in the villages concerned before clearance, and strive to make timely and appropriate arrangements for animals that cannot follow their owners upon moving homes; and (o) to examine the practice of allowing animal owners who are adequately equipped to board public transport with their animals" immediately before the full stop.

        (vi)Hon Cyd HO to move the following amendment: (Translation)

        To delete "ensure that the rights of animals can be safeguarded" after " 'animal-friendly policy' to" and substitute with "advocate the responsibilities of keepers and owners, and ensure that both wild and domesticated animals can receive humane treatment"; to add "to make it mandatory for domesticated animals to be implanted with microchips in order to identify the keepers and owners and their responsibilities," after "with international standards,"; to delete "and" after "by allowing Members" and substitute with ","; to add "and the public" before "to conduct regular inspections"; to add ", study the feasibility of direct adoption by the public," after "animal adoption organizations"; to add "review the policy on the keeping of animals by public housing tenants, and" after "(h) to"; to add "community" after "introduce appropriate"; to delete "responsible pet ownership" after "animal care and" and substitute with "the responsibilities of keepers and owners"; and to add "education activities on the responsibilities of keepers and owners and" after "for organizing more".

        Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Food and Health

      Clerk to the Legislative Council