A 10/11-17

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 16 February 2011 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers

Subsidiary Legislation / InstrumentsL.N. No.
1.Antiquities and Monuments (Declaration of Proposed Monument) (Ho Tung Gardens) Notice26/2011
2.Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (Sri Lanka) Order (Commencement) Notice27/2011

Other Papers

1.No. 61-AIDS Trust Fund Financial statements together with the Director of Audit's report for the year ended 31 March 2010
(to be presented by the Secretary for Food and Health )

2.No. 62-Report by the Commissioner of Correctional Services of Hong Kong Incorporated on the Administration of the Correctional Services Department Welfare Fund for the year ended 31 March 2010
(to be presented by the Secretary for Security)

3.No. 63-Report of the Public Accounts Committee on the Reports of the Director of Audit on the Accounts of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for the year ended 31 March 2010 and the Results of Value for Money Audits (Report No. 55)
(February 2011 - P.A.C. Report No. 55)
(to be presented by Dr Hon Philip WONG, Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, who will address the Council)

4.Report No. 12/10-11 of the House Committee on Consideration of Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments
(to be presented by Hon Miriam LAU, Chairman of the House Committee)

II. Questions

1. Hon CHIM Pui-chung to ask: (Translation)

I have received a complaint from an investor that when he transferred his holdings kept in the Central Clearing and Settlement System ("CCASS") to other persons, he was charged HK$1.5 per Board Lot by the Hong Kong Securities Clearing Company Limited ("HKSCC"). The shares he held, however, were only traded at HK$0.05 per share in Board Lots of 2 000 shares, meaning that the value per Board Lot was only HK$100. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that the stamp duty on stock transaction levied by the Government is only 0.1% on the value of each transaction, whether it has assessed if the fee charged by HKSCC at a rate equivalent to 1.5% is excessive; if it has assessed, of the outcome;

    (b)given that investors can hold and transfer their securities electronically via CCASS at present, and that the process involved in handling securities traded in Board Lots of 2 000 or 100 million shares is the same, whether it has assessed if HKSCC is oppressing investors by imposing the above charges; if it has assessed, of the outcome; and

    (c)whether the Government will initiate investigation on the above charges and remove the monopoly of HKSCC in order to further internationalize the stock market of Hong Kong?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

2. Hon Tommy CHEUNG to ask: (Translation)

Some members of the trade have pointed out that it was originally thought that the introduction of mainland chilled beef to Hong Kong early this year would offer the public one more choice of lower-priced meat products and help counter inflation, but in the past one and a half months, the importer concerned imported a limited quantity of mainland chilled beef on each consignment and only supplied the chilled beef to supermarkets and a few restaurants, which not only disappointed many members of the public, meat retailers and restaurants who could not purchase chilled beef, it has also, as at to date, failed to have the slightest alleviating effect on the price of fresh beef. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the total number of applications for import licences for chilled beef received by the authorities since the introduction of mainland chilled beef; and among them, the number of importers and wholesale quantities involved; the number of applications which eventually succeeded in importing chilled beef and wholesale quantities involved, as well as the respective numbers of supermarkets and retail shops which have been supplied with chilled beef;

    (b)whether it has looked into the reasons why only one chilled beef trader has obtained the approval of the mainland authorities for exporting chilled beef to Hong Kong during the past one and a half months; if it has, of the reasons; if not, whether it will reflect to the mainland authorities the keen local demand for chilled beef, with a view to expediting the relevant application process and increasing the relevant supply, so that chilled beef will be available for sale at more retail outlets in Hong Kong; and

    (c)whether it knows the existing number of slaughtering and meat processing plants on the Mainland which have obtained approval for exporting chilled beef to Hong Kong; whether the number of such plants will be increased in future in order to increase the supply of beef to Hong Kong and alleviate the price of beef; if so, of the relevant timetable; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

3. Hon LI Fung-ying to ask: (Translation)

At present, foreign domestic helpers ("FDHs") may perform driving duties which are incidental to or arising from domestic duties upon their obtaining special permission from the Immigration Department ("ImmD"). I have received complaints alleging that such special permission has been abused in that the work of some FDHs mainly involves driving duties with little domestic work, which in effect turns them into personal chauffeurs and affected the job opportunities of local drivers. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of applications received by ImmD in each of the past three years for special permission for FDHs to perform driving duties as well as the number of approved and rejected applications, with a breakdown by the gender of FDHs, and the respective percentage of the figures in the number of FDHs of that gender in the year;

    (b)of the respective numbers of FDHs to whom special permission had been given once, twice, three times and more than three times by ImmD in the past three years, with a breakdown by the gender of FDHs; and

    (c)whether ImmD had taken any concrete action in the past three years to prevent FDHs from performing driving duties which were not incidental to or arising from domestic duties; if it had, of the content and number of actions taken, the number of prosecutions instituted, the number of cases in which the persons involved were convicted and the penalties imposed; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

4. Hon Mrs Regina IP to ask: (Translation)

The owners of some residential units of Taikoo Shing, which is a large housing estate, who sought assistance from me pointed out that the developer had all along held the titles to the external walls of the buildings of the housing estate since the completion of the estate, and that during the period from 1993 to 1996, i.e. after the Building Management Ordinance had come into effect, the developer transferred the titles to the external walls of the buildings of various phases in the estate to a property management agency wholly owned by it, which was also in charge of the management of the estate. According to the information from the Land Registry, that property management agency is currently the holder of the titles to the external walls of the buildings of the housing estate. The aforesaid owners also pointed out that the property management agency claimed that it had acquired such titles on behalf of all owners and was their trustee, and the repair and maintenance fees of the external walls had all along been shared among owners of all units over the years. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)if it has looked into whether that property management agency can acquire the titles to the external walls of the aforesaid buildings on behalf of all owners and be their trustee when no owners' corporation has been set up; if it has looked into the matter, of the results;

    (b)if it has looked into whether the repair and maintenance fees of the external walls in the aforesaid case should be borne by that property management agency or all owners under the existing legislation, and whether that property management agency or all owners should be responsible for making compensation in respect of causalities or injuries caused by poor management of the aforesaid external walls; if it has looked into the matter, of the results; and

    (c)given that I have learnt that many large housing estates have also encountered similar problems relating to management rights and obligations, what concrete measures the authorities have to assist owners in handling such disputes, so as to safeguard their legitimate interests?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs

5. Hon Albert HO to ask: (Translation)

The Official Receiver's Office ("ORO") calculated the fees and percentages charged for proceedings in bankruptcy in accordance with the Bankruptcy (Fees and Percentages) Order ("the Order"). A bankrupt may apply to the court for remission of such fees by invoking section 114(2) of the Bankruptcy Ordinance if he does not agree to the fees. There have been comments that the Order only stipulates the method for calculating the fees but the method does not take into account the actual operating costs incurred by ORO in performing the relevant work. In June 2000 and January 2011, the Court had twice ruled that the fees calculated according to the Order were unreasonable and reduced such fees. In this connection, will the executive authorities inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of cases of fee remission ruled by the court in each of the past five years, as well as the percentages of such numbers in the total numbers of bankruptcies in those years; the amounts and extent of fees remitted; the party responsible for absorbing the resulting difference between the fees originally demanded by ORO and the reduced fees, and the financial impact on ORO;

    (b)in formulating the method for calculating the fees as stipulated in the Order, whether the authorities intended to make use of the fees in bankruptcy successfully collected to subsidize the majority of bankruptcies in which fees cannot be collected successfully so as to recover the costs incurred by ORO in handling bankruptcies; if so, of the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether they had conducted studies in the past five years to ascertain if it is fairer to calculate the aforesaid fees according to the actual costs incurred by ORO in performing the relevant duties, and whether it is necessary to amend the existing Order so as to avoid charging inappropriate fees; if the outcome of the studies is in the affirmative, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

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

The Government earlier reported on the overall crime situation in Hong Kong in 2010 at a meeting of the Panel on Security of this Council. The figures indicated that there was a rise in the number of indecent assault cases which occurred in schools when compared with that in the preceding year, with cases involving indecent assault among schoolmates recording an increase of 37.8%; the number of indecent assault cases involving juveniles under 16 years of age also increased by as much as 34.9%. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of indecent assault cases committed by juveniles under 16 years of age last year, and among such cases, the age distribution of the offenders and victims, the number of cases in which prosecutions had been instituted and the conviction rate of the offenders;

    (b)according to the assessment of the authorities, of the reasons for the increase in indecent assault cases and whether the measures taken at present to prevent sex crimes committed by children are adequate; if the outcome of the assessment is in the affirmative, why the number of such indecent assault cases continues to rise; if the outcome of the assessment is in the negative, how the authorities will rectify the existing inadequacies; and

    (c)given that there was an increase of close to 40% in indecent assault cases among schoolmates, whether the authorities will review the contents of the existing sex education programmes, including the Guidelines on Sex Education in Schools published in 1997, and enhance support for schools in implementing sex education; if so, of the contents to be added and the present progress in implementing the programmes; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

*7. Hon Mrs Sophie LEUNG to ask: (Translation)

It has been more than two years since the Water Supplies Department formulated the Total Water Management ("TWM") strategy in 2008. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether the amount of water saved at present is in line with the objectives laid down in TWM strategy; whether the Government will, on a regular basis, announce its water conservation targets in the coming five years; apart from the total amount of water to be saved, whether "average daily water consumption per person" will be used as a conservation indicator;

    (b)of the models of showers for bathing and water taps of different water efficient grading registered under the Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme ("WELS") at present; how the authorities will assess the effectiveness of WELS; what is the timetable of including other water saving devices in WELS; whether the authorities will consider adopting other measures (e.g. providing subsidies) to encourage all households in Hong Kong to switch to using devices of higher water efficient grading;

    (c)whether the authorities have assessed the actual effectiveness of public education on water conservation; if they have, of the assessment criteria and specific effectiveness; apart from publicity, what other plans they have to reduce water consumption by the public; when water consumption by members of the public remains high, how the authorities will make better use of water resources; and

    (d)given that with the appreciation of Renminbi and increase in wages on the Mainland, the price of Dongjiang water will continue to rise, what corresponding measures will be adopted by the Government; in discussing the new agreement of the supply of Dongjiang water with the Guangdong provincial authorities, whether the Government has taken into consideration that the actual total water consumption in Hong Kong may be lower than the anticipated level after members of the public have reduced their water consumption; of the amount of Dongjiang water that the authorities expect Hong Kong to purchase each year under the new water supply agreement?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

*8. Hon Vincent FANG to ask: (Translation)

I have received complaints from smokers and non-smokers recently. The former have pointed out that following the Government's significant increase in tobacco duty in 2009, i.e. levying the duty at a flat rate of $24 per packet of cigarettes containing 20 cigarettes, even the prices of low-priced cigarettes have increased sharply, which has added to their burden; furthermore, some anti-smoking groups have recently called for further increase of tobacco duty rate to 75% of the retail price of cigarettes. The smokers worry that further increase in tobacco duty will render duty-paid cigarettes beyond their means, and they cannot but to switch to illicit cigarettes. Non-smokers have also pointed out that many smokers stand on the pedestrian walkways to smoke after the Government's total ban on smoking, causing a nuisance to passers-by, hence the non-smokers hope that the Government can protect non-smoking passers-by from the impact of second-hand smoking by setting up smoking rooms or resorting to other means. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether the Government has compiled statistics on the smoking prevalence of the Hong Kong population and average daily cigarette consumption among smokers at present, as well as comparisons of these figures with those before the introduction of the total ban on smoking in 2007 and the significant increase in tobacco duty in 2009;

    (b)of the respective ratios of tobacco duty to the retail price, the quantities of duty-paid cigarettes, as well as the revenues collected on tobacco duty by the Government of cigarettes sold in Hong Kong in the 12 months before and after the significant increase in tobacco duty in 2009 (set out in table form);

    (c)whether it knows which 10 countries and cities have the highest and lowest ratios of tobacco duty to retail price of cigarettes at present (for tobacco duty only, excluding other taxes such as consumption tax), as well as the respective smoking population and average annual consumption in these countries and cities (set out in table form);

    (d)whether the government has any established policy to increase tobacco duty until it reaches a certain ratio to the retail price of cigarettes, and whether tobacco duty will be levied on a percentage basis instead of the flat-rate at present;

    (e)given that some members of the public have relayed to me that it is increasingly common for smokers to smoke at home and on pedestrian walkways, whether the Government will reconsider setting up smoking rooms so as to reduce the impact of second-hand smoking on non-smokers; if it will not, whether the Government has any other means to address this issue; and

    (f)whether the Government will consider listing cigarettes as contraband and prohibiting the sale of cigarettes in Hong Kong; if it will, of the plan; if not, whether it will allow more flexibility for operating the business of this commodity and more respectable smoking areas for smokers?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

*9. Hon Andrew LEUNG to ask: (Translation)

With the growing popularity of e-books in Hong Kong, more and more members of the public use e-readers for reading, and some local primary and secondary schools have replaced conventional textbooks with electronic teaching materials in teaching. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it knows the share of e-books in Hong Kong's publication market in the past five years; of the respective numbers of primary and secondary schools which use electronic teaching materials in the current school year, as well as the respective percentages of such figures in the total number of primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong;

    (b)whether it has assessed if there are differences in academic achievements and health, including vision, between students using e-learning resources and those using conventional textbooks; if it has assessed, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether it knows the respective average amounts of expenditure incurred by students who purchased e-learning resources and those who purchased conventional textbooks last year, and apart from providing subsidies for the purchase of e-learning resources, how the authorities support the schools and teachers who have opted to use electronic materials in instruction?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

*10. Dr Hon LEUNG Ka-lau to ask: (Translation)

The Government, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Housing Society and the Urban Renewal Authority, launched the two-billion dollar Operation Building Bright ("OBB") in 2009 to help owners of some 2 000 target buildings which are over 30 years old to carry out building repair works. In 2010, the Government injected an additional funding of $500 million to increase the number of buildings that could benefit from OBB. However, it has been learnt that from time to time, building materials containing asbestos are found to have been used in old buildings and repair works may lead to the release of asbestos fibres, affecting the health of the repair workers and the residents. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether the authorities have conducted asbestos assessments in old buildings which received grants to carry out repair works since the launch of the first round of OBB; if they have, of the relevant data (including the number of buildings which have undergone asbestos assessments and the number of those confirmed to contain asbestos materials); if not, how the authorities ensure that the health of both the workers and the residents is adequately protected from being affected by asbestos before repair works for the assisted buildings are carried out;

    (b)if the authorities have conducted asbestos assessments in old buildings which participated in OBB for the first time, whether the Labour Department and the Environmental Protection Department have monitored and inspected thoroughly the risks of these repair works; if they have, of the number of the relevant inspections and prosecutions; if not, whether the authorities will monitor and inspect these repair works and report the relevant data and details to the public on a half-yearly basis;

    (c)whether it will consider requiring owners whose applications for the new round of OBB have been approved to conduct asbestos assessments in their buildings first and approval for commencement of the repair works will not be given until the places under repair are proved to be free of asbestos materials; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (d)given that the information provided by the Development Bureau showed that since the launch of OBB, more than 5 900 job opportunities (including construction workers, technical workers, contractors, and professionals) have been created, but from time to time, building materials containing asbestos are found to have been used in old buildings, whether the authorities have provided workers undertaking the repair works with appropriate training and instructions to ensure that they are equipped with the skills and knowledge necessary for undertaking the asbestos works; if they have, of the details; if not, how the health of these repair workers can be safeguarded?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

*11. Hon LAU Wong-fat to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the situation of parking spaces for motorcycles, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the total number of open parking spaces for motorcycles in Hong Kong that are managed by the Government at present, and among them, the respective numbers of metered and free parking spaces; and

    (b)whether the Government has considered converting all the public parking spaces for motorcycles to metered ones; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

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

Since 2001 the Hospital Authority ("HA") has recruited junior staff on contract terms and replaced former posts of Workman II and Clerical Officer II and III, etc. with General Services Assistants ("GSAs") and Technical Services Assistants ("TSAs") and their remuneration has also been delinked from the civil service pay structure. Some GSAs and TSAs have relayed to me that their remuneration and benefit packages have remained on the low side for years, and there is also the phenomenon of equal work with unequal pay, which has led to persistent low staff morale and staff wastage, and that staff wastage will in turn affect the quality of public healthcare services. It has been reported that HA has commenced a comprehensive review of the GSA and TSA grades. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it knows which organization is responsible for the aforesaid review and when the outcome of the review is to be announced; whether staff will participate in the review process and be consulted, if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)given that the remuneration packages for GSA and TSA posts in different hospital clusters or departments also differ, whether it knows if HA will consider setting up a unified ranking, remuneration and benefit mechanism, and formulating uniform employment terms so as to alleviate the unfair situation of different remuneration packages being offered for the same post; if HA will do so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)given that the Government has announced earlier that it will remove the employment system commonly known as the "3+3" system and instead civil servants may be offered further appointment on permanent terms immediately after completion of the three-year probation period to the satisfaction of the management, whether it knows if HA will follow the Government's new employment system and abolish the existing six-year contract entry system for GSAs and TSAs by replacing it with a three-year contract which, upon expiry, will be renewed for further appointment on permanent terms; if HA will do so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

It has been reported that more than 20 substances (including heavy metals and chemical compounds such as cadmium, chromium, arsenic, mercury and lead, etc.) that are harmful to the environment and human health have been found by a green group in the samples of pulverized fuel ashes gathered from 14 ash sites of power stations on the Mainland. Some environmentalists have pointed out that at present, coal dominates more than half (about 54%) of the fuel mix for power generation in Hong Kong, and the impact of the fuel ashes generated each year on the environment and public health has all along been of grave concern. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it knows the amount of fuel ashes generated in Hong Kong in each of the past five years and the way in which they had been handled;

    (b)whether it knows the handling process adopted by power stations in Hong Kong for delivering fuel ashes to ash lagoons; how they ensure that the fuel ashes exposed to the air do not contain heavy metals and chemical compounds so as to avoid affecting the surrounding environment; and of the measures to prevent diffusion and permeation;

    (c)whether the Government had conducted any test in the past five years on the heavy metal and chemical compound contained in treated fuel ashes generated by power stations; if it had, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that; whether it knows if fuel ashes disposed of at collection sites contain heavy metal and chemical compounds; if so, of their contents, and whether such contents have any impact on the surrounding environment and living creatures, including the public and migratory birds, and how the Government ensures that the ashes do not affect the environment and public health; and

    (d)whether it knows the present environment of the sites used for the disposal of fuel ashes and the situation of their surrounding areas; of the criteria based on which the Government assesses if those sites meet the environmental safety standards; whether there are any indications that the sites will be full in the next few years; if so, how the Government will deal with the matter?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

*14. Hon Jeffrey LAM to ask: (Translation)

In recent years, the Government has been committed to facilitating the gradual shift of the development of the logistics industry in Hong Kong to high-value goods and services, and cooperating with other areas in the Pearl River Delta Region to build that region into an advanced global manufacturing and modern services base. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given the different standards currently set by the Mainland and Hong Kong on the specifications of cross-boundary vehicles, whether the Hong Kong SAR Government has discussed standardizing such standards with the mainland authorities, so as to reduce vehicle owners' expenses in maintaining and checking their vehicles;

    (b)whether it has conducted any study on connecting the "Road Cargo System" in Hong Kong with the automatic customs declaration system "H2000" on the Mainland so that the transport trade will no longer need to submit separate cargo information for clearance under these two systems;

    (c)whether it has studied the implementation of one-stop customs clearance arrangements at each border control point;

    (d)whether it will provide more suitable land in the New Territories and in other appropriate locations for tenders for the use of shipping, port development and the logistics industry, and in particular, provide suitable land in Kwai Tsing to serve as port back-up sites;

    (e)whether it will construct a dedicated berth for barges next to the container terminals in Kwai Chung and equip it with large cranes so as to enhance the efficiency and carrying capacity of the barging service; and

    (f)whether it will make more effective use of information technology to coordinate barging arrangements and extend the operation hours of the barging service so as to cope with the demand?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

*15. Hon Alan LEONG to ask: (Translation)

Recently, I have received complaints from residents in Kwun Tong that the operators of a small number of wet goods stalls located on the ground floor of their building did not conduct thorough cleaning work after operation hours, resulting in an accumulation of bloody discharge and meat scraps which gave off bad smell from time to time and caused cockroach and rodent infestation problems. These residents pointed out that apart from affecting the hygienic conditions of the streets, such a situation also caused inconvenience to the residents upstairs and nearby. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)what criteria are adopted by the authorities for identifying hygiene blackspots;

    (b)whether the authorities will regularly publicize the latest list of hygiene blackspots to enable the public to monitor improvements made to the hygiene blackspots; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether the authorities had formulated special hygiene guidelines for wet goods stalls on the street and those near residential buildings in the past three years; if they had, whether the authorities will conduct regular inspections to ensure that those stalls comply with the guidelines?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

According to the local crime figures in 2010 released by the Hong Kong Police Force in January 2011, a total of 3 576 juveniles aged between 10 and 15 were arrested for crimes in 2010. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of juveniles aged between 10 and 15 who had been arrested for crimes in each of the past five years, together with a breakdown by the offence committed (set out in table form);

    (b)how many juveniles in (a) had been convicted, and what penalties had been imposed on them (with a breakdown set out in table form);

    (c)whether it knows the number of juveniles in (b) who had to leave their original schools because they were sentenced to detention;

    (d)what procedures have been adopted by the authorities to assist these juveniles in returning to school after serving their sentences; and

    (e)whether it knows the average time taken by the juveniles in (c) to apply for returning to school after having served their sentences; how many juveniles had still not been able to return to school one month (excluding holidays) after having served their sentences; during this period, how the authorities assisted them in getting back on the right track; and how many juveniles had been able to return to mainstream government schools, subsidized schools, private schools or other types of schools after having served their sentences, broken down by the type of school attended by them (set out in table form)?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

*17. Hon Audrey EU to ask: (Translation)

The Government and the Hospital Authority ("HA") need to handle expired drugs every year, such as the three million doses of Human Swine Influenza ("HSI") vaccines purchased by the Government in the year before which needed to be disposed of upon their expiry in September and October last year. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the quantity and value of expired drugs that needed to be disposed of by the Government and HA in the past three years;

    (b)as at the expiry dates of the aforesaid HSI vaccines, of the total number of vaccinated persons, with a breakdown by target group;

    (c)of the ways to deal with the remainder of the HSI vaccines as well as the progress and the costs involved;

    (d)given that the Food and Health Bureau indicated in its paper provided to the Panel on Health Services of this Council on 13 July 2009 that in the procurement of HSI vaccines, the Government would include a clause in the tender conditions to the effect that any unused vaccines ordered and delivered could be returned to the manufacturer with refund, of the implementation of such clause; and

    (e)of the total number of doses of vaccines ordered by the Government under the 2010-2011 Vaccination Programme; whether the "refund of unused vaccines" clause in (d) has been included in such orders; of the number of vaccinated persons in the current year to date, with a breakdown by target group?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

It has been reported that many travellers and "couriers" from the Mainland buy milk powder in Hong Kong, causing a short supply of as well as a speculative surge in the prices of milk powder locally, and the North District in the New Territories, which is adjacent to the border, is most affected in that some pharmacies sold out all their milk powder in less than 10 minutes after replenishment. Some parents have initiated a campaign on the Internet to urge the Government to levy a milk powder export tax as a means to combat the situation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that the Secretary for Food and Health revealed on the 28th of January that the authorities had contacted the trade which supplied milk powder and it considered that there was sufficient supply on the market, of the details of the contact between both sides; whether the trade had provided any data or information to show that there was sufficient supply, and what concrete arrangements had been made to further increase the supply of milk powder on the market;

    (b)whether it has assessed the shortage of milk powder at the retail level and whether there was stockpiling by retailers, if so, of the details, and the measures to be adopted to solve the problem; if not, whether it will consider conducting the aforesaid assessment;

    (c)of the concrete measures to stabilize milk powder prices in Hong Kong and avoid speculative surge of prices;

    (d)given that quite a number of travellers from the Mainland came to Hong Kong during the Chinese New Year, whether the Government has assessed if the problem of milk powder shortage has further been aggravated; and

    (e)whether it will consider taking any measure, including studying the aforesaid proposal of the parents, to restrict bulk purchase of milk powder by any person; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

*19. Hon Fred LI to ask: (Translation)

Guide dogs for the blind ("guide dogs") have not been seen on the streets of Hong Kong for many years. It has been reported that the newly established Hong Kong Guide Dogs Association ("HKGDA") has imported puppies and after they have been trained to become guide dogs, they will be given to suitable visually impaired persons for guiding their way. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether the Government has assessed what complementary work is needed following the introduction of guide dogs; if it has assessed, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)whether there are government and public bodies' facilities which at present do not allow entry of guide dogs; if so, whether the Government has any improvement measures to complement the introduction of guide dogs;

    (c)given that the existing subsidiary legislation of some public transport, e.g. public light bus, tram, Ngong Ping Cable Car and taxi, etc., does not provide that visually impaired passengers may bring their guide dogs when using such public transport, and only provides that the people in charge may decide at their discretion in this regard, whether the Government will amend the relevant subsidiary legislation to stipulate in writing that visually impaired passengers may bring their guide dogs when riding on such public transport, so as to complement the introduction of guide dogs; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (d)given that it has been learnt that at present some private premises, e.g. restaurants and hotels, etc., stipulate in writing that dogs, including guide dogs, are not allowed to enter, whether the Government will work with HKGDA to promote permission of entry of guide dogs to these premises; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (e)whether the Government will follow the practices of other countries such as Japan in enacting legislation on guide dogs to prohibit commercial buildings, cinemas, shops and all community facilities from denying entry of guide dogs which provide assistance to persons with disabilities; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (f)how the Government ensures that guide dogs will receive proper care during their service and retirement; and

    (g)given that Hong Kong people are relatively unfamiliar with guide dogs, whether the Government will enhance public education to teach the public how to get along with guide dogs and their owners?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

*20. Hon IP Wai-ming to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that the Fire Services Department ("FSD") procured over 200 ambulances of new models in 2009; however, due to problems in FSD's procurement process, the first batch of approximately 70 new ambulances delivered to Hong Kong are 30 centimetres taller and 10 centimetres wider than the old ones, making it impossible for the new ambulances to enter or leave the ambulance depots. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)among the ambulance depots in Hong Kong at present, of the number of those which the new ambulances, due to their excessive sizes, are unable to enter; whether FSD will carry out conversion works at such ambulance depots so that the new ambulances will be able to enter or leave all ambulance depots in Hong Kong; if FSD will do so, of the expenditure involved;

    (b)what measures FSD has to avoid the situation of the aforesaid batch of new ambulances being unable to arrive in time at places in need of emergency rescue services because of their sizes;

    (c)of FSD's procurement procedures for the aforesaid batch of new ambulances; the number of staff members responsible for procedures such as putting forth the procurement proposal, making procurement, supervising the procurement procedures, as well as inspecting and accepting the new ambulances; why the staff concerned have all along failed to notice the implications of and problems arising from the enlarged size of the new ambulances;

    (d)whether the authorities will conduct a review of FSD's overall existing procedures for ambulance procurement and penalize staff who were derelict in their duties; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (e)whether FSD will consider returning such ambulances to the supplier, or recovering the costs of carrying out conversion works at ambulance depots and lodging claims for compensation from the supplier; if FSD will do so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

* For written reply

III. Bills

First Reading

Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2011

Second Reading (Debate to be adjourned)

Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2011:Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury


IV. Members' Motions
  1. Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

    Ir Dr Hon Raymond HO to move the following motion:

    Resolved that in relation to the Building (Construction) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 3 of 2011, and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 19 January 2011, the period for amending subsidiary legislation referred to in section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1) be extended under section 34(4) of that Ordinance to the meeting of 9 March 2011.

  2. Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

    Hon Miriam LAU to move the following motion:

    Resolved that in relation to the -

    (a)Buildings Energy Efficiency (Fees) Regulation, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 18 of 2011; and

    (b)Buildings Energy Efficiency (Registered Energy Assessors) Regulation, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 19 of 2011,

    and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 26 January 2011, the period for amending subsidiary legislation referred to in section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1) be extended under section 34(4) of that Ordinance to the meeting of 16 March 2011.

  3. Striving for 15-year free education

    Hon CHEUNG Man-kwong to move the following motion: (Translation)

    That early childhood education ('ECE') is an important stage in children's articulation to primary education, and the provision of quality ECE for children is a responsibility that the Government cannot shy away from; last year, the Macao SAR Government already announced the implementation of 15-year free education, indicating that Hong Kong's basic education policy lags behind that of Macao; given Hong Kong's strong financial position and its increase in fiscal reserve year after year, the Hong Kong Government is definitely able to and needs to make greater commitment to ECE; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously implement 15-year free education, include ECE in the scope of subsidization, draw up a pay scale and directly subsidize the payment of kindergarten teachers' salaries, and reasonably increase the subsidies for half-day and whole-day kindergartens, so as to enable parents and children to benefit from completely free basic education, create quality teaching conditions for kindergarten teachers, retain quality kindergarten teachers and comprehensively upgrade the quality of basic education, thereby creating a new chapter of Hong Kong education.

    Amendments to the motion
    (i)Hon Audrey EU to move the following amendment: (Translation)

    To add ", given that" after "That"; to delete "and" after "salaries," and substitute with "establish a sound teacher training system, reduce kindergarten teachers' administrative duties,"; to add "including providing rent allowances and formulating a pre-primary education curriculum," after "kindergartens,"; to add "when implementing 15-year free education," after "teachers and"; and to add "lower teacher-student ratios to" after "comprehensively".

    (ii)Hon Starry LEE to move the following amendment: (Translation)

    To add "education is the key to enhancing the quality of our population, while" after "That"; to add "but its expenditure on education last year was below one fifth of the Government's public expenditure" after "year after year"; to delete "and" after "salaries,"; and to add "set up an education fund for teachers and allocate the unspent amounts of the Teacher Development Subsidy to this fund to encourage teachers to receive on-the-job training, improve the teacher-student ratios in ECE institutes, and increase the number of clerical staff in ECE institutes," after "kindergartens,".

    (iii)Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation)

    To add "receiving" after "That"; to delete "articulation to primary education, and" after "children's" and substitute with "growth and can also facilitate their articulation to primary education, hence"; to delete "," after "subsidization" and substitute with "to enable parents and children to benefit from completely free and quality basic education, and strengthen the training for kindergarten teachers to upgrade their quality;"; to delete ", so as to enable parents and children to benefit from completely free basic education, create quality teaching conditions for kindergarten teachers, retain" after "kindergartens" and substitute with "to offer better job benefits to kindergarten teachers so as to retain"; to delete "and" after "quality kindergarten teachers" and substitute with "; and improve the pedagogical approach of ECE in Hong Kong by making reference to overseas experience and circumstances; before the actual implementation of free ECE, the Education Bureau should expeditiously complete a comprehensive review of the existing Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme, with a view to raising the subsidy ceiling and streamlining the administrative procedure of the Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme to benefit more parents of children and kindergarten teachers; moreover, the Government should also review the curriculum contents, teaching quality and teacher qualifications, etc. under the existing 12-year free education system, so as to"; and to delete "basic" after "quality of".

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Education

  4. Social welfare land use planning

    Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che to move the following motion: (Translation)

    That, given that at present, the Government does not include social welfare use as one of the considerations of land use planning, resulting in many welfare service units' quality of service being affected due to inadequate area or inability to meet the requirements of net operational floor areas specified in the relevant Schedules of Accommodation; some units are even unable to commence operation due to failure to identify permanent venues; recently, there have been delays in residential care homes for the elderly, residential care homes for persons with disabilities, District Support Centres for Persons with Disabilities and Integrated Community Centres for Mental Wellness, etc. finding places to commence operation because of the authorities' unsatisfactory land use planning, which ultimately causes service users to suffer; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to face up to the inadequacy of social welfare land use, have land zoned for welfare use well in advance, expedite the provision of lands for welfare use as needed, and jointly draw up with the sector a mechanism for long-term social welfare land use planning, including collating social indicators, assessing social welfare needs and appropriately dovetailing with the implementation of welfare policies when formulating land policies, so as to ensure that the development of social welfare services will not be impeded; moreover, this Council also urges the Government to enhance civic education, with a view to fostering greater public acceptance of the integration of the socially disadvantaged into the community.

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

Clerk to the Legislative Council