 |
A 10/11-32
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 15 June 2011 at 11:00 am
I. Tabling of Papers
| Subsidiary Legislation / Instrument | L.N. No.
|
|---|
| Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 1) Notice 2011 | 101/2011
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Other Papers
| 1. | Report No. 25/10-11 of the House Committee on Consideration of Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments
| (to be presented by Hon Miriam LAU, Chairman of the House Committee)
| | 2. | Report of the Bills Committee on Dutiable Commodities (Amendment) Bill 2011
| (to be presented by Dr Hon Joseph LEE, Chairman of the Bills Committee)
| | 3. | Report of the Bills Committee on Motor Vehicles (First Registration Tax) (Amendment) Bill 2011
| (to be presented by Hon WONG Ting-kwong, Chairman of the Bills Committee)
| | 4. | Report of the Bills Committee on Residential Care Homes (Persons with Disabilities) Bill
| (to be presented by Hon WONG Sing-chi, Chairman of the Bills Committee)
|
II. Questions
1. Hon IP Kwok-him to ask: (Translation)
At present, in districts where private buildings are in great numbers, such as Wan Chai and Mong Kok, etc., the advertisement signboards overhanging outside quite a number of buildings are huge in size and they are as high as the buildings. In many cases, the signboards are only owned by some households or even one particular household in the building concerned. However, under the existing legislation, erecting overhanging signboards outside buildings is not subject to regulation by the Deed of Mutual Covenant, nor does it require the approval of the owners' corporations ("OCs"). The Buildings Department, which is responsible for vetting and approving applications for erecting such signboards, stresses that in vetting and approving such applications, it only takes into account whether the signboards will affect the structural safety of the buildings. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether, at present, there are avenues or government departments which can effectively prevent the erection of overhanging signboards outside buildings without the consent of other owners of the buildings; if so, of the details;
| | (b) | whether it has considered amending the existing legislation to address the above situation, so as to safeguard the rights of other owners of the buildings; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | given that while the aforesaid signboards are only owned by individual households, the owners of the entire buildings concerned have to collectively bear the removal costs in the event that the signboards are found to be illegal and have to be removed, and the OCs concerned can only resort to civil litigation to recover the removal costs from owners who are not willing to pay such costs, whether the Government has examined if there are ways to change such a situation; what assistance government departments can provide in respect of such disputes?
|
| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for Development
Secretary for Home Affairs
|
2. Hon Miriam LAU to ask: (Translation)
In early May this year, serious incidents involving cruelty to and brutal killing of cats occurred one after another in just a few days, including a female kitten, which was only two months old, suspected to be shot as a live target with an air gun and eight copper-plated metal pellets were found in its body; an adult spotted cat, which was suspected to be poisoned, stuck in a plastic bag before being thrown from the upper floor of a tenement building and died tragically; and a four-month-old stray cat, which was brutally tortured to death, with its spine broken from beating and died tragically with five knife stabs to its abdomen. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the number of reported cases of cruelty to animals received by the authorities in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by the district in which the incident occurred, the kind of animals involved, the type of incidents and the casualties;
| | (b) | among the reported cases in (a), of the number of cases in which the authorities were not able to institute prosecution and the reasons for not being able to do so, broken down by the type of cases; whether any new initiative is in place to enhance the successful rate of prosecution; if so, of the details; whether the authorities will consider afresh establishing an "animal police" and offering rewards, so as to increase detection rates; if no new initiative is in place, the reasons for that; and
| | (c) | of the progress of the authorities' work in promoting the prevention of cruelty to animals, and whether they will consider increasing the existing penalty for cruelty to animals; if they will, of the details; if not, the reason for that?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
3. Dr Hon Margaret NG to ask: (Translation)
A member of the public has recently relayed to me that at the time when he filled in an application form relating to the services of the Immigration Department ("ImmD"), he and his wife were undergoing divorce proceedings but had not yet divorced. As such, he accurately put down "married" on the application form. Yet, ImmD claimed that he had already "divorced" and charged him for providing false information. In another case, a married couple, despite living separately in two countries, had neither separated nor divorced, yet the husband was instructed by ImmD that he must put down "separated" on the application form. He then sought assistance from a lawyer who suggested ImmD to seek legal advice from the Department of Justice ("DoJ") on the definition of "divorce" and "separation". Subsequently, ImmD accepted his application. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the respective numbers of cases in which ImmD had instituted prosecution in the past three years against the applicants concerned who were suspected to have provided false information on marital status and cases in which the applicants were convicted;
| | (b) | of the definition of different marital status (including "married", "divorced" and "separated") adopted by ImmD, and whether DoJ's advice has been sought; and
| | (c) | whether ImmD has taken the initiative to assist the applicants concerned in understanding the definition of different marital status when they fill in application forms; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security
4. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)
The Government advised the Panel on Constitutional Affairs of this Council in July last year that proposals concerning the abolition of the District Council ("DC") appointment system would be submitted to the Panel, but the Government has to date still not submitted the relevant proposals. Given that the forthcoming election for the fourth term DCs is imminent as it will be held on 6 November this year, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether the DC appointment system will be completely abolished by means of amending the District Councils Ordinance; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether it will put forward the details of the abolition of the DC appointment system after the announcement of the results of the election for the fourth term DCs; if it will, whether such an arrangement is made because of the need to analyze the changes of political forces at district level; and
| | (c) | whether it has assessed if the complete abolition of the DC appointment system is conducive to expediting the development towards democratization of Hong Kong; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
5. Hon Jeffrey LAM to ask: (Translation)
Given that mainland pregnant women giving birth in Hong Kong one after another have caused obstetric services of the public hospitals in Hong Kong to become overloaded, the Government has planned to set quotas on the admission of mainland pregnant women giving birth in public and private hospitals next year, so as to address the problem of severe imbalance between the demand and supply of obstetric services. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it has assessed if the setting of such quotas will result in a vast number of mainland pregnant women rushing to Accidents and Emergency Departments (A&EDs) for delivery without making appointment, causing A&EDs, which are already suffering from tight manpower, to become overloaded, and affecting the normal medical services provided to other patients; whether the Government has considered substantially raising the charges on mainland pregnant women seeking admission to hospitals through A&EDs for delivery, so as to lessen their incentives to give birth in Hong Kong; and whether it will liaise with the mainland authorities to formulate more stringent measures to restrict mainland pregnant women from giving birth in Hong Kong;
| | (b) | whether it has examined measures to facilitate the development of related medical industries to meet the continuous increase in demand for obstetric services in future; whether it has considered setting up an obstetrics and gynaecology hospital in Hong Kong; and
| | (c) | given that the Hospital Authority, with a view to tackling the manpower shortage problem, has advertised for the recruitment of non-local registered doctors, and the requirements of the positions include proficiency in Cantonese and possessing a qualification comparable to the Intermediate Examinations of constituent Colleges of the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine, whether it knows if the response so far to the recruitment of obstetricians is satisfactory; whether the Government will consider relaxing the qualifications of non-local registered obstetricians applying for the relevant positions, e.g. by making reference to the list for exemption from "licensing examination" introduced in Singapore, and directly allow doctors graduated from renowned non-local medical schools to practise in Hong Kong, so as to alleviate the tight manpower supply for obstetric services?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
6. Ir Dr Hon Raymond HO to ask: (Translation)
The Court of Final Appeal handed down the judgment on Chong Fung-yuen's case in 2001 that children of Chinese nationality born in Hong Kong to Chinese nationals have the right of abode ("ROA") in Hong Kong, irrespective of whether or not their parents have settled or have ROA in Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the respective numbers of children of Chinese nationality and have ROA in Hong Kong by virtue of the aforesaid judgment born in Hong Kong in each year since 2002 to Chinese nationals who are non-Hong Kong residents and have no ROA in Hong Kong, and among them, the number of those who have settled in Hong Kong at present; given that their parents are non-Hong Kong residents and have no ROA in Hong Kong, whether the authorities have taken any appropriate measure to ensure that the arrangement for such minors to settle in Hong Kong complies with the requirements of protecting the welfare of children and other related requirements in Hong Kong; and
| | (b) | in case these persons who were born in Hong Kong and have ROA are in distress on the Mainland and seek assistance from the SAR Government prior to their official settlement in Hong Kong, whether they will be given assistance similar to that rendered to Hong Kong residents; if they will, whether it knows if their "Hong Kong resident status" is recognized by the authorities concerned on the Mainland?
|
| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for Security
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
|
*7. Hon Albert HO to ask: (Translation)
Recently, the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL") has, in response to the new set of practice notes drawn up by the Government for controlling "inflated buildings", redesigned the Tsuen Wan 5 development project located above and in the nearby area of Tsuen Wan West ("TWW") Station of the MTR West Rail. In respect of the newly revised schemes for the project, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | how the newly revised schemes for such project at present compare with the schemes approved in 2005 (including the respective land areas, permissible floor areas and plot ratios for residential and non-residential uses as well as the overall plot ratio for the entire project; the numbers of residential blocks and flats, as well as those residential flats of area less than 40 square metres; the numbers of storeys of the podium and refuge floors of the residential project, and the areas of public open spaces, public walkways, podiums and clubhouses; the numbers of private and public parking spaces and parking spaces for motorcycles; and the projected revenue from land premium);
| | (b) | given that according to the newly revised schemes, at the bayside area site (situated on the waterfront), there will be nine residential blocks of 46 to 55 storeys (including the podium floors and the sky gardens or the refuge floors) and their heights will be approximately 152 metres above Principal Datum ("mPD") to 187 mPD, and at the cityside area site (situated farther inland), there will be five residential blocks of 17 to 46 storeys (including the podium floors and the sky gardens), and that the building heights at these two sites will exceed the height of the neighbouring Skyline Plaza (with about 35 storeys) situated farther inland, whether the authorities have conducted any air ventilation assessment on the newly revised schemes so as to ascertain whether the project will cause wall effect (with illustrations to show the details of the distribution, heights and distances from the waterfront of buildings under such schemes, the distribution and heights of neighbouring buildings, the relationship between the wind directions of the area and the ventilation breezeways, as well as the relationship between the landscape of the area and the visual corridors, etc.);
| | (c) | why under the newly revised schemes, an additional storey is added to each of the eight out of the nine residential blocks at the bayside area site (i.e. from 39 to 42 storeys to 40 to 43 storeys), while only one block has been reduced from 49 storeys to 48 storeys;
| | (d) | as it is advised in the "Urban Design Guidelines" of the "Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines", taller buildings should be located inland and lower buildings on the waterfront, and wall and land-locked effect should be avoided to maintain visual permeability to harbour, and the TWW Station is situated along the Rambler Channel, whether it has assessed the impact of the construction of buildings with such heights at that location on the habour view of the area, and whether this is in breach of the relevant guidelines; of the general building heights along waterfront areas at present;
| | (e) | whether it knows the views of the relevant District Councils on the newly revised schemes; and
| | (f) | whether it will request MTRCL to examine making further adjustments to the layout and design of the buildings in the project and reducing building heights, with a view to alleviating the impact of the project on the air ventilation and harbour view of the area?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*8. Hon Ronny TONG to ask: (Translation)
The Innovation and Technology Commission intends to disband the Hong Kong Jockey Club Institute of Chinese Medicine ("HKJCICM") which has been in operation for 10 years, and set up a committee to be chaired by the Commissioner for Innovation and Technology to relaunch and promote efforts on the research and development of Chinese medicine in Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | given that the Government has recognized HKJCICM as a "research and development centre for Chinese medicine in Hong Kong", whether it still considers the development of Chinese medicine a development item of SAR's society; if so, of its concept and objectives, and whether they are the same as those when HKJCICM was established initially; if not, of the reasons for that;
| | (b) | how the decision-making process leading to the Government's proposal to disband HKJCICM was conducted; whether serious studies and discussions were conducted in accordance with the relevant procedures stipulated by the Government; whether approval from the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau was obtained; given that the proposal has not yet been agreed to by the boards of directors of the two shareholders of HKJCICM, namely the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute and the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Limited ("HKJCCL"), whether the Government has, before making public the proposal, considered that if it is finally decided not to disband HKJCICM, the proposal will still have a negative impact on the public image of HKJCICM;
| | (c) | given that HKJCICM has been in operation for 10 years, whether the Government will consider allowing it to continue its work in academic research and professional support, so as not to waste the result of its work in the past 10 years; if not; of the reasons for that; and
| | (d) | given that when HKJCICM was first established, HKJCCL donated $500 million to fund the research projects, and so far only $180 million has been used, how the balance of the donation will be handled after the Government has disbanded HKJCICM; if the Government gives up the balance, whether it has other funds for the research and development of Chinese medicine; if so, of the amount; if the balance of the donation is to be re-allocated for use by the new committee, whether such an arrangement is consistent with the purpose of the original donation?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
*9. Hon WONG Yuk-man to ask: (Translation)
In recent years, the Government has continued to clear unauthorized building works ("UBW") in buildings in the urban area, while the UBW problem in village houses in the New Territories, which include small houses, has become increasingly serious. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | in each of the past three years, of the respective numbers and rates of increase/decrease of UBWs involving various kinds of buildings in the urban area and village houses in the New Territories;
| | (b) | in each of the past three years, of the respective numbers of removal orders issued and prosecutions made in respect of UBWs in village houses in the New Territories, as well as the total amount of fines imposed involving UBWs;
| | (c) | in each of the past three years, of the respective numbers of removal orders issued and prosecutions made in respect of UBWs in various kinds of buildings in the urban area, as well as the total amount of fines imposed involving UBWs; and
| | (d) | given that the Government has cleared a large number of UBWs in the urban area in recent years, whether it has any specific plan to implement measures to expedite handling of UBWs in village houses, with the aim of making the same progress as that in the urban area; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development
*10. Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask: (Translation)
Recently, quite a number of school principals and parents in the North District have approached me for assistance, indicating that the Government has planned to reduce the number of Closed Area Permits ("CAP") to be issued to Cross-boundary Students ("CBS") for access to Lo Wu Station Road and Lok Ma Chau Spur Line ("LMC SL") Public Transport Interchange ("PTI") in the 2011-2012 school year, which will most affect Primary Three to Primary Five students; and they are dissatisfied that the Government has not formulated any specific solution for the transportation arrangements for CBS to attend school, but merely negotiates with schools each year on reducing the number of CAP, which not only increases the administrative workload of schools but also leaves the parents unsure of what to do. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the numbers of CBS attending kindergartens, primary schools and secondary schools in Hong Kong in each of the past three school years; among them, of the respective numbers of those attending schools in Hong Kong via various entry points, and the number of those who had been issued CAP;
| | (b) | of the factors, apart from the passenger-flow of the entry points, being considered in deciding to reduce the number of CAP, and how such decision was reached; whether it has assessed the chances of students of younger ages involving in accidents on their way to school by other means of transport or other means after the reduction in the number of CAP;
| | (c) | of the amount of increased vehicular flow after completion of the road improvement works at Lo Wu Station Road early this year; whether more school buses can be accommodated in the area to pick up CBS as a result;
| | (d) | why at present, other cross-boundary passengers can access PTI at LMC SL Control Point and take public transport without holding a CAP while CBS must hold a CAP in order to take school buses there; whether it has assessed if this arrangement is unfair;
| | (e) | whether it has ascertained if the demand of CBS for school bus services provided at entry points is higher than that for cross-boundary school buses; whether it will consider re-allocating the relevant quotas so that more school buses can access the entry points to pick up students;
| | (f) | whether parking spaces for school buses and pick-up/set-down points for large school buses will be incorporated in the design of the Liantang Boundary Control Point at this stage to meet the needs of CBS in future; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (g) | whether any mechanism or inter-departmental working group, etc. will be established to coordinate and handle the issue of CBS in the long run; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education
*11. Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to ask: (Translation)
Earlier on, some practitioners in the public transport industry relayed to me that some repair parts for public transport vehicles had been in tight supply or out of stock since the earthquake in Japan, and given that quite a number of public transport vehicles were imported from Japan, the aforesaid situation may have different degrees of impact on their daily repairs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it knows for how long the stock of repair parts kept by the MTR Corporation Limited, franchised bus companies and the local agents of public light buses and taxis can last under normal circumstances;
| | (b) | whether it knows if the stock of repair parts for the transport vehicles in (a) is still sufficient since the earthquake in Japan; if so, for how many months the current stock can last; if not, of the number of such repair parts which have been out of stock or experiencing disruption to their supply for more than a month;
| | (c) | whether it knows, among the existing repair parts for the various public transport vehicles, of the number of those which need to be imported from Japan, and if all such parts can be substituted by those manufactured elsewhere; and
| | (d) | whether the Government has assessed the impact of the tight supply or shortages of mechanical parts which are made in Japan on the operation and repairs of the various public transport vehicles in Hong Kong, and what measures the authorities have to address and monitor the situation?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*12. Hon Fred LI to ask: (Translation)
The 1823 Call Centre operated by the Efficiency Unit of the Government has recently launched the mobile application "Tell me@1823" to enable members of the public to reach the 1823 Call Centre via Wi-Fi or mobile phone network to make enquiries about and complaints against government departments. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the total number of downloads of the aforesaid application since its inception;
| | (b) | of the total number of the aforesaid enquiries and complaint cases received by the 1823 Call Centre via this channel so far, and the percentages of such figures in the respective total numbers of the cases concerned; and
| | (c) | as the whereabouts of members of the public may be disclosed when they use the aforesaid mobile application to make enquiries or complaints, whether the authorities have guidelines on handling such personal data; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
|
Public Officer to reply : The Chief Secretary for Administration
*13. Hon Albert CHAN to ask: (Translation)
I have recently received complaints from quite a number of members of the public that up till now many remote areas still cannot have clear reception of digital terrestrial television ("DTT") signals and analogue television signals, causing great inconvenience to the residents of those areas. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the areas which up till now still cannot receive DTT signals; which areas the authorities received the most frequent complaints about not being able to have satisfactory DTT signal reception; the reasons why those areas cannot receive DTT signals or cannot have clear reception of such signals;
| | (b) | of the areas which up till now still cannot receive analogue television signals; which areas the authorities received the most frequent complaints about not being able to have satisfactory analogue television signal reception; the reasons why those areas cannot receive analogue television signals or cannot have clear reception of such signals; and
| | (c) | whether the authorities will take measures to address the problem that some areas cannot have clear reception of DTT or analogue television signals or cannot even receive such signals; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
|
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
*14. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported in the press that the passenger fuel surcharges ("surcharges") collected by airlines with the permission of the Civil Aviation Department ("CAD") have increased for nine consecutive months since September last year, with surcharges for long-haul and short-haul flights increased by as high as 134% and 143% respectively, which far exceed the increase in fuel prices during the same period by over 50%. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the reasons for the increase in surcharges far exceeding that of fuel prices during the aforesaid period;
| | (b) | as it has been reported that since June this year, a maximum surcharge of $1,124 per coupon is collected for long-haul flights, while the amount for short-haul flights is $236, whether CAD can explain in detail the factors considered in vetting and approving applications for increasing surcharges and the method by which the amounts of such surcharges are calculated (please explain clearly the calculation method which is considered to be reasonable by CAD, even if the commercial information of airlines cannot be disclosed, together with the figures actually calculated or projected by CAD, so as to address the concerns of the public);
| | (c) | what policies and measures it has to prevent individual airlines to shift other costs and expenses, which are not related to surcharges, to consumers by increasing surcharges, so as to protect the interests of consumers;
| | (d) | as the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong estimates that conflicts between passengers and travel agencies are very likely to increase as a result of the surges in surcharges, what policies the Government has to help passengers understand that travel agencies are unable to influence CAD's vetting and approval of applications from airlines for increasing surcharges, and as travel agencies do not receive any commission or benefit from surcharges, the surges in surcharges will not augment the profit margins of travel agencies;
| | (e) | as some airlines have ceased to collect surcharges since 2007, and the amounts of surcharges may also vary among different airlines, what policies and means the Government or the Consumer Council has to help enhance public awareness of such market phenomena, so that they can make wise choices; and
| | (f) | as some travel agencies have pointed out that surcharges take up an increasingly large percentage of airfares, which may probably mislead passengers and render them difficult to know the actual airfares on one hand, and pose an increasingly big impact on passengers' expenses on the other, whether the Government will explore imposing a requirement that airlines should not shift other costs and expenses, which are not related to fuel prices, to consumers again in the name of surcharges when the percentage of surcharges in airfares exceeds a certain level, and must incorporate the surcharges in airfares so that passengers know clearly the exact fares they need to pay when considering their travel or business trips, so as to avoid confusion; if not, of the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing
*15. Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung to ask: (Translation)
Quite a number of members of the public have complained to me that food premises near to their residence illegally encroach onto the pavements so as to extend their operation, and some of those food premises on the ground floor of private buildings put eight to 10 tables on the public pavements outside their premises to serve hot pot dishes with Liquefied Petroleum Gas stoves or charcoal stoves from 7:00 pm to 1:00 am every night, thus seriously obstructing the pavements, and affecting street cleanliness, posing explosion and fire hazards and affecting the residents nearby. In addition, some members of the public have pointed out to me that some people and shops always place some used electrical appliances and garbage all over the streets, obstructing the pavements and causing serious environmental nuisances. However, such members of the public have pointed out that after lodging complaints through the government hotline 1823 in the evenings or outside office hours, officers of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") did not follow up the cases immediately, but only carried out inspections after a few days during office hours in the daytime, condoning the persistence of such illegal acts. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | regarding the complaints lodged by members of the public through the government hotline 1823 in the evenings or outside office hours that food premises near to their residence have illegally encroached onto the pavements to extend their operation, whether FEHD officers can, upon receipt of such complaints through the 1823 call centre, immediately go to the locations concerned to carry out investigations and take enforcement actions; if they can, of the implementation timeframe; if not, of the reasons for that, and whether such street obstruction cases can be condoned outside office hours;
| | (b) | apart from the government hotline 1823, of the avenues through which members of the public may directly contact FEHD officers so that FEHD may immediately handle street obstruction problems;
| | (c) | of the number of prosecutions instituted by FEHD against illegal encroachment on the pavements outside shop premises or street obstruction in various districts in the past five years (set out in the table below);
|
Central & Western |
Eastern |
Southern |
Wan Chai |
Kowloon City |
Kwun Tong |
Sham Shui Po |
Wong Tai Sin |
Yau Tsim Mong |
Islands |
Kwai Tsing |
North |
Sai Kung |
Tai Po |
Sha Tin |
Tsuen Wan |
Tuen Mun |
Yuen Long |
Total |
| 2010
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| 2009
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| 2008
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| 2007
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| 2006
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| | (d) | of the number of prosecutions instituted by FEHD against repeated offenders for illegal encroachment on the pavements outside shop premises or street obstruction in various districts in the past five years (set out in the table below);
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Central & Western |
Eastern |
Southern |
Wan Chai |
Kowloon City |
Kwun Tong |
Sham Shui Po |
Wong Tai Sin |
Yau Tsim Mong |
Islands |
Kwai Tsing |
North |
Sai Kung |
Tai Po |
Sha Tin |
Tsuen Wan |
Tuen Mun |
Yuen Long |
Total |
| 2010
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| 2009
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| 2008
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| 2007
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| 2006
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| | (e) | of the existing number of FEHD officers dedicated to handle cases of illegal encroachment on the pavements outside shop premises or street obstruction in the evenings or during non-office hours in various districts (set out in the table below);
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Central & Western |
Eastern |
Southern |
Wan Chai |
Kowloon City |
Kwun Tong |
Sham Shui Po |
Wong Tai Sin |
Yau Tsim Mong |
Islands |
Kwai Tsing |
North |
Sai Kung |
Tai Po |
Sha Tin |
Tsuen Wan |
Tuen Mun |
Yuen Long |
Total |
| No. of FEHD officers
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| | (f) | under the existing legislation, of the legislation breached by food premises illegally encroaching onto the pavements outside their premises to extend their operation, and of the relevant penalty; and
| | (g) | under the existing legislation, of the legislation breached by any person and shop obstructing the pavements by placing some used electrical appliances and garbage all over the streets, and of the relevant penalty?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
*16. Hon Frederick FUNG to ask: (Translation)
The Broadcasting Authority received applications for domestic free television programme service licences one after another from City Telecom (HK) Limited, Fantastic Television Limited and HK Television Entertainment Company Limited between end-2009 and early-2010. It has been reported that the Executive Council will soon discuss recommendations on the grant of such licences, and the two existing licensees have expressed concern in this regard. It has also been reported that if the Government decides to grant such licences, a licensee may even consider applying for judicial review. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the current progress in vetting the above licence applications; how the relevant licensing conditions and broadcasting mode, etc. compare with those of the two existing licences; at present, the expected time of announcing the results; whether it has estimated the earliest possible time that new operators, if granted the licences, can officially launch free television programme services; and
| | (b) | whether it has received formal complaints or views from the two existing licensees, or has looked into their concerns; if it has, how it will respond to their views; whether it has assessed the possible reactions of the two existing licensees after announcing the results of the applications and has formulated a contingency plan; how it ensures that the vetting process of the aforesaid three licence applications will not be affected by any external pressure, and aims to provide more choices to viewers and break the existing monopoly, and vetting is based on public interest, and strictly adheres to the principles of fairness and impartiality?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
*17. Dr Hon LAM Tai-fai to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that a study conducted by the Department of Biology of the Baptist University has discovered that over 90% of the blood samples from 200 Hong Kong people contain plasticizer, and some academics even suspected that this was related to the recent discovery of carcinogenic additive plasticizer in Taiwanese food products and drinks and believe that long-term consumption of food products or drinks containing plasticizer by Hong Kong people has caused their blood to contain toxic substances; and the incident has greatly undermined public confidence in food products imported from Taiwan, thereby seriously affecting the business of suppliers or retailers of Taiwanese food products or drinks. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether the Government has planned to conduct a territory-wide study to find out if the blood of all Hong Kong people contain substances of toxic food additives such as plasticizer, etc.; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (b) | whether it had received complaints in the past three years about food products or drinks in Hong Kong containing toxic additives; if it had, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (c) | whether it had taken the initiative to conduct sample tests on food products or drinks for sale in the Hong Kong market in the past three years to ascertain if they contained toxic addictives; if it had, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (d) | whether it will plan to extend the scope of testing to examine if imported food products and drinks contain plasticizer; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (e) | whether it will introduce legislation to require imported food products or drinks to label the types and quantities of additives contained in the products so as to safeguard the right to know of members of the public; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (f) | whether it has liaised with the Taiwanese authorities to request for the provision of more specific lists and sales information of local food products or drinks found to contain toxic additives such as plasticizer, etc.; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
| | (g) | given that the Taiwanese authorities have found that children's syrups used in clinics have also been contaminated by plasticizer, whether the SAR Government knows the market share of medicinal flavoured syrups imported directly from Taiwan, and whether the Government had conducted sample tests on such imported medicinal flavoured syrups in the past five years to ascertain if they complied with food safety requirements; if it had, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and whether it has planned to conduct such tests;
| | (h) | whether it has assessed the impact of this incident of Taiwanese problem food products and drinks on the business of Hong Kong suppliers of imported food products from Taiwan; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
| | (i) | whether it has planned to educate members of the public to differentiate between harmful and edible food additives and step up publicity on the impact of food additives on health; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health
*18. Hon KAM Nai-wai to ask: (Translation)
Regarding air pollution caused by road traffic in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | whether it knows the respective numbers of buses in the fleet of each franchised bus company ("company") at present, together with a breakdown by emission standards; the numbers of old buses replaced each year by each company since 2005, as well as the replacement cost of each bus and the total replacement costs (with a breakdown by company name);
| | (b) | whether the annual air pollutant emission inventory in respect of various types of vehicles (including franchised buses and other vehicles) since 2009 have been completed; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that and the estimated completion time;
| | (c) | whether it will consider encouraging bus companies to advance the retirement of high-emission buses by means of financial subsidies or franchise extension; if it will, of the details, and the amount of funds required and the impact on bus fares; if not, the reasons for that, and whether it has more effective measures to encourage bus companies to advance the replacement of these buses;
| | (d) | given that in reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on 25 May this year, the Secretary for the Environment indicated that "the pilot low-emission zones ("LEZs") to be designated in Causeway Bay, Central and Mong Kok seek to restrict the access of franchised buses to low-emission models", whether it has assessed the changes in the levels of air pollutants in these districts after the designation of LEZs; whether it will extend the scope of restriction of access to these zones from franchised buses to all other vehicles; and
| | (e) | in the past five years, of the respective numbers of various types of vehicles in Hong Kong each year (with a breakdown by cylinder capacity, emission standards and vehicle type); and a breakdown of the emission figures of each vehicle type (including private cars (petrol), private cars (light diesel oil), goods vehicles and special purpose vehicles (except van-type light goods vehicles ("LGVs")), LGVs, public buses, private buses, taxis, motor cycles and motor tricycles, public light buses, private light buses, electrically powered passenger vehicles) each year by cylinder capacity (set out in the format of the table below)?
| years 2005...... 2010 |
vehicle type and
cylinder capacity
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emission standards |
| Pre-Euro ...... Euro V |
hybrid vehicles or electrically powered vehicles |
| Private cars (petrol) |
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| below 1500 cc |
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| 1500 to 2500 cc |
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| 2500 to 3500 cc |
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| 3500 to 4500 cc |
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| above 4500 cc |
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| ...... LGVs |
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| below 1.9 tonnes |
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| above 1.9 tonnes |
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| Public buses |
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| ...... electrically powered passenger vehicles |
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment
*19. Hon WONG Sing-chi to ask: (Translation)
With the commencement of the Minimum Wage Ordinance (Cap. 608) on 1 May this year, the working class worry that employers may attempt to evade their obligation to pay the minimum wage by means of "false self-employment", which turns employees into false self-employed persons. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
| (a) | of the total number of complaints about "false self-employment" received by the Government since 1 May this year and among such cases, of the number of cases in respect of which prosecutions were instituted;
| | (b) | whether it will assess the relationship between the establishment of the statutory minimum wage and the problem of "false self-employment"; if it will, how it will carry out the assessment, and of the amount of resources to be injected; and
| | (c) | in the long run, whether it will consider studying the feasibility of introducing legislation correspondingly to regulate "false self-employment", consulting the public and community groups on the related details, and publicizing the phase-in outcome of the study; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
*20. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)
A number of ex-mentally ill persons have relayed to me that they are discriminated and alienated in employment and community life, which seriously hamper their rehabilitation and integration into the community. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
| (a) | whether they know the unemployment rate of ex-mentally ill persons at present and if it is higher than the overall unemployment rate; if they do, of the details; if not, whether they will conduct surveys and studies on ex-mentally ill persons' unemployment rate, causes of their unemployment and the support they need;
| | (b) | whether they know the number of complaints received by the Equal Opportunities Commission ("EOC") which were lodged by mentally ill and ex-mentally ill persons under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (Cap. 487) last year, as well as the major areas involved; given that EOC previously studied cases of discrimination against mentally ill persons and put forward a number of recommendations, which recommendations put forward by EOC in the past have not been accepted and implemented, and whether EOC has any plan to take follow-up actions in this regard; and
| | (c) | of the expenditure of various government departments and public bodies on eliminating the public's discrimination against ex-mentally ill persons last year; since Members of this Council and deputations pointed out several times at the meetings of committees of this Council that the Government's efforts in public education to promote the public's acceptance of mentally ill persons were not enough, what new improvement initiatives the authorities will take; whether they will follow the examples of England and Australia and introduce programmes to encourage responsible and accurate depiction of mental illness and mentally ill persons in the media; as England has set up a Social Exclusion Unit under the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister to address the problem of social exclusion against mentally ill persons, whether the Government will follow suit and put in place a high-level mechanism of similar nature?
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Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
* For written reply
III. Bills
First Reading
| | 1. | Guardianship of Minors (Amendment) Bill 2011
| | 2. | Supplementary Appropriation (2010-2011) Bill
| | 3. | Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2011
| Second Reading (Debates to be adjourned)
| | 1. | Guardianship of Minors (Amendment) Bill 2011 | : | Secretary for Labour and Welfare
| | 2. | Supplementary Appropriation (2010-2011) Bill | : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
| | 3. | Copyright (Amendment) Bill 2011 | : | Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
| Second Reading (Debates to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading
| | 1. | Dutiable Commodities (Amendment) Bill 2011 | : | Secretary for Food and Health
| | Hon Mrs Regina IP to move a Committee stage amendment
(The amendment was issued on 9 June 2011
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 868/10-11)
| | 2. | Motor Vehicles (First Registration Tax) (Amendment) Bill 2011 | : | Secretary for Transport and Housing
| | 3. | Residential Care Homes (Persons with Disabilities) Bill | : | Secretary for Labour and Welfare
| | Secretary for Labour and Welfare to move Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 8 June 2011
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 860/10-11)
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IV. Members' Motions
- Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance
Hon James TO to move the following motion:
Resolved that in relation to the－
| (a) | Inland Revenue (Double Taxation Relief and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income) (Japan) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 64 of 2011;
| | (b) | Inland Revenue (Double Taxation Relief and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income and Capital) (French Republic) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 65 of 2011;
| | (c) | Inland Revenue (Double Taxation Relief and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income and Capital) (Principality of Liechtenstein) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 66 of 2011;
| | (d) | Inland Revenue (Double Taxation Relief and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income) (New Zealand) Order, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 67 of 2011; and
| | (e) | Specification of Arrangements (Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg) (Avoidance of Double Taxation on Income and Capital and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion) (Amendment) Order 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 68 of 2011,
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and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 18 May 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 6 July 2011.
- Proposed resolution under the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance
Hon IP Kwok-him to move the following motion:
Resolved that in relation to the－
| (a) | Electoral Affairs Commission (Registration) (Electors for Legislative Council Functional Constituencies) (Voters for Election Committee Subsectors) (Members of Election Committee) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 71 of 2011;
| | (b) | Electoral Affairs Commission (Nominations Advisory Committees (Legislative Council)) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 72 of 2011;
| | (c) | Electoral Affairs Commission (Electoral Procedure) (Legislative Council) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 73 of 2011;
| | (d) | Electoral Affairs Commission (Electoral Procedure) (District Councils) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 74 of 2011;
| | (e) | Electoral Affairs Commission (Electoral Procedure) (Election Committee) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 75 of 2011;
| | (f) | Electoral Procedure (Chief Executive Election) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 76 of 2011;
| | (g) | Electoral Procedure (Village Representative Election) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 77 of 2011;
| | (h) | Particulars Relating to Candidates on Ballot Papers (Legislative Council and District Councils) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 78 of 2011; and
| | (i) | Electoral Affairs Commission (Financial Assistance for Legislative Council Elections and District Council Elections) (Application and Payment Procedure) (Amendment) Regulation 2011, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 79 of 2011,
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and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 18 May 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 6 July 2011.
- Perfecting tree management system
Hon Tanya CHAN to move the following motion: (Translation)
That planting trees may achieve the effects of improving air quality, alleviating the greenhouse effect and lowering the temperature in urban areas, and improve the urban environment; greening may also improve community landscape as well as people's living environment, thereby upgrading quality of life; a comprehensive system of tree preservation and management is an indispensible segment of the greening process; while proper tree management may strike a balance between conserving trees and protecting people's lives and properties, it can also reduce the chances of the Administration having to handle tree risk management and hazardous trees in the future and reduce expenditures; in this connection, in order to further perfect Hong Kong's tree preservation and management system, this Council urges the Government to:
Establishment of a framework and perfecting resource allocation－
| (a) | set up an independent and dedicated department to co-ordinate the work of green planning, tree preservation and tree risk management, which is at present scattered among various government departments;
| | (b) | set up an advisory framework comprising tree and greening experts as well as community members for advising the relevant policy bureaux and government departments on policies and specific measures relating to green planning as well as tree preservation and management;
| | (c) | increase resources for green planning, tree preservation and tree risk management;
| | (d) | study enacting specific legislation on tree management, establish a comprehensive legal framework, and formulate various policies and measures on tree preservation and management, so as to ensure that trees can receive comprehensive and appropriate protection;
| Perfection of green planning－
| | (e) | add green elements to various large-scale public and private works projects as well as new development areas, and formulate a tree preservation and management mechanism;
| | (f) | formulate a comprehensive green planning system, and comprehensively examine the greening arrangements in Hong Kong;
| Perfection of the training and regulation of talents－
| | (g) | formulate a licensing and regulatory system for tree management personnel and tree management contractors;
| | (h) | strengthen the training of tree preservation and management personnel, and encourage various organizations to offer courses on tree preservation and management as well as green planning;
| Strengthening of community work－
| | (i) | conduct tree surveys in the various communities, so as to identify trees of conservation value, and include such trees in a specific register, and conserve them through specific legislation on tree management; and
| | (j) | strengthen public education on tree preservation and management, and organize the participation of interested people and groups in tree preservation and management work in the districts.
| | Amendments to the motion
| | (i) | Hon CHAN Hak-kan to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add "with the presence of high-rise buildings everywhere, air pollution and the heat island effect are very serious in Hong Kong, and" after "That"; to add ", and establish a demerit point system and a penalty mechanism for the Government's outsourcing contractors for tree management work, so as to strengthen the monitoring of outsourcing contractors' quality" after "tree management contractors"; to add "establish a comprehensive database of trees in the communities for recording the basic information of trees, their health conditions and locations, etc., to facilitate the Government to carry out tree management and the public to access the relevant information, and" after "(i)"; to delete "and" after "on tree management;"; to add "set up a complaints hotline operated by a dedicated department, make use of various channels such as smart phone or the Internet, etc., to facilitate the reporting of problematic trees by the public," after "on tree preservation and management,"; and to add "; and (k) allocate funds for encouraging the community to organize research projects and activities in relation to greening management and tree preservation, so as to enhance public awareness towards tree conservation" immediately before the full stop.
| | (ii) | Hon IP Wai-ming to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add "the society is highly concerned about tree conservation in recent years, and" after "That"; to add "(a) as the urban Greening Master Plans have been in implementation for quite some time, consolidate the relevant experience in a timely manner, take on board the community opinions, and promote public engagement, so as to further develop and upgrade the effectiveness of the urban Greening Master Plans on the basis of collective wisdom and concerted efforts, thus enabling more effective tree management; (b) drawing on the experience of implementing the urban Greening Master Plans, incorporate the features and characteristics of New Territories districts and seriously heed and take on board the views of District Councils and the community, so as to formulate a clear timetable on drawing up the Greening Master Plans for the New Territories and an implementation schedule as part of perfecting tree management;" after "resource allocation－"; to delete the original "(a)" and substitute with "(c)"; to add "and appoint civil servants on permanent establishment" after "dedicated department"; to add ", so as to dovetail with future development of the society" after "various government departments"; to delete the original "(b)" and substitute with "(d)"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(e)"; to add ", including resource allocation for setting up specialist academies to train professionals" after "tree risk management"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(f)"; to add "and formulating guidelines" after "legislation"; to add "landscaping and" before "tree management,"; to add "landscaping and" after "to ensure that"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(g)"; to add "including green rooftops and vertical greening," after "new development areas,"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(h)"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(j)"; to add "in the community" after "various organizations"; to add "of further studies" after "courses"; to add "to meet market needs" after "as green planning"; to add "(k) adopt proactive and effective measures for strengthening the conservation of local plants of economic value, such as Buddhist pines and incense trees, etc., so as to eradicate these plants from being stolen and felled by people, and educate the public about caring of trees with local characteristics as well as relevant conservation knowledge, so as to protect Hong Kong's green environment;" after "community work－"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(l)"; and to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(m)".
| | (iii) | Hon KAM Nai-wai to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", given that" after "That"; to delete "in this connection," after "expenditures;"; to add "study establishing a trees and greening conservation fund to offer funding on a 'dedicated-funds-for-dedicated-uses' basis for application by various types of organizations or institutions, including civil society institutions, so as to conserve trees and valuable trees which are beneficial to the community and which are grown on non-government land (for example, the land under the Hong Kong Housing Authority, the Hong Kong Housing Society and public organizations, as well as private land of public welfare purposes) and not managed by the Government; this fund may also be used to" after "(c)"; to delete "and" after "planning, tree preservation" and substitute with ","; to add ", public education and the promotion of green tourism" before "; (d)"; to add "including the setting of penalties for prohibiting any persons from felling, transplanting, trimming or damaging trees without authorization," after "tree preservation and management,"; to add "review and increase the green belts as provided in the statutory town plans of Hong Kong (especially the urban areas);" after "in Hong Kong;"; to delete "and" after "legislation on tree management;"; and to add "; (k) study establishing a tree protection and observation team in various districts; and (l) implement a tree adoption scheme to put community-wide tree observation into action; at the same time, invite relevant professionals to provide the public with tree protection knowledge and training" immediately before the full stop.
| | (iv) | Prof Hon Patrick LAU to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", given that" after "That"; to delete "in this connection," after "expenditures;"; to add "with a passion for tree preservation" after "members"; to delete "and" after "development areas,"; to add ", and undertake extensive greening in the vicinity of residential areas and on urban structures, including wall faces, slopes, pavements and rooftops, etc." after "and management mechanism"; to add "(g) formulate strategic green planning with special landscape design features for various districts and the planting of theme trees in selected streets and places for showing various shades of colours in different seasons, so as to create beautified streets and scenic spots to attract tourists and stop any haphazard planting from ruining the beauty of trees;" after "in Hong Kong;"; 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 "and" after "legislation on tree management;"; to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(k)"; and to add "; and Strengthening of studies on sustainable development－ (l) through conducting studies on planting bamboo groves or other plants, develop a green economy to dovetail with sustainable urban development; in particular, as bamboo grows quickly and its photosynthetic rate is three times that of other plants, it can convert more carbon dioxide into oxygen, thereby helping to alleviate greenhouse effect; at the same time, bamboo has the property of tightly gripping the surface of the soil and is safer than other trees; bamboo can also provide substantial natural construction materials and can be used for manufacturing bamboo products; planting bamboo can even increase employment opportunities in the fields of research, planting, landscaping, manufacturing, design and certification, etc.; with the economic benefits of sustainable development, put in more resources to perfect tree preservation and management work" immediately before the full stop.
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Development
- Moral and National Education Curriculum
Hon Albert HO to move the following motion: (Translation)
That the Education Bureau earlier proposed to make Moral and National Education a compulsory subject arousing public concern; HAO Tiechuan, Director-General of the Publicity, Culture and Sports Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, made a high-profile remark on the Internet that the new subject is a type of 'necessary brainwashing' and queried that 'any education in defiance of the Central Government' was not regarded as national education; subsequently, officials from Hong Kong's Education Bureau even commented at a consultation seminar on the curriculum guide that 'universal values (such as democracy and freedom, etc.) are equal to western values', and rebuked teachers for 'obstinately discussing the country's state of affairs from a negative perspective'; in order to allay public concern and ensure that the introduction of the new subject will not be utilized as a tool for instilling political ideas, this Council urges the Government to:
| (a) | face up to the concern of the education sector and the public, and ensure that the introduction of the new subject is based on open and impartial public consultation, rather than a fake consultation exercise conducted in a top-down manner; the scope of consultation should cover whether the new subject is to be introduced in September 2012;
| | (b) | instil elements relating to universal values such as democracy, freedom and human rights, etc., into national education, and enhance the existing civic education, so as to establish recognition of national and citizenship identity;
| | (c) | give teachers a free hand so that they can adopt rational, objective and diversified pedagogical approaches to cultivate students' independent critical thinking;
| | (d) | through the new subject, teach students to understand the relationship of the state, the nation, the Government and political parties with the people, and to differentiate love for the country and care for the nation from support for the Government, political parties, the ruling regime and political figures, so that they will understand that love for the country and the people is not equal to love for a political party and support for the leadership; and
| | (e) | ensure that the new subject can comprehensively and truly depict the state of affairs in China; and using Chinese history, particularly contemporary Chinese history, as teaching materials, including the 4 June incident, the rights defending movement and even the suppression of political dissidents such as LIU Xiaobo and AI Weiwei, etc., to enable students to understand the problems faced by China as a result of the socio-political development since its economic reform and liberalization.
| | Amendments to the motion
| | (i) | Hon Cyd HO to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", given that" after "That"; to delete "face up to the concern of the education sector and the public, and ensure that the introduction of the new subject is based on open and impartial public consultation, rather than a fake consultation exercise conducted in a top-down manner; the scope of consultation should cover whether the new subject is to be introduced in September 2012" after "(a)" and substitute with "replace Moral and National Education proposed in the consultation document with the subject of Liberal Studies and Civic Education"; to delete "instil elements relating to universal values such as democracy, freedom and human rights, etc., into national education, and enhance the existing civic education, so as to establish recognition of national and citizenship identity" after "(b)" and substitute with "examine in the new subject the gains and losses of China's modernization process, and explore the reasons for democracy, freedom, human rights and the rule of law lagging behind in China"; to delete "nation" after "care for the" and substitute with "various nationalities"; to delete "China" after "problems faced by" and substitute with "the People's Republic of China"; and to delete "socio-political development since its economic reform and liberalization" immediately before the full stop and substitute with "social, cultural, political and economic development since its founding".
Amendment to Hon Cyd HO's amendment
Hon CHEUNG Man-kwong to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To delete "replace Moral and National Education proposed in the consultation document" before "with the subject" and to add "as the basis, increase the contents of national history education" after "Civic Education".
| | (ii) | Hon Audrey EU to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", given that" after "That"; to add "and human rights education in primary and secondary schools by incorporating them into the formal curricula to enable students to learn the basic values of human rights and cultivate civic awareness when small" after "civic education"; to delete "and" after "leadership;"; and to add "; and (f) as Chinese history is an important element in cultivating the next generation's sense of belonging to the country and national identity, enhance students' knowledge of Chinese history and make Chinese History as a compulsory subject in junior secondary school, so that through learning history, especially contemporary Chinese history, students can better understand the state of affairs in China, and the curriculum contents should also focus on conducting objective analyses of the actual situation in China, so as to increase students' understanding of the state of affairs in the country" immediately before the full stop.
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Education
Clerk to the Legislative Council
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