A 11/12-14

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 18 January 2012 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers

Subsidiary Legislation / InstrumentsL.N. No.
Undesirable Medical Advertisements (Amendment) Ordinance 2005 (Commencement) Notice 20123/2012

Other Papers

1.No. 59-Hospital Authority Annual Report 2010-2011
(to be presented by the Secretary for Food and Health)

2.No. 60-Samaritan Fund Financial statements together with the Report of the Director of Audit and the Report on the Samaritan Fund for the year ended 31 March 2011
(to be presented by the Secretary for Food and Health)

3.Report No. 9/11-12 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. Question under Rule 24(4) of the Rules of Procedure

Hon Mrs Regina IP to ask: (Translation)

According to the Indoor Air Quality Objectives drawn up by the Government after the outbreak of the "Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome" in 2003, the safety threshold of the total volatile organic compounds ("TVOC") in the air indoor after fitting-out works should be no more than 261 ppbv (i.e. parts per billion by volume), and that of suspended particulates ("SP") should be no more than 10 000 per litre of air. Earlier on, a newspaper commissioned air quality examination experts to conduct air quality tests inside the Legislative Council ("LegCo") Complex. The experts conducted tests inside the Office of the Honourable Mrs Regina IP and found that the highest TVOC measurement was over 44 000 ppbv, exceeding the prescribed threshold by almost 170 times. The experts also conducted tests inside the Office of the Honourable Paul TSE, and similarly found that the volume of SP there was over 13 000 per litre of air, and the highest TVOC measurement also reached as high as 9 700 ppbv, which exceeded the prescribed threshold by more than 30 times. The measurements of other locations (including corridors, the Coffee Corner, the Cafeteria and rear staircases) in the LegCo Complex also seriously exceeded the prescribed thresholds. On the contrary, the tests conducted at the corridors, the cafeteria, the press rooms and the toilets of the new Central Government Complex ("new CGC") indicated that the level of air quality there was good and did not exceed any prescribed threshold. The experts warn that staying in such environment for a long time may result in infertility in men and breast cancer in women, and that the high concentration of TVOC may be related to remedial works being carried out continuously inside the LegCo Complex as well as the new furniture inside the rooms releasing toxic substances, and it may take at least one and a half years for vaporization and clearance. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that the aforesaid test results indicate that the air quality recorded inside the LegCo Complex is at a dangerous level at present, which has seriously affected the safety of the people, including all LegCo Members, all staff members and members of the public, inside the LegCo Complex, while the level of air quality recorded in the new CGC at present is good, whether the authorities had examined the air quality inside the LegCo Complex according to the standards adopted for the new CGC prior to the occupation of the LegCo Complex; if not, of the reasons for that, and whether the authorities will immediately examine the air quality inside the entire LegCo Complex and conduct a thorough investigation into the matter; and

    (b)of the contingency measures to be adopted by the authorities for the serious air quality problem of the LegCo Complex at present?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

IIA. Questions

1. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)

A famous brand store was suspected to discriminate against Hong Kong people as it only allowed mainland customers but not Hong Kong people to take photos outside the store, causing a stir among Hong Kong people who were unhappy with the unfair treatment they received at their home town, and the incident developed into one involving a thousand people surrounding the store to protest and take photos, yet some people were so agitated that they bitterly insulted the mainland tourists who passed by, and some tourists reflected that such overly radical behaviour of the like will damage the reputation of Hong Kong's tourism industry. Furthermore, a survey organization in France earlier conducted a survey on the ranking of prestigious commercial shopping avenues in 30 cities in the world, and due to reasons that Hong Kong people are not friendly enough towards tourists, etc., Hong Kong ranks the second last in the survey. Earlier on even the "Avenue of Stars" was ranked by the web site of the Cable News Network of the United States as the second most disappointing tourist attraction around the world. Some members of the tourism industry have pointed out that the aforesaid incidents have reflected the large gap between the standard of the tourism ancillaries and tourist attractions in Hong Kong and that expected by tourists from overseas countries, and that the authorities taking charge of tourism are unable to feel the pulse of the international tourism market. Regarding the aforesaid incidents relating to the tourism industry in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has assessed the causes of the series of incidents above, and what negative impact they have on the development of the tourism industry in Hong Kong; if it has, of the results; if not, whether it can seriously conduct the assessment;

    (b)with respect to civic education, of the existing policies in place to foster the civic awareness and hospitality of members of the public as citizens in a cosmopolitan city, upgrade their ability in commanding international languages, minimize as far as possible the conflicts arising from members of the public alienating mainland tourists in particular, and enhance Hong Kong's appeal as a premier tourist city; and

    (c)of the policies put in place by the Government to maintain the balanced development of Hong Kong as a cosmopolitan city, and prevent the tourism market and related initiatives from overemphasizing the preferences of mainland tourists and ignoring the long-term benefits and the direction of development of the tourism industry?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

2. Hon KAM Nai-wai to ask: (Translation)

It has been learnt that some people who had worked in the party apparatus on the Mainland have successfully been re-elected or elected as members of the Fourth Term District Council, and some members of the public suspect that they are members of the Communist Party of China ("CPC"). Since the reunification of Hong Kong, mainland officials are required to obtain "Exit-entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macau for Official Purposes" ("the Permit") if they are posted to work in Hong Kong in their official capacity. In 2002, the Legislative Council passed the Immigration (Amendment) Bill 2001 to exclude those mainland officials from being treated as ordinarily resident in Hong Kong during the period for which they worked in Hong Kong in their official capacity. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)if it has assessed whether these people, who worked in the party apparatus on the Mainland and are suspected to be members of CPC, have become members of the second governing team in Hong Kong after being elected into the councils, and whether such a situation causes interference in Hong Kong's internal affairs and damage to the principles of "One Country, Two Systems", "a high degree of autonomy" and "Hong Kong People ruling Hong Kong"; if it has assessed, of the details; if it has not, the reasons for that;

    (b)in view of the principles of "One Country, Two Systems", "a high degree of autonomy" and "Hong Kong People ruling Hong Kong", whether it will consider requiring any Hong Kong permanent resident who is a member of CPC to disclose to the electorate his/her affiliation with political parties when standing in the elections in various councils and of the Chief Executive, including whether he/she is a member of CPC; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)of the numbers of mainland officials staying in Hong Kong with the Permit and the respective numbers of those mainland officials holding such document who worked in the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong and the People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison in each year from the date of unification of Hong Kong to 31 December of last year, together with a table setting out such information; whether it has assessed and discussed with the Central Authorities if the confidence in "One Country, Two Systems", "a high degree of autonomy" and "Hong Kong People ruling Hong Kong" among members of the public will be undermined when such officials apply through other means to become Hong Kong permanent residents after returning to the Mainland; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

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

The authorities have already implemented the New Nature Conservation Policy for more than seven years, and only the projects at two sites of conservation value (i.e. Fung Yuen and Long Valley respectively) have been included under the Management Agreement ("MA") Scheme so far; and there has not been any case of successful application for the Public-private Partnership ("PPP") Pilot Scheme. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the latest progress of the projects implemented in respect of the 12 priority sites of conservation value under the MA Scheme and the PPP Pilot Scheme;

    (b)as I have learnt that the Advisory Council on the Environment has earlier indicated its support for the Sha Lo Tung project in Tai Po and the Fung Lok Wai development project in Yuen Long under the PPP Pilot Scheme, yet so far there has not been any progress in implementing such projects, of the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether it has reviewed and assessed the effectiveness of the implementation of the MA Scheme and the PPP Pilot Scheme at present; and whether there are other new measures for implementing the aforesaid two schemes effectively, so as to respond to the demand of the community for conserving the 12 sites of high ecological value?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

4. Hon CHAN Kam-lam to ask: (Translation)

In recent years, some minority owners have often reflected to me that they have to pay rates and Government rent each year at 5% and 3% respectively of the rateable value of their properties, and that while rates concessions were given by the Government in the past five financial years, Government rent concession has never been offered. In respect of alleviating the financial burden of minority owners, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)in each of the past three financial years, of the respective numbers of private residential units and non-residential units which were required to pay Government rent and the respective total amounts of Government rent collected by the authorities from these two categories of units; of the respective numbers of private residential units and non-residential units which were required to pay Government rent at 3% of the rateable value to be adjusted from time to time and the respective total amounts of Government rent collected by the authorities from these two categories of units; of the respective numbers of private residential units and non-residential units which were required to pay Government rent at an amount of more than $4,800 and the respective total amounts of Government rent collected by the authorities from these two categories of units;

    (b)whether it has studied injecting funds into the accounts of the residential units which are required to pay Government rent, or implementing other measures to alleviate the burden of payment of Government rent on members of the public; if it has, of its conclusions and justifications; and

    (c)given that the Executive Council decided on 15 July 1997 that the lessees of residential land leases newly approved thereafter would be required to pay Government rent each year at 3% of the rateable value, and that the subsequent amount of Government rent would be adjusted in step with subsequent changes in the rateable value, whether the Government plans to review this arrangement, and in drawing up the conditions of newly approved residential land leases, allow the lessees not to pay Government rent, or to pay a nominal amount of Government rent only; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

5. Hon Fred LI to ask: (Translation)

It has recently been reported in the press that some academics are worried that academic freedom in Hong Kong is being sorely tested. On 28 December last year, the Public Opinion Programme ("POP") at the University of Hong Kong released the results of a survey on Hong Kong people's ethnic identity, which showed that people's identification with "Hong Kong citizens" had reached a 10-year high while that of "Chinese citizens" had dropped to a 12-year low. At a tea gathering with television media held on 29 December last year, the Director-General of the Department of Publicity, Culture and Sports Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("LOCPG") criticized that the aforesaid survey was conducted in an "unscientific" and "illogical" manner. After the official has made such remarks, certain Hong Kong newspapers immediately echoed and published a number of articles for several consecutive days, criticizing the purpose of the aforesaid survey, the words and deeds of the Director of POP, and commenting that the online election of the Chief Executive ("CE") by all Hong Kong people, which is being organized by him to be held on 23 March this year (i.e. two days before the polling date for the election of the new term CE by the Election Committee), of "challenging the constitutional arrangements of Hong Kong". In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it has assessed if the LOCPG official making the aforesaid remarks is interfering in Hong Kong's internal affairs; if it has assessed, of the details; if it has not, the reasons for that;

    (b)whether any measure is in place to ensure that academic freedom in Hong Kong is free from political interference; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether it has assessed if the online election of CE by all Hong Kong people, which is being planned and organized by POP, poses "a challenge to the constitutional arrangements of Hong Kong"; if it has assessed, of the details; if it has not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

6. Hon Frederick FUNG to ask: (Translation)

In response to my question on anti-property speculation measures earlier, the authorities stressed that they would maintain their efforts in combating short-term speculative activities to ensure the healthy and stable development of the property market, and that in the long run, they would increase land supply to tackle the housing issue. However, according to the fourth-quarter Land Sale Programme of this financial year announced earlier, the Government has only selected five residential sites and one commercial site from the Application List for sale by tender, and the five residential sites will only supply a total of about 430 flats, representing a substantial reduction of 75% when compared with the 1 770 flats supplied in the previous quarter. Although the authorities explained that the annual target of supply had already been met, some academics consider that increasing land supply is the long-term policy to stabilize the property market, and land supply should not be reduced even if the annual target of supply has been met. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the factors considered by the authorities and their justifications for deciding whether land sales should be initiated by way of tender or public auction; whether in the past the authorities have studied and compared the differences between the two ways, including conducting analyses on the transaction prices, market response and effectiveness, etc.; if they have, of the results;

    (b)in deciding on the fourth-quarter Land Sale Programme of this financial year, whether the authorities have considered the factor that a drop in property prices may be triggered by economic slowdown in the future; whether they have assessed if the substantial reduction in the number of flats which may be built on the residential sites supplied by the Government will convey a wrong message to the market and the public, causing them to suspect that the Government is boosting the market or its determination to combat property speculation is shaken; how the authorities will respond to such market and public conjecture; whether the authorities will make clear their determination to increase land supply in the new financial year; and

    (c)whether it has assessed how the increasing risk of external economic recession and the influence of property-related industries will affect the Government's short-term and medium-term policy on land supply; if it has, of the results; whether the authorities will thus suspend or adjust the measures on combating property speculation, ensuring transparency in the property market and preventing excessive expansion in mortgage lending, and whether the long-term policy of tackling the housing issue by ways of expanding land resources and increasing land supply will also be affected?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

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

In December last year, the Transport Department ("TD") put up 280 traditional vehicle registration marks ("VRMs") for sale by public auction, with most of them being sold at low prices. Moreover, TD also auctioned quite a number of non-transferable special VRMs, with more than half of them being recalled involuntarily due to a lack of bids for them. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of public auctions of traditional VRMs held by the authorities in each of the past three years; the number of VRMs (both transferable and non-transferable ones) put up for sale at each auction, as well as the respective numbers of VRMs being sold and recalled at each auction;

    (b)of the cost involved and the amount payable to the Lotteries Fund for charity at each auction in the past three years; and

    (c)how the reserve prices of special VRMs are determined, and whether adjustments will be made in response to the prevailing economic situation (including adjusting the reserve auction prices and recalling some VRMs); if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

*8. Hon Paul CHAN to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that, without the Education Bureau announcing in advance, a number of Anglo-Chinese secondary schools in Hong Kong were permitted to resume offering five Secondary One ("S1") classes in the new school year and thus each of these schools can admit 180 S1 students, resulting in more discretionary places for such secondary schools than for those offering four S1 classes. Some parents claimed that, in the course of selecting secondary schools for their children, their planning had been affected without such knowledge. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)after launching the Voluntary Optimization of Class Structure Scheme early last year, whether the authorities have published the class structures of various secondary schools for the next six years; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)of the criteria based on which the authorities balance the demands for S1 places in different school nets in approving the schools concerned to opt for a general reduction of classes or switch to a "cyclic symmetrical class structure", and how they ensure that parents may receive fair treatment in a highly transparent manner as far as possible when they select schools for their children; and

    (c)given that some schools pointed out that switching to a "cyclic symmetrical class structure" is for striking a balance between the enrolment aspirations of students and the overall interests of the education sector, whether the authorities have assessed the situation of schools switching their choices in the next six years; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

*9. Hon TAM Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)

Under the new policy implemented from 1 April last year, mainland "over-age children" of Hong Kong residents (namely, those children of Hong Kong residents on the Mainland, who (a) were below the age of 14 when their natural fathers or mothers, before 1 November 2001, obtained their Hong Kong identity cards; and (b) turned 14 while awaiting approval of their applications for One-way Permits (commonly known as "OWPs") and hence lost their approval status) may apply for OWPs for settlement in Hong Kong. The mainland public security authorities indicated that they would accept such applications by phases, and the first batch of applicants would be those "over-age children" whose natural fathers or mothers are Hong Kong residents who had obtained their Hong Kong identity cards before 1980. Moreover, the Secretary for Security said that the consensus with the mainland authorities was that such applications would be processed by making use of the accumulated unused OWP quotas. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
    (a)the total number of applications received by the mainland authorities since 1 April last year from "over-age children" for settlement in Hong Kong; the number of OWP applications approved so far;

    (b)the average time required by the mainland authorities for vetting and approving each OWP application from "over-age children", as well as the estimated time required to finish processing all OWP applications from the aforesaid first batch of "over-age children"; and

    (c)when the mainland authorities will start to receive OWP applications from other "over-age children", including those whose natural fathers or mothers are Hong Kong residents who obtained their Hong Kong identity cards in and after 1980?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

*10. Hon Ronny TONG to ask: (Translation)

I have received complaints from some arts organizations, and they consider that the criteria of the Arts Development Fund ("the Fund") for assessing the standards and achievements of individual arts organizations are unclear, not transparent and unfair, making it impossible for them to successfully apply for subsidies, as well as making it difficult for them to participate in international exchanges and performances as representatives of Hong Kong, and hindering the development of valuable non-governmental arts organizations. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)in the past five years, of the total number of outbound project applications approved under the Fund; among the organizations which had been granted subsidies, the number of those engaged in Chinese music; the number of approved outbound projects for participating in international performances, as well as their performance programmes;

    (b)of the specific standards (e.g. of the interpretation of "attaining a high level of artistic excellence or possessing a proven track record in arts", etc.) for vetting and approving cultural exchange projects under the Fund; whether the Sub-committee on Arts Development Fund is responsible for the assessment; whether the members who are responsible for the assessment are appointed by the Government or returned through elections; if they are appointed by the Government, of the criteria for making such appointments; if they are returned through elections, of the eligibility for the elections and the timing of the elections;

    (c)given that "attaining a high level of artistic excellence or possessing a proven track record in arts" is currently one of the conditions for granting subsidies under the Fund, among those members who are responsible for the assessment at present, whether there are people with knowledge in assessing different arts achievements; if not, how they can make assessment with regard to arts with which they are not familiar;

    (d)of the respective numbers of outbound project applications which were rejected in each of the past five years, and from which kinds of arts organizations such applications had been submitted; of the reasons for rejecting their applications; whether there is any appeal mechanism at present; if not, the reasons for that, and under what conditions the arts organizations concerned can submit applications again;

    (e)whether the Fund has considered listing on a web site information about the arts organizations which had been granted subsidies for their outbound projects in the past, as well as the details of the exchange projects in which they participated, so as to enable members of the public and other arts organizations to make reference to such information, and enhance the transparency of the Fund's operation; if not, of the reasons for that; and

    (f)whether it knows the number of arts organizations engaged in Cantonese music (also known as "Guangdong music") in Hong Kong; whether the Fund had granted subsidies for projects of such arts organizations in the past five years; and whether there are any other programme or measure to promote or subsidize the development of arts organizations engaged in Cantonese music; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs

*11. Hon LEE Wing-tat to ask: (Translation)

After the media uncovered the unusual behaviour in the property transactions of the development project of "39 Conduit Road" in December 2009, the Government had first written to the developer of the property in March 2010 to make enquiries, and then submitted the relevant correspondences to the Legislative Council ("LegCo") in July of the same year, and indicated that it would follow up and investigate the incident. The Police had also officially stepped in immediately to investigate the cancellation of the Agreement for Sale and Purchase ("ASP") of some of the first-hand units of "39 Conduit Road", and went to the developer's head office as well as the law firm concerned to seize a batch of documents suspected to be related to the case. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it knows how many units and which units of "39 Conduit Road" have been successfully sold to date, as well as the respective selling prices of the units sold, and the number of units the ASP of which has been cancelled and the units involved, as well as the number of these units for which only a 5% deposit was charged; the respective numbers of units for which deficiency in price has and has not been recovered, and the deficiency in price recovered;

    (b)of the total number of times the authorities have exchanged correspondences with the developer of "39 Conduit Road" to date, and how many correspondences have not been submitted to LegCo, and how they will arrange to pass those correspondences to LegCo; the progress and outcome of the follow-up actions taken and investigations conducted by the Lands Department and the Police on the incident; whether anyone has been interviewed; if so, which people have been included; whether they have examined if there was anyone who conspired to create fraudulent property transactions;

    (c)what follow-up investigations have been conducted so far after the Police seized the documents from the developer, and which government departments are responsible for and under which legislation the investigations are conducted;

    (d)when the authorities expect to complete the investigations, and whether they will consider releasing the interim investigation results; and

    (e)whether the authorities have learnt any lesson from the incident, and will, under the proposed legislation to regulate the sale of first-hand residential properties, include provisions to avoid any loophole that enables developers to collude with buyers to create the illusion of transactions on the market; if so, of the provisions to be included?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

*12. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)

At present, the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited ("HKEx") has not listed any requirement in respect of the discharge of corporate social responsibilities for the vetting and approval of listing applications from companies. It had been reported before the listing of a company in Hong Kong last year that the subsidiary of that company in Japan was suspected to have condoned incidents of sex discrimination and sexual harassment, and have dismissed employees unreasonably. On the other hand, the Companies Bill gazetted in January last year contains a proposed provision that a business review must include certain environmental, social and governance ("ESG") matters (e.g. environmental policies and performance, compliance with the relevant laws and regulations, and key relationships with its employees, customers and suppliers, and other matters which have a significant impact on the company), and HKEx has also planned to issue an "ESG Reporting Guide" ("the Guide"). In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
    (a)of the measures the authorities have in place to promote the discharge of corporate social responsibilities (including compliance with the requirements under the international standards of the treatment of workers, women's right, human rights and environmental protection) by listed companies;

    (b)whether they know if HKEx regulates the discharge of corporate social responsibilities by companies listed in Hong Kong, including conducting relevant vetting of companies applying for initial public offering; and if it does, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)given that HKEx has indicated that its long-term vision is to upgrade the reporting requirements under the Guide from requirements that are recommended best practices to those which "require explanation in case of non-compliance", whether they know the timetable of HKEx for materializing this vision?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

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

At present, the Government has granted land to the Hong Kong Jockey Club ("HKJC") under private recreational leases ("PRLs") to set up clubs and clubhouses, and most of these clubs and clubhouses are for members' use only and are not open to the general public. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)whether it knows the number of HKJC members at present; the numbers of clubs and clubhouses managed by HKJC, as well as their respective areas, purposes and average number of users in each month (broken down by name of the clubs and clubhouses); which of them are set up on land granted under the aforesaid PRLs; and among such clubs and clubhouses, the ratio of those which are open to the public and those which are for HKJC members' use only;

    (b)whether it knows the criteria adopted by HKJC at present for determining whether to open such clubs and clubhouses to the public; if it knows, of such criteria; whether HKJC has any plan to open such clubs and clubhouses to the public; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (c)whether the authorities will discuss with HKJC the formulation of a set of rules or guidelines and a concrete timetable, requiring HKJC to open a certain percentage of areas in its clubs and clubhouses for use by the general public; if they will, of the details, and whether discussion will be conducted in one go when the land lease for the Sha Tin Town Lot is due to expire in the middle of this year; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs

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

Under the Dangerous Goods (General) Regulations (Cap. 295B), any person without a permit granted by the Authority shall not discharge any firework. Quite a number of members of the public have reflected that the festive atmosphere in Hong Kong during the Chinese New Year period is considerably reduced because of this stipulation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of applications for discharging firecrackers received by the Authority in the past three years;

    (b)of the number of applications for discharging firecrackers approved by the Authority in the past three years;

    (c)whether it has any plan to invite the disadvantaged children to discharge firecrackers at the Government Headquarters and Government House during the first month of every Lunar Year to celebrate the Spring Festival together; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (d)whether it has considered, with reference to the practice of Macao, permitting members of the public to discharge firecrackers in a safe and orderly manner at specified locations (e.g. certain harbourfront areas, specified outlying islands or theme parks); if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs

*15. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)

I have learnt that some officers of the Immigration Department ("immigration officers") have been assaulted by travellers when discharging duties at the various boundary control points. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of cases of immigration officers being assaulted by travellers at boundary control points in the past three years; and the number of such cases reported to the Police for handling, together with the respective numbers of persons who were prosecuted and convicted;

    (b)whether the authorities have any special arrangement for the convicted attackers when they visit Hong Kong again;

    (c)of the measures adopted to prevent such acts of violence from taking place at the various boundary control points; and

    (d)whether consideration will be given to increasing the number of immigration officers stationed at the various boundary control points to ensure their safety in discharging duties?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

*16. Hon Tanya CHAN to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported by the media earlier that at least 17 private columbaria which were operated in the name of temples had not been registered with the Government as Chinese temples in accordance with the requirement under the Chinese Temples Ordinance (Cap. 153) ("the Ordinance"). According to the reply made by the Secretary for Home Affairs to my written question at the Legislative Council meeting on 8 December 2010, the authorities would review the Ordinance from time to time to ensure that it could meet the present-day needs of the community. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that under section 5 of the Ordinance, any Chinese temple shall be registered with the Government, of the number of newly registered Chinese temples in the past 10 years; and the number of registered Chinese temples at present;

    (b)apart from temples which are directly administered by the Chinese Temples Committee or those administered with its entrustment, whether the Government seeks financial statements or operating accounts from the various registered Chinese temples on a regular basis; if it does, of the operating income and expenditure as well as surpluses recorded by the various registered Chinese temples in each of the past five years; if no such accounts were sought, the reasons for that;

    (c)whether the Government had received any complaint in the past five years about temples being operated without registration under the Ordinance; if it had, of the number of complaints and details of the follow-up work;

    (d)whether the Government had taken law enforcement actions in accordance with the Ordinance in the past five years against temples which were not registered under the Ordinance; if it had, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (e)whether the Government will investigate, take law enforcement actions against and ban at least the 17 temples disclosed by the media; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (f)given that the authorities indicated in the past that they would review the Ordinance, whether the authorities consider that it is now the appropriate time to review the Ordinance; if so, whether the authorities have formulated the work-plan and timetable for the review; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Home Affairs

*17. Dr Hon LAM Tai-fai to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that a survey organization in France published a report in early January this year on the ranking of prestigious commercial shopping avenues in 30 cities in the world, pointing out that as passers-by in Hong Kong are not friendly enough, and do not seek to help tourists, Hong Kong ranks 29th among the cities. There have been comments that the ranking result will damage Hong Kong's reputation as a shopping paradise, and will have a negative impact on the tourism and retail industries in Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the respective numbers of complaints received by the authorities from overseas and mainland tourists in each of the past five years (with a breakdown of the complaints by category), and the difference in the numbers and categories of complaints made by these two categories of tourists;

    (b)whether the authorities had conducted surveys or studies in the past five years, so as to understand the perception of overseas and mainland tourists towards the attitude of Hong Kong people; if they had, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (c)what measures the authorities had put in place in the past five years to improve the service quality of people engaged in the tourism and retail industries in Hong Kong, and the expenses incurred in implementing the various measures;

    (d)what measures the authorities had put in place in the past five years to promote the sense of hospitality among Hong Kong people, and the expenses incurred in implementing the various measures;

    (e)whether assessment on the effectiveness of the measures under (c) and (d) has been made; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (f)whether the authorities had compared the levels of satisfaction of overseas and mainland tourists in sightseeing and shopping in Hong Kong in the past five years; if they had, whether there is any difference between the two; if they had not made the comparison, of the reasons for that;

    (g)whether it has assessed if the aforesaid ranking result will have a negative impact on the tourism, retail and hotel industries, etc. in Hong Kong; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (h)whether the authorities will take the initiative to contact the aforesaid survey organization to find out the details of its survey and make clarifications; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (i)whether the authorities have assessed if it is due to the quick pace of life or decline in English standards of Hong Kong people that they are reluctant to stop on the streets and communicate with tourists from other places; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (j)given that many incidents which have damaged the reputation of the tourism industry in Hong Kong have been widely reported in recent years, whether the authorities have assessed if Hong Kong's reputation has been damaged; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (k)whether the authorities know if, in the past five years, any local or overseas organization had conducted surveys of a similar nature to this survey on the ranking of prestigious commercial shopping avenues in the world; if so, of the details; and

    (l)whether the authorities know if, in the past five years, any local or overseas organization had conducted surveys on the perception of overseas tourists towards Hong Kong people; if so, of the details?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

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

On 23 February 2009, the Panel on Economic Development of this Council discussed the issue of the commission for the collection of fuel surcharge ("surcharge") and air passenger departure tax ("APDT") by travel agents on behalf of other parties. Members of different professional background and political parties who spoke on the subject matter at the meeting considered that as travel agents actually paid operating costs and provided manpower to collect APDT but they did not receive proper compensation, the Government should pay the administrative fee directly to travel agents for collecting APDT on its behalf; and one Member explicitly requested the Civil Aviation Department to heed his views and change the existing system under which travel agents were requested by airlines to collect surcharge but without being given any commission by the airlines. However, the Government has so far not actively responded to the views of the Members. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)given that the aforesaid Members have clearly indicated that the system which requires travel agents to collect APDT without receiving commission over the past years is unfair, why the Government has so far not yet switched to paying the administrative fee to travel agents instead of airlines for collecting APDT on its behalf, in order to respond to the views of the Members;

    (b)whether the authorities have assessed the cumulative impact of the aforesaid system on the operation of travel agents in the past 10 years; if not, whether they will immediately make an assessment; and

    (c)whether the authorities have considered setting up a government counter at the airport to directly collect APDT from passengers and, at the same time, collect the surcharge from passengers on behalf of airlines, so as to eradicate the aforesaid phenomenon of "travel agents bearing the responsibility of collecting fees on behalf of other parties but not being able to receive commission or recover their costs"; if not, of the justifications, and whether they will consider such an arrangement as soon as possible?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

*19. Hon LAU Kong-wah to ask: (Translation)

Some members of the public have relayed to me that quite a number of people like to keep dogs and wish to bring their dogs to restaurants; yet, other restaurant patrons, who are not pet lovers, may be worried that dogs may cause nuisance to them and may even affect the sanitary conditions. Hong Kong's existing legislation imposes certain restrictions on the scope of activities of pets and, under the Food Business Regulation (Cap. 132X), members of the public shall not bring any dog onto food premises, and they commit an offence if they do so. I have learnt that the restrictions on dogs entering restaurants are less stringent in some overseas places where dogs are not only allowed to enter restaurants but there are also restaurants for pets. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
    (a)of the number of complaints regarding members of the public bringing dogs to restaurants received by the authorities in each of the past three years; the number of prosecutions against the persons concerned; and the penalties generally imposed on the convicted persons;

    (b)while the authorities prohibit dogs from entering restaurants, whether they impose the same restriction on other kinds of pets; if not, of the reasons for that and whether the authorities will review the relevant legislation; and

    (c)whether any legislation is currently in place in Hong Kong to regulate pet restaurants; whether eateries which only provide food for pets are required to obtain restaurant licenses; if there is no such regulation, whether the authorities will study advocating the development of pet restaurants and consider introducing legislation to regulate such restaurants when necessary?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Labour and Welfare
(in the absence of Secretary for Food and Health)

* For written reply

III. Members' Motions

  1. Annual Report 2010 to the Chief Executive by the Commissioner on Interception of Communications and Surveillance

    Hon James TO to move the following motion: (Translation)

    That this Council notes the Annual Report 2010 to the Chief Executive by the Commissioner on Interception of Communications and Surveillance.

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Security

  2. Creating a sustainable and open electricity market

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

    That, given that the Government's signing of the 10-year Scheme of Control Agreements ('SCAs') with the two power companies in 2008 has extended the monopolization of the electricity market by the two power companies and sowed the seed of misfortune that the two power companies can persistently and significantly increase tariffs to 'maximize profits' regardless of public sentiments, for the well-being of the public, this Council urges the Government to:

    (a)require the two power companies to exhaust all room for tariff reduction, so as to lower the rates of tariff increase this year to the lowest levels;

    (b)immediately activate the mechanism for interim reviews, and make public the relevant information and accounts, so as to facilitate public participation;

    (c)launch a review of the two power companies' development plans in accordance with the provisions of SCAs, increase the transparency of the development plans, and require the two power companies to revise their investment plans, revalue their assets, compress costs and rationalize their accounts;

    (d)expeditiously materialize the interconnection between the networks of the two power companies and segregation of the generation sector from the network sector, and introduce third parties to bid for the supply of electricity grids;

    (e)encourage the development of distributed renewable energy power generation facilities and networks, and provide technical support and concessions for connection to electricity grids; and

    (f)adopt all measures to create a low-carbon electricity market which promotes sustainable development and operates with greater competition, openness and fairness, so as to break new grounds in the electricity market.

    Amendments to the motion
    (i)Hon Fred LI to move the following amendment: (Translation)

    To delete "," after "That" and substitute with "at present, there are only CLP Power Hong Kong Limited and The Hongkong Electric Company Limited supplying power in Hong Kong;"; to delete "has extended" after "2008" and substitute with "is marked by inadequacies, thus extending"; to delete "sowed" after "by the two power companies and" and substitute with "sowing"; to add "(a) establish an energy management authority to explore Hong Kong's long-term energy demand, formulate and execute an energy policy, as well as monitor power companies, gas companies, liquefied petroleum gas companies and fuel supply companies; (b) review the permitted returns of the two power companies; (c) raise the transparency of the processes for the formulation of SCAs and tariff adjustments, so as to facilitate public monitoring and ensure fair and reasonable tariff adjustment rates; (d) consult the Legislative Council first when approving the annual tariff adjustments and before revising the respective five-year Development Plans of the two power companies in the future;" after "the Government to:"; to delete the original "(a)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete the original "(b)" and substitute with "(f)"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(g)"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(h)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(i)"; and to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(j)".

    (ii)Hon Miriam LAU to move the following amendment: (Translation)

    To delete ", given that" after "That"; to add ", and in the future they may very likely put forward rates of tariff increase which are unaffordable to the public and business operators" after "public sentiments"; to add "and business operators" after "of the public"; to delete ", so as to" after "for tariff reduction" and substitute with "every year, and strive to"; to delete "this year" after "tariff increase"; to add "(b) on the premise of keeping in line with public interest, not interfering with normal commercial operation, and not divulging sensitive commercial information, support the relevant motion passed by the Legislative Council House Committee for the Legislative Council to, in accordance with the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance, demand the two power companies to provide all detailed records and data relating to their 2012 tariff adjustments and the five-year Development Plans, so as to ensure the transparency of tariff adjustments and enable the community to effectively monitor the tariff levels of the two power companies;" after "the lowest levels;"; to delete the original "(b)" and substitute with "(c)"; to delete "activate" after "immediately" and substitute with "make preparations for activating"; to add "and strive to lower the existing ceiling of 9.99% on the permitted returns" after "public participation"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(d)"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(f)"; and to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g)".

    (iii)Hon IP Wai-ming to move the following amendment: (Translation)

    To delete ", given that" after "That" and substitute with "the strong dissatisfaction in society caused by the two power companies' recent tariff increases is attributable to the fact that"; to add ", and at the same time expeditiously conduct studies and consultation on a new mechanism for setting tariffs" after "the lowest levels"; to delete "and" after "to electricity grids;"; and to add "; (g) require the two power companies to expeditiously and fully implement progressive block tariffs, so as to avoid the situation of 'lower tariffs for higher consumption', thereby encouraging energy conservation; (h) formulate a long-term energy conservation policy and set the relevant indicators, encourage the public as well as the industrial and commercial sector to consume less power, and adopt such indicators for projecting future power consumption, so as to avoid drastic expansion of investment projects by the two power companies on the ground of continuous increase in power consumption; and (i) review the cost-effectiveness of the two power companies' investments in environmental protection and emission reduction measures as well as the ratio of relevant investments counted for computing returns and counted as operating expenses, and to set the respective ratios of commitments for the Government, the two power companies and the public in respect of environmental protection and emission reduction projects, so as to prevent the two power companies from continuously increasing operating expenses on the grounds of expanding environmental protection and emission reduction projects and subsequently shifting all expenses to the tariffs paid by the public" immediately before the full stop.

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

    To delete ", given that" after "That" and substitute with "past discussions in society on the Scheme of Control Agreements ('SCAs') for the two power companies only focused on the ceiling of permitted returns, rarely touching on the mode of computing the ceiling of permitted returns and arrangements for community participation in the discussions on the two power companies' development plans; as"; to delete "10-year Scheme of Control Agreements ('SCAs') has extended the" after "signing of the" and substitute with "new 10-year SCAs"; to add ", except for lowering the ceiling of permitted returns, has basically extended the past arrangements; under the existing" after "2008"; to delete "and sowed the seed of misfortune that" after "by the two power companies" and substitute with ", the row over this year's tariff increases has highlighted the inadequacy of the existing arrangements in that"; to delete "persistently" after "power companies can" and substitute with "adamantly"; to add "study lowering the existing ceiling of permitted returns and the computation mode based on linking permitted returns to fixed assets," after "for interim reviews,"; and to delete "so as to facilitate public participation" after "accounts," and substitute with "so that various stakeholders in society can have more opportunities to participate in the discussions on the two power companies' development plans so as to bring their development projects more in line with social expectations".

    (v)Hon LEE Cheuk-yan to move the following amendment: (Translation)

    To add "set up a task force comprising members who are independent experts," after "(b) immediately"; to add "; and submit the outcomes of interim reviews to the Legislative Council for vetting and approval" after "public participation"; and to delete "to create a low-carbon electricity market which promotes sustainable development and operates with greater competition, openness and fairness, so as to break new grounds in the electricity market" immediately before the full stop and substitute with ", including establishing an independent energy supply regulatory committee, and studying turning power supply into a utility operated by the public sector in the long run, to bring forth fairer, low-carbon and sustainable power supply services".

    Public Officer to attend : Secretary for the Environment
Clerk to the Legislative Council