Council Meeting (Agenda) 11 July 2012

A 11/12-37

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 11 July 2012 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers

Subsidiary Legislation / Instrument	L.N. No.
Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Public Pleasure Grounds) (Amendment of Fourth Schedule) (No. 2) Order 2012	109/2012

Other Papers

1.	No. 108	-	Report by the Commissioner of Correctional Services on the administration of the Prisoners’ Welfare Fund together with the Report of the Director of Audit and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2012
(to be presented by the Secretary for Security)
2.	No. 109	-	J.E. Joseph Trust Fund Report of the Trustee and the signed and audited financial statements together with the Report of the Director of Audit for the period from 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2012
(to be presented by the Secretary for Food and Health)
3.	No. 110	-	Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Loan Fund Report of the Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Loan Fund Committee and the signed and audited financial statements together with the Report of the Director of Audit for the period from 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2012
(to be presented by the Secretary for Food and Health)
4.	No. 111	-	Clothing Industry Training Authority Annual Report 2011
(to be presented by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare)
5.	No. 112	-	Hong Kong Deposit Protection Board Annual Report 2011-2012
(to be presented by the Financial Secretary)
6.	No. 113	-	Sir Robert Black Trust Fund Report of the Trustee on the Administration of the Fund and financial statements together with the Report of the Director of Audit for the year ended 31 March 2012
(to be presented by the Secretary for Home Affairs)
6A.	No. 114	-	Annual Report of The Ombudsman Hong Kong 2012
(to be presented by the Chief Secretary for Administration)
7.	Report of the Finance Committee on the examination of the Estimates of Expenditure 2012-2013
(to be presented by Hon Emily LAU, Chairman of the Finance Committee)
8.	Report of the Committee on Members’ Interests of the Fourth Legislative Council
(to be presented by Hon Mrs Sophie LEUNG, Chairman of the Committee on Members’ Interests)
9.	Committee on Rules of Procedure Progress Report for the period July 2011 to July 2012
(to be presented by Hon TAM Yiu-chung, Chairman of the Committee on Rules of Procedure)
10.	Report No. 25/11-12 of the House Committee on Consideration of Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments
(to be presented by Hon Miriam LAU, Chairman of the House Committee)
11.	Report of the Bills Committee on Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2012
(to be presented by Hon James TO, Chairman of the Bills Committee)
12.	Report of the Panel on Housing 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon LEE Wing-tat, Chairman of the Panel)
13.	Report of the Panel on Environmental Affairs 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon CHAN Hak-kan, Chairman of the Panel)
14.	Report of the Panel on Food Safety and Environmental Hygiene 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon Tommy CHEUNG, Chairman of the Panel)
15.	Report of the Panel on Welfare Services 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che, Chairman of the Panel)
16.	Report of the Panel on Education 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon Starry LEE, Chairman of the Panel)
17.	Report of the Panel on Development 2011-2012
(to be presented by Prof Hon Patrick LAU, Chairman of the Panel)
18.	Report of the Panel on Home Affairs 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon IP Kwok-him, Chairman of the Panel)
19.	Report of the Panel on Health Services 2011-2012
(to be presented by Dr Hon LEUNG Ka-lau, Chairman of the Panel)
20.	Report of the Panel on Manpower 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon LEE Cheuk-yan, Chairman of the Panel)
21.	Report of the Panel on Security 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon James TO, Chairman of the Panel)
22.	Report of the Panel on Constitutional Affairs 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon TAM Yiu-chung, Chairman of the Panel)
23.	Report of the Panel on Administration of Justice and Legal Services 2011-2012
(to be presented by Dr Hon Margaret NG, Chairman of the Panel)
24.	Report of the Panel on Transport 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon CHEUNG Hok-ming, Deputy Chairman of the Panel)
25.	Report of the Panel on Commerce and Industry 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon WONG Ting-kwong, Chairman of the Panel)
26.	Report of the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon WONG Yuk-man, Chairman of the Panel)
27.	Report of the Panel on Financial Affairs 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon CHAN Kam-lam, Chairman of the Panel)
28.	Report of the Panel on Public Service 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon Mrs Regina IP, Chairman of the Panel)
29.	Report of the Panel on Economic Development 2011-2012
(to be presented by Hon Jeffrey LAM, Chairman of the Panel)

II. Questions

1. Hon Miriam LAU to ask: (Translation)

The Chief Executive ("CE") mentioned time and again before his assumption of office that the prime task after his assumption of office would be to take forward a new housing policy, whilst his governing team also advocates that the new Government should promote a "supply-led" strategy and increase the supply of public rental housing flats and Home Ownership Scheme flats, so as to cope with the shortfall of supply in private housing flats. The former Secretary for Transport and Housing also advised the new Government before her departure from office that it might be very risky for the new Government to enhance its intervention in property prices, and it should do so according to its ability. Regarding how a balance can be struck between providing members of the public opportunities of home ownership and avoiding drastic fluctuations in property prices, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the annual housing construction target of the new Government during its term of administration in the next five years; whether it has any concrete construction programme; of the ratio between public and private housing flats; whether public housing flats will be put on sale on the market; if so, of the details and the quantity of such flats; if not, the reasons for that;
(b)	whether the new Government will change the plan of selling sites with restrictions on flat number and flat size which has already been implemented by the Government of the last term; if so, of the details; and
(c)	regarding the introduction of a "Hong Kong property for Hong Kong residents" policy put forward by CE in his election platform, of the circumstances based on which the Government decides when such policy should be introduced, and of the types of housing to which such policy will apply?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Transport and Housing

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

Some members of the public have reflected to me the inconsistencies in the retail price movements of domestic liquefied petroleum gas ("LPG") and auto LPG on several occasions in the past three years, sending confusing messages to the market. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it knows if LPG importers currently adopt the same mechanism in setting the retail prices of domestic LPG and auto LPG; if the same mechanism is adopted, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(b)	whether the Government will adopt measures to urge LPG suppliers to standardize the retail pricing mechanism for domestic LPG and auto LPG; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(c)	whether the Government will strengthen the regulatory measures and enhance the transparency of the price information on domestic LPG to protect public interests; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for the Environment

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

The Hong Kong Girl Guides Association ("the Association") is a statutory body established under the Hong Kong Girl Guides Association Ordinance. I have uncovered that the statement issued by the Association on 16 September 2010 through the media stating that "the sale of raffle tickets had been conducted for more than 20 years and the percentage of refund to its units had never been in the region of 50%" was not true. I further uncovered in 2010 that the President of the Association had breached the regulations in appointing the Hong Kong's Chief Commissioner of the Association. I raised a question on the aforesaid issues on 27 June this year, but some parents, unit guiders and staff members of the Association have relayed to me that the reply of the Secretary for Home Affairs ("SHA") to my question paid no regard to the situation that while all girl guides in Hong Kong are endeavouring to sell raffle tickets on the streets, the Association "fattens the top and thins the bottom" and cuts the raffle refund, resulting in insufficient funding for its units, and the Association has also hosted banquets with tens of tables either in hotels or in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre ("HKCEC") for its annual general meetings ("AGMs"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it will request the Association to immediately revert the percentage of raffle refund to the previous percentage of 50%, starting from the sale of the 1 001st ticket by each unit; if it will, when it will be put into effect; if not, the reasons for that; given that a decrease in the refund percentage means an increase in the Association's proceeds, whether it will reduce the recurrent subvention to the Association according to the increase in its proceeds;
(b)	if it knows whether at present the post of Chief Executive ("CE") of the Association must be taken up by a university degree holder; if so, of the reasons why SHA, in his reply to my question raised on 27 June this year about the Association's appointment of a person with only secondary education as its CE, pointed out that no specific requirements on the academic qualifications of the Association's CE were set out in the relevant Ordinance, the Constitution of the Association or its internal rules; if not, of the reasons why SHA, in his reply to my question raised on 27 October 2010, pointed out that according to the information provided by the Association, possession of a degree was one of the entry requirements; whether the incumbent CE of the Association is a university degree holder, the university from which she graduated and the year of graduation; whether SHA will take up the responsibility and step down for his failure in properly monitoring the Association; and
(c)	given that the Association is able to solicit sponsorships to host banquets with tens of tables either in hotels or in HKCEC for its AGMs, whether the Government should immediately reduce the recurrent subvention to the Association by the same amount of the expenditure on the AGMs so as to use public funds effectively and establish an image of thrift for charities?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Home Affairs

4. Hon Alan LEONG to ask: (Translation)

The principal officials in the Government of the new term have assumed office, and it has been reported that among such officials, a person who has close relationship with the Chief Executive has been appointed the Director of Audit ("the Director"), and this arrangement differs from the previous arrangement of appointing experienced civil servants or promoting officials in the Audit Commission ("the Commission") to take up the post of the Director. It has also been reported that the incumbent Director, after assuming office as the Chairman and Managing Partner of Ernst & Young ("EY") Far East Area and Greater China in late 2005, had been involved in two audit negligence cases (including a report issued by EY in 2006 indicating that the aggregate amount of potential bad loans of commercial banks in China had reached US$900 billion, of which the People's Bank of China severely refuted, and EY subsequently withdrew the report. In addition, EY was drawn into an incident relating to the liquidation of Akai Holdings ("Akai") in 2009, in which Akai filed an accusation of default and negligence and lodged a substantial amount of claim against EY, alleging the accountant's failure to discharge its responsibility as a professional accountant to issue early warnings against the problems in the company's accounts, and the Director even took part in the auditing work on Akai at that time). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	given that the Director is the external auditor of the accounts of the Government with wide powers under the Audit Ordinance, the Director has to be familiar with the Government's operation and maintain political neutrality, and the previous two Directors after the reunification were either an experienced official in the Commission or an experienced civil servant, of the justifications for the Government to appoint a person not from the Government to take up the office of the Director at present; whether it has assessed the impact of the appointment on the work of the Commission in the future; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(b)	as the incumbent Director had been involved in two incidents of audit negligence during his employment with EY, of the result of the Government's integrity checking on the Director; whether the Government has assessed if his appointment will undermine the Commission's credibility; if it has, of the details; if not, the reason for that; and
(c)	given that it has been reported that the two Commissioners of Audit in Macao after the reunification were both officials who had joined the local government for years, the incumbent and the previous two Auditor-Generals in Taiwan have served in the National Audit Office for years, the Comptroller General of the United States ("U.S.") of the U.S. Government Accountability Office currently responsible for national auditing work has also served in the Office for years, and these examples from other places illustrated that heads of audit departments are rarely persons without government experience "parachuted" from the commercial sector, whether the Government has studied the relevant appointment arrangements in other places before the appointment of the incumbent Director; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

5. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)

According to Article 47 of the Basic Law, the Chief Executive ("CE") of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region must be a person of integrity, dedicated to his or her duties and yet, in the two mansions owned by the new-term CE in Yue Hei Yuen at Peel Rise of The Peak on Hong Kong Island, six unauthorized building works ("UBWs") were found earlier. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether any criminal investigation has been carried out into the UBWs involving the aforesaid properties as reported in the past month; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(b)	whether, when performing integrity checking on CE and the principal officials under the accountability system ("accountable officials"), the authorities at present check if the properties they own breach the legislation relating to UBWs; if not, given the public concern about their illegal behaviours and integrity problems in this respect, whether the authorities will incorporate the relevant checking into the system of integrity checking for CE and accountable officials; and
(c)	given that the aforesaid properties were checked by registered professionals for UBWs at the time of transfer in 1999, but the authorities had earlier confirmed the existence of six UBWs (including a basement with an area of about 240 square feet right under the parking space) in these properties, and some registered professionals, after checking afresh the properties, had publicly said that they believed the unauthorized basement was not an additional structure built after occupancy in 2000 and should be the power control room originally designed for the mansion and the garden concerned, whether the authorities will conduct an investigation to find out if the registered professionals responsible for checking the aforesaid properties in 1999 had honestly discharged their professional duties, and if the unauthorized basement had been built illegally before the occupation permit was granted?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Development

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

Recently, unauthorized building works ("UBWs") have been discovered in the residence of the Chief Executive ("CE"), which aroused wide public concern. It has been reported that reporters from the Ming Pao Daily News ("Ming Pao"), when carrying out related news coverage activities in the vicinity of that residence earlier, were found by the security guards and neighbours there, and the then CE-elect took the initiative to call the Chief Editor of the newspaper afterwards on 19 June to enquire about the incident. The media and some members of the public indicated that the act was not proper as CE-elect had important status and power and was also the subject of the investigation of the newspaper on UBWs, his call to the Chief Editor would easily be associated with exertion of pressure on the media and interference with Hong Kong's freedom of press, which calls into question his integrity. It has been reported that the glass frame, which was alleged to be a UBWs, was removed immediately on 20 June after his call to Ming Pao. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:

(a)	as the then CE-elect took the initiative to call the Chief Editor of Ming Pao to enquire about matters of UBWs involving his residence and he even removed the UBWs after learning about the situation of such UBWs, whether they have assessed if such acts were proper and lawful and whether they have assessed the impact of such acts on the freedom of press and news coverage; if they have not, of the reasons for that;
(b)	as the then CE-elect knew clearly that Ming Pao was investigating the UBWs in his residence but he still took the initiative to call the Chief Editor of Ming Pao to enquire about the investigation, whether they have assessed if the then CE-elect had attempted to make use of his power, position and status to acquire information on the UBWs and then make them disappear into thin air; whether they have assessed if such acts involved conflict of interests and roles and not befitting his position as CE-elect; and
(c)	given that the media and the public have queried the integrity of CE and alleged him of interfering with Hong Kong's freedom of press after UBWs have been found in his house, whether they have assessed if those problems will affect his credibility in governing Hong Kong, if he is fit to continue to be CE, and if he should take the blame and resign so as to uphold the dignity of CE?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

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

The new Chief Executive ("CE") and his politically appointed officials have already assumed office. He has openly undertaken that he would set an example and lead the civil servants and his politically appointed officials in establishing a clean and honest Government with integrity. Under the current system of declaration of interests by CE and politically appointed officials, they are only required to declare their investments and interests, but not their debts. Furthermore, there are public concerns whether there are unauthorized building works ("UBWs") in the properties of politically appointed officials and about their political affiliation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether any voluntary declaration on debts has been received from the aforesaid officials; if so, set out the details of their debts in table form; if not, whether they are to make such declarations voluntarily in the future, or whether the Government will revise the system of declaration of interests by clearly laying down the requirement for these officials to declare their debts;
(b)	whether it has checked and verified if there are UBWs in the properties of the new politically appointed officials; if it has, set out the details of those UBWs; if not, of the reasons for that; and
(c)	whether it knows if the aforesaid new politically appointed officials were the members of any Hong Kong, Mainland or overseas political party or political organization five years before assuming office; if so, set out the political affiliation of each principal official under the accountability system?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

*8. Hon Albert HO to ask: (Translation)

In recent years, there has been an ongoing wastage of doctors in the public hospitals, but the proposal put forward by the Hospital Authority to recruit overseas doctors is opposed by the medical sector. At the same time, under the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement, Hong Kong doctors may practise on the Mainland. Recently, it has been reported that the LI Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine ("Faculty of Medicine") of the University of Hong Kong ("HKU") collaborates with the Shenzhen Municipal Government to operate the HKU-Shenzhen Hospital ("Shenzhen Hospital"), and has deployed a number of renowned professors to work at Shenzhen Hospital. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it knows the total number of the university academic staff who are deployed to work at Shenzhen Hospital by HKU; the number of Hong Kong doctors other than HKU's academic staff recruited by the hospital; given that it has been reported that in order to make up for the professors deployed to work at Shenzhen Hospital, HKU has given each specialist department permission to recruit at least three additional doctors, whether the authorities have assessed if this measure implemented by HKU will aggravate the wastage of doctors in the public hospitals, and evaluate the impact of the operation of Shenzhen Hospital by HKU on the demand for local doctors;
(b)	given that even though the aforesaid professors of the Faculty of Medicine who are deployed to work at Shenzhen Hospital are HKU's employees, they have signed employment agreements with Shenzhen Hospital at the same time and are required to complete their assigned tasks at Shenzhen Hospital within a specified period of time, and that Hong Kong residents are not Shenzhen Hospital's target clients and the tasks of these professors are not related to teaching, whether it knows if such arrangements are in compliance with the funding criteria set down by the University Grants Committee ("UGC"); if they are in compliance with the funding criteria, whether UGC will conduct a review to ensure that the work of the university academic staff who are paid by the public money of Hong Kong is to serve the academia, members of the public and students in Hong Kong;
(c)	given that the professors of HKU's Faculty of Medicine mentioned in (b), who have signed employment agreements with Shenzhen Hospital, are required to strictly abide by the various laws and regulations of the country, and a number of renowned professors are even responsible for the management of the Shenzhen Hospital and are accountable to Shenzhen Hospital's board of directors, whether it knows if HKU's Faculty of Medicine and the Medical Council of Hong Kong have conducted studies on how these professors should deal with situations where the requests made by Shenzhen Hospital's board of directors and the mainland laws and regulations are in violation of the code of practice of the doctors in Hong Kong; if such studies have been conducted, of the details; and
(d)	whether it knows if Hong Kong residents seeking medical treatment at Shenzhen Hospital can request their attending doctors to refer them to Hong Kong's public hospitals for treatment; if not, of the reasons for that; when local public hospitals receive referrals in respect of Hong Kong residents made by Hong Kong doctors practising on the Mainland, how they ascertain whether the referrals are made by such doctors when they are practising in Hong Kong or on the Mainland?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Food and Health

*9. Hon WONG Kwok-kin to ask: (Translation)

In recent years, there has been growing concern about environmental greening plans in the local community. The Government has also put forward a greening policy "striving to uplift the quality of our living environment through active planting, proper maintenance and preservation of trees together with other vegetation", and it is committed to implementing and developing greening master plans ("GMPs"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it knows the respective numbers of trees and shrubs which had been newly planted and removed in each of the 18 District Council districts ("18 districts") in the past three years;
(b)	of the details in implementing the respective GMP in each of the 18 districts at present;
(c)	given that information from the Civil Engineering and Development Department reveals that different themes and subsequently the species of trees to be planted will be established for the GMP of each district, of the authorities' considerations in deciding on the themes;
(d)	given that the authorities have devised short-term, medium-term and long-term proposals for each GMP, of the positions at present in implementing the short-term, medium-term and long-term proposals for the GMPs of various districts, and whether the original objectives set by the Government can be achieved; if not, of the reasons for that;
(e)	given that some members of the public have reflected that although Bauhinia blakeana is the city flower of Hong Kong, it is not commonly seen in the city, whether the authorities keep statistics on the total number of Bauhinia blakeana trees planted throughout Hong Kong at present, with a breakdown of such figure by the 18 districts; of the places where Bauhinia blakeana trees are usually planted; if such information is not available, whether the authorities will keep record of it; and
(f)	whether the authorities have plans in place at present to promote the planting of Bauhinia blakeana trees; if not, of the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Development

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

Last month, the Development Bureau launched the Stage Three Public Engagement Exercise for the North East New Territories New Development Areas Planning and Engineering Study and rolled out the Recommended Outline Development Plans for the three New Development Areas ("NDAs") of Kwu Tung North, Fanling North and Ping Che/Ta Kwu Ling. However, when being asked by the media last month, the former Secretary for Development disclosed that after making reference to the past experience in new town development, it was decided that the percentage of the number of public rental housing ("PRH") units in the total number of residential units in a new town could not exceed 50% in the future. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the order of development of the three aforesaid NDAs according to the existing timeframe; the respective years of intake for the PRH and private residential units in these districts;
(b)	of the standards or research findings to which the authorities have made reference in setting the indicator that the percentage of PRH units in a new town cannot exceed 50% in the future; whether such indicator will affect the quantity and timeframe of PRH supply in the future;
(c)	whether any land has been reserved for constructing Home Ownership Scheme flats in the aforesaid three NDAs; if so, of the estimated number of units to be supplied and the timeframe of the supply; if not, the reasons for that;
(d)	given the proposal of developing the Kwu Tung railway station as the centre of development under the Kwu Tung North planning, of the respective estimated timeframe for launching the design and construction of this spur line as well as its commissioning; whether the construction of this spur line will commence earlier to avoid inadequacy in transportation to other districts and ancillary facilities for residents when they move in one after another;
(e)	given the proximity of the Fanling North development projects to a number of existing large-scale residential estates, of the ways to mitigate the nuisances caused to nearby residents during the construction periods;
(f)	of the anticipated impact of the Fanling North development projects on the passenger throughput at Sheung Shui and Fanling MTR stations; whether it will consider providing additional transport and ancillary facilities from Sheung Shui and Fanling to the urban area or expanding these two MTR stations; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(g)	whether it will also improve the water quality of Ng Tung River and beautify both sides of the river during the development of Fanling North; if it will, of the details;
(h)	of the reasons for proposing not to reserve any land in the Ping Che/Ta Kwu Ling NDA for the construction of PRH;
(i)	given the development theme of "Quality Business/Residential Area" adopted for the Ping Che/Ta Kwu Ling NDA and the reservation of land for "Special Industry" use in the area, of the types of industries expected to move into the area and the economic benefits to be brought by them; and
(j)	given that there are quite a number of private land lots in the aforesaid three NDAs, whether the authorities will adopt any new approach in handling relevant land disputes and compensation; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Development

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

Quite a number of staff members of charitable bodies have relayed to me that the Agency for Volunteer Service ("AVS") is publicly funded, and since May this year, whenever charitable bodies request volunteer assistance from the Volunteer Photographers' Team ("VPT") located at Sai Yuen Lane of Sai Ying Pun, and other Specialized Volunteer Talent Teams ("SVTTs") under AVS, the staff member who has newly taken over the charge of VPT and the person in charge of SVTTs have adopted a "political censorship" approach of asking the charitable bodies whether participation or cooperation of District Council ("DC") members or Legislative Council Members is involved in the events concerned, or venues are hired by them for such events. According to the aforesaid staff members of charitable bodies, there was a previous case in which staff members of VPT and SVTTs, having learnt about the involvement and cooperation of some DC members and Legislative Council Members of the pro-democracy camp in a certain event, immediately indicated that they had to seek the approval of their superiors before they could start recruiting volunteers for the charitable bodies. There were also other cases of AVS for the same reason deliberately reducing the number of volunteers provided to some charitable bodies, or even refused to provide volunteers to them. Such charitable bodies pointed out that AVS had deliberately subjected their events to staffing difficulties, creating a situation akin to "political suppression". In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the total government funding applied for by AVS in the past five years;
(b)	whether any government official regularly monitors AVS's services, so as to ensure proper use of public money; if so, of the responsible government department and the positions of the civil servants in charge; if not, why the Government does not monitor the quality of publicly-funded services;
(c)	whether it knows if AVS requires job applicants or its incumbent staff to declare their political affiliation or political stance; if AVS does so, of the respective numbers of staff members from the pro-democracy and pro-establishment camps in AVS at present; if not, the justifications for AVS to require various charitable bodies seeking assistance to make declarations of political affiliation;
(d)	whether it knows if AVS's requirement for charitable bodies to make declarations of political affiliation was endorsed by its Board of Directors and approved by its Chief Executive Officer; if so, when such requirement was endorsed and approved, and whether all the responsibilities are to be borne by its Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer; if not, whether the persons in charge of VPT and SVTTs are to be held responsible;
(e)	whether it knows the legal basis on which AVS requires charitable bodies to make declarations of political affiliation;
(f)	whether it will immediately ask AVS staff to immediately stop requiring charitable bodies seeking assistance to make declarations of political affiliation or subjecting them to political censorship; if it will, when it will do so; if not, of the reasons for that; and
(g)	whether it will immediately appoint civil servants to AVS's Board of Directors in order to monitor whether AVS puts the funding provided by the Government to good use; if it will, of the government department to which the civil servants to be so appointed belong and their positions; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Home Affairs

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

The matches of the UEFA European Football Championship ("the UEFA Euro") came to an end early this month and during the period when the UEFA Euro matches were held, various sectors were concerned about youngsters' participation in football betting. According to a survey conducted in the North District in mid-June this year, 5% of youngsters under the age of 17 had participated in football betting with their bets amounting to a hundred dollars or less on average on each occasion, and a 17-year-old respondent even indicated that he placed bets of up to a thousand dollars each time, and about 20% of youngsters were very familiar with the operation of football odds. The survey indicates that the problem of football betting among youngsters is serious. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:

(a)	the number of illegal football betting cases received by the authorities during the period when the UEFA Euro matches were held and the number of such cases involving minors (youngsters under 18 years of age);
(b)	the respective numbers of requests for assistance received since 2008 by the gambling counselling hotline ("GCH") and the Counselling and Treatment Centres for Problem and Pathological Gamblers ("the Centres") which are financed by the Ping Wo Fund set up by the Home Affairs Bureau; among such requests, the numbers of those from minors (youngsters under 18 years of age); the respective numbers of requests for assistance received by GCH and the Centres during the period when the UEFA Euro matches were held, and among them, the numbers of those from minors (youngsters under 18 years of age);
(c)	the number of minors (youngsters under 18 years of age) arrested and prosecuted for participating in football betting since 2008; and
(d)	the means used by the authorities to prevent minors (youngsters under 18 years of age) from participating in football betting and the measures in place to prevent them from participating in football betting through overseas gambling web sites?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Home Affairs

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

The Steering Committee on Population Policy Progress Report 2012 has forecast a shift from younger to older age groups in the Hong Kong population, and 25% of the total population would be above the age of 65 in 2029. In order to give effect to the Government's policy to encourage the elderly to participate actively in community life, a barrier-free community is one of the requisite conditions. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:

(a)	the authorities have, in response to the ageing trend of the population, estimated the community's need for barrier-free access and facilities from the present to 2029, and the number of existing buildings posing an unfriendly environment to the elderly and thus in need of improvement; if so, of the results; if not, whether relevant estimation will be made;
(b)	it will look into countries with an ageing population such as Japan, etc., to find out how the systems, policies and laws in these countries create a friendly environment for their elderly population;
(c)	it will consider following the practices in places such as the United Kingdom and Australia, etc., and employ professional access consultants to provide professional advice on the design and provision of barrier-free access and facilities during the construction stage of buildings and public facilities as well as at different stages of service delivery, so as to ensure compliance with statutory requirements, and provision of the most appropriate access and facilities to cater for the different needs of persons with various types of disabilities; and
(d)	it will follow the practice in Norway to formulate an action plan for universal design for 2025, which seeks to lay down a target for buildings and different modes of transport to achieve by 2025, together with the strategies and measures for achieving the target, so as to create a barrier-free community?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Labour and Welfare

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

The Government seeks to increase land supply in order to stabilize real estate development, and it increases housing land supply by multitude means, including rezoning, redevelopment, land resumption, etc. It has been reported that the Planning Department has completed the second-phase review for rezoning 24 "Government, Institution or Community" ("GIC") sites, and quite a number of them are undeveloped sites (including a site for a civic centre at Po Yap Road of Tseung Kwan O and a site for a stadium at On Luk Street of Ma On Shan) left over from the former Regional Council since 2000, which were intended for developing recreational and cultural facilities and have been left idle for more than 10 years. Such sites will be rezoned for residential development. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether there is a set of established procedures for the Government to plan land use for specific purposes, e.g. the construction of a stadium; why the aforesaid two sites in Tseung Kwan O and Ma On Shan which have been left idle for more than 10 years are still undeveloped;
(b)	whether any GIC site in other districts had been left idle in a similar manner in the past 10 years; if so, of the details;
(c)	given that the aforesaid reports pointed out that the site at On Luk Street of Ma On Shan, which was initially intended for the construction of a stadium, is now planned to be rezoned for residential development, whether the Government has any plan to identify another site for the construction of the stadium; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(d)	given that the Financial Secretary mentioned in his blog that at present, approximately 60 hectares of industrial land throughout Hong Kong can be converted to non-industrial uses, half of which can be converted to residential uses and, among them, four government industrial sites will be used for public rental housing and Home Ownership Scheme developments, whether the Government will carry out planning for anxillary community facilities so as to transform such industrial areas into residential areas?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Development

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

It has been reported that the Hospital Authority ("HA") anticipates that the North Lantau Hospital ("NLH") will launch its services (including eight-hour accident and emergency services and out-patient services for four specialties, namely, medicine, surgery, orthopaedics and psychiatry in the first stage) in the third quarter of 2013. It is anticipated that the hospital will not be fully commissioned until 2016-2017. During its study on medical services in Tung Chung, the Government anticipated in 2007 that the population of Tung Chung New Town would be 89 000 in 2015. However, there are already 130 000 residents living in Tung Chung New Town at present, and the Government has anticipated that the population will increase to over 200 000. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it knows the respective numbers of people with mental illness and people recovering from mental illness in Tung Chung New Town and the rural areas in Tung Chung at present, as well as the respective percentages of such numbers in the total population of North Lantau; the respective numbers of people with mental illness and people recovering from mental illness who are aged 60 or above in various districts in Hong Kong;
(b)	given that some social workers have reflected that people with mental illness and people recovering from mental illness in Tung Chung are unable to receive psychiatric services in Tung Chung district, whether it knows if the general out-patient clinic ("GOPC") of Tung Chung Health Centre at present provides psychiatric out-patient services for people with mental illness and people recovering from mental illness; if it does, the details; if not, the reasons for that; given that some social workers have pointed out that the launch of the Integrated Mental Health Programme ("IMHP") at GOPC will facilitate the mental rehabilitation of people with mental illness and people recovering from mental illness, whether it knows if HA will consider launching IMHP at GOPC of Tung Chung Health Centre; if it will, the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(c)	whether it knows if the people with mental illness and people recovering from mental illness on Lantau Island at present will be referred to NLH to receive its services in the future; if they will, the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(d)	given that some people with mental illness and people recovering from mental illness who live in Tung Chung have pointed out that as they have to go to Queen Mary Hospital for follow-up consultations, the long distance and high transport costs add to their psychological, mental and economic pressure, lower their desire for follow-up consultations and increase their chances of relapse, whether the authorities know if HA will arrange for these people to go to Kwai Chung Hospital for follow-up consultations; if it will, the details; if not, the reasons for that; whether HA is unable to refer patients to hospitals in suitable districts in response to their change in home address; HA's principles for determining the location of follow-up consultations arranged for people with mental illness and people recovering from mental illness, and whether the location of the patients' present residence will be given prime consideration; and
(e)	given that the Integrated Community Centre for Mental Wellness ("ICCMW") serving the Islands District still does not have any service point or permanent site on Lantau Island, to tie in with the provision of support for people recovering from mental illness and help them integrate into the community as early as possible, whether the authorities will request The Link Management Limited to change the use of the vacant car park no. 3 at Yat Tung Estate in Tung Chung and expeditiously launch ICCMW's services there; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Food and Health

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

It has been reported that a newborn baby boy had his finger almost cut to the bone during the caesarean delivery process performed for his mother at Kwong Wah Hospital; when the baby boy was less than a month old, his large intestine was perforated during the examination by suprapubic tapping, which was suspected to be the cause leading to his subsequent rectal constriction and intestinal abscess, and an operation was arranged to be performed on him to remove part of the obstructed rectum and an abdominal stoma was created for defecation. The baby boy is barely four months old and he has been put under general anaesthesia for three times and has repeatedly been injected antibiotics with his abdomen incised for removal of necrotic intestine. While Kwong Wah Hospital pointed out in its reply letter to the baby boy's mother on 30 May this year that there was a "known uncommon risk" that babies might be cut during delivery and their large intestine might be perforated when suprapubic tapping was performed, the President of the Hong Kong Medical Association pointed out that doctors cutting the baby's finger when performing caesarean section on the mother was uncommon and it was also uncommon that baby's intestine was perforated during urine sample collection. He also indicated that accidents could be avoided if an ultrasound scan was performed to confirm the location before tapping for urine sample collection, and hence, this was obviously a technical fault of the doctor and parents could seek compensation. Apart from the aforesaid case, a magazine also reported quite a number of other medical incidents involving newborn babies. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it has followed up the aforesaid case; if so, of the progress;
(b)	whether it knows the numbers of medical incidents involving newborn babies in public hospitals under the Hospital Authority ("HA") in each of the past five years, as well as the numbers of relevant complaints received; how many cases were proved to be caused by human errors and negligence upon investigation;
(c)	given that the President of the Hong Kong Medical Association has pointed out that the aforesaid incident is an "obvious(ly) technical fault", "the blunder may be related to staff shortage in public hospitals" and that "with so many patients, blunders are unavoidable in such busy schedules, and patients' rights can be safeguarded only if the authorities tackle expeditiously these problems", whether it knows if HA has investigated whether a number of medical incidents involving newborn babies were caused by shortage of staff; if it has, of the investigation result; if not, whether an investigation will be conducted immediately; in addition, what policies and measures are in place to prevent the recurrence of medical incidents involving newborn babies in public hospitals; and
(d)	given that a representative of a patients' rights group has pointed out that doctors are investigated by their peers under the existing complaint handling mechanism, which might not be fair, and most people seeking assistance would give up pursuing because of the hassle involved, whether the Government has reviewed the existing complaint mechanism to enhance the objectivity of the mechanism?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Food and Health

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

To celebrate the 15th anniversary of the reunification of Hong Kong, the 8-1 Parachute Brigade of the People's Liberation Army ("8-1 Parachute Brigade") came to Hong Kong to stage a performance at the Hong Kong Stadium on 1 July this year. However, the performance was not open to the public and the organizations that hosted the performance ("the Organizers") distributed the admission tickets to their affiliates or members only. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	whether it knows the individuals or organizations that had invited the 8-1 Parachute Brigade to perform in Hong Kong; whether the SAR Government had assisted in extending the invitation; whether the 8-1 Parachute Brigade's visit to Hong Kong had been supported by the SAR Government; whether the Organizers had successfully invited the 8-1 Parachute Brigade to Hong Kong through the assistance of the SAR Government;
(b)	whether the Organizers had, in respect of the aforesaid activity, applied for waiver of charges for hiring the Hong Kong Stadium; whether the Government had offered any subvention for the activity; if it had, why the admission tickets for the activity were distributed to members of the organizations concerned only; if not, of the amount of charges paid by the Organizers; whether a discount had been offered; if so, how such discount had been calculated;
(c)	under what circumstances the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD") requests the organizations holding activities at government venues to allocate a certain proportion of admission tickets for free distribution to the general public;
(d)	regarding the aforesaid performance held at the Hong Kong Stadium on 1 July this year, why LCSD only provided the venue concerned to the Organizers, and the Home Affairs Bureau did not coordinate or host the performance which was one of the activities held in celebration of the reunification;
(e)	of the principles based on which the authorities had fairly dealt with the applications lodged by the large number of organizations at the same time for hiring the Hong Kong Stadium for holding activities on 1 July this year in celebration of the 15th anniversary of the reunification of Hong Kong; and
(f)	given that the Hong Kong Stadium is a vast public space, and the aforesaid activity was held on the day of the 15th anniversary of the reunification of Hong Kong, why the authorities had leased public resources to individual organizations on such an important day, thereby barring the general public from participating in the activity held at the Hong Kong Stadium in celebration of the reunification on that day?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Home Affairs

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

The tourism sector and some members of the public have repeatedly relayed to me their disappointment at the irrelevant and hasty replies of the government officials to the questions of the Legislative Council ("LegCo") Members. For instance, I once raised a question to query the Civil Aviation Department's justifications for approving the implementation of zero commission paid to travel agents by airlines in respect of air tickets sold and the method used for calculating passenger fuel surcharges of airlines, and the reply made by the Transport and Housing Bureau was regarded as irrelevant by the tourism sector and some tourists. Moreover, the Government has not given any concrete reply to my question which requested that the tourism facilities in Lei Yue Mun be enhanced and more tourism facilities be expeditiously constructed there to complement the commissioning of the cruise terminal next year. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	what mechanism is in place to ensure that the various policy bureaux will reply earnestly to the questions of LegCo Members in the future after the restructuring of the new Government and that their replies will not be irrelevant;
(b)	whether it has assessed if the inadequate replies to LegCo Members' questions previously made by various policy bureaux on many occasions have or will have any adverse impact on the interaction and relation between the executive authorities and the legislature; if it has, of the assessment results; if not, the reason for that; whether it can conduct such an assessment expeditiously with the restructuring of the new Government and prorogation of LegCo; and
(c)	whether in the past four years it had conducted any consultation or review of LegCo Members' satisfaction level towards the Government's replies to their questions and striven to raise the quality of the replies and ensured their relevance; if it had, of the results; if not, the reasons for that; of the policies and measures which the governing team of the new Chief Executive will adopt to avoid recurrences of the aforesaid situation?

Public Officer to reply: The Chief Secretary for Administration

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

Regarding the elderly and child dependency ratios, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:

(a)

the number of adults who need to maintain elderly people aged 65 and above, with a breakdown according to the table below;

Number of elderly people aged 65 and above being concurrently maintained	Number of adults who need to maintain elderly people
5 or more
4
3
2
1
0

(b)

the monthly income of the adults who need to maintain elderly people aged 65 and above, with a breakdown according to the table below; and

Number of elderly people aged 65 and above being concurrently maintained	Monthly income of adults who need to maintain elderly people
	Below $10,000	$10,000 to $25,000	$25,000 to $50,000	Above $50,000
5 or more
4
3
2
1
0

(c)

the number of adults who need to maintain concurrently elderly people aged 65 and above as well as children aged below 18, with a breakdown according to the table below?

Number of elderly people aged 65 and above being concurrently maintained	Number of children being concurrently maintained
	1	2	3	4 or more
5 or more
4
3
2
1
0

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

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

Treatment of municipal solid waste by the authorities is of public concern, and polystyrene foam plastic (commonly known as "styrofoam") tableware accounts for a certain quantity of domestic waste. According to Monitoring of Solid Waste in Hong Kong - Waste Statistics for 2010 published by the Environmental Protection Department, styrofoam tableware disposed of at landfills amounted to 32 tonnes a day. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a)	of the details of the quantities of various types of styrofoam waste and the respective percentages of such quantities in the total quantity of municipal solid waste in Hong Kong in the past three years;
(b)	of the total number of food containers disposed of by primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong in the past three years; among such containers, of the respective percentages of the numbers of disposable styrofoam food containers and food containers which can be recovered for recycling in the total number of food containers disposed of; in addition to implementing the Green Lunch Charter and providing funding to help schools adopt on-site meal portioning, of the details of the policies and measures adopted by the authorities at present for reducing the use of disposable styrofoam food containers by schools;
(c)	whether the authorities have considered providing economic incentives (e.g. tax concessions) to catering suppliers to encourage them to provide food containers which can be recovered for recycling instead of styrofoam food containers; if they have, of the progress; if not, the details of the targeted measures adopted by the authorities; and
(d)	of the specific plans adopted respectively by the authorities at present in relation to the treatment and reduction of various types of styrofoam waste; whether the authorities have made reference to the experience of foreign countries; if they have, of the specific details, as well as the progress of the current plans of the authorities?

Public Officer to reply: Secretary for the Environment

* For written reply

III. Bills

Second Reading (Debates to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading

(Bill originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting)

Companies Bill

Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

Other Public Officer to attend

Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

(i)	Hon Paul CHAN to move a Committee stage amendment
	(The amendment was issued on 29 June 2012 under LC Paper No. CB(3)998/11-12)
(ii)	Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury to move Committee stage amendments
	(The amendments were issued on 25 June 2012 under LC Paper No. CB(3)974/11-12)

(Bill scheduled to be dealt with at this Council meeting)

Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2012

Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

(Bills originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting)

Legal Practitioners (Amendment) Bill 2010

The Secretary for Justice

The Secretary for Justice to move Committee stage amendments

(The amendments were issued on 6 June 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)874/11-12)

Immigration (Amendment) Bill 2011

Secretary for Security

(i)	Secretary for Security to move Committee stage amendments
	(The amendments were issued on 5 June 2012 under LC Paper No. CB(3)869/11-12)
(ii)	Dr Hon Margaret NG to move a Committee stage amendment
	(The amendment was issued on 11 June 2012 under LC Paper No. CB(3)902/11-12)

Buildings Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2011

Secretary for Development

Secretary for Development to move Committee stage amendments

(The amendments were issued on 6 June 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)875/11-12)

Trade Descriptions (Unfair Trade Practices) (Amendment) Bill 2012

Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

(i)	Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development to move Committee stage amendments
	(The amendments were issued on 19 June 2012 under LC Paper No. CB(3)939/11-12)
(ii)	Hon Vincent FANG to move Committee stage amendments
	(The amendments were issued on 21 June 2012 under LC Paper No. CB(3)954/11-12)

Statute Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2012

The Secretary for Justice

The Secretary for Justice to move Committee stage amendments

(The amendments were issued on 5 June 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)873/11-12)

Supplementary Appropriation (2011-2012) Bill

Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

IV. Motions

(Motions originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting)

Proposed resolution under Article 73(7) of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China and section 7A of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal Ordinance (Cap. 484)

The Chief Secretary for Administration to move the following motion:

Resolved that the following appointments be endorsed —

(a)	the appointment of the Honourable Mr. Justice Robert Tang Ching as a permanent judge of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal pursuant to section 7 of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal Ordinance (Cap. 484) (the Ordinance);
(b)	the appointment of the Honourable Mr. Justice Syed Kemal Shah Bokhary as a non-permanent Hong Kong judge of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal pursuant to section 8 of the Ordinance; and
(c)	the appointment of the Right Honourable The Lord Phillips of Worth Matravers as a judge of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal from another common law jurisdiction pursuant to section 9 of the Ordinance.

Proposed resolution under the Legal Aid Ordinance

Secretary for Home Affairs to move the motion in Appendix I.

(The motion was also issued on 20 April 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 662/11-12)

Proposed resolution under the Eastern Harbour Crossing Ordinance and the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Secretary for Transport and Housing to move the motion in Appendix II.

(The motion was also issued on 21 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)782/11-12)

Proposed resolution under the Tate's Cairn Tunnel Ordinance and the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Secretary for Transport and Housing to move the motion in Appendix III.

(The motion was also issued on 21 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)782/11-12)

Proposed resolution under the Western Harbour Crossing Ordinance and the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Secretary for Transport and Housing to move the motion in Appendix IV.

(The motion was also issued on 21 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)782/11-12)

Proposed resolution under the Tai Lam Tunnel and Yuen Long Approach Road Ordinance and the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Secretary for Transport and Housing to move the motion in Appendix V.

(The motion was also issued on 21 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)782/11-12)

Proposed resolution under the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Ordinance

Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury to move the following motion:

Resolved that the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (General) (Amendment) Regulation 2012, made by the Chief Executive in Council on 8 May 2012, be approved.

(The Amendment Regulation is in Appendix VI
and was also issued on 10 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 742/11-12)

Proposed resolution under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance

Secretary for Food and Health to move the following motion:

Resolved that the following Regulations, made by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board on 22 May 2012, be approved —

(a)	the Pharmacy and Poisons (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2012; and
(b)	the Poisons List (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2012.

(The two Amendment Regulations are in Appendices VII and VIII
and were also issued on 24 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)805/11-12)

Proposed resolution under the Employees' Compensation Ordinance

Secretary for Labour and Welfare to move the motion in Appendix IX.

(The motion was also issued on 10 July 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)1056/11-12)

10.

Proposed resolution under the Pneumoconiosis and Mesothelioma (Compensation) Ordinance

Secretary for Labour and Welfare to move the motion in Appendix X.

(The motion was also issued on 10 July 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)1056/11-12)

11.

Proposed resolution under the Occupational Deafness (Compensation) Ordinance

Secretary for Labour and Welfare to move the motion in Appendix XI.

(The motion was also issued on 10 July 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)1056/11-12)

12.

Proposed resolution under the Buildings Ordinance

Secretary for Development to move the motion in Appendix XII.

(The motion was also issued on 25 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)812/11-12)

13.

Proposed resolution under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance

Secretary for Labour and Welfare to move the following motion:

Resolved that the Disability Discrimination Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 5) Notice 2012, made by the Chief Executive in Council on 8 May 2012, be approved.

(The Notice is in Appendix XIII
and was also issued on 10 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)743/11-12)

14.

Proposed resolution under the Pneumoconiosis and Mesothelioma (Compensation) Ordinance

Secretary for Labour and Welfare to move the motion in Appendix XIV.

(The motion was also issued on 31 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)847/11-12)

15.

Proposed resolution under the Construction Industry Council Ordinance

Secretary for Development to move the motion in Appendix XV.

(The motion was also issued on 31 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)846/11-12)

16.

Proposed resolution under the Import and Export Ordinance and the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development to move the motion in Appendix XVI.

(The motion was also issued on 26 June 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)980/11-12)

17.

Proposed resolution under section 54A of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs to move the motion in Appendix XVII.

(The motion was also issued on 10 May 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)735/11-12)

(i)	Hon Albert CHAN and Hon Albert HO to move amendments to the proposed resolution.
	(The amendments were issued on 19 June 2012 under LC Paper No. CB(3)935/11-12)
(ii)	The Chief Secretary for Administration to move amendments to the proposed resolution.

(The amendments were issued on 6 July 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)1042/11-12)

V. Members' Motions on Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments

(Member's motion originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting)

Motion under Rule 49E(2) of the Rules of Procedure

Hon Miriam LAU to move the following motion:

That this Council takes note of Report No. 18/11-12 of the House Committee laid on the Table of the Council on 9 May 2012 in relation to the subsidiary legislation and instrument(s) as listed below:

Item Number	Title of Subsidiary Legislation or Instrument
(1)	Prevention of Bribery Ordinance (Amendment of Schedules 1 and 2) Order 2012 (L.N. 38/2012).

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

VI. Members' Bills

(Member's Bill originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting) First Reading Professional Accountants (Amendment) Bill 2012 Second Reading (Debate to be adjourned)
Professional Accountants (Amendment) Bill 2012	:	Hon Paul CHAN

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

VII. Members' Motions

(Member's motion originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting)

Proposed resolution under Article 75 of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China

Hon TAM Yiu-chung to move the following motion:

Resolved that the Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region be amended as set out in the Schedule on the day when the 2012-2013 session of the Council begins.

Schedule Amendments to Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
1.	Rule 23 amended (question time)
	(1)	Rule 23(2) – Repeal "20" Substitute "23".
	(2)	Rule 23(3) – Repeal "6" Substitute "7".

(Member's motion scheduled to be dealt with at this Council meeting)

Proposed resolution under Article 75 of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China

Hon Mrs Sophie LEUNG to move the motion in Appendix XVIII.

(The motion was also issued on 28 June 2012
under LC Paper No. CB(3)996/11-12)

(Member's motion originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting)

Proposed resolution under Article 159 of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China

Hon James TO to move the following motion:

RESOLVED that this Council consents to forwarding the following amendments to the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China to the delegation of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to the National People's Congress, for submission to the National People's Congress -

"Article 1

Article 24(2)(1) of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China which provides that "(1) Chinese citizens born in Hong Kong before or after the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;" shall be amended as: "(1) Chinese citizens born in Hong Kong before or after the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, during which either one or both of their parents were lawfully residing in Hong Kong;"."

Public Officers to attend

Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
Secretary for Security

(Members' motions scheduled to be dealt with at this Council meeting)

Proposed resolution under the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance

Hon LEE Wing-tat to move the following motion:

That the Panel on Development be authorized under section 9(2) of the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance (Cap. 382) to exercise the powers conferred by section 9(1) of the Ordinance to order the Secretary for Development of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to attend before the Panel on Development before 18 July 2012 to produce all papers, books, records or documents in relation to the land exchange arrangement upon expiry of the lease of Kowloon Permanent Pier No. 83 ("KPP 83") on 16 June 2012, including the surrender of KPP 83 and re-grant of the Ocean Terminal Lot.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Development

Proposed resolution under the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance

Hon LEE Wing-tat to move the following motion:

That the Panel on Development be authorized under section 9(2) of the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance (Cap. 382) to exercise the powers conferred by section 9(1) of the Ordinance to order the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to attend before the Panel on Development before 18 July 2012 to produce all papers, books, records or documents in relation to the following matters regarding the unauthorized building works ("UBWs") in the premises at No. 4 and No. 5 Peel Rise on the Peak:

(a)	the detailed information and opinion provided by the lawyers and professional person(s) appointed by the Chief Executive or his representative for the assignment transaction of the premises in relation to whether the premises have UBWs;
(b)	the detailed information of the professional opinion obtained by the Chief Executive, given that he told reporters in May 2011 that he had asked lawyers and professional person(s) to ensure that the premises have no UBW; and
(c)	all the acts of the Chief Executive in relation to the UBWs of the premises.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Development

Proposed resolution under the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance

Hon LEE Wing-tat to move the following motion:

That the Panel on Development be authorized under section 9(2) of the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance (Cap. 382) to exercise the powers conferred by section 9(1) of the Ordinance to order the Secretary for Development of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to attend before the Panel on Development before 18 July 2012 to produce all papers, books, records or documents in relation to the following matters regarding the unauthorized building works ("UBWs") in the premises at No. 4 and No. 5 Peel Rise on the Peak:

(a)	all approved building plans of the premises held by the Buildings Department ("BD"), as well as the plans drawn and the photographs taken during its site inspection of the UBWs;
(b)	the information about the premises gathered by BD, as well as the results reached and any potential problem found after BD had compared such information with the approved building plans, and consolidated and analyzed the information;
(c)	any document BD has issued to the owner, including the advisory letters on the handling of the UBWs, and the owner's reply;
(d)	the request put forward by BD and the rectification works it proposed to the owner regarding its investigation into and handling of the floor space beneath the parking space of the premises, and the owner's reply;
(e)	any document and correspondence between BD and other government departments regarding the related problem after the UBWs were found in the premises;
(f)	the detailed report on BD's investigation on whether there are UBWs on the exterior and interior of the premises, including enquiry with the owner on whether the owner had ensured that there was no UBW in the premises at the time of purchasing the premises, and the owner's reply;
(g)	the information BD received from the owner himself or together with that from authorized person(s), including the inspection results by appointed professional person(s) on whether there are UBWs in the premises, the time of erecting the UBWs and detailed information, the documents and records of arranging registered professional persons or contractors to remove the UBWs, the documents of the subsequent procedures required for the unauthorized metal gate, and the inspection report relating to the structure of the premises;
(h)	the information obtained by BD in 1992 when inspecting the premises in order to issue the occupation permit;
(i)	any ordinance which the premises might have violated, the section(s) of the legislation involved and the follow up work by the authorities;
(j)	any document and correspondence between the Lands Department and the owner regarding the premises;
(k)	any document and correspondence between the Planning Department and the owner regarding the premises;
(l)	the records of meetings between all government departments and the owner or his representatives regarding the UBWs;
(m)	the information regarding the premises mentioned by the authorities when conducting an integrity check against the owner of the premises; and
(n)	the declaration to the authorities made by the owner of the premises regarding the premises.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Development

(Members' motions originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting)

The 4 June incident

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

That this Council urges that: the 4 June incident be not forgotten and the 1989 pro-democracy movement be vindicated.

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

To delete "incident" after "the 4 June" and substitute with "tragedy"; to delete "and" after "forgotten" and substitute with ", pro-democracy figures be released,"; and to add ", the responsibility for the massacre be ascertained, one-party dictatorship be ended and a democratic China be built" immediately before the full stop.

Actively studying the establishment of a middle class commission

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

That, given that the global and Hong Kong economies are still facing extremely unclear risks, while the middle-class people are plagued by problems such as Hong Kong's single-direction development of industries, etc., and have experienced quite a number of bottlenecks in their career development and are burdened with heavy pressure in the areas of healthcare, education, taxation and housing, etc.; as shown by the latest statistics of an organization, the number of middle-class people seeking counselling has increased by about 30% when compared with the number some one year ago, and some people even describe themselves as the poor middle class, thus showing that the plight of the middle class has been neglected; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to actively study the establishment of a middle class commission, comprehensively review the policies and measures relating to the middle class, put forward concrete and comprehensive corresponding strategies in a focused manner to assist middle-class families in alleviating their burdens and facilitating their personal career development, so as to boost upward social mobility in the overall community; the relevant measures should include:

Career development -
(a)	to adopt a multi-pronged approach to promote diversified development of industries in Hong Kong, so as to create more jobs at the middle and senior levels as well as business start-up opportunities in various industries and professions;
(b)	to further strengthen regional economic development to form an economic development circle with different regions on the Mainland, etc. so as to provide more and better career development opportunities for middle-class professionals;
Housing difficulties -
(c)	to increase land supply to ease property prices and launch more 'no-frills' small and medium sized flats, including 'flats with limited floor area' for Hong Kong people who are first-time home buyers, so as to alleviate the plight of marginal middle-class people in acquiring their own homes;
(d)	to relax the eligibility criteria for purchasing flats in the Home Ownership Scheme secondary market, thereby enabling eligible white form applicants to make purchases;
(e)	to introduce a tax allowance for rentals for marginal middle-class people;
(f)	to further extend the entitlement period for deduction for home loan interest;
Taxation burden -
(g)	to adjust salaries tax downwards, in particular widening tax bands for salaries tax and lowering the marginal rate, so as to vigorously alleviate the burden of marginal middle-class people;
(h)	to relax the restrictions on the dependent parent or dependent grandparent allowance by relaxing the eligibility requirement from living in the same unit to living in the same housing estate;
Education and self-education -
(i)	to completely abolish the restrictions on kindergarten vouchers, so as to reduce children education expenses of middle-class families;
(j)	to introduce a children's education allowance, so as to alleviate the burden of children education expenses of the middle class;
(k)	to substantially increase the salaries tax deduction for self-education expenses and the subsidy under the Continuing Education Fund;
Healthcare -
(l)	to expeditiously and properly tackle the problem of 'doubly non-permanent resident pregnant women', and ensure that local pregnant women have priority in receiving confinement service in both public and private hospitals;
(m)	to provide tax deduction for medical insurance contributions;
(n)	to provide tax deduction for medical examinations, so as to encourage people to undergo such examinations on a regular basis; and
Legal aid -
(o)	to further lower the threshold of the Supplementary Legal Aid Scheme, so as to assist more needy middle-class people in safeguarding their legitimate rights and interests by law.
Amendment to the motion Hon Alan LEONG to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "given that" after "That," and substitute with "as"; to add "(c) to optimize the use of government land resources and increase land supply, so as to alleviate the pressure of shop rents on business operations for middle-class people;" after "middle-class professionals;"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(d)"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(f)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g)"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(h)"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete the original "(k)" and substitute with "(l)"; to delete the original "(l)" and substitute with "(m)"; to delete "and ensure that" after "resident pregnant women'," and substitute with "including ensuring a 'zero' delivery quota for 'doubly non-permanent resident pregnant women' in public and private hospitals in 2013, enabling"; to delete "have priority in receiving" after "local pregnant women" and substitute with "and mainland pregnant women with Hong Kong husbands to be given priority in receiving"; to add "; strengthening the effort to combat agencies and hostels for pregnant women; in accordance with Article 22 of the Basic Law, advising the Central Government to suspend the vetting and approving entry into Hong Kong of 'doubly non-permanent resident pregnant women' from the Mainland; and amending the Basic Law when necessary, so that babies born to 'doubly non-permanent resident pregnant women' will not be entitled to the right of abode in Hong Kong;" after "private hospitals"; to delete the original "(m)" and substitute with "(n)"; to delete the original "(n)" and substitute with "(o)"; to delete "and" after "regular basis;"; to delete the original "(o)" and substitute with "(p)"; and to add "; and The elderly - (q) to allocate funding for establishing a seed fund for universal retirement protection, so as to provide all elderly people with pensions and alleviate the financial burden of middle-class families" immediately before the full stop.
Amendment to Hon Alan LEONG's amendment Hon Starry LEE to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "in accordance with Article 22 of the Basic Law, advising the Central Government to suspend the vetting and approving entry into Hong Kong of 'doubly non-permanent resident pregnant women' from the Mainland; and amending the Basic Law when necessary" after "hostels for pregnant women;" and substitute with "stepping up law enforcement and enhancing entry restrictions to comprehensively block the entry of 'doubly non-permanent resident pregnant women', and making use of legal channels"; to delete "allocate funding for" after "(q) to" and substitute with "study"; to delete "seed fund for" after "establishing a"; and to add "scheme" after "retirement protection".

Public Officers to attend

Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Secretary for Development
Secretary for Education

Caring about the education, employment and housing problems faced by young people

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

That young people are the future pillars of society, but in the face of globalization and the rapid development of neighbouring places, Hong Kong young people not only face many challenges during their growth, but also lack upward mobility opportunities, and this is especially highlighted in their education, employment and housing aspirations; however, the Government has all along failed to formulate any support measures with young people as the main targets; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to care about young people's needs, and assist them in concentrating on their education, establishing their career and resolving their housing needs; specific measures should include:

Education -
(a)	to enhance the qualification recognition of the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination, sub-degrees and the new Yi Jin Diploma in Hong Kong, the Mainland and the international community, so as to widen young people's pathways of further studies;
(b)	to dovetail with the concept of promoting students' whole-person development under the new academic structure by introducing an extra-curricular activities allowance for students to subsidize their participation in extra-curricular activities;
(c)	to promote the commencement of 'career planning' at the stage of secondary education, so as to enable secondary students to make better planning for their future career development;
Employment -
(d)	to review the planning of employment training support services for young people, enhance the existing Youth Pre-employment Training Programme and Youth Work Experience and Training Scheme, and raise the level of the relevant subsidies, so as to attract the participation of more employers to provide more employment and training opportunities in the market which are suitable for young people;
(e)	to set up more 'Youth Employment Start' ('Y.E.S') resource centres throughout Hong Kong, strengthen the training programmes targeted at young people, enhance their employment skills, and provide one-stop employment counselling;
(f)	focusing on the development of the six industries and creative industries, to enhance training and provide better support to help young people join the relevant industries;
Housing -
(g)	to relax the existing eligibility criteria for applying for public rental housing, and address low-income young people's housing needs;
(h)	to allow eligible white form applicants to purchase Home Ownership Scheme flats without having to pay the premium, so as to assist young people in accessing the home acquisition ladder; and
(i)	focusing on young people with relatively stable financial income, to study re-launching the Home Starter Loan Scheme.
Amendments to the motion
(i)	Hon Audrey EU to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "the SAR Government has all along lacked a comprehensive youth policy, and" after "That"; to delete "and" after "young people's needs,"; to add ", and promote young people's social participation" after "their housing needs"; to add "(e) to further increase the places for publicly-funded bachelor's degree programmes; (f) to review the financial assistance and loan system for students, alleviate the financial burden of young people after their graduation, and implement the abolition of the risk rate of the non-means-tested loan scheme;" after "career development;"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(g)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(h)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete ", and" after "rental housing" and substitute with "('PRH'),"; to add ", and review the existing allocation system for single-person PRH units" after "people's housing needs"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete "and" after "ladder;"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(l)"; and to add "; Social participation - (m) to review the existing composition and functions of the Commission on Youth; (n) to convene youth summits and related local forums on youth issues annually, and promote young people's participation in such summits and forums; and (o) to increase the ratio of youth participation in various statutory and advisory bodies, and set specific targets accordingly" immediately before the full stop.
(ii)	Hon IP Wai-ming to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", as we all know," after "That"; to add "(d) to strengthen vocational education for students of post-secondary and tertiary institutions, so that young people can get an early grasp of the objectives concerning career prospects, and lay a good foundation for upward mobility; (e) to increase the number of internship places in Hong Kong and overseas for students of the various tertiary institutions; (f) to comprehensively review the assistance as well as loans and repayment arrangements under the various existing student finance schemes, including abolishing the risk rate; significantly lower the interest rates of all loan schemes for tertiary students and waive the interest accrued during students' study periods under the Non-means-tested Loan Scheme; change the situation where interest rates of student loans are higher than those of bank mortgages; allow tax deduction on repayment amounts of university education loans; study the feasibility of allowing local students to apply for student loans for pursuing further education overseas; and increase the grant amounts for tertiary students; (g) to comprehensively review the Continuing Education Fund Scheme, including raising the cap on the amount of subsidy receivable by each applicant and extending the period of four years within which applicants must submit all claims as required by the Continuing Education Fund, etc., so as to encourage young people to pursue continuous education; (h) to strengthen the manning ratio of student guidance personnel in secondary schools and tertiary institutions, so as to assist young people in facing problems related to education, family, friends and career prospects, etc.;" after "career development;"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete "focusing on the development of the six industries" before "and creative industries," and substitute with "to expedite the upgrading of the four pillar industries, and promote the development of the six industries with competitive edge"; to add "(l) to enhance the applicability and effectiveness of the training and employment support structure for young people, and assist young people in joining industries which need new blood, such as construction industry, transport industry and shipping industry; (m) to motivate employers to provide employees with 'training leave', including offering tax concessions to such employers, so as to facilitate working young people to pursue studies, revise their lessons and acquire professional qualifications by examination; (n) to co-operate with organizations and enterprises in the public and private sectors to encourage the employment of young people with less working experience and share with them the associated salary payments, so as to enhance young people's chances of securing employment; (o) to proactively approach young people who have remained jobless for a long time and hidden youths, so as to provide career counselling and support to them; (p) to proactively develop apprenticeship programmes, including expanding the scope of industries covered by the apprenticeship system, so as to give young people a chance to practise while learning and provide them with a career ladder; (q) to establish a start-up fund for young people and provide business start-up advice and loans, so as to assist young people in devising their business start-up plans and further practice; (r) to subsidize young people from low-income families to attend self-enrichment courses, so as to enhance their competitiveness in choosing their own careers;" after "relevant industries;"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(s)"; to delete "relax" before "the existing eligibility" and substitute with "review"; to delete ", and address low-income young people's housing needs;" after "public rental housing" and substitute with "('PRH'), including studying the reasons for young people to apply for PRH as well as the required waiting time and allocation situation, so as to formulate a more reasonable and fairer method for waiting for and allocation of PRH for young people, and also putting forward measures, such as raising the household income ceiling, to encourage young people to live with their parents; (t) to increase the annual PRH production to 30 000 units or more, including resuming the construction of Group B PRH for renting by eligible young people subject to time limits, so as to address low-income young people's housing needs;"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(u)"; to add "and eligible persons currently waiting for PRH allocation" after "white form applicants"; and to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(v)".
(iii)	Hon WONG Sing-chi to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "can make great contributions to society, and they" after "That young people"; to add "increase the places for publicly-funded bachelor's degree and various types of diploma programmes, allocate more resources for providing relevant financial subsidies, and formulate a comprehensive education and training policy for young people," after "international community,"; to add "(d) to advocate family-friendly policies, assist students' parents in understanding more deeply and caring about the needs of young people during their growth, provide adequate social workers for schools, families and the community, assist young people in facing the pressure from learning and life, and strengthen the healthy life development of young people;" after "career development;"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(f)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g)"; to add "(h) to formulate a comprehensive employment and training policy for young people, co-ordinate the various existing youth employment training programmes, review the recognition of the various programmes, actual employment rates and the problem of job matching, assist young people in entering the labour market, including providing internship places to secondary school leavers to enhance their competitiveness; (i) to create the posts of junior attendant at tourism spots to provide employment opportunities for unemployed young people;" after "relevant industries;"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(j)"; to add "build more public rental housing flats," before "relax"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(k)"; to add "in the secondary market" after "Ownership Scheme flats"; to delete "and" after "ladder;"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(l)"; and to add "on the premise of having an adequate supply of private housing; (m) to re-launch the Sale of Flats to Sitting Tenants Scheme, so that young people can live together with their parents without being subject to means test; and (n) to assist non-government organizations in providing hostels for youths, so as to offer hostel places to young people at relatively inexpensive rents" immediately before the full stop.

Public Officers to attend

Secretary for Transport and Housing
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Secretary for Education

10.

Opposing Hong Kong communists ruling Hong Kong

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

That this Council expresses deep resentment at the direct interference of the Communist Party of China in the 2012 Chief Executive Election, which ruins 'one country, two systems'; as the Chief Executive Election was conducted under the interference and manipulation of the Communist Party of China, this Council does not accept, recognize and agree to the result of the 2012 Chief Executive Election; in this connection, this Council requests the immediate implementation of universal suffrage for returning the Chief Executive and all Legislative Council seats, and calls upon Hong Kong people to resort to confrontational means to resist Hong Kong communists ruling Hong Kong.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

11.

Enhancing the accountability of charities and complying with the best practices in corporate governance

Hon Paul CHAN to move the following motion: (Translation)

That the Charities Sub-committee under the Law Reform Commission of Hong Kong is still collating public submissions after completing its public consultation on the consultation paper on charities in end October last year, and at present, except for those charities that are incorporated as companies limited by guarantee with the Company Registry whose financial statements are accessible by the public in the Company Registry, the public has no way to know about the governance and financial information of all other charities, such as those established by way of trust; moreover, currently, except for section 88 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance, in which 'charitable purpose' is defined for the purpose of taxation, there is no other legislation regulating charities and how they use the donations, nor does the Administration have the figures regarding charities established; over the past few years, some suspected cases of charities with strange fund-raising practices, unclear accounts, indiscriminate investments and even transfer of surpluses have been uncovered in society, making the public worry that donations to charities may not be serving charitable purposes; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously release to the public the findings of the public consultation on the consultation paper on charities, and before statutory regulation is introduced, consider enhancing the transparency and accountability of charities by adopting measures such as encouraging them to comply with the best practices in corporate governance, strengthen their financial management, and disclose their financial information on a regular basis; at the same time, the Government should expeditiously implement the statutory regulatory proposals in the consultation paper on charities which are generally agreed by the community.

Amendments to the motion

(i)

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

To add ", as" after "That"; to add "many community organizations and members of the public have expressed worry that the activities of charities with different views may be restricted;" after "last year,"; to add ", as well as maintain the autonomy of their organizations" after "basis"; to delete "expeditiously implement" after "the Government should" and substitute with "carefully consider all"; and to delete "which are generally agreed by the community" immediately before the full stop.

(ii)

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

To add ", given that" after "That"; to delete "before statutory regulation is introduced, consider enhancing the transparency and accountability of charities by adopting measures such as encouraging them" after "on charities, and" and substitute with "encourage charities"; to delete "," after "management"; to add ", so as to enhance their transparency and accountability" after "basis"; and to delete "should expeditiously implement the statutory regulatory proposals in the consultation paper on charities which are generally agreed by the community" immediately before the full stop and substitute with "must ensure that human rights and advocacy of policies are included as charitable purposes, and should also ensure that charities can maintain autonomy and are free from any political interference".

(iii)

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

To add "besides, some people worry that the power of the charity commission mentioned in the consultation paper on charities is too great, which may lead to self-censorship on the part of charities dedicated to empowering the socially disadvantaged and charities which are concerned about such sensitive issues as human rights; at the same time, some social workers are concerned about a proposal in the consultation paper on charities that 'an activity to preserve an existing piece of legislation, where a charity opposes its being repealed or amended, would fall under "political activity"', not to be regarded as dedicated to a charitable purpose, and the proposal runs counter to clause 50 of the Code of Practice for Registered Social Workers, which provides that 'Social workers recognise the need to advocate changes in the formulation of policies and legislation to improve social conditions, to promote social justice and general welfare of the society. Social workers also recognise the need to contribute to the implementation of policies for human welfare'; they consider that the proposal will make social workers of charities act against professional ethics, and render organizations within the definition of 'charity' unable to employ professional social workers any more;" after "charitable purposes;"; to add ": (a)" after "the Government to"; to delete ", and" after "the public consultation on the consultation paper on charities" and substitute with "; (b)"; to add "first" after "introduced,"; to delete "at the same time, the Government should" after "basis;" and substitute with "(c) motivate the public to continue to hold discussions on monitoring charities and their fund-raising practices, and listen to the views of the public and stakeholders; and (d)"; and to add ", and prudently handle the controversial items in the paper, so as to ensure that while undesirable fund-raising practices are effectively monitored, charities dedicated to empowering the socially disadvantaged and charities which are concerned about such sensitive issues as human rights will not be subject to political vetting" immediately before the full stop.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Home Affairs

12.

Promoting family harmony

Hon Starry LEE to move the following motion: (Translation)

That, as social problems such as the rising divorce rate, family tragedies, child abuse and neglect of children, as well as compensated dating and drug abuse among young people still occur from time to time in Hong Kong, reflecting that at present some families lack cohesion and mutual love, this Council urges the Government to make stronger efforts in promoting family-friendly policies and enhancing the resilience of families and individuals against adversities, so as to achieve family harmony and promote social inclusion; the proposed measures include:

(a)	introducing an assessment system regarding the impact of public policies on families to assess the impact of existing social policies, legislation and measures on families, with a view to making relevant improvements;
(b)	providing more support services to dual-income parents, including expanding community childminding services, increasing the childminding places in various districts and providing flexible childminding service hours, etc.; developing after-school remedial centres so that children of dual-income parents can receive appropriate care after school;
(c)	promoting public and private organizations to implement family-friendly employment policies more proactively for creating a family-friendly working environment, including encouraging organizations to provide staff with child care services and implementing flexible working hours, as well as implementing a flexible leave policy which provides special paid leave for employees such as wedding leave, paternity leave, study leave, compassionate leave, etc., when they encounter major family events;
(d)	including all general holidays other than Sundays as paid statutory holidays through a progressive approach of employer-employee negotiation; and promoting 'International Day of Families' to call on the community to cherish the value of family;
(e)	promoting a housing policy which fosters mutual care between the elderly and the young and encouraging the inclusion of residential complementary facilities suitable for both the elderly and the young in the designs of private and public housing; as well as improving community facilities to provide families with more room for parent-child activities;
(f)	actively stepping up publicity on positive family education on parenting, child duties and ethics, as well as promoting family education through community service organizations, schools and the media, etc.;
(g)	allocating more resources for strengthening various promotional activities and research work of the Family Council;
(h)	alleviating the financial burden on families in Hong Kong by offering tax concessions and subsidizing pre-primary education across the board; and
(i)	enhancing social welfare services to provide appropriate support to families in crisis.
Amendments to the motion
(i)	Hon WONG Sing-chi to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "as" after "That," and substitute with "given that"; to delete "paternity leave" after "as wedding leave,"; to add "and introducing statutory paternity leave for male employees, so that husbands can enjoy paid leave to help take care of their wives and newborn babies;" after "family events;"; to add "(e) legislating for setting the number of standard working hours at 44 per week and the payment of compensation for overtime work, and assisting Hong Kong people in having an ideal mode of living, with their time evenly distributed among work, rest and leisure activities so as to achieve balanced development in different areas;" after "value of family;"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(f)"; to add "(g) constructing additional small and large sized public rental housing ('PRH') flats, resuming the Sale of Flats to Sitting Tenants Scheme, allowing eligible white form Home Ownership Scheme ('HOS') household applicants to purchase HOS flats in the secondary market without having to pay the premium, reviewing the allocation and eligibility criteria of PRH to provide affordable and appropriate residential premises to families in need, and encouraging young families to live close to their elderly family members to facilitate their mutual care, strengthen the family support network and promote family harmony and integration;" after "parent-child activities;"; 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 delete "subsidizing" after "tax concessions and" and substitute with "providing 15-year free education covering"; to delete "across the board; and" after "pre-primary education" and substitute with ";"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(k)"; and to add "; (l) amending legislation and strengthening support to handle domestic violence, stepping up publicity and training to deepen the understanding and alertness of frontline staff (such as social workers, police officers, as well as education and healthcare personnel, etc.) in relation to the problem of domestic violence, and intervening in a timely manner to help curb domestic violence; (m) setting up a multi-disciplinary mechanism for reviewing family tragedy cases to draw lessons from them, so as to improve the service system and its effectiveness, and assist affected families in restoring a harmonious family life; and (n) strengthening work in family education with a view to reducing marital problems, including incorporating family life education into the secondary education curriculum; providing pre-marital family education services, and strengthening family life education through the media, etc" immediately before the full stop.
(ii)	Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "as" after "That," and substitute with "given that in recent years,"; to add "(c) relaxing the eligibility criteria of the Work Incentive Transport Subsidy Scheme, expeditiously implementing a dual-track approach to allow applicants to calculate their incomes and assets on either a household or individual basis, so as to prevent family harmony from being affected by disputes and ill feeling arising from family members' unwillingness to disclose their asset and income information;" after "care after school;"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(d)"; to add "at the same time, increasing paid maternity leave and providing a period of postnatal employment protection to strengthen the protection for women against unreasonable dismissal after delivery;" after "family events;"; to delete the original "(d)" and substitute with "(e)"; to delete "including all general holidays other than Sundays as paid statutory holidays through a progressive approach of employer-employee negotiation" before "; and promoting 'International Day of Families'" and substitute with "amending the Employment Ordinance to increase the number of statutory holidays to put them on a par with the 17 days of general holidays and at the same time requiring employers to raise the compensation to employees for working on holidays"; to add "(f) caring about the situation of employees' overtime work and expeditiously legislating for standard working hours to ensure that employees can strike a reasonable balance on their work and family life, so as to foster mutual love among family members;" after "value of family;"; to delete the original "(e)" and substitute with "(g)"; 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)"; and to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(k)".
(iii)	Hon Ronny TONG to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "economic instability makes people's life more stressful, with the result that" after "That, as"; to delete "and" after "across the board;"; and to add "; (j) flexibly handling applications under the Harmonious Families Priority Scheme to allow more families which are willing to take care of their elderly family members to receive housing allocation expeditiously, so as to achieve the policy objective of enhancing home and community care; and (k) abolishing the requirement for the submission of a 'declaration of not providing support to parents' (commonly known as a 'bad son statement') as a prerequisite for applying for Comprehensive Social Security Assistance for the elderly, so that elderly persons and the family members living with them can be spared the embarrassment of a means test, thus realizing the fundamental principle of harmony in families" immediately before the full stop.
(iv)	Hon LEE Cheuk-yan to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "implementing a" after "working hours, as well as" and substitute with "legislating for the introduction of"; to delete "policy which provides" after "flexible leave" and substitute with "so as to provide"; to add "legislating for the implementation of standard working hours and" after "(d)"; and to delete "through a progressive approach of employer-employee negotiation" after "statutory holidays".

Public Officers to attend

Secretary for Home Affairs
Secretary for Labour and Welfare

13.

Building an inclusive society for all

Hon LEUNG Yiu-chung to move the following motion: (Translation)

That, although the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ('the Convention') came into force in Hong Kong on 31 August 2008, and the Administration submitted the Initial Report of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region under the Convention ('the Report') to the United Nations in early 2010, the contents of the Report lack guiding policies on building an inclusive society, and only focus on addressing the needs of persons with disabilities arising from their physical disabilities, instead of assisting persons with disabilities in integrating into society from social and environmental perspectives, this Council expresses its strong dissatisfaction and deep regret in this regard; in this connection, in order to fulfill the obligations under the Convention, this Council urges the Government to implement the following policies and measures:

(a)	to expeditiously implement the public transport concessions scheme for the elderly and persons with disabilities ('the scheme') to assist them in integrating into society;
(b)	to expand the coverage of the scheme to all holders of the Registration Card for People with Disabilities, and consider providing transport fare concessions to the escorts of persons with disabilities;
(c)	to add clauses to the franchise agreements of franchised public transport operators, requiring the offer of fare concessions to the elderly and persons with disabilities as well as the provision of barrier-free ancillary facilities;
(d)	to allocate additional resources for increasing the number of barrier-free transportation modes, such as Rehabus and Easy-Access Bus, so as to provide more 'point-to-point' services for persons with disabilities;
(e)	to implement the concept of barrier-free access, expeditiously complete the top 10 ranked proposals on the Provision of Hillside Escalator Links and Elevator Systems, and immediately commence feasibility studies on the remaining proposals;
(f)	to set up a quota system for employing people with disabilities and provide tax concessions, so as to encourage employers to employ more persons with disabilities;
(g)	to provide persons with disabilities with a wage subsidy of no more than 50% of their wages, so that employees with disabilities whose productivity is assessed to be less than 100% may receive wages close to the statutory minimum wage level; and provide an allowance to carers of chronic patients;
(h)	to encourage people from the various social sectors to learn sign language, and promote and teach sign language in primary and secondary schools; and expeditiously motivate healthcare personnel to learn sign language to enhance their communications with patients with hearing impairment, so as to enable them to grasp the conditions of patients with hearing impairment and help treating their diseases;
(i)	to promote the popularization of sign language, require the provision of sign language interpretation in television news broadcasts and foster a culture of respecting the use of sign language, so as to facilitate persons with hearing impairment in grasping social information; and
(j)	to step up consultation with groups for persons with disabilities, so as to make the voices of persons with disabilities heard as well as materialize the integration between the able-bodied and disabled persons.
Amendments to the motion
(i)	Hon WONG Kwok-hing to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "although" after "That," and substitute with "even though"; to delete "and" after "2008," and substitute with "the rights and interests of persons with disabilities are not yet under comprehensive protection;"; to add "also" after "Administration"; to add "but" after "2010,"; and to add ", and extend the scheme to cover trams and public light buses, so as" after "('the scheme')".
(ii)	Dr Hon PAN Pey-chyou to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "although" after "That," and substitute with "as"; to add "but" after "2010,"; to add "(a) with government departments and public organizations taking the lead to employ more persons with disabilities, so as to assist persons with disabilities in securing employment; (b) to encourage enterprises to provide non-full time posts for persons with disabilities, so as to enable them to progressively adapt to long hours of work; (c) to provide evening consultation services for persons with disabilities in need, including people recovering from mental illness, so that they can spare more time during the day for participating in community activities and integrating into society; (d) to enhance public education to increase people's understanding about persons with disabilities, with a view to eliminating misunderstanding and discrimination;" after "measures:"; 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)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(l)"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(m)"; and to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(n)".
(iii)	Hon WONG Sing-chi to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "although" after "That," and substitute with "as"; to add "but" after "2010,"; to add "(h) with government departments, public bodies and subvented organizations taking the lead to set an indicator for hiring persons with disabilities and motivate various organizations to formulate recruitment policy and procedures on hiring of persons with disabilities, so as to enable persons with disabilities to have employment opportunities for giving play to their potentials;" after "chronic patients;"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(j)"; and to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(k)".
(iv)	Hon TAM Yiu-chung to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "although" after "That," and substitute with "as"; to add "but" after "2010,"; to delete "and deep regret" after "dissatisfaction"; to add "to enable persons with disabilities to have full participation and enjoy equal opportunities in both social life and personal growth, so as to realize the spirit and core values of the Convention" after "obligations under the Convention"; to add "expeditiously perfect and" after "the Government to"; to add ", and study extending the scheme to green minibuses and trams, etc." after "them in integrating into society"; to delete "commence feasibility studies on the remaining proposals;" after "immediately" and substitute with "respond to and commence feasibility studies on proposals to construct barrier-free access put forward by residents of various districts; (f) to proactively promote barrier-free community facilities, improve community facilities, and provide owners' corporations of buildings with technical and funding support for improving the main entry and exit access of their buildings;"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(g)"; to add "(h) to proactively support rehabilitation organizations to establish social enterprises, so as to provide employment opportunities for persons with disabilities;" after "more persons with disabilities;"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(i)" and substitute with "(k)"; to delete "and" after "information;"; to delete the original "(j)" and substitute with "(l)"; and to add "; and (m) to promote the creation of new assistance programmes under the Community Care Fund, including subsidizing intermediary institutions to train more guide dogs specially for guiding the way for visually impaired persons so as to improve the daily life of such persons, providing an allowance for adjusting and repairing prostheses of persons with amputated limbs, and subsidizing hearing impaired children of low-income families to purchase hearing aids, etc" immediately before the full stop.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

14.

Perfecting urban management in all districts of Hong Kong

Prof Hon Patrick LAU to move the following motion: (Translation)

That, given that after the dissolution of the former Urban Council and former Regional Council, the urban management strategies for all districts in Hong Kong have failed to yield satisfactory results, this Council urges the Government to strengthen the powers and functions as well as responsibilities of the District Councils, and formulate a set of comprehensive urban management policies, including:

(a)	based on the latest population projections, to plan afresh the community facilities required in the various districts, and resolve, at the district level, the site selection and timetable problems relating to the construction of schools, hospitals, public rental housing, community centres, columbaria, landfills, incinerators and recycling centres, etc.;
(b)	to implement the management concept of urban beautification, and perfect the street greening and beautification work; and
(c)	dovetailing with harbourfront planning and development, to establish a harbourfront authority for co-ordinating the connective work and management of harbourfronts in all districts of Hong Kong.
Amendments to the motion
(i)	Hon CHEUNG Hok-ming to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "given that" after "That," and substitute with "the Census and Statistics Department projects that the population of Hong Kong will continue to grow, but"; to add "to launch thematic district transformation projects with local characteristics in the various districts, such as the Yuen Long Nullah restoration project, the Tuen Mun River Beautification Project, the enhancement of the planning for Tseung Kwan O Town Centre South and the Aberdeen Tourism Project;" after "beautification work;"; and to add "; at the same time, to strive to build a new waterfront promenade in Kowloon linking up Kowloon City, Yau Tsim Mong District as well as Sham Shui Po, and stretching from the West Kowloon Cultural District to Lei Yue Mun, and a new waterfront promenade on Hong Kong Island linking up Central and Western District, Wan Chai District as well as Eastern District, and stretching from Western District to Chai Wan, so that the new waterfront promenades on both sides of the Victoria Harbour will form a world-class 'Victoria Harbour waterfront corridor'" immediately before the full stop.
(ii)	Hon LEE Wing-tat to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "resolve, at the district level," after "various districts, and" and substitute with "strengthen the co-ordination and negotiations among the various policy bureaux and District Councils to resolve".

Public Officers to attend

Secretary for Home Affairs
Secretary for Development

15.

Promoting animal rights and interests

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

That, as Hong Kong society attaches increasing importance to animal rights and interests, and in order to motivate people to treat animals well and live in harmony with animals in the community, reduce at source the number of stray animals in the community, and effectively combat crimes of animal cruelty, this Council urges the Government to:

(a)	strengthen co-operation with District Councils to promote the 'Trap-Neuter-Return' programme on a trial basis, and following the success of the trial programme, implement the programme in all districts of Hong Kong;
(b)	expedite the implementation of the various proposed measures for regulating the pet trade, including introducing Home Animal Breeder Permit and Commercial Animal Breeder Permit, substantially raising the maximum fine for illegal trading of animals to $100,000 and increasing the fine for breaching of licensing conditions to $50,000; and
(c)	establish specialist 'animal police' teams in the Hong Kong Police Force to replace the existing 'Animal Watch Scheme', whose responsibilities include conducting specially tasked investigations into all animal cruelty cases, as well as undertaking publicity and education to make the public aware that cruelty to animals are illegal acts.
Amendments to the motion
(i)	Hon CHAN Hak-kan to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete ", as Hong Kong society" after "That" and substitute with "the keeping of pets among Hong Kong people has become increasingly common, and our society also"; to delete ", and" after "interests" and substitute with ";"; to add "(a) establish 'animal police' teams specially tasked to investigate cases of animal cruelty and abandonment, enhance the training of frontline enforcement officers on handling cases of animal cruelty and their awareness of such cases, and set up a 'dedicated hotline for reporting animal cruelty', with a view to curbing the situation of animal cruelty and abandonment from becoming prevalent; (b) by making reference to the present animal protection legislation in developed places, review and amend the existing Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance for the purpose of catching up with international standards, and classify the intentional abandonment of animals as animal cruelty, as well as explore the provision of compulsory psychological counselling and courses on animal protection to convicted persons; (c) request the Department of Justice to pay close attention to the sentencing for cases of animal cruelty, and where sentencing for the cases concerned cannot fully reflect their seriousness, seek sentencing guidelines by applying for reviews of sentences to the relevant courts, so as to truly reflect the social concern about offences of animal cruelty;" after "the Government to:"; to delete the original "(a)" and substitute with "(d)"; to add "and animal rights organizations" after "District Councils"; to delete ";" after "of Hong Kong" and substitute with ", and use humane means to deal with the problem of stray cats and dogs; (e) provide subsidy to the public for neutering their pets, and train more veterinary health care personnel to meet the social demand for the services concerned; (f) improve the hygiene conditions in the animal management centres under the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and enhance the transparency of stray animal management by allowing Members and animal rights organizations to conduct regular inspections, increase the number of qualified animal adoption organizations and expand the scope of animals for adoption to reptiles and amphibians, so as to facilitate the adoption of animals by a greater number of people and organizations;"; to delete the original "(b)" and substitute with "(g)"; to delete "and" after "$50,000;" and substitute with "(h) enhance people's understanding of endangered animals and relevant regulatory systems, and require that animal traders must provide appropriate labels for identifying endangered species, as well as provide buyers with points to note on keeping endangered species, with a view to strengthening the management of endangered animals;"; to delete the original "(c)" and substitute with "(i)"; to delete "establish specialist 'animal police' teams in the Hong Kong Police Force to replace the existing 'Animal Watch Scheme', whose responsibilities include conducting specially tasked investigations into all animal cruelty cases, as well as undertaking" before "publicity" and substitute with "set up an 'animal protection fund', so that organizations can make applications for organizing more animal welfare activities, and undertake"; and to add "and learn to be a responsible pet owner; (j) introduce appropriate measures, including identifying sites for constructing more parks for pets, and exploring the opening of various recreational venues such as parks and beaches partially or at specific time slots, so that members of the public can bring in their pets; (k) actively identify suitable locations for the provision of public toilets for dogs, increase the number of dog excreta collection bins on street side, and step up the frequency of cleaning and washing, with a view to improving environmental hygiene; and (l) explore the regulation of hospice service for animals through licensing" immediately before the full stop.
(ii)	Hon Albert HO to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete ", as Hong Kong" after "That" and substitute with "Hong Kong is a civilized cosmopolitan city, and the local"; and to delete "implement" after "trial programme," and substitute with "openly invite various organizations through the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department to apply for implementing".

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Food and Health

16.

Expeditiously implementing the formulation of standard working hours

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

That, given that minimum wage and standard working hours must complement each other in order to be able to maximize the effect of protecting grassroots workers and facilitating Hong Kong's economic development, this Council urges the current-term and next-term SAR Governments to, having regard to the well-being of employees at large, spare no efforts in making preparations for enacting legislation on standard working hours and expeditiously implement the relevant tasks, including:

(a)	to set a deadline and timetable for conducting studies on regulating working hours;
(b)	to establish a 'study group on legislating for standard working hours' comprising representatives of the Government, employees and employers, and academics to follow up the relevant issues;
(c)	to regularly hold discussions in the Panel on Manpower of the Legislative Council and report the progress to the Labour Advisory Board, so as to strengthen the Legislative Council's function of monitoring the Government on the one hand, and increase the transparency of the relevant work on the other, so as to enable the public and the labour sector to know the progress of the studies;
(d)	to proactively ascertain the views of the trade unions of various industries and the relevant stakeholders on standard working hours; and
(e)	to increase the public's knowledge and understanding of standard working hours through various forms of publicity and education.
Amendments to the motion
(i)	Hon WONG Sing-chi to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "given that" after "That" and substitute with "minimum wage has been implemented for one year or so, the grass-root workers' living has improved but the working hours of some workers are too long, so"; to delete "and" after "stakeholders on standard working hours;"; and to add "; and (f) to expeditiously implement more family-friendly policies to dovetail with the formulation of standard working hours, so as to help employees give equal attention to their families, relieve their pressure, and also boost their work efficiency and morale" immediately before the full stop.
(ii)	Hon LEE Cheuk-yan to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "to," after "SAR Governments" and substitute with "not to waste any more time, and"; to delete "spare no efforts in making preparations for enacting" after "employees at large," and substitute with "to expeditiously enact"; to delete "expeditiously implement the relevant tasks" after "legislation on standard working hours and" and substitute with "immediately commence preparation for the legislative work"; to delete "deadline and" after "to set a" and substitute with "legislative"; to delete "conducting studies on" after "timetable for"; to delete "follow up the relevant issues" after "and academics to" and substitute with "finalize the details of the bill on regulating working hours"; to delete "studies" after "know the progress of the" and substitute with "legislative work"; to delete "standard" after "stakeholders on" and substitute with "the details of the bill on regulating"; and to delete "standard" after "understanding of" and substitute with "the details of the bill on regulating".

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

17.

Report of the Subcommittee on Retirement Protection

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

That this Council notes the Report of the Subcommittee on Retirement Protection.

Public Officers to attend

Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

18.

Reviewing the definition of and the support measures for small and medium-sized enterprises and micro-enterprises

Dr Hon LAM Tai-fai to move the following motion: (Translation)

That, as the European debt crisis is getting worse recently, which may affect the European and even the global economies, coupled with the fact that the United States economy has yet to bottom out and the Mainland economic growth is slowing down, Hong Kong as a small and open economy can hardly remain unaffected, with its export and re-export trades bearing the brunt; internally, the continuous soaring of property prices also poses potential threats to Hong Kong's economy and society; amid the many uncertainties and crises, it is expected that small and medium-sized enterprises ('SMEs') in Hong Kong will face an unstable and difficult business environment; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to plan ahead and roll out appropriate contingency measures to assist SMEs in coping with the challenges and riding out the plight; besides, the Government should review the current definition of SMEs, draw up afresh the definitions of SMEs and micro-enterprises having regard to the actual market conditions with a view to formulating dedicated support policies and measures which are geared to their actual needs, study introducing different levels of profit tax rates for micro-enterprises, SMEs and large enterprises, and set a tax rate lower than the existing level and offer more tax concessions for the former two, so as to support their sustainable operation and healthy development.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

19.

Report of the Subcommittee

Ir Dr Hon Raymond HO to move the following motion: (Translation)

That this Council notes the Report of the Subcommittee to Study Issues Arising from Lehman Brothers-related Minibonds and Structured Financial Products.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

20.

Maintaining a business-friendly environment in Hong Kong

Hon Jeffrey LAM to move the following motion: (Translation)

That, given the recent instability of the global economic environment, the worsening trend of the European debt crisis and the slackening of the Mainland's economic development, and under the situation of the ongoing transition from the current-term Government to the next-term Government in Hong Kong, this Council urges that:

(a)	the Administration should closely monitor the external economic situation and devise contingency plans for coping with external impact, so as to maintain the stability of Hong Kong's investment market and overall economy as well as to avoid any external impact on Hong Kong's economy at the time of governmental transition;
(b)	given that Hong Kong's economic outlook in the second half of this year is not optimistic, and even the current-term Financial Secretary has foretold that an economic growth of 3% cannot be maintained, the current-term Government should formulate corresponding measures straddling the transition to the next-term Government for coping with Hong Kong's economic slowdown and fluctuations in the property market; and
(c)	the next-term Government should examine the impact of such policies as the minimum wage and those in the Competition Bill, etc., on the local economy as well as on small and medium-sized enterprises at large, so as to protect the business-friendly environment in Hong Kong and raise Hong Kong's economic competitiveness.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

21.

Improving public healthcare services

Hon CHAN Kam-lam to move the following motion: (Translation)

That the Government intends to implement the Health Protection Scheme for addressing the issue of public healthcare financing and reforming public healthcare services; however, with population ageing and the continuous increase in demand for primary healthcare services, public healthcare services are unable to sustain quality, and the mode of service delivery also fails to develop in the direction of a 'person-centred and community-based' approach; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to comprehensively improve public healthcare services, and the relevant measures should include:

(a)	to enhance the hardware facilities of public hospitals, including reviewing the demand for specialist services in the hospitals of various clusters, acquiring more medical equipment, and expediting the expansion of United Christian Hospital as well as the redevelopment of Queen Mary Hospital and Kwong Wah Hospital, so as to cope with the demand arising from changes in population structure;
(b)	in response to the fact that babies born to 'doubly non-permanent resident pregnant women' seeking healthcare services in Hong Kong have led to an increasing demand for hospital services in the New Territories clusters, the authorities should allocate more resources for improving the services of maternal and child health centres as well as paediatrics;
(c)	to develop public Chinese medicine services, expeditiously build public Chinese medicine out-patient clinics, increase the daily service quotas in public Chinese medicine clinics, and study introducing Chinese medicine in-patient services and conjoint Chinese medicine and Western medicine consultations;
(d)	to draw up a timetable for establishing community health centres in the 18 districts of Hong Kong;
(e)	to improve the existing public general out-patient services, including increasing daily consultation quotas, introducing overnight out-patient services, and setting up a 'manned' consultation booking hotline for the convenience of the elderly;
(f)	to draw up planning on long-term healthcare service demand and personnel training, and adopt short-term measures to tackle the existing problem of healthcare manpower shortage;
(g)	to improve public dental services, including introducing out-patient dental services for the elderly, and extending the Student Dental Service to secondary students, etc.; and
(h)	to design specific services geared to the healthcare needs of different groups of people in society, including lowering the eligible age for elderly healthcare vouchers to 65 and increasing the amount of subsidy to $1,000; increase the service quotas in elderly health centres and women health centres; introduce a cervical cancer vaccination programme and a breast cancer screening programme for the suitable women; subsidize high risk groups to take fecal occult blood tests regularly for the prevention of colon cancer; speed up the updating of the types of vaccines incorporated under the Childhood Immunization Programme; and study the introduction of 'child healthcare vouchers'.
Amendments to the motion
(i)	Dr Hon Joseph LEE to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete "the Government intends to implement the Health Protection Scheme for addressing the issue of public healthcare financing and reforming public healthcare services; however" after "That"; to delete "in the New Territories clusters" after "hospital services"; to delete "and" after "etc.;"; and to add "; (i) to expeditiously set a nurse-patient ratio to enhance the quality of nursing care and facilitate long-term nursing manpower planning; (j) to review the manpower establishment of allied health staff and assess manpower needs based on service demand, so as to shorten patients' waiting time and enhance the quality of allied health service; (k) to provide referral services by optometrists and strengthen the role of optometrists in primary healthcare services at the community level, so that members of the public can receive early treatment to avoid deterioration of conditions due to delay; and (l) regarding the continuously rising demand for chiropractic services nowadays, to introduce chiropractic services under the public healthcare system, so as to provide members of the public with an additional choice and shorten the existing waiting time for the services of relevant departments" immediately before the full stop.
(ii)	Dr Hon LEUNG Ka-lau to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "(a) to review the resource and manpower allocation mechanism of the Hospital Authority ('HA'), so as to improve public hospital services; (b) to set up an independent audit department for HA, so as to ensure a more effective distribution of public healthcare resources among the various service items to help patients in need; (c) to separate the roles of purchaser and provider of public healthcare services, so that resources can be utilized in a more cost-effective manner; (d) to introduce a 'more work, more pay' working-hour system in HA, so as to retain healthcare personnel and address the problem of healthcare manpower wastage;" after "include:"; 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)"; to delete the original "(f)" and substitute with "(j)"; to delete the original "(g)" and substitute with "(k)"; and to delete the original "(h)" and substitute with "(l)".

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Food and Health

22.

Increasing land supply in Hong Kong and perfecting the land reserve system

Ir Dr Hon Raymond HO to move the following motion: (Translation)

That Hong Kong is small but densely populated with the land falling short of the demand, and property prices have persistently remained at high levels; in order to resolve the problem of high property prices at root, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously increase land supply through different means, such as reclamation, rock cavern development, old district redevelopment, change of land use, land resumption and reusing former quarry sites, etc.; at the same time, the Government should also perfect the existing land reserve system to appropriately perform the function of adjusting land supply. Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Development

23.

Vote of no confidence in the President of the Legislative Council

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

That, regarding the decision of the President of the Legislative Council, Mr Jasper TSANG, to curtail the debate during the Committee stage of the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2012 on 17 May this year, this Council has no confidence in the President of the Legislative Council, Mr Jasper TSANG.

24.

Addressing the problem of small houses and village houses in the New Territories

Hon LEE Wing-tat to move the following motion: (Translation)

That it has been about 40 years since the implementation of the New Territories small house policy ('small house policy') in December 1972, and the dwindling village land in the New Territories is unable to meet the demand for small houses, thus making the sustainability of the small house policy questionable; at the same time, the problem of unauthorized building works in the New Territories village houses is extensive and serious; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to expeditiously review the small house policy for resolving the problem of 'limited land supply but unlimited small house concessionary rights', and to review and strictly implement the enforcement policy on unauthorized building works of village houses in the New Territories, so as to align the respective enforcement policy on unauthorized building works in the urban areas with that of the New Territories for the protection of public safety.

Amendment to the motion
Hon CHEUNG Hok-ming to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To add "the Government conducted a massive resumption of land from indigenous inhabitants of the New Territories in the 1960s and 1970s to build public facilities such as public rental housing, schools, hospitals and reservoirs, etc. for developing new towns in the New Territories;" after "That"; to delete "implementation" after "40 years since the" and substitute with "introduction"; to delete "in December 1972" after "('small house policy')" and substitute with "to address the housing problem of the affected indigenous inhabitants of the New Territories at that time; after the reunification, Article 40 of the Basic Law stipulates that '(t)he lawful traditional rights and interests of the indigenous inhabitants of the "New Territories" shall be protected by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region';"; to delete "village" after "unauthorized building works in the New Territories" and substitute with "small"; to delete "serious" after "is extensive and" and substitute with "complex"; to delete "problem of 'limited land supply but unlimited small house concessionary rights'" after "resolving the" and substitute with "housing problem of indigenous inhabitants of the New Territories, to expeditiously clarify the legal disputes over the height and floor area restrictions for the New Territories village houses built before the implementation of the small house policy"; and to delete "on unauthorized building works of village" after "enforcement policy" and substitute with "of categorisation for control and management as well as prioritisation for progressive enforcement on unauthorized building works of small".

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Development

25.

Report of the Subcommittee on Improving Barrier Free Access and Facilities for Persons with Disabilities

Hon WONG Sing-chi to move the following motion: (Translation)

That this Council notes the Report of the Subcommittee on Improving Barrier Free Access and Facilities for Persons with Disabilities.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

26.

Actively implementing the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement and the relevant new measures to promote the development of new industries in Hong Kong

Dr Hon Samson TAM to move the following motion: (Translation)

That, since the signing of the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement ('CEPA'), both sides have agreed to strengthen co-operation in the following 10 areas, namely: (1) customs clearance facilitation; (2) commodity inspection and quarantine, food safety, quality and standardization; (3) co-operation of small and medium-sized enterprises; (4) co-operation in industries; (5) electronic business; (6) trade and investment promotion; (7) transparency in laws and regulations; (8) protection of intellectual property; (9) co-operation in branding; and (10) co-operation in education; however, the actual situation is that quite a number of small and medium-sized enterprises consider that the co-operation in the aforesaid areas is still at the policy discussion stage and fails to provide any concrete assistance; in this connection, this Council urges the SAR Government to expeditiously review the current situation of implementing CEPA, give an account of the difficulties involved during the implementation process, explore adjustments to the implementation framework, enhance accountability, and at the same time adopt more concrete actions and complementary policies for actively implementing CEPA and the relevant new measures, so as to provide greater support to small and medium-sized enterprises and promote the development of new industries in Hong Kong.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

(Members' motions scheduled to be dealt with at this Council meeting)

27.

Report of the Select Committee to Study Mr LEUNG Chun-ying's Involvement as a Member of the Jury in the West Kowloon Reclamation Concept Plan Competition and Related Issues

Hon IP Kwok-him to move the following motion: (Translation)

That this Council notes the Report of the Select Committee to Study Mr LEUNG Chun-ying's Involvement as a Member of the Jury in the West Kowloon Reclamation Concept Plan Competition and Related Issues.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Home Affairs

28.

Valedictory Motion

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

"That this Council concludes its work and wishes for the smooth formation of the Fifth Legislative Council to continue to serve the people of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region."

Public Officer to attend : The Chief Secretary for Administration

(Member's motion originally scheduled to be dealt with at the last Council meeting)

29.

Motion for the adjournment of the Council under Rule 16(4) of the Rules of Procedure

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

That this Council do now adjourn for the purpose of debating the following two issues:

(a)	the impact of the announcement made by the MTR Corporation Limited to increase its fares by 5.4% under the Fare Adjustment Mechanism ("FAM") on the general public, as well as FAM, fare concession measures and the Government's corresponding arrangements (raised by Hon CHEUNG Hok-ming); and
(b)	the suicide of LI Wangyang (raised by Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung).

Public Officers to attend

Secretary for Transport and Housing
Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

Clerk to the Legislative Council

Legislative Council

Agenda Wednesday 11 July 2012 at 11:00 am

Agenda

Wednesday 11 July 2012 at 11:00 am