A 12/13-17

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 23 January 2013 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers

1.	No. 62	-	Legal Aid Services Council Annual Report 2011-12
(to be presented by Secretary for Home Affairs)
2.	No. 63	-	Employees' Compensation Insurance Levies Management Board Annual Report 2011/12
(to be presented by Secretary for Labour and Welfare)
3.	No. 64	-	Employees Compensation Assistance Fund Board Annual Report 2011-2012
(to be presented by Secretary for Labour and Welfare)
4.	No. 65	-	Occupational Deafness Compensation Board Annual Report 2011/12
(to be presented by Secretary for Labour and Welfare)
5.	No. 66	-	Pneumoconiosis Compensation Fund Board Annual Report 2011
(to be presented by Secretary for Labour and Welfare)

II. Questions

1. Dr Hon Kenneth CHAN to ask: (Translation)

At present, anyone may inspect the full identification numbers and usual residential addresses of shareholders, directors or company secretaries etc. of companies at the Companies Registry. Under the new Companies Ordinance passed last year, disclosure of such information will be restricted, and the Government is currently drafting the subsidiary legislation for implementing such regulation. On the other hand, The Ombudsman announced this month that he would initiate a direct investigation into the access to information regime and the Government's records management system. Regarding the policy on public access to government information, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	given that some members of the public and the media have expressed that the aforesaid new regulation on disclosure of personal information will undermine the public's right to know and obstruct media reporting, whether the Government will initiate consultation with stakeholders who have concerns about this issue and take appropriate follow-up measures to address public concerns; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
  (b)	in the light of the aforesaid investigation to be conducted by The Ombudsman, whether the Government will immediately conduct a comprehensive review on the Code on Access to Information and request all government departments to strictly comply with the requirements of the Code; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
  (c)	whether the Government will consider immediately proceeding with the legislation on freedom of information, including conducting related research and public consultation, so as to establish a comprehensive legal framework for public access to government information; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officers to reply :

Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

2. Hon Frederick FUNG to ask: (Translation)

In the past, developers and estate agents presented the area of a residential flat in terms of its gross floor area ("GFA"), on the basis of which the per-square-foot property price was calculated. The Estate Agents Authority ("EAA") has issued a practice circular stipulating that when handling sale or lease of second-hand residential properties from 1 January 2013 onwards, estate agents have to provide information on the saleable area ("SA") of such properties to clients, and that the per-square-foot property price provided to clients has to be calculated on the basis of SA ("the new requirement"). Besides, the Residential Properties (First-hand Sales) Ordinance will come into effect on 1 April this year and the enforcement agency concerned will be set up and commence operation at the same time. Developers will then have to provide information on SA of first-hand residential properties, which is calculated according to a standardized definition, and the per-square-foot property price calculated on the basis of SA, so that property buyers will clearly be informed of the actual size of a flat, which will facilitate comparison and reduce their chances of being misled. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)

  whether it knows how the new requirement has been implemented, including the number of inspections conducted by EAA, the number of non-compliance cases and the situation of non-compliance identified, as well as the number of complaints received and the follow-up actions taken; given that the new requirement has been enforced for three weeks, whether EAA has considered introducing new measures to promote better compliance by the trade and enhance the public's understanding and awareness of the new requirement; whether the authorities will consider providing the public free access to information on SA of residential flats from the Rating and Valuation Department; and

  (b)

  given that the new requirement has been implemented first in the second-hand residential property market but the practice of using GFA still continues in first-hand residential property transactions before 1 April this year, whether the authorities have assessed if such a situation has given rise to confusing messages in the market, which may baffle buyers; whether the authorities will consider requesting developers and estate agents to cooperate voluntarily to advance the provision of information on SA and per-square-foot property price calculated on the basis of SA when selling first-hand residential properties; if they will not, of the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

3. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)

Earlier on, there were extensive media reports on an incident of a cooking oil distributor being suspected of selling "gutter oil", and a list of food establishments using "gutter oil" was also widely circulated on the Internet, causing panic among members of the public and adversely affecting the business of the food establishments. Some people from the environmental industry have pointed out that, in order to effectively eradicate gutter oil, the Government has to introduce a licensing system to stipulate that only licensed recyclers may lawfully recover and resell used cooking oil, and to require recyclers to keep records of their recovery and resale transactions, so as to ensure that the whereabouts of such used cooking oil can be traced. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	of the policies and measures employed to prevent the used cooking oil of local food establishments from being processed and resold as cooking oil after shipment to the Mainland or in Hong Kong, which would endanger the health of the people on the Mainland and in Hong Kong;
  (b)	whether it has studied the policies of the Mainland, the United States and various European Union countries on regulating the recovery and use of used cooking oil; if it has, of the details, and set out the modes of regulation in various countries in table form; given the extensive reports by the media on the Mainland in recent years and the recent occurrence of the incident of suspected selling of gutter oil in Hong Kong, whether it has studied the need to regulate the matter through legislation; if it has, of the outcome of the study; if not, the reasons for that; and
  (c)	whether it will study the regulation of the operation of used cooking oil recyclers through licensing to ensure that the whereabouts of all the used cooking oil recovered can be traced, so as to facilitate investigation and prevent lawbreakers from processing used cooking oil and reselling it as cooking oil, in order to safeguard public health?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

4. Dr Hon CHIANG Lai-wan to ask: (Translation)

At present, regardless of whether it is public rental housing, Home Ownership Scheme or private residential flats the supply of which is to be increased, the problem faced by the Government is how to provide the land required, and it is particularly difficult to find land in urban areas. Yet, some retired civil servants residing in quarters developed under the civil servants cooperative housing scheme ("civil servants' quarters") have relayed to me that the plot ratio of the land lot where they are living has not been fully utilized, and it is worthy for the Urban Renewal Authority ("URA") to acquire the land lot for redevelopment, so as to provide more small and medium-sized residential flats in urban areas. It is understood that such civil servants' quarters are 40 to 50 years old. The quarters are about five-storey high but without elevators, and there are only a few flats on each floor. As most of the owners are elderly people, it is very difficult for them to climb up and down the stairs and they cannot afford the huge maintenance costs of their quarters. They hope that URA can acquire their flats as early as possible, so that they can move to accommodation with better living environment. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	of the total number of civil servants' cooperative building societies in Hong Kong and the total land area and estimated vacancy rate of civil servants' quarters at present, as well as the projected number of small and medium-sized flats which can be provided upon redevelopment;
  (b)	whether it knows if URA will consider implementing a new pilot scheme to proactively acquire civil servants' quarters for redevelopment, so as to build more small and medium-sized residential flats; if URA will do so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
  (c)	whether the arrangements in respect of the land premiums paid for redevelopment projects of civil servants' quarters are different from those for redevelopment projects of other residential sites; if so, of the reasons for that; if not, whether it knows if URA will consider standardizing the handling of all redevelopment projects of civil servants' quarters, so as to save the time and administrative costs required for such redevelopment?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

5. Hon Alice MAK to ask: (Translation)

Earlier on, some tenants of the shopping centres under the Hong Kong Housing Society ("HS") sought my assistance, claiming that recently, HS had, without notifying them, invited tenancies by way of open tender for the retail premises currently leased to them and HS had even led interested parties to inspect such premises. HS has not discussed lease renewal with the tenants, and it has even issued to them notices for non-renewal of leases. These tenants consider that HS is forcing them away and throttling the room for survival of small businesses. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	whether it knows the total rental income generated from HS's retail premises, the rate of rent increase, the lease renewal rate and vacancy rate of its retail premises in each of the past five years; the number of retail premises leased out by HS through tender during the same period; the numbers of such retail premises leased to the original tenants and new tenants respectively;
  (b)	given that HS's representatives have indicated after meeting with tenants' representatives and me that HS would consider inviting tenancies for some individual retail premises by open tender if the leases have been renewed with the tenants of such premises for a period of time, particularly when other business operators have enquired about the leasing of such retail premises, whether the Government knows if HS has made such tenancy invitation arrangement in accordance with its established policies; whether "a period of time" means the number of years for which the tenants have renewed their tenancies or the number of renewals; when HS started leasing its retail premises by open tender; the factors and criteria which HS takes into account in selecting its tenants; and whether existing tenants enjoy any priority right or advantage in renewing their leases; if not, the reasons for that; and
  (c)	given that most of HS's residential development projects received land grants from the Government with land premiums reduced or waived, whether the authorities are aware of and monitor the arrangements under which HS leases its retail premises; if so, whether the authorities have looked into the impact of such tenancy invitation arrangements on the operation of small businesses and the residents concerned; if the authorities are not aware and have not monitored, of the reasons for that; given that in addition to open invitation for tenancies, HS has even leased the entire shopping centre in one of its housing estates to a single operator in recent years, how the authorities prevent the majority of HS's retail premises from being leased to large chain stores ultimately, similar to those under the management of The Link Management Limited, so as to ensure that a diversity of common household goods are available for sale in the retail shops for the choice of the residents?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

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

The Chief Executive ("CE") has stated earlier through the CE's Office that he has a 99.9% shareholding of Wintrack Worldwide Ltd. ("the company"), a company registered in the British Virgin Islands ("BVI"), and claimed that we can rest assured because the company only holds the shares of a foreign branch of DTZ and is not involved in DTZ's business in Hong Kong, the Mainland and Taiwan. However, after checking the information on the company, some members of the media have queried that CE is manipulating behind the scene DTZ, which has business in Hong Kong, through the company. Some members of the public have also queried that CE has concealed his interests in the company, and there is a conflict of interests between his ownership of the company and CE's duties. To allay public concerns and dovetail with the fulfillment of CE's pledge of working in an open and transparent manner, will the Government inform this Council whether it will revise the existing requirements on declaration of interests to stipulate that the incumbent CE has to make public if he owns any overseas registered company and the details of the business of such companies (including whether the companies are still in operation) and, under the revised requirements, has to take the initiative to make public the details of the company, the foreign branch of DTZ held by the company or other interests which have not been declared; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, as well as how the public can be convinced that the incumbent CE's ownership of an overseas registered company which is in operation is not in breach of the requirement in Article 47 of the Basic Law that "[t]he Chief Executive …… must be a person of integrity, dedicated to his or her duties"?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

*7. Ir Dr Hon LO Wai-kwok to ask: (Translation)

The Lifts and Escalators Ordinance ("the Ordinance") (Cap. 618) has come into full operation since 17 December 2012. Regarding the measures to complement the implementation of the Ordinance, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	whether the authorities have established a communication mechanism with the relevant professional bodies in the trade and taken concrete complementary measures (such as providing suitable incentives) to encourage practitioners in the trade (including registered engineers and registered workers) to pursue continuing education, so as to enable them to meet the professional qualifications and registration requirements as well as the contractors to meet the registration renewal requirements stipulated in the Ordinance; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
  (b)	as there have been comments that the lift and escalator practitioners face adverse working environment, unsatisfactory remuneration packages etc., which has led to a brain drain, and the contractors also face various difficulties in their businesses (e.g. price competition, difficulties in quality assurance, etc.), of the measures taken by the authorities to attract more new blood to join the trade; whether they have conducted any studies on the business difficulties faced by the trade and provided them with appropriate support; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
  (c)	whether the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, being the enforcement agency of the Ordinance, has allocated the resources needed and employed additional professional staff to discharge its monitoring duties; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

*8. Hon LEE Cheuk-yan to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the households receiving rent allowance under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme in 2010-2011, 2011-2012 and 2012-2013, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	of a breakdown of their numbers by (i) the number of eligible members, (ii) the type of rented accommodation (public housing estate or private housing), and (iii) the result of a comparison between the actual rents paid by those households and the maximum levels of rent allowance ("MRA") (set out the annual figures according to the table below); Number of eligible members Rented accommodation in public housing estates Rented accommodation in private housing Actual rent lower than MRA Actual rent equals to MRA Actual rent higher than MRA Actual rent lower than MRA Actual rent equals to MRA Actual rent higher than MRA 1 2 3 4 5 6 or more Total
  (b)	of a breakdown of the numbers of those households whose actual rent payments exceeded MRA by (i) the number of eligible members, (ii) the type of rented accommodation, and (iii) the amount of actual rent in excess of MRA (set out the annual figures according to the table below); and Number of eligible members Rented accommodation in public housing estates Rented accommodation in private housing The amount of actual rent in excess of MRA Less than $100 $100 to $499 $500 to $999 $1,000 or above Less than $100 $100 to $499 $500 to $999 $1,000 or above 1 2 3 4 5 6 or more Total
  (c)	of the median actual monthly rents paid by those households living in private rented accommodation, set out respectively by (i) the number of eligible members and (ii) the district in which they reside?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

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

It has been reported that during his election campaign, the Chief Executive ("CE") has showed support for enacting the archives law and the freedom of information law as well as indicated that the relevant specific details would have to be examined. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	whether the authorities have commenced the study on the enactment of the archives law and the freedom of information law; if they have not, of the reasons for that and when the study will commence; if they have, of the specific scope and progress of the study, the legislative timetable and the plans concerned;
  (b)	of the respective numbers of government records (i) appraised by the Government Records Service ("GRS") upon request, (ii) transferred to GRS for further appraisal, (iii) transferred to GRS for retention and (iv) destroyed with the consent of the GRS Director, by various policy bureaux and government departments in each of the two periods from 25 March to 30 June 2012 and from 1 July to 31 December 2012;
  (c)	apart from issuing General Circular No. 2/2009 "Mandatory Records Management Requirements" to implement a number of mandatory requirements for records management, whether the authorities had put in place any specific measure to ensure that, during the change of term of government, various policy bureaux and government departments would retain all government records and transfer them to the next-term Government or to GRS for management, and that they would not destroy any government record without the consent of the GRS Director;
  (d)	whether the authorities will consider transferring expeditiously records of those closed cases that involved important government policies to GRS for retention and for access by the public; if they will not, of the reasons for that; and
  (e)	given that it was mentioned in the Director of Audit's Report No. 59 that, regarding the two salient requirements on direct land grants made at nil or nominal premium in the past for private hospital development, the authorities had been unable to trace in the old records the reasons why those requirements had not been strictly and consistently included in the land grant documents concerned when the decisions on such land grants were made, whether the authorities will consider reviewing the existing practices in creating files and records, in order to ensure that important policy decisions made by the Government and the justifications concerned are put on record; if they will, of the specific scope and progress of the review as well as the plans concerned; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : The Chief Secretary for Administration

*10. Hon TANG Ka-piu to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the electricity expenditure of government departments and public organizations, the Government's subsidies on electricity expenditure for specific industries, and electricity tariffs currently charged by the two power companies in Hong Kong ("the two power companies"), will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	of the trends on electricity consumption and expenditure of various government bureaux and departments in the past five years, and the 10 bureaux/departments with the highest electricity expenditure;
  (b)	whether it knows the trends on electricity consumption and expenditure of various statutory bodies in the past five years; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
  (c)	whether it has assessed the differences in electricity expenditure of government offices located in different districts arising from the difference in electricity tariffs charged by the two power companies, and whether the Government has set appropriate energy saving targets for offices in different districts in the light of such differences in expenditure; if it has, of the details, including the number of offices meeting such targets; if not, the reasons for that;
  (d)	whether it knows the electricity expenditure of those 24-hour data centres set up in government departments and public organizations in the past five years;
  (e)	whether the Government will consider providing subsidies on electricity expenditure for the data centres of the "six industries where Hong Kong enjoys clear advantages" mentioned in the 2009-2010 Policy Address (i.e. education services, medical services, testing and certification, environmental industries, innovation and technology, and cultural and creative industries) so as to promote the development of such industries; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; whether the authorities have estimated the impact of developing such data centres on the growth of electricity consumption in future; and
  (f)	as there are comments that the regressive structures of electricity tariffs (i.e. lower rates for higher consumption) applied by the two power companies on customers of high electricity consumption have become an incentive for such customers to consume more electricity, whether it knows the details of the regressive rates of electricity tariffs offered by the two power companies to customers of high electricity consumption in the past five years; whether the authorities will require the two power companies to apply a standard progressive tariff structure on domestic customers, commercial customers with lower electricity consumption as well as commercial customers with high electricity consumption when the authorities conduct the interim review of the Scheme of Control Agreements with the two power companies this year; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

*11. Hon NG Leung-sing to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that there is a trend of Taiwan's offshore Renminbi ("RMB") business catching up with that of Hong Kong. The business permitted to be launched in the first round already includes currency exchange, deposit-taking, loans, remittances, trade settlements and wealth management products, etc. Moreover, it is not necessary to make application for individual types of business and there is no quarterly conversion quota for trade settlements. Such arrangements seem to be more favourable than those for Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it has studied the development of offshore RMB business of the financial centres in other places; if it has, whether the Government has compared their competitive edges with those of Hong Kong in terms of offshore RMB business development, and whether it has studied how Hong Kong should enhance its competitiveness in this respect and cooperate with the places concerned in developing such business; if not, of the reasons for that?

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

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

In recent years, a number of water mains burst incidents occurred in Hong Kong, causing serious disruption to road traffic and inconvenience to the public. The Water Supplies Department ("WSD") has indicated that it is tackling the problem with a multi-pronged approach, including proactive burst prevention by leakage detection, replacement and rehabilitation of aged water mains under the Water Mains Replacement and Rehabilitation ("R&R") Programme and implementation of water pressure management. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	of the respective numbers of reports of water mains bursts involving fresh and flush water pipes in various districts received by WSD in each of the years from 2010 to 2012; of the average and longest times taken by WSD to isolate the burst mains after receiving the reports; of the number of water mains which had already been included in the R&R Programme when they burst, pending replacement or rehabilitation;
  (b)	of the respective numbers of water mains the replacement and rehabilitation works of which have been completed, are still in progress and are pending since the introduction of the R&R Programme in 2000;
  (c)	of the key districts in which the water mains will be replaced and rehabilitated under the R&R Programme from now on until 2015, as well as the total length of such water mains;
  (d)	of the locations of the pipe sections at which WSD has installed GSM noise loggers with wireless data transmission capability for the purpose of stepping up leakage detection on water mains, as well as the findings in summarizing and analysing the collected data; whether it has assessed if the measure can achieve the intended results; if it has, of the outcome;
  (e)	of the specific measures implemented by the authorities to address the problem of water mains bursts and leaks by means of water pressure management, as well as the progress and effectiveness of the implementation of such measures; and
  (f)	whether the Government will introduce new measures to prevent and deal with water mains bursts and leaks; if it will, of the specific content of the measures, as well as the manpower and costs involved?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

*13. Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG to ask: (Translation)

Some persons with disabilities ("PWDs") have said that the current system for processing Disability Allowance ("DA") is very backward and outdated. For example, persons with different types of disabilities are treated differently and quite a number of PWDs with genuine needs have not been granted DA. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:

• (a)	(i) the number of cases granted the Normal Disability Allowance ("NDA"), (ii) the number of cases granted the Higher Disability Allowance ("HDA"), (iii) the average age of those granted DA, and (iv) the number of applications not granted DA, in each of the past three years (set out in the table below); Type of disabilities 2010 2011 2012 (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) Loss of functions of two limbs Loss of functions of both hands or all fingers and both thumbs Loss of functions of both feet Total loss of sight Total paralysis (quadriplegia) Paraplegia Illness, injury or deformity resulting in being bedridden Any other conditions including visceral diseases resulting in total disablement Organic brain syndrome Mental retardation Psychosis Neurosis Personality disorder Any other conditions resulting in total mental disablement Hearing impairment Others
  (b)	the numbers of DA cases of various validity periods approved by the Government in each of the past three years (set out in the table below); and Validity period 2010 2011 2012 Less than 6 months 6 months Over 6 months - up to 1 year Over 1 year - up to 2 years Over 2 years - up to 3 years Over 3 years No expiry period
  (c)	the numbers of cases in which changes had been made to DA received by PWDs in each of the past three years (set out in the table below), as well as the reasons for such changes? Type 2010 2011 2012 HDA changed to NDA NDA changed to HDA HDA changed to not being granted DA NDA changed to not being granted DA

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

*14. Hon Abraham SHEK to ask:

On 3 August 2012, the Town Planning Board announced amendments to the draft Wan Chai Outline Zoning Plan No. S/H5/26. One of the amendments was the rezoning of the terraces and the stepped streets including Sik On Street and Schooner Street in Sau Wa Fong area as well as St. Francis Street, St. Francis Yard and Kwong Ming Street from "Residential (Group A)", "Residential (Group C)" ("R(C)"), "G/IC" and "Open Space" to area shown as "Road". It has been learnt that certain terraces and stepped streets in the Sau Wa Fong area, which have been rezoned from "Residential" to "Road", include land privately owned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	whether rezoning parts of private land currently used as right of way or scavenging lane from "Residential" to "Road" use is a normal practice in town planning;
  (b)	of the number of similar rezoning cases in other districts in the past 10 years; and
  (c)	given that the rezoning of parts of private land as "Road" will make the owners concerned unable to take into account the site area of those parts of land zoned as "Road" in calculating the plot ratio for redevelopment purpose, whether such owners will be compensated for diminution of their redevelopment right?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

*15. Hon LEUNG Che-cheung to ask: (Translation)

According to media reports, since 2010, the Government has sold a total of 52 residential sites which may provide about 21 900 flats, but so far only six projects have been granted the consent to commence building works, involving 3 673 flats, while the remaining sites are still vacant, involving 18 200 residential flats. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	of the details of the residential sites provided to the market by the authorities by methods of land disposal such as auction, tender and lease modification/land exchange, etc. since the financial year of 2010-2011 (set out in the table below); Site location Disposal method Number of residential flats which may be constructed Date on which the developer obtained the site Date of receipt of the consent to commence building works Last date on which the developer must obtain the Occupation Permit
  (b)	given that the developers of development projects are required to complete the construction of the specified minimum gross floor area and obtain Occupation Permits from the Building Authority within the Building Covenant period ("the period") as stated in the land grant documents or lease conditions, of the details of the criteria currently adopted by the authorities for setting the period; whether developers who apply for and are approved of extending the period are subject to any penalties apart from having to pay additional land premiums (if any); if they are, of the penalties; if not, the reasons for that; whether the authorities had rejected in the past five years any application for extending the period; if they had, how the authorities followed up such cases; under what circumstances the authorities will resume the land; and
  (c)	whether the authorities have planned to set a shorter period in the land grant documents or lease conditions in the future so as to shorten the time between land disposal and the sale of residential flats in the market?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

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

In the 1950s, the Government launched a civil servant housing scheme to enable civil servants to set up civil servants' cooperative building societies ("cooperative societies") under the Cooperative Societies Ordinance (Cap. 33) and apply for land grants and low-interest loans from the Government for building homes for civil servants ("civil servants' quarters"). As the titles to such quarters belong to the cooperative societies concerned, owners of individual flats who wish to sell their flats have to first obtain consent of 75% of the members to dissolve the cooperative society concerned to enable each individual flat to have its own sub-deed, and then apply to the Lands Department for revocation of the restriction on the transfer of title ("transfer restriction") and pay for the premium concerned before they may sell their flats freely. On the other hand, as quite a number of owners of civil servants' quarters are old and their children are living separately, they prefer to move to accommodation that better suits their needs and requires less housekeeping efforts, and therefore, they wish to sell their flats or apply for reverse mortgage, but they are unable to do so due to failure in obtaining consent of 75% of the members of the cooperative societies concerned to dissolve the societies. Moreover, it takes quite a long time to complete the procedures for drawing up sub-deeds and applying for revocation of transfer restriction. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	of the number and respective names of the existing civil servants' quarters and the total number of flats therein; the number of cooperative societies dissolved so far, together with a breakdown by year of dissolution of such societies;
  (b)	given the shortage of land supply in the urban areas in Hong Kong and the need to put resources to optimal use, whether the authorities will consider amending the outdated legal provisions relating to civil servants' quarters, so as to enable owners of civil servants' quarters to sell their flats more easily, in order to release the relevant land lots for other uses; and
  (c)	given that some owners of civil servants' quarters have indicated that the existing procedures for drawing up sub-deeds and applying for revocation of transfer restriction are complicated and time-consuming, whether the authorities will review the existing policy to assist the owners of civil servants' quarters who wish to draw up sub-deeds to expedite the completion of the procedures for revocation of transfer restriction, in order to enable them to find a more suitable home early?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Civil Service

*17. Dr Hon Joseph LEE to ask: (Translation)

At present, some special schools provide boarding services and also employ allied health and nursing staff to take care of the special needs of the boarders (including those who lack self-care skills or have complicated and severe health problems). Regarding the nursing manpower for boarding special schools, will the Government inform this Council of:

• (a)	the number of boarders in special schools in the territory at present and, among them, the respective numbers of those lacking self-care skills and those having complicated and severe health problems;
  (b)	the total number of nurses employed by boarding special schools in the territory at present and, among them, the respective numbers of those on day shift and those on night shift (with a breakdown by type of schools); and
  (c)	the existing criteria adopted by the authorities for assessing the nursing manpower required by various types of boarding special schools, and the student-to-nurse target ratio (with a breakdown by type of schools); whether the authorities have reviewed the aforesaid criteria and ratio to ensure that there are sufficient nurses in boarding special schools to provide nursing services for the students?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

*18. Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT to ask: (Translation)

Nowadays, while the world has entered an era of digital economy and the Government has also pledged support for the innovation and technology industry, some members of the industry have pointed out that the small and medium enterprises in the industry are facing numerous problems (including shortage of capital and difficulties in obtaining various types of licences, hiring staff, setting up offices and identifying targets of investment, etc.) in their endeavours to expand the local, mainland or overseas markets. They have further pointed out that the role of the Government in encouraging and supporting the industry has to be enhanced. For example, while the Government has established the Innovation and Technology Fund ("ITF"), which is tasked mainly to provide financial support for the development of applied research and development ("R&D") projects which contribute to exploitation of creative ideas as well as upgrading of technology levels by industries in Hong Kong, it has not taken the lead in using the technology products developed locally and therefore fails to set an example for the private enterprises to follow. Moreover, no comprehensive policies have been formulated by the Government to promote green technology, and the support provided by the authorities to the industry is inadequate, resulting in unsatisfactory development of such technology. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	whether the Government has currently put in place policies or guidelines requesting government departments to give priority to using local technology products, in particular the achievements of government-funded technological R&D projects, for example, whether it has introduced local technology products for use inside the Government as a pilot scheme and then promoted them among private enterprises; if it has not, of the reasons for that; if it has, whether it will extend the scheme to more government departments and fields;
  (b)	as some members of the industry have pointed out that all the local technology-based enterprises funded by ITF have been assessed and screened by experts, and are recognized as having potential for development before being allocated with public funds in support of their development, of the reasons for the Government's lack of enthusiasm in using the research achievements of these enterprises; as well as the plans to ameliorate this situation;
  (c)	of the existing measures and plans of the Government to provide support to local technology-based enterprises and help them develop the mainland market; and
  (d)	whether the Government has studied ways to further encourage the R&D, application and promotion of green technology, for example, whether the Government has explored ways to adopt green technology in the development of data centres; if it has, of the specific policies and support measures; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

*19. Hon Claudia MO to ask: (Translation)

The Legislative Council passed amendments to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance (Cap. 169) in 2006 to raise the penalties for offences relating to cruelty to animals, with a view to curbing animal cruelty acts by enhancing the deterrent effect. However, some members of the public have relayed to me that the recent case of cat abuse which occurred at Shun Tin Estate and a number of other animal cruelty cases show that the situation has not improved so far, and this may be related to the fact that the sentencing for convicted cases of cruelty to animals in the past was too lenient. It has been learnt that the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, the Hong Kong Police Force, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Hong Kong) set up an inter-departmental special working group ("working group") in 2011 to analyze the penalties imposed on the convicted persons by the court. If the penalty imposed by the court is considered to be too lenient, it will make recommendation to the Department of Justice ("DoJ") as necessary. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:

• (a)	the numbers of reports involving cruelty to animals, the numbers of prosecutions instituted and the penalties imposed on the convicted persons in each of the years from 2006 to 2012 (as set out in the table below); Figures 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 No. of reports No. of persons prosecuted No. of persons convicted Penalties imposed on the convicted persons (i)   Immediate imprisonment (ii)  Community service order (iii)  Probation order (iv)  Bound-over/Conditional discharge (v)   Fine (vi)  Suspended sentence Details of the penalties imposed on the convicted persons (i)   Average term of imprisonment imposed (ii)  Average number of hours of community service order (iii) Average amount of fine imposed
  (b)	concrete results of the work of the working group (including such aspects as facilitating the cooperation among departments, the number of court cases reviewed and detailed analysis conducted on the relevant cases); and
  (c)	the criteria based on which DoJ determines the appropriateness of the penalties imposed by the court upon receipt of the recommendations made by the working group on the cases in which the penalties were considered by the group as too lenient?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

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

I have received complaints from several members of the public in recent months that the sunlight reflected from the glass curtain walls of a number of buildings completed in recent years has affected the daily lives of residents in the residential buildings in the vicinity. For example, the curved design of the glass curtain walls on the lower floors of the International Commerce Centre ("ICC") in West Kowloon has created a spotlight effect of a concave mirror. The glass curtain walls converge and reflect sunlight to buildings in the housing estates in the vicinity (including the Island Harbourview, the Sorrento, The Waterfront, The Arch and The Harbourside), seriously affecting the daily lives of the residents. These residents need to draw the curtains or wear sunglasses from 6:00 am to 7:00 am and 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm every day, so as to block dazzling light. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

• (a)	whether the authorities had received in the past three years any complaint from members of the public about the nuisance caused by reflected glare from glass curtain walls of buildings (including ICC); if they had, of the details of the complaints and follow-up work; whether there were cases in which the relevant problem was successfully solved; if so, of the details, if not, the reasons for that;
  (b)	of the number of buildings with glass curtain walls as the primary design of the external walls among the building projects being vetted by the authorities; their locations and whether there are residential buildings around; among such buildings, the number of blocks or the number of building clusters with a curved design of glass curtain walls, which will thus converge and reflect light to the buildings in the vicinity; whether the authorities will request the developers to amend the building plans of such projects or to adopt remedial measures, so as to prevent residents in the vicinity from being affected by reflected glare from the glass curtain walls of such buildings in future;
  (c)	whether the authorities have formulated objective criteria for assessing the impact of reflected glare from the external walls of buildings on members of the public; if they have, of the details of the criteria; if not, whether they will formulate the relevant criteria;
  (d)	whether the authorities have considered including light pollution that may be caused by reflected glare from the external walls of buildings in the scope of study of the environmental impact assessment studies; if they have, of the specific timetable; if not, the reasons for that; and
  (e)	in the light of the rapid development of society, whether the authorities will include the problem of reflected glare from the external walls of buildings in the study on introducing legislation on light pollution; if they will, of the progress of consultation and legislation; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

* For written reply

III. Members' Motions

1.	Proposed resolution under section 34(4) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance Hon Charles Peter MOK to move the following motion: Resolved that in relation to the Telecommunications (Telecommunications Apparatus) (Exemption from Licensing) (Amendment) Order 2012, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 190 of 2012, and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 9 January 2013, the period for amending subsidiary legislation referred to in section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1) be extended under section 34(4) of that Ordinance to the meeting of 27 February 2013.
2.	Assisting the middle class Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT to move the following motion: (Translation) That the middle-class people in Hong Kong have all along 'paid large amounts of tax but enjoyed few welfare benefits', which, coupled with rampant inflation, persistently high property prices and uncertain economic prospects in recent years, results in their facing heavy pressure in their career and livelihood; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to put forward proactive measures focusing on areas such as taxation, housing, healthcare, transport, family-friendliness, education and further studies, as well as personal career development, so that public policies can better cater for the interests and aspirations of the middle-class people. Amendments to the motion (i) Hon KWOK Wai-keung to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "for a long time," after "That"; to add "develop Hong Kong into a 'livable city', and" after "urges the Government to"; to add "living environment," after "family-friendliness,"; to delete "so that" after "personal career development," and substitute with "including sparing no effort to promote the enactment of legislation on standard working hours and formulating measures for universal retirement protection in Hong Kong, so as to create a quality working and living environment, and enable"; and to delete "can" after "public policies" and substitute with "to". (ii) Dr Hon KWOK Ka-ki to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", as" after "That"; to delete "; in this connection" after "career and livelihood"; to add "arts, recreation and sports," after "education and further studies,"; and to add "; the relevant measures should include: Taxation - (1) to expeditiously review the maximum property price for stamp duty concession by changing it from the existing $2,000,000 to $3,000,000 to alleviate the home acquisition burden of the middle-class people; (2) to introduce a new 'tax allowance for renting private residential units' to enable middle-class people who have no self-owned properties but rent private residential units to enjoy tax concessions, subject to a ceiling of $36,000; (3) to increase the Personal Allowance under Salaries Tax to $126,000, and increase the Married Person's Allowance to $300,000; (4) to increase the Child allowance (the first to ninth child) to $70,000, and increase the tax allowance for a newborn baby to $70,000 in the relevant year of assessment; Housing - (5) to expeditiously construct Home Ownership Scheme ('HOS') flats and provide at least 10 000 HOS flats each year, so as to reconstruct the home acquisition ladder for the middle-class people; (6) to immediately construct subsidized housing on idle Government land lots to increase the housing supply, thereby alleviating the home acquisition burden of the middle-class people; Healthcare - (7) to step up the regulation of private hospitals, and prevent private hospitals from degenerating into profit-making organizations, so as to alleviate the financial burden of the middle-class people arising from seeking medical treatment at private hospitals; (8) to allocate more resources to resolve the problem of unduly long waiting time for specialist services at public hospitals, so as to enable the middle-class people to receive comprehensive healthcare protection; Transport - (9) to review the existing mechanisms for setting public transport fares, so as to reduce the transport expenses of the middle-class people; Family-friendly policies - (10) to expeditiously set standard working hours to enhance the quality of life of the middle-class people, and implement family-friendly policies to enable employees to discharge work and family obligations at the same time; Education and further studies - (11) to comprehensively review the existing student financial assistance system; raise the asset limits, lower the loan interest rates and extend the repayment periods of the Tertiary Student Finance Scheme - Publicly-funded Programmes; at the same time, lower the loan interest rates and extend the repayment periods of the Non-means Tested Loan Scheme, so as to alleviate the tuition fee burden of children of the middle-class families; (12) to comprehensively subsidize sub-degree programmes and review the articulation support for sub-degree programmes, and step up the regulation of self-financing post-secondary institutions, so as to increase their programme quality and recognition, and enable children of middle-class families to have more opportunities to receive tertiary education; (13) to review the Direct Subsidy Scheme ('DSS') policy on secondary schools and step up the regulation of DSS secondary schools, so as to maintain the tuition fees of DSS secondary schools at a reasonable level and alleviate the financial burden of middle-class families; Arts, recreation and sports - (14) to rent out idle Government properties to arts organizations and offer rental concessions, so as to encourage the middle-class people to participate in cultural and artistic creation; (15) to build additional libraries, community centres, indoor stadiums, swimming pools and sports grounds, etc., in various districts to increase the opportunities of the middle-class people to participate in arts, recreation and sports activities; and Personal development - (16) to provide low-interest loans and rental concessions to middle-class people intending to start up businesses in creative media, cultural industries and high-tech industries" immediately before the full stop. (iii) Hon Kenneth LEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "the values of the middle class lie in autonomy, self-reliance and having the freedom to make choices;" after "That"; to add "reproduction," after "housing, healthcare, transport,"; and to add "; at the same time, the Government must perfect the market monitoring mechanism and reconstruct a bona fide free market; and maintain the autonomy and vitality of the middle class through the positive forces of the free market" immediately before the full stop. (iv) Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", given the collusion between the Government and the business sector, consortium monopoly and privatization of public services," after "That"; to add ", compared with large consortia," after "in Hong Kong"; to add "caused by public utilities' incessant fee increases for the sole pursuit of private interests without regard to social responsibility, and the Government's connivance of consortium monopoly" after "rampant inflation"; to add "under 'developer hegemony'" after "high property prices"; and to add "including breaking monopoly, halting privatization of public services, implementing a democratic political system, increasing public expenditure, and conducting studies and formulating proposals on the provision of retirement, disability, death and unemployment protection in the form of social insurance," after "personal career development,". (v) Hon SIN Chung-kai to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", as" after "That"; to delete "; in this connection" after "career and livelihood"; and to add "; the relevant measures should include: (1) to increase the Child Allowance from the existing $63,000 per child to $100,000, and raise the basic allowance under Salaries Tax and Personal Assessment; (2) to introduce 'tax deduction for residential rentals' for a duration of 15 years of assessment, subject to a deduction ceiling of $100,000 per year; (3) to abolish the levy on employers of foreign domestic helpers; (4) to provide adequate supply of land and increase the subsidized housing production, so as to maintain the annual supply of public and private residential housing at no less than 50 000 units; (5) having regard to the burden arising from population ageing and medical inflation, to allocate additional resources to improve public healthcare services, and provide tax concessions to people taking out medical insurance, so as to alleviate middle-class people's burden of healthcare expenses; (6) to introduce daily, weekly and monthly tickets applicable to all MTR rail lines; (7) to formulate family-friendly policies, enact legislation on paid paternity leave for employees, and increase child care and elderly care services, so as to assist family carers; (8) to immediately implement 15-year free education covering kindergartens, primary schools and secondary schools; and (9) to offer $40,000 'tax deduction for children's tertiary education' to the parents of students enrolled in local and non-local full-time post-secondary programmes" immediately before the full stop. (vi) Hon Frankie YICK to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", as" after "That"; to delete "; in this connection" after "career and livelihood"; and to add "; the relevant measures should include: (1) to establish a middle class commission to comprehensively review the policies and measures relating to the middle class, and put forward concrete and comprehensive corresponding strategies in a focused manner to assist middle-class families; (2) to increase the supply of residential and commercial land to ease property prices and launch more small and medium residential 'flats with limited floor area' to assist middle-class families in acquiring their homes, and at the same time, increase the supply of shops and offices to assist the start-up of businesses; (3) to introduce a tax allowance for rentals for middle-class people who have no properties but rent private residential units; (4) to extend the entitlement period for deduction for home loan interest to the end of mortgage repayment periods; (5) to extend the lowest stamp duty of $100 to cover starter homes which are worth $3,000,000 or below, subject to the condition that this measure is applicable to first-time home buyers only; (6) to widen the tax bands for the Salaries Tax and lower the marginal rate, so as to reduce the Salaries Tax and alleviate the burden of marginal middle-class people; (7) to relax the restrictions on the dependent parent or dependent grandparent tax deduction by relaxing the eligibility requirement from living in the same unit to living in the same housing estate; (8) to introduce tax deduction for medical insurance contributions, and at the same time, provide tax deduction for medical examinations, so as to encourage people to undergo such examinations regularly; (9) to introduce a tax allowance for children's education to alleviate families' burden arising from children's education expenses; (10) to expeditiously implement 15-year free education, and before its implementation, completely abolish the restrictions on kindergarten vouchers; (11) to introduce an elderly care voucher of $5,000 per month for elderly people to choose residential and elderly services, so as to alleviate middle-class families' burden arising from supporting elderly family members; (12) to substantially increase the salaries tax deduction for self-education expenses and the subsidy under the Continuing Education Fund to motivate people to proactively enhance their personal competitiveness; (13) 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; and (14) 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" immediately before the full stop. (vii) Hon Charles Peter MOK to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "; the middle-class people understand that in respect of people's livelihood, the Government must formulate long-term policies on economic development and industrial support so as to create quality employment opportunities" after "career and livelihood"; to add "overall economic transformation in society," after "education and further studies,"; and to add ", and build a livable Hong Kong; the relevant measures should include: (1) to expeditiously implement 15-year free education, and take measures to upgrade the quality of early childhood education; (2) to increase university places to provide middle-class students with more opportunities for further studies; (3) to review the cap on the amount of reimbursable course fees and the number of reimbursement claims under the Continuing Education Fund ('CEF'), and the criteria for approving reimbursable courses under CEF; (4) to perfect the Non-means Tested Loan Scheme, including commencing the computation of loan interests after borrowers' graduation and lowering the loan interests; and (5) to inject capital to re-activate the Small and Medium Enterprises Training Fund, so as to enable more middle-class people in employment to have training opportunities" immediately before the full stop. (viii) Hon NG Leung-sing to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "strive to develop the economy, upgrade the levels of industries and broaden the spectrum of industries, with a view to providing sufficient quality employment opportunities, and to" after "urges the Government to". (ix) Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "law," after "such as taxation,"; and to add "; the relevant measures should include: (1) to set up a 'loan fund for occupation switching' to assist eligible persons in becoming self-employed persons or starting up businesses; (2) to further expand the coverage of legal aid schemes, and relax the asset limit requirements under the Ordinary Legal Aid Scheme and the Supplementary Legal Aid Scheme, so as to enable more middle-class people to make applications; (3) to conduct a study on introducing tax deduction measures for children's education expenses to alleviate middle-class families' burden in respect of their children's education; and offer tax concessions to middle-class families who proactively take out medical insurance; (4) to raise the Child Allowance and Dependant Parent Allowance, and relax the limit on the number of years of deduction for home loan interest; (5) to conduct a study on providing middle-class families with a subsidy for renting private residential units; (6) to proactively implement measures for lowering the fees and charges of mandatory provident funds; and (7) to continue to implement measures for the middle-class people, such as tax rebates, rates exemption and electricity charge subsidy" immediately before the full stop. Public Officers to attend : Secretary for Transport and Housing Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Secretary for Food and Health
3.	Optimizing the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance for the unemployed Hon James TIEN to move the following motion: (Translation) That this Council urges the Government to expeditiously adopt effective measures to motivate those with the ability to work to be self-reliant and eradicate abuse of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance for the unemployed, so as to focus resources on helping people with genuine needs. Amendments to the motion (i) Hon Frankie YICK to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", as the proportion of unemployed people receiving Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ('CSSA') for a long period of time has continued to rise," after "That"; to delete "the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance" after "abuse of" and substitute with "CSSA"; and to add ", including: (1) to actively consider setting up a two-year time limit for receiving CSSA for the unemployed by those able-bodied persons, upon the expiry of which any application for continued receipt must be examined by an independent case review committee and approved on a case-to-case basis; (2) to optimize the existing Extension of the Integrated Employment Assistance Scheme under the Support for Self-reliance Scheme, and require those able-bodied recipients who have not re-joined the workplace to engage in the community work arranged by the Social Welfare Department ('SWD') on a full-time basis for five days per week and eight hours per day, and let them earn an income at the rate of the minimum wage, participate in job-seeking and employment training, maintain a healthy mindset towards working, and at the same time make the best use of their abilities to contribute to the society; and (3) to step up monitoring by SWD to ensure that there are no abuses of CSSA by those able-bodied recipients of CSSA for the unemployed, and besides exempting those elderly people, single-parent families and people with disabilities in receipt of CSSA for the unemployed from the aforesaid proposed measures, the authorities should also use the additional social resources reaped from reforming the relevant system to strengthen the support for the disadvantaged groups with genuine needs, including the aforesaid people" immediately before the full stop. (ii) Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", as there is no legislation prohibiting age discrimination in Hong Kong, making it extremely difficult for middle-aged and elderly people with low education attainment to find jobs, with some of them having to apply for Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ('CSSA')," after "That"; to delete "to motivate" after "effective measures" and substitute with ", including reviving labour-intensive industries, human services, agriculture and other industries for the development of economic diversification; increasing training opportunities, establishing career ladders for different trades, creating more employment opportunities, and promoting a family-friendly working environment; and optimizing the system of CSSA for the unemployed by relaxing the disregarded earnings mechanism to encourage employment and motivate"; to delete "and" after "self-reliant" and substitute with ", and taking measures to"; and to delete "the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance" after "abuse of" and substitute with "CSSA". (iii) Hon TAM Yiu-chung to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", in order to encourage Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ('CSSA') recipients to re-enter society for employment," after "That"; to add ", including raising the maximum exemption amount of 'disregarded earnings' under the Support for Self-reliance Scheme, enhancing employment training and employment counselling services, and encouraging employers to employ CSSA recipients, etc., so as" after "effective measures"; to delete "and eradicate" after "self-reliant" and substitute with ", avoid the occurrence of"; to delete "the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance" after "abuse of" and substitute with "CSSA"; and to delete "so as to" after "unemployed," and substitute with "and". (iv) Hon TANG Ka-piu to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", in view of Hong Kong's imbalanced economic structure, which overly tilts towards service industries leading to few choices of local employment and narrow career prospects, making it difficult for working-age people to play to their strengths and even more difficult in particular for middle-aged people over the age of 50 to find jobs, coupled with exorbitant transport fares, inadequate community child care service, and the serious situation of over-time work without compensation, which make it difficult for some unemployed people to find jobs in order to leave the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ('CSSA') net," after "That"; to delete "adopt effective measures to motivate those with the ability to work to be self-reliant and eradicate abuse of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance" after "expeditiously" and substitute with "optimize the system of CSSA"; and to delete "so as to focus resources on helping people with genuine needs" immediately before the full stop and substitute with "so that in addition to financial assistance, unemployed persons can also access comprehensive employment planning, including employment counselling and trial placement, etc., and in case they are unable to find jobs for a long time, they may be given subsidies to participate in skills upgrading programmes recognized by the Qualifications Framework; besides, the Government should also legislate to set standard working hours, and provide long-duration after-school care service and child care service for parents receiving CSSA to facilitate them to work and leave the CSSA net; in the long run, the Government should improve the economic structure and create more employment opportunities, so as to let CSSA recipients secure suitable jobs, play to their strengths and realize their aspirations". (v) Hon CHAN Chi-chuen to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add ", as the situation of Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ('CSSA') recipients being adversely labelled has become increasingly serious in recent years," after "That"; to delete "expeditiously" after "urges the Government to"; to delete "motivate" after "effective measures to" and substitute with "assist"; to delete "to be self-reliant and eradicate abuse of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance" after "ability to work" and substitute with "in being self-reliant, and review the system of CSSA"; and to delete "focus resources on helping people with genuine needs" immediately before the full stop and substitute with "help needy people to resolve their employment difficulties". (vi) Hon Ronny TONG to move the following amendment: (Translation) To add "the unfair distribution of wealth has widened the rich-poor gap and caused split among people of different social strata; on the other hand, the Government's poverty alleviation measures have all along been ineffective and unable to assist low-skilled workers in finding jobs to meet their family financial needs, while the labelling and stigmatization of receipts of Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ('CSSA') have deepened the gulf in society; in this connection," after "That"; to delete "motivate" after "effective measures to" and substitute with "promote employment opportunities for the grassroots, enabling"; to delete "and eradicate abuse of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance for the unemployed, so as to" after "self-reliant" and substitute with "and thereby not only eliminating the chances of abusing CSSA for the unemployed but also helping to"; and to add "; the relevant measures should include: (1) to introduce a low-income subsidy scheme, which helps to resolve the problem of working poverty in the short run and serves as a measure to eradicate poverty in the long run; (2) to enhance care and support services for grass-roots families, such as child care, so as to release the labour force of housewives; (3) to develop community economy, so that grass-roots and low-skilled people can easily work and find jobs in communities; and (4) to strengthen the job-matching services offered by the Social Welfare Department to recipients of CSSA for the unemployed, and ensure that the relevant services can focus on recipients' personal strengths, skills and work experience" immediately before the full stop. (vii) Hon LEUNG Yiu-chung to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete ", so as to focus resources on helping people with genuine needs" immediately before the full stop and substitute with ", and set up additional open bazaars and hawker permitted areas in each district and re-issue hawker licences to increase employment opportunities for grassroots and promote the development of community economy". Amendment to Hon LEUNG Yiu-chung's amendment Hon Christopher CHUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation) To delete ", and set up" before "additional open bazaars" and substitute with "and, with the consent of District Councils, study the setting up of". Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

Clerk to the Legislative Council