A 13/14-25

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 7 May 2014 at 11:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers



1.No. 99-Early Retirement Ex-gratia Payment Fund for Aided Secondary School Teachers
Financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2013
(to be presented by Secretary for Education)

2.Report No. 17/13-14 of the House Committee on Consideration of Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments
(to be presented by Hon Andrew LEUNG, Chairman of the House Committee)

II. Questions for Written Replies



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


PMQ is a revitalization project implemented at the former Police Married Quarters on Hollywood Road. Musketeers Education and Culture Charitable Foundation Limited ("Musketeers Foundation") and three co-organizers have been selected to preserve this heritage site and transform it into a creative industries landmark. PMQ has officially opened, and PMQ Management Company Limited ("the management company") is responsible for its operation. A number of budding entrepreneurs in creative industries who have moved into PMQ have complained to me that although PMQ is plagued with problems, e.g. nine out of 10 shops at the site are vacant, a lot of renovation works are still in progress, most of the eateries which can attract visitors will not commence business until June this year, and there is also a lack of vending machines, the management company requests them to start operation and pay rents immediately. In addition, some members of the public who have visited PMQ have complained to me that apart from the poor environment due to the works being carried out at the site, the directional signs are inadequate, the toilets are not opened yet, and there has been an accident in which members of the public were injured because of the works. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)of the nominal rent received from the Musketeers Foundation for the PMQ preservation project; whether it knows the annual management fee payable to the management company by the Musketeers Foundation;

    (2)whether it knows the number of units available for lease at PMQ; of the average per-square-foot area and rent of such units;

    (3)whether it knows the respective current numbers of units at PMQ which (i) have been leased out and started operation, (ii) have been leased out and have renovation works completed but not started operation yet, (iii) have been leased out and have renovation works being carried out; and (iv) have not been leased out, together with a breakdown by floor level (including the basement);

    (4)whether it knows if the management company has required all the tenants at PMQ to pay rents and start operation from April this year; if it has, of the number of tenants involved;

    (5)given that one of the terms in the authorities' invitation for proposals on the revitalization project was "[t]o charge nominal rent for the site to encourage a wide variety of activities …[which] may not be profitable", whether the authorities will request the management company to collect rents from the tenants only after the occupancy rate of PMQ has exceeded 80% and the ancillary facilities at the site are in place, so as to support and nurture local budding creative enterprises and achieve the original objectives of the revitalization project; if they will not, of the reasons for that, and whether they have assessed if this will cause the tenants at the site great difficulties;

    (6)of the list of the government officials and composition of the advisory committee responsible for vetting, approving and monitoring the PMQ project; whether it knows if any of the persons-in-charge or shareholders of PMQ's tenants have interests related to these officials, committee members, members of the Musketeers Foundation or the management company, or the relatives of these persons; if they have such interests, of the number of these tenants and their names;

    (7)whether it knows if any of PMQ's tenants (including the persons-in-charge and shareholders) are personnel responsible for selecting tenants or have interests related to such personnel; if there are such tenants, of their number, and why the authorities allow such a situation;

    (8)since it has been reported that a number of famous stores or renowned brands will move into PMQ, whether the authorities know the number of famous stores or renowned brands which have signed tenancy agreements with the management company;

    (9)whether it has assessed if the admission of famous brand stores or renowned brands to PMQ violates the Government's policy objective of nurturing local budding entrepreneurs in creative industries and establishing local brands through the project, and whether this will indirectly lead to increase in the rents of retail shops in the district; whether the authorities will request the management company to immediately stop negotiating with the famous stores or renowned brands concerned on their tenancies; if no request will be made, of the reasons for that;

    (10)whether it has assessed if issues such as the air quality, hygiene conditions and noise, etc. during renovation of the shops at PMQ will affect the health of members of the public and tourists visiting PMQ or the staff of the shops; whether the Government will bear the legal liability for accidents that may be caused by such works;

    (11)whether it has assessed if the directional signs at PMQ and the staff hired by the management company are sufficient; if the assessment result is in the affirmative, of the average number of directional signs on and staff members assigned for each floor at present; if it is in the negative, the reasons for that;

    (12)whether it knows if the management company cleans the public toilets in PMQ regularly and opens them to members of the public and the shop tenants permanently; if the management company does not, of the reasons for that, and when the toilets will be opened to the public;

    (13)whether it knows if there are eateries currently doing business in PMQ; if so, of the number of such eateries and their business hours; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (14)whether it knows if vending machines have been installed on each floor in PMQ; if so, of the total number of such machines and the goods being sold; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

2. Hon KWOK Wai-keung to ask: (Translation)


In February this year, the Construction Industry Council formulated a labour-supply list on 26 trades in the construction industry. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)whether it knows (i) the mode of employment of workers (being employed or self-employed), (ii) the method of calculation of wages, and (iii) the average number of working hours per week of each worker, in respect of each of the 26 trades at present, and set out such information in Table 1;

    Table 1
    Trade(i)(ii)(iii)
    1.  Bar bender & fixer   
    2.  Carpenter (Formwork)   
    ...   
    25. Trackworker   
    26. Shotfirer   

    (2)whether it knows (i) the number of people employed, (ii) the number of job seekers, (iii) the number of job vacancies, (iv) the vacancy rate, and (v) the number of industrial accidents, in respect of each of the 26 trades in each of the past five years, and set out such figures in tables of the same format as Table 2;

    Table 2 Year: ________

    Trade(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)
    1.  Bar bender & fixer     
    2.  Carpenter (Formwork)     
    ...     
    25. Trackworker     
    26. Shotfirer     

    (3)whether it knows the total number of training courses provided by the Vocational Training Council and the Construction Industry Council (including the training bodies under them) for the 26 trades in the past five years, as well as the (i) name, (ii) years in which the course was offered, (iii) number of training places, (iv) entry requirements, (v) training period, and (vi) employment rate of graduated trainees, in respect of each of the training courses, and set out such information by trade and training body in tables of the same format as Table 3; and

    Table 3 Trade: ________

    Training body(i)(ii)(iii)(iv)(v)(vi)
           
           
           
           
           

    (4)whether the authorities have formulated new measures to attract local people to join the construction industry to work in the 26 trades, and to reduce the manpower wastage in those trades; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

3. Hon Albert CHAN to ask: (Translation)


I have learnt that certain works contractors and consultancy firms were awarded a large number of public works contracts and consultancy study contracts for works projects in the past several years. Some members of the public have expressed the concern that the progress of a large number of public works and consultancy studies may be seriously affected in the event that such companies suddenly close down. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)in each of the past three years, regarding the top three companies which were awarded the highest total value of public works contracts, of (i) their names, (ii) the total value of the contracts awarded to each of them, and (iii) the number of contracts awarded to each of them (set out in table form);

    (2)in each of the past three years, regarding the top three companies which were awarded the highest total value of consultancy study contracts for public works, of (i) their names, (ii) the total value of the contracts awarded to each of them, and (iii) the number of contracts awarded to each of them (set out in table form);

    (3)whether it has analyzed the main reasons for the aforesaid companies being awarded such a large number of public works contracts or consultancy study contracts for works projects; if so, of the findings; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (4)whether it has measures to ensure that the progress of the public works or consultancy studies concerned will not be seriously affected in the event that the aforesaid companies suddenly close down; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

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


It has been reported that there was a sharp upward trend in recent years in the number of cases in which persons who were seeking asylum and making torture claims (collectively referred to as "claims") committed criminal offences during their stay in Hong Kong, and some of the offences were of serious nature. It has also been reported that most of the people interviewed consider that the policies on handling such claims in Hong Kong are too lenient and flawed with loopholes, and such claimants' stay in Hong Kong has created law and order problems. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)of the respective numbers of claims received and accepted by the authorities as at the end of April this year;

    (2)regarding those cases the claims of which were rejected in the past five years, of the average time taken by the authorities to assess the claims and the average length of stay of the claimants in Hong Kong;

    (3)regarding those cases the claims of which were rejected in the past five years, of the respective numbers of claimants who had been absent from screening interviews and those claimants who stayed in Hong Kong throughout the period of appeal or judicial review, with a breakdown by the number of years of their stay in Hong Kong;

    (4)of the following information of the claimants in the past five years: (i) the number of claimants who registered their marriage in Hong Kong; (ii) the total number of Hong Kong-born children of the claimants and the average number of Hong Kong-born children of each claimant; (iii) the number of claimants arrested for alleged contravention of criminal offences (including those under the Immigration Ordinance (Cap. 115)) in Hong Kong before their claims were made, (iv) the number of claimants arrested for criminal offences after they had made the claims, and (v) the number of claimants arrested for illegally taking up employment while their claims were being assessed;

    (5)whether it knows which Southeast Asian countries are States Parties to the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; whether it has conducted any study on the policies of those countries on handling torture claims for its reference, and whether it knows the following information of those countries: (i) the number of claims accepted in the past five years, (ii) the coverage of the humanitarian aid rendered to the claimants, and (iii) their related expenditures each year; and

    (6)given that the Immigration Department implemented a unified mechanism in March this year to assess all non-refoulement claims, of the details of the mechanism and the expected completion time for processing claims which are pending screening?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

5. Hon Frederick FUNG to ask: (Translation)


The Government set up the Lantau Development Advisory Committee ("LDAC") at the beginning of this year. Although LDAC adopted a system of declaration of interests at its first meeting held on 8 March, information on the interests declared by its members has not yet been made public to date. Some groups are concerned that there are problems of potential conflicts of interests as some members of LDAC are associated with developers that have lands on Lantau Island. Regarding the work of LDAC and declaration of interests by its members, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)of the progress of the declaration of interests by LDAC members; what other mechanisms, apart from the system of declaration of interests, that LDAC has in place to ensure that members with potential conflicts of interests will abstain from the discussions and voting on related agenda items;

    (2)of the concepts and objectives of LDAC with regard to the development and conservation of Lantau Island, and whether it will continue to adopt the planning approach contained in the "Concept Plan for Lantau" published by the Government in 2007, i.e. one which balances the development and conservation needs by focusing urban development and major economic infrastructure in North Lantau while protecting the natural environment of Lantau Island; and

    (3)whether the Government will review the objectives, operation and composition of LDAC, and whether it will adopt a broad and neutral approach in collating public views on the development of Lantau Island, so that conservation and sustainable development of Lantau Island will be taken into consideration; if it will not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

6. Hon Charles Peter MOK to ask: (Translation)


It has been reported that OpenSSL, a data encryption technology widely used in electronic network systems, has recently been found, in its version 1.0.1 released on 14 March 2012, to have a security loophole known as Heartbleed. Hackers may make use of the loophole to steal encrypted information (including information protected by key encryption, usernames and passwords, personal financial information, contents of communications, etc.) in web site servers, and they may even crack other network security measures such as firewalls. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)of the Government's (i) internal applications and (ii) the electronic public services, which are currently using the OpenSSL data encryption technology and, among them, those applications and services that previously used or are still using version 1.0.1 of the encryption technology;

    (2)whether it has implemented network security measures in respect of the aforesaid programme loophole to reduce the risks of data leakage; if it has, of the details; whether it has suspended the use of OpenSSL data encryption technology and the electronic public services concerned, or switched to other encryption technologies; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (3)whether it has assessed the impacts of the aforesaid programme loophole on local network security, including (i) which industries other than the finance industry will be seriously affected, (ii) the extent to which those industries will be affected, (iii) whether the information technology personnel in those industries are aware of the impacts, and (iv) whether such personnel are equipped with the skills to remove the risks in question;

    (4)whether it has assessed the impact of the aforesaid security loophole on electronic commerce ("e-commerce"); if it has, of the details; whether it will provide assistance to e-commerce platform users or subsidize the trade to enhance network security; and

    (5)whether the authorities have received any request from private companies for assistance in respect of the aforesaid programme loophole so far; if they have, of the background of the companies requesting for assistance and the assistance offered by the authorities?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

7. Hon Michael TIEN to ask: (Translation)


The first berth of the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal ("KTCT") was commissioned in June 2013, and the terminal was once described by Departures magazine, a US lifestyle magazine, as "the Rolls-Royce of cruise terminals". According to the estimation of the Government, the cruise industry will bring economic benefits which range from $1.5 billion to $2.6 billion a year, and generate 5 300 to 8 900 additional jobs by 2023. The Government has also pointed out that the number of berthings of cruise vessels at KTCT will reach 26 this year, bringing some 130 000 cruise visitors. Yet, since its commissioning, KTCT has been showered with negative reports, including coaches being required to pay gate fees before they are allowed to enter the terminal to pick up visitors, inadequate ancillary transport facilities for travelling to other areas and mismanagement on the part of the terminal operator ("the operator"), etc. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)whether it knows the following information about the cruise vessels berthing at the Ocean Terminal in Tsim Sha Tsui in each of the past five years (set out in table form):
    (i)visitor arrivals;
    (ii)visitor departures; and
    (iii)the number of berthings;

    (2)whether it knows the following information about KTCT from June 2013 to date (set out in table form):
    (i)visitor arrivals;
    (ii)visitor departures;
    (iii)the number of berthings of cruise vessels;
    (iv)average occupancy rate of retail shops;
    (v)attendance of the KTCT Park; and
    (vi)average monthly utilization rate of KTCT's carpark;

    (3)as some members of the public have pointed out that the current means of public transport for commuting to and from KTCT are one green minibus route, one bus route (providing service only on holidays) and taxis only, and that the traffic signs within KTCT are unclear, whether it has found out the causes for these issues from the operator; whether the authorities will formulate measures to improve the ancillary transport facilities concerned;

    (4)whether it knows the respective numbers of free and hourly parking spaces currently available in KTCT; whether the authorities will consider requiring the operator to provide free pick-up/drop-off points for coaches; if they will, of the number;

    (5)given that various problems, such as water leakage in the terminal building and long queues of visitors embarking had occurred in the terminal building when the first berth was commissioned last year, water leakage in the terminal recurred last month, there are no eateries and Wi-Fi service inside the terminal building, and the construction works of some facilities in the roof garden of the terminal building have not been completed yet, of the authorities' measures in place to resolve such problems before the commissioning of the second berth in July this year; and

    (6)whether it has any plan to develop hotels and large shopping malls in the vicinity of KTCT to divert mainland visitors under the Individual Visit Scheme from the urban areas; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

8. Hon Andrew LEUNG to ask: (Translation)


The Demand-led Redevelopment Project Pilot Scheme ("the Scheme") launched by the Urban Renewal Authority ("URA") in 2011 has so far received three rounds of applications involving 110 project proposals, but less than one-tenth of such applications have been selected by URA. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)given that the Secretary for Development indicated earlier on that URA would conduct a review of the Scheme, whether it knows the latest progress of the review; and

    (2)whether it knows if URA has already suspended the Scheme; if the Scheme has been suspended, of the reasons for that; if the Scheme has not been suspended, when URA will accept the fourth round of applications under the Scheme; if URA has no such timetable, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

9. Hon Starry LEE to ask: (Translation)


The goal of the language education policy of Hong Kong is to develop students to be "biliterate and trilingual". Some Putonghua teachers have pointed out that fostering a good language-learning environment in schools, including the facilitation of more speaking-and-listening occasions in Putonghua for students, is conducive to upgrading their Putonghua standard. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)of the respective current situation of Putonghua being used to teach the Chinese language and relevant subjects in primary and secondary schools; the percentage of the number of such schools in the total number of schools in Hong Kong; the number of schools using Putonghua as the medium of daily communication in schools; the respective major reasons for some of the primary and secondary schools not using Putonghua to teach the Chinese language;

    (2)of the measures in place to encourage schools to use Putonghua to teach the Chinese language; whether it will consider setting phased target percentages in respect of the number of schools using Putonghua to teach the Chinese language; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (3)whether it will take measures to encourage schools to organize more activities like drama, recitation and singing to be conducted in Putonghua, and whether it will consider incorporating such activities into the curriculum, so as to foster a good language-learning environment for developing students' interest in learning Putonghua, thereby upgrading their Putonghua standard; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

10. Hon Ronny TONG to ask: (Translation)


The Stamp Duty (Amendment) Ordinance 2014 ("the Ordinance"), enacted by this Council at the end of February this year, has introduced a Buyer's Stamp Duty ("BSD") under which all companies and non-Hong Kong permanent residents ("non-HKPRs") acquiring residential properties are required to pay a tax of an amount equivalent to 15% of the prices of the properties, subject to certain exceptions. The commencement date of the Ordinance has been set retrospectively at 27 October 2012. In enforcing the Ordinance, the Inland Revenue Department ("IRD") writes to the lawyers handling the conveyancing transactions concerned, requesting them to inform those qualified persons who have acquired residential properties after the commencement date that in order to be granted the exemption, such persons are required to submit statutory declarations ("SDs") to declare that they are Hong Kong Permanent Residents ("HKPRs")(if they apply for BSD exemption on the ground that they are HKPRs) and they are acting on their own behalf. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)of the number of residential property buyers who have submitted the aforesaid SDs so far;

    (2)given that it is the duty of IRD to trace and investigate criminal offences such as tax evasion and tax-related frauds, of the justifications for IRD to require HKPRs to make the aforesaid SDs, and thus to bear the legal liability and the expenditure concerned;

    (3)whether it has reviewed if the aforesaid requirement for submission of SDs has caused nuisance to the persons concerned and infringed on their right of silence when facing criminal prosecutions;

    (4)given that non-HKPRs acting on their own behalf can be exempted from BSD under certain circumstances, of the ways adopted by IRD, other than requiring the persons concerned to submit SDs, to verify that they have acted on their own behalf; and

    (5)given that the deadline for submission of SDs by buyers who acquired residential properties before the day of gazettal of the Ordinance was 30 April this year, whether those buyers who failed to submit SDs by that date will bear other consequences, in addition to their being subject to BSD; if so, of the details?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

11. Hon YIU Si-wing to ask: (Translation)


It is learnt that there are quite a number of stalls providing photography services to tourists at the famous tourist spots in Hong Kong, such as the Avenue of Stars, Golden Bauhinia Square and the Peak. Yet, the service standards of these stalls vary a lot. Some of the stalls are unlicensed and some stall operators' touting activities have caused nuisance to tourists. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)whether the authorities have demarcated at various major tourist spots fixed locations for photography service stalls; if so, of the details, including the number of designated photography service stalls at each tourist spot; if not, the reasons for that; whether they have assessed the respective numbers of unlicensed photography service stalls at various major tourist spots; if so, of such numbers; if not, the reasons for that;

    (2)how the authorities currently regulate designated photography service stalls; whether they will consider stepping up the regulation in this regard, such as requiring operators to display clearly at conspicuous places their fee scales and complaint hotlines as well as requiring them to wear uniform, so as to further enhance the image of Hong Kong's tourism services and protect the rights of tourists; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (3)whether the authorities have put in place measures to step up their efforts in combating unlicensed photography services at major tourist spots; if so, of the details, including the number of prosecutions instituted last year; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

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


Earlier on, a large number of students and people in Taiwan have objected to the implementation of the Cross-Strait Agreement on Trade in Services ("TiSA") signed by the cross-strait authorities, and TiSA has also caused huge controversies in Taiwan. There are comments that as Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, such controversies may hamper the further development of economic and trade cooperation between Hong Kong and Taiwan. In addition, some anti-TiSA groups in Taiwan have disseminated in their publicity materials a lot of inaccurate or even misleading remarks and information which attribute the various problems currently faced by the Hong Kong society to the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement ("CEPA") signed by the Hong Kong Government with the mainland authorities, while deliberately making no mention of the benefits brought about by CEPA to Hong Kong, thereby misleading the people in Taiwan and seriously tarnishing the image of Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)whether the authorities are currently discussing or have plans to discuss with Taiwan's authorities the signing of any cooperation agreement to further promote the economic and trade cooperation between Hong Kong and Taiwan; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; whether they have studied if the aforesaid controversies will have any negative impact on the promotion of economic and trade cooperation between Hong Kong and Taiwan as well as the related discussions; if they have studied and the outcome is in the affirmative, whether the authorities have discussed with Taiwan's authorities the corresponding measures to minimize such negative impact; if they have not studied, of the reasons for that; and

    (2)whether the Hong Kong-Taiwan Economic and Cultural Cooperation and Promotion Council established through Government's efforts and the Hong Kong Economic, Trade and Cultural Office set up by the Government in Taipei have taken the initiative to refute, through the Internet, social networks, media in Taiwan and placement of advertisements in Taiwan, the aforesaid misleading publicity about Hong Kong; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

13. Hon Cyd HO to ask: (Translation)


Regarding the restriction on alienation ("RoA") and the sale of New Territories small houses ("small houses"), will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)of the number of cases since 1997 in which small house building licences were revoked due to the licensees' breach of the building licence conditions and, among such cases, the number of those involving the licensees having entered into an agreement with a developer on transfer of small house concessionary rights before applying for the licence;

    (2)of the respective numbers of certificates of compliance ("CCs") issued by the authorities for small houses and approved cases of removal of RoA, as well as the total amount of premium collected, in each year since 2002-2003 (set out in the table below); and

    Financial yearNumber of CCs issuedNumber of approved cases of removal of RoATotal premium collected
    ($ million)
        
        
        

    (3)in respect of each year since 2002-2003, (i) of the average time elapsed since the issuance of CCs for small houses when applications for removal of RoA of them were received in the year, and (ii) in respect of the small houses for which removal of RoA was approved in the year, of the average time elapsed since the approval when the first sale of the flatted units therein took place (together with a breakdown by the rural committee which covers the village in which the small house is situated)?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

14. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)


It has been reported that the spouses and relatives of some politically appointed officials ("PAOs") hold assets through overseas companies. For example, the wife of the Director of the Chief Executive's Office has invested in equities and bonds through a British Virgin Island ("BVI") company, whilst another BVI company which has a close relationship with the family members of the wife of the Secretary for Development has made joint investments with a Taiwanese businessman in the real estate market in the United States. Regarding the prevention of conflicts of interests of PAOs and Members of the Executive Council ("ExCo"), will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
  • (1)whether they will amend the system of declaration of interests by ExCo Members and the Code for Officials under the Political Appointment System ("the Code") to require PAOs to declare, to the best of their knowledge, information on the assets and liabilities of their immediate family members; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (2)when they will implement the recommendations made in the Report of the Independent Review Committee for the Prevention and Handling of Potential Conflicts of Interests, so as to formulate a mechanism for imposing sanctions on PAOs who are proved to have breached the requirements on the prevention of conflicts of interests stipulated in the Code;

    (3)whether the discussions by ExCo on the necessity of its Members withdrawing from ExCo meetings due to conflicts of interests during the consideration of individual items and the decisions so made by the Chief Executive will be recorded in the relevant minutes of meetings; if they will not be recorded, whether such an arrangement will be made; if such an arrangement will be made, when it will be implemented; if not, of the reasons for that; and

    (4)whether they will release regularly the statistics on the withdrawals from ExCo meetings by ExCo Members due to conflicts of interests and upload them onto the relevant web pages for public monitoring; if so, when such an arrangement will be implemented; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : The Chief Secretary for Administration

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


Regarding the supply of and demand for veterinary surgeons and the development of veterinary education in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (1)in each of the past five years, of the number of veterinary surgeons registered in Hong Kong under the Veterinary Surgeons Registration Ordinance (Cap. 529) and, among them, the number of those who were registered for the first time, together with a breakdown by the jurisdiction in which the institutions awarding the educational qualifications are situated;

    (2)of the general duties, staff establishment, number of vacancies and turnover rate of various ranks of Veterinary Officers employed by the Government in the past five years;

    (3)whether it has any plan to introduce measures to enhance the contributions of local veterinary surgeons in respect of safeguarding the public health system, supporting the development of local agriculture and fisheries, monitoring the health of local livestock, and strengthening researches on the relation between animal genes and viruses, etc; if it has, of the details and whether the relevant measures will raise the demand for veterinary surgeons; if not, the reasons for that;

    (4)notwithstanding the reply of the Food and Health Bureau to a question of a Member of this Council on 21 April 2010 that "[s]ince the establishment of CFS [the Centre for Food Safety] in 2006, we have handled food safety issues well and effectively controlled the prevention of diseases in animals  Further recruitment of additional Veterinary Officers is not required at this stage", there are views that given the sporadic outbreaks of avian influenza epidemic in recent years which have posed serious threats to the lives and health of the public and the temporary ban, recently imposed by the authorities in response to the avian influenza risk, on the importation of live poultry from the Mainland which have affected people's livelihood, whether the Government will consider afresh recruiting additional Veterinary Officers to reinforce food safety as well as its work on prevention, control and study of diseases in animals; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (5)how the authorities will follow up the recommendations put forward by the Veterinary School Task Force of the University Grants Committee in its report released last December, which proposed that a fit-for-purpose veterinary school (i.e. one with a small professional veterinary medicine training programme but a top-heavy research and postgraduate programme) should be established in Hong Kong as such a veterinary school is conducive to further strengthening Hong Kong's infectious disease control capacity and addressing the identified gaps in food safety, aquaculture and the shortage of specialized veterinary surgeons, and that the Government should provide policy and resource support in this regard; and

    (6)as it has been reported that the City University of Hong Kong ("CityU") will offer postgraduate degree programmes in Veterinary Medicine jointly with the Cornell University in the United States, whether the Government can provide policy and resource support to CityU in the short and long term, with a view to promoting local veterinary education and training and enhancing the research on and prevention of zoonotic diseases in Hong Kong, the Mainland and the neighbouring countries?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

16. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)


Some members of the public have relayed to me that the Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital ("PYNEH") under the Hospital Authority ("HA") has implemented certain rules for in-patients of its psychiatric wards (including no entering or leaving the wards freely, a ban on the use of communications devices, and no discharge from the hospitals without the consent of their attending doctors) ("in-patient rules"). However, when PYNEH provides the "Application for reception as a voluntary patient" ("the application form") for completion by patients being admitted, no leaflet stating such rules is attached to it. These rules are only posted in an inconspicuous place inside the wards. Regarding the services of the psychiatric wards in public hospitals ("psychiatric wards"), will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
  • (1)the general admission procedures of the psychiatric wards;

    (2)the number of admissions to the psychiatric wards in the past five years and, among them, the respective numbers of cases in which the patients were admitted under the following circumstances: (i) the application forms were completed and lodged by the patients themselves, (ii) the application forms were completed and lodged by the patients' guardians, and (iii) the patients were detained for observation by the hospitals under the Mental Health Ordinance (Cap. 136), together with a tabulated breakdown by name of public hospital;

    (3)whether the psychiatric wards of other hospitals have implemented in-patient rules and admission arrangements (including the arrangement for patients to sign the application forms in the general wards and the relevant in-patient rules to be posted inside the psychiatric wards only) similar to those of PYNEH; if they have, of the details, with a tabulated breakdown of such information by name of public hospital;

    (4)whether HA has put in place measures to ensure that its hospitals will clearly explain the in-patient rules to the patients who are voluntarily admitted to the psychiatric wards, and to ensure that the patients understand the contents; if it has, of the details and the procedures;

    (5)the longest and the shortest periods for which patients stayed in the psychiatric wards for observation in the past five years; among these patients, the respective numbers of them who were subsequently (i) discharged directly, (ii) referred to the Castle Peak Hospital or other psychiatric specialist hospitals, and (iii) referred to the psychiatric wards of other hospitals for continuous treatment, together with a tabulated breakdown by name of public hospital;

    (6)among the patients admitted to the psychiatric wards for treatment in the past five years, the respective numbers of those who (i) had applied for discharge by themselves and were approved for discharge, and (ii) had applied for discharge by themselves but were considered by the hospitals concerned after assessment that continuous observation in the hospital was required, together with a tabulated breakdown by name of public hospital;

    (7)whether HA received in the past five years any complaint about members of the public being misled into consenting to be admitted to the psychiatric wards; if it did, of the number of such complaints and how HA followed up such complaints, with a tabulated breakdown by name of public hospital;

    (8)whether HA currently has any mechanism for handling complaints lodged by patients of the psychiatric wards about the treatments used, or the assessments of their mental condition made, by the attending doctors; if HA does, of the details; and

    (9)whether HA has issued guidelines for its hospitals on the admission of patients to the psychiatric wards; if HA has, of the date on which such guidelines were last revised; whether HA has put in place measures to monitor the implementation of such guidelines by its hospitals; if HA does not have such guidelines, the reasons for that and whether HA will consider issuing such guidelines, so as to enhance the management of the administrative work of admitting patients to the psychiatric wards?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

III. Bills



First Reading

1.Administration of Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014

2.Property Management Services Bill

3.Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2014

Second Reading (Debate to be adjourned)

1.Administration of Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014

:The Chief Secretary for Administration

2.Property Management Services Bill

:Secretary for Home Affairs

3.Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2014

:Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

Committee Stage and Third Reading

Appropriation Bill 2014:The Financial Secretary

Amendments to heads of estimates in
Committee of the whole Council on the Appropriation Bill 2014

Hon Albert CHAN, Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung, Hon CHAN Chi-chuen, Hon Claudia MO, Hon WONG Yuk-man, Hon SIN Chung-kai, Hon James TO, Dr Hon Helena WONG, Hon Gary FAN, Hon WU Chi-wai, Hon LEE Cheuk-yan, Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG, Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che and Hon Cyd HO to move the Committee stage amendments in the Appendix.

(these amendments were also issued on 17, 24 and 30 April 2014
under LC Paper Nos. CB(3)566/13-14, CB(3)573/13-14 and CB(3)602/13-14 respectively)

(Debate and voting arrangements for Committee stage amendments to the Appropriation Bill 2014
(updated version issued on 5 May 2014 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 615/13-14(01))

Other Public Officers to attend the Committee stage:The Chief Secretary for Administration
The Chief Secretary for Administration
The Secretary for Justice
Secretary for Transport and Housing
Secretary for Home Affairs
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
Secretary for Security
Secretary for Education
Secretary for the Civil Service
Secretary for Food and Health
Secretary for the Environment
Secretary for Development
Under Secretary for Home Affairs
Under Secretary for the Environment
Under Secretary for Transport and Housing
Under Secretary for Security
Under Secretary for Food and Health
Under Secretary for Education
Under Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
Under Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Under Secretary for Development

IV. Members' Motions



1.Proposed resolution under section 34(4) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Hon Cyd HO to move the following motion:

Resolved that in relation to the Pesticides Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 1) Notice 2014, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 43 of 2014, and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 9 April 2014, 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 28 May 2014.

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

Hon Andrew LEUNG to move the following motion:

That this Council takes note of Report No. 16/13-14 of the House Committee laid on the Table of the Council on 16 April 2014 in relation to the subsidiary legislation and instrument(s) as listed below:

Item NumberTitle of Subsidiary Legislation or Instrument
(3)Rating (Exemption) Order 2014 (L.N. 26/2014).

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

3.Formulating a comprehensive elderly care policy to deal with population ageing

Hon TANG Ka-piu to move the following motion:(Translation)

That, with the rapid ageing of Hong Kong's population, the demand for elderly care services in society continues to increase, but the policy strategies to deal with demographic challenges proposed earlier by the Steering Committee on Population Policy make no mention of elderly care services in the future; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to immediately formulate a comprehensive elderly care policy, make detailed planning for elderly care services in the future and promote collaboration between the medical and welfare sectors; the contents should include:

Service planning -

(1)based on projections on the proportion and growth of elderly population in the future, to formulate medium- and long-term planning for elderly care services in the next 10 and 20 years, and on this basis, to reserve lands for developing elderly care services and train manpower, so as to ensure that social demand for community care services and residential care services for the elderly can be met every year;

(2)to make stronger efforts to implement projects on redeveloping residential care homes for the elderly and constructing new ones, and reserve lands in more public and private development projects for building residential care homes for the elderly, so as to shorten elderly persons' waiting time for residential care homes and reduce the number of elderly persons who have yet to be allocated a place in residential care homes when they passed away;

(3)based on the proportions of the elderly population in various districts, to enhance community care services, including allocating additional resources to expand the existing integrated home care services and day respite service for elders, and providing a certain number of places for emergency support services in various districts to deal with cases of serious nature and requiring immediate assistance;

Policy reform -

(4)to set up an inter-departmental office of long-term care services to co-ordinate the work of various departments which are responsible for elderly welfare, elderly care and elderly services;

(5)to immediately rename the Chinese rendition of dementia from '老人癡呆症' to '認知障礙症', adopt the recommendations of the World Health Organization to formulate a comprehensive priority strategy to deal with dementia, and allocate resources to set up a dedicated service unit;

(6)to review the standardized care need assessment mechanism for elderly services, and triage elderly persons based on their actual care needs to enable them to receive suitable services as early as possible, and in turn effectively alleviate the problem of unduly long waiting time for services;

(7)to review the requirement on the area of floor space for each resident in newly constructed residential care homes and day service centres for the elderly, so as to progressively enhance the care standard of elderly services;

(8)focusing on the segregation of the medical and welfare sectors in elderly care services at present, to strengthen healthcare and home care services in the community to support the care needs of elderly persons who are unable to get a place in residential care homes for the elderly, and in the three major directions of training, support and accreditation, formulate a dedicated policy on carers of the elderly, thereby perfecting the existing long-term care policy based on 'ageing in place';

Manpower resources -

(9)based on the medium- and long-term planning for elderly care services, to project the manpower demand for the services, comprehensively assess afresh the existing policy of manpower resources development for elderly and care services, including reviewing the training, remuneration packages and career prospects for frontline carers in elderly services, and, apart from considering how to enhance the standard of the relevant services on the whole, also raise the social status of the industry, so as to attract more new entrants; and

(10)to review the bidding system for elderly service contracts to reduce cyclical wastage of manpower.

Amendments to the motion
(i)Hon Albert HO to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete "with" after "That," and substitute with "given"; to add "(4) to extensively consult various sectors of society on elderly services and formulate service indicators and criteria, so as to upgrade service effectiveness;" after "immediate assistance;"; to delete the original "(4)" and substitute with "(5)"; to delete the original "(5)" and substitute with "(6)"; to delete the original "(6)" and substitute with "(7)"; to delete the original "(7)" and substitute with "(8)"; to delete the original "(8)" and substitute with "(9)"; to add ", and further develop primary healthcare services, including increasing the number of elderly health centres to shorten the waiting time for elderly persons to enroll as members, providing more medical examination services in elderly health centres, and based on the proportions of the elderly population in the 18 districts, setting service quotas and maximum waiting periods for services in various districts, so as" after "in the community"; to delete the original "(9)" and substitute with "(10)"; and to delete the original "(10)" and substitute with "(11)".

(ii)Hon Frankie YICK to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete "with" after "That," and substitute with "given"; to add "(9) to expeditiously implement a voucher scheme on residential care services for the elderly, and issue no less than $5,000 of service vouchers every month to elderly persons waiting for subsidized residential care places for the elderly, so that they can choose suitable private residential care homes for the elderly in Hong Kong or on the Mainland according to their individual needs;" after "'ageing in place';"; to delete the original "(9)" and substitute with "(10)"; to add "as it takes time to implement the measures for attracting new entrants and provide manpower training, the Government should expedite the importation of more workers, so as to alleviate the problem of serious manpower shortage in the sector at present and improve the quality of services;" after "new entrants;"; and to delete the original "(10)" and substitute with "(11)".

(iii)Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete "with the rapid ageing of Hong Kong's population" after "That," and substitute with "given the continuing increase in the numbers of elderly persons with disabilities and elderly persons with dementia and chronic diseases, coupled with the ageing of persons with intellectual disabilities"; and to delete "the Government to" after "this Council urges" and substitute with "that rather than adopting age as the sole criterion, the Government should also take the needs and long-term care of elderly persons as the basis to".

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

To delete "," after "That" and substitute with "in 2002, the Hong Kong Government sent representatives to attend the United Nation's Second World Assembly on Ageing held at Madrid in Spain, supported the Assembly's passage of the Political Declaration and Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, 2002, and undertook to implement an elderly policy in Hong Kong;"; to add "short-," after "future, to formulate"; to delete "10" after "in the next" and substitute with "five, 10, 15"; to add "to relaunch hostels for the elderly and build a diversified range of residential care homes to enable elderly persons to live in the community without any worry; and" after "(2)"; to delete "and" after "constructing new ones,"; to add "and reserve the several bottom floors of newly constructed public housing blocks for operating small-scale residential care hostels or residential care homes for the elderly," after "building residential care homes for the elderly,"; to add "to implement community care for the elderly based on the concept of 'care in the community'; and" after "(3)"; to add "and compile detailed statistics on the service demands of service users in various districts for formulating five- and 10-year planning on community care services," after "enhance community care services,"; to delete "and" after "integrated home care services" and substitute with ", especially meal delivery, escort for medical consultation and household cleaning services, increasing the number of day service centres for the elderly and the"; to add "and establishing a central enquiry service system" after "services in various districts"; to add "(4) in order to resolve the problem of serious shortage of venues for community support services for the elderly at present, to conduct a study on the provision of diversified community support services and activities for the elderly, such as adventure activities for elderly persons;" after "immediate assistance;"; to delete the original "(4)" and substitute with "(5)"; to add "and based on the concept of 'care in the community', to map out a development strategy for the retired population and formulate a comprehensive inter-departmental elderly policy on areas such as healthcare, housing, community support, financial protection, long-term care, social participation, urban construction and cultural development for elderly persons, etc., so as to provide elderly persons with suitable education and living environment;" after "and elderly services;"; to delete the original "(5)" and substitute with "(6)"; to add "(7) to streamline the existing application procedures for the Dementia Supplement, including assessing afresh recipients' eligibility for the supplement at an interval of two years; and extend the scope of the Dementia Supplement to other community care services, so that service operators have more resources to provide services to homebound Dementia patients;" after "service unit;"; to delete the original "(6)" and substitute with "(8)"; to add "and to collate and analyze the case information obtained under the standardized care need assessment mechanism for elderly services, and assess and adjust the quality of existing services, so as to provide reference for planning and introducing new services in the future, enabling the Government to allocate resources more effectively;" after "waiting time for services;"; to delete the original "(7)" and substitute with "(9)"; to delete the original "(8)" and substitute with "(10)"; to delete the original "(9)" and substitute with "(11)"; to delete "and" after "new entrants;"; to delete the original "(10)" and substitute with "(12)"; to delete "review" before "the bidding system" and substitute with "abolish"; and to add "; and (13) to conduct planning for the manpower establishment and resources for various kinds of elderly services" immediately before the full stop.

(v)Dr Hon KWOK Ka-ki to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete "demand for elderly care services in society continues" after "Hong Kong's population, the" and substitute with "dependency ratio will rise from 355 dependent persons per 1 000 working age persons in 2012 to 712 per 1 000 by 2041, and the demand of elderly persons, especially retired elderly persons, for elderly care services will also continue"; to add ", including introducing elderly dental services in public hospitals, arranging manpower to answer phone calls for booking out-patient services, improving the non-emergency ambulance transfer service, introducing elderly healthcare vouchers in paper form and strengthening publicity on the list of service providers participating in the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme, so as" after "in the community"; to delete "and" after "new entrants;"; and to add "; and Other aspects - (11) to immediately implement a universal retirement protection system, so as to ensure that people are able to meet the expenses on elderly care and healthcare services after retirement" immediately before the full stop.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

4.Improving the implementation of the education policy and allocating additional funding for education

Hon IP Kin-yuen to move the following motion: (Translation)

That, as education is an important policy area, many countries and regions attach great importance to education and strive to allocate resources in education improvement, so as to upgrade their people's overall quality and enhance their societies' competitiveness in the future; yet, the SAR Government's funding allocation in education has been shrinking continuously in recent years, and the Education Bureau has also neither listened seriously to the views of the sector nor taken forward many measures on which the society has reached consensus, showing its ineptitude and belated awareness when faced with new problems and challenges, and failing to respond to people's needs and allay their concerns, such as its erroneous planning for kindergarten and primary school places, delay in implementing 15-year free education, disregard for the views of the sector and reluctance to adopt effective measures to stabilize the teaching and learning environment of secondary schools, turning a blind eye to young teachers' difficulty in joining the profession, and turning a deaf ear to the demands for improving the teaching establishment in public-sector schools and increasing the number of publicly-funded university places; the education sector considers that since the Secretary for Education Mr Eddie NG took office, parents have worried about a shortage of places for their children's education, teachers' job satisfaction has declined, and students have been tormented by the education policy, rendering people to rock their confidence in the local education system and be greatly disappointed at the education policy led by Eddie NG, considering that he lacks work competence and enterprise, and that while he cannot effectively lead the officials of the Education Bureau to properly implement the education policy, he still frequently pays overseas duty visits, causing widespread grievances about the education policy in society in general; in this connection, this Council expresses dissatisfaction with the work performance of Eddie NG, requests him to reflect deeply on himself, and hopes that the SAR Government can improve the implementation of the education policy, allocate additional funding for education, and extensively solicit public opinions, so as to rebuild the public confidence in the education system.

Amendments to the motion
(i)Dr Hon Kenneth CHAN to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To add "according to the opinion poll results of the Public Opinion Programme of The University of Hong Kong, the popularity of the Secretary for Education Mr Eddie NG has persistently remained low, indicating the public's intense discontent with his performance;" after "That,"; to delete "the Secretary for Education Mr" after "considers that since"; and to delete "reflect deeply on himself" after "requests him to" and substitute with "immediately resign".
(ii)Dr Hon Helena WONG to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete "and" after "joining the profession,"; and to delete "places" after "publicly-funded university" and substitute with "undergraduate places, and failing to face up to the serious ratio imbalance between local and non-local students enrolled in research postgraduate programmes of graduate schools, resulting in precious education resources not being spent on local students on a priority basis".
(iii)Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete "and" after "joining the profession,"; and to add ", and failing to ever conduct any comprehensive review of the mode of integrated education which has been in place for a decade or so and is full of flaws and loopholes" after "publicly-funded university places".

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Education

5.Report of the delegation of the Subcommittee on Poverty to study the experience of poverty alleviation in Taiwan and Japan

Hon Frederick FUNG to move the following motion: (Translation)

That this Council notes the Report of the delegation of the Subcommittee on Poverty to study the experience of poverty alleviation in Taiwan and Japan.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

6.Ensuring the completion of public housing and infrastructure projects on schedule

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

That, as the construction industry is facing manpower shortage, this Council urges the Government to adopt corresponding measures, including establishing a special labour importation scheme for public housing and infrastructure projects by making reference to the arrangements adopted during the construction of Chek Lap Kok Airport, so as to ensure the completion of the various public housing and infrastructure projects in Hong Kong on schedule or even ahead of schedule to meet the housing need of grass-roots people as early as possible, and sustain the economic and social development of Hong Kong.

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

To delete ", as the construction industry is facing manpower shortage," after "That"; and to delete "adopt corresponding measures, including establishing a special labour importation scheme for public housing and infrastructure projects by making reference to the arrangements adopted during the construction of Chek Lap Kok Airport, so as to ensure" after "the Government to" and substitute with "strengthen the manpower training and job-matching services offered by the Construction Industry Council, and improve the working environment and occupational safety standards of the construction industry, so as to attract more local workers to engage in the construction industry, thereby ensuring".

(ii)Hon KWOK Wai-keung to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete "as the construction industry is facing manpower shortage" after "That," and substitute with "with the commencement of various infrastructure projects one after another and the increase of wages in the construction industry, the construction industry should be able to attract new entrants, but due to the frequent default on payment of workers' wages, coupled with the high industrial accident rate in the industry, etc., intending entrants have been deterred from joining the industry; in this connection"; to delete ", including establishing a special labour importation scheme for public housing and infrastructure projects by making reference to the arrangements adopted during the construction of Chek Lap Kok Airport" after "adopt corresponding measures" and substitute with "to improve the aforesaid situations, attract manpower for the industry and reduce manpower wastage"; and to add "; specific proposals are as follows: (1) to draw up proper long-term planning for infrastructure projects and progressively launch large-scale projects, so as to avoid creating a false image of manpower shortage during construction peaks, whereas workers have to face under-employment after the end of construction peaks; (2) to strengthen the monitoring of the wage payment mechanism in the construction industry, and rigorously combat the acts of defaulting on payment of workers' wages; (3) to allocate more resources and increase the number of training places, so as to provide new blood for the industry; and (4) to motivate the construction industry to improve the working environment, including strengthening the monitoring and inspection of works sites, so as to ensure the compliance of the working environment and equipment with statutory safety standards, create a safe working environment and reduce the number of industrial accidents" immediately before the full stop.

(iii)Hon WU Chi-wai to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete ", as" after "That" and substitute with "recently, overspending has occurred in a number of projects for reasons including"; to delete "is" after "the construction industry"; to add "; in this connection" after "facing manpower shortage"; and to delete "establishing a special labour importation scheme for public housing and infrastructure projects by making reference to the arrangements adopted during the construction of Chek Lap Kok Airport, so as to" after "corresponding measures, including" and substitute with "adjusting the progress of various projects, examining project planning and setting priorities for projects, so as to maintain the number of projects at a sustainable level that the construction industry can cope with,".

(iv)Hon POON Siu-ping to move the following amendment: (Translation)

To delete "the construction industry is facing manpower shortage" after "That, as" and substitute with "large-scale infrastructure projects have commenced one after another"; to delete "corresponding" after "the Government to adopt" and substitute with "effective"; and to delete "establishing a special labour importation scheme for public housing and infrastructure projects by making reference to the arrangements adopted during the construction of Chek Lap Kok Airport" after "measures, including" and substitute with "encouraging new arrivals to join the labour market, especially the construction industry; improving the working environment of the construction industry to attract young people to join the construction industry; upgrading the safety standards of the construction industry to ensure industrial safety; co-ordinating the construction procedures of different projects to avoid manpower competition, creating a false image of manpower shortage due to concurrent carrying out of works of same job types under different projects; and dealing with any labour importation proposals under the established mechanism for labour importation".

Public Officers to attend:Secretary for Development
Secretary for Labour and Welfare

Clerk to the Legislative Council