A 16/17-32
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 5 July 2017 at 11:00 am
I. Tabling of Papers
Other Papers
| 1. | No. 112 | - | The Standing Committee on Legal Education and Training Annual Report 2016 1 January 2016 to 31 December 2016 |
| (to be presented by Secretary for Justice)
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| 2. | No. 113 | - | Sir David Trench Fund for Recreation Annual Report 2016-2017 |
| (to be presented by Secretary for Home Affairs)
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| 3. | No. 114 | - | The Ombudsman, Hong Kong Annual Report 2017 |
| (to be presented by Chief Secretary for Administration)
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| 4. | No. 115 | - | Airport Authority Hong Kong Annual Report 2016/17 |
| (to be presented by Financial Secretary)
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| 5. | Report No. 23/16-17 of the House Committee on Consideration of Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments | ||
| (to be presented by Hon Starry LEE, Chairman of the House Committee)
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| 6. | Report of the Bills Committee on Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited (Merger) Bill | ||
| (to be presented by Hon WU Chi-wai, Chairman of the Bills Committee)
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| 7. | Report of the Panel on Environmental Affairs 2016-2017 | ||
| (to be presented by Hon Tanya CHAN, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
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| 8. | Report of the Panel on Food Safety and Environmental Hygiene 2016-2017 | ||
| (to be presented by Dr Hon Helena WONG, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
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| 9. | Report of the Panel on Transport 2016-2017 | ||
| (to be presented by Hon CHAN Han-pan, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
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| 10. | Report of the Panel on Security 2016-2017 | ||
| (to be presented by Hon CHAN Hak-kan, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
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| 11. | Report of the Panel on Public Service 2016-2017 | ||
| (to be presented by Hon KWOK Wai-keung, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
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| 12. | Report of the Panel on Constitutional Affairs 2016-2017 | ||
| (to be presented by Hon Martin LIAO, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council)
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| 13. | Report of the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting 2016-2017 | ||
| (to be presented by Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT, Chairman of the Panel, who will address the Council) | |||
II. Questions
1. Hon Jeffrey LAM to ask: (Translation)
In recent years, quite a number of neighbouring countries and regions (e.g. Singapore and Taiwan) have offered tax concessions in order to attract foreign investments. The Chief Executive has proposed two tax measures in her election manifesto: (1) introducing a two-tier profits tax rate system and lowering the profits tax rate for the first $2 million of profit from the current 16.5% to 10% so as to reduce the tax burden on small and medium enterprises, and (2) providing additional tax deductions for research and development expenditure to encourage enterprises to invest in the research and development of new products. On the other hand, the Government will host the Summit on the New Directions for Taxation in the end of this year to explore the way forward for Hong Kong's tax regime. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the details of and the implementation timetables for the aforesaid two tax measures; (2) of the date(s) and venue for the hosting of the Summit on the New Directions for Taxation, the list of the speakers and guests to be invited, as well as other details; and (3) whether it will take the opportunity of hosting the Summit on the New Directions for Taxation to examine, at the same time, the tax proposals put forward by some members of the business sector, which include amending section 39E of the Inland Revenue Ordinance to enable manufacturers to be entitled to allowances in respect of the machinery and plants used in their production procedures located outside Hong Kong, and urging the Mainland authorities, after drawing reference from the legislations on border city tax implemented in Europe, to enact similar legislation stipulating that Hong Kong residents who have worked on the Mainland for more than 183 days within a year may be exempted from Mainland's individual income tax; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
2. Hon WU Chi-wai to ask: (Translation)
On 27 May this year, the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress said, at a forum held in Beijing for commemorating the 20th anniversary of the implementation of the Basic Law ("BL") in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("HKSAR"), that with regard to the powers vested in the Central Authorities, which encompassed the power in respect of filing and examination of HKSAR laws, the power to appoint the Chief Executive ("CE") and the principal officials, the power to interpret and amend BL, the power to decide on issues of constitutional development of HKSAR, the powers of the Central Government to issue directives to CE as well as to hear CE report on work and reporting, etc., it was necessary to draw up and refine the relevant requirements, so as to perfect an operable system and mechanism for implementing BL and ensure the comprehensive, accurate and thorough implementation of BL. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has approached the Central Authorities to gain an understanding of whether it is imperative to carry out the work to draw up and refine the relevant requirements in respect of the various powers vested in the Central Authorities mentioned above; if it has and the reply is in the affirmative, whether it knows the details of and the procedure for such work to be undertaken by the Central Authorities; (2) whether it has assessed how the Central Authorities, in drawing up and refining the relevant requirements, will avoid contravening the principles of "one country, two systems" and the implementation of "Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong" and "a high degree of autonomy" in HKSAR which are set out in BL; if it has assessed, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) whether it has assessed if the level of trust of Hong Kong people in the Central Authorities will decrease upon the Central Authorities' completion of the work to draw up and refine the relevant requirements; if it has assessed, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that?
3. Hon Jeremy TAM to ask: (Translation)
The Independent Review Committee for the Prevention and Handling of Potential Conflicts of Interests submitted its report to the Government in May 2012, recommending the enactment of legislation to provide that the Chief Executive ("CE") must obtain permission from a statutory independent committee prior to the acceptance of advantages, so as to make the system under section 3 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance ("POBO") applicable to CE. In addition, the incumbent CE, who has just assumed office, has undertaken in her election manifesto that she "shall resolve as soon as possible those constitutional and legal issues aiming at amending the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance to extend the scope of Sections 3 and 8 to cover the Chief Executive". In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it will introduce into this Council within this year a bill to amend POBO; if it will not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Chief Secretary for Administration
4. Hon HO Kai-ming to ask: (Translation)
The Government has repeatedly stated that as the radio-frequency electromagnetic fields generated by radio base stations for mobile communications ("RBSs") are a type of non-ionizing radiation with lower energy, they will not cause harm to the human body. However, quite a number of members of the public (particularly those living in the vicinity of RBSs) have relayed to me that they are still very worried. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the current total number of RBSs across the territory; the number of those installed in residential buildings, with a breakdown by RBSs installed in subsidized housing and those in private housing; the highest number of RBSs installed in one single building at present; the names of those buildings in subsidized housing installed with RBSs, and the number of RBSs installed in each of such buildings (to be set out in a table); (2) whether it knows the total amount of licence fees collected in each of the past five years by the Hong Kong Housing Authority ("HA") in respect of the RBSs installed in the housing estates and courts under its management; whether HA will ask mobile network operators to relocate to other places those RBSs which are in close proximity to residential units or too closely packed, and whether HA will regularly measure, in accordance with the radiation safety standards of Hong Kong and those of the Mainland respectively, the levels of radiation generated by RBSs and make public the results; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) whether the Government will issue guidelines or enact legislation on the shortest distance between an RBS and a residential unit and the highest density of RBSs, so as to allay public concern?
| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
Secretary for Transport and Housing |
5. Hon Andrew WAN to ask: (Translation)
It was uncovered by some Australian media in 2014 that Mr LEUNG Chun-ying, the Chief Executive ("CE") of the last term, had entered into an agreement in December 2011 with the Australian firm UGL Limited when he was still the Asia Pacific Director of DTZ, and he had received under the agreement a remuneration of about HK$50 million in total, with part of the money being received by him after assuming the office of CE, and yet he had all along not declared his interests relating to the agreement to the Clerk to the Executive Council ("the UGL incident"). In response to relevant queries, the Government of the last term pointed out that CE of the last term had entered into the agreement before he assumed the office. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) as there were rumours that some senior officials of the Government of the last term had interfered in the investigation into reports about the UGL incident being conducted by the Independent Commission Against Corruption ("ICAC") and the related personnel appointment, including the alleged interference of the then Commissioner of ICAC in the relevant investigation work conducted by the Operations Department of ICAC, and yet the Central People's Government re-appointed him as the Commissioner of ICAC last month, how the Government will convince the public that such appointment is appropriate, and how it will ensure that the Commissioner of ICAC will follow ICAC's established practices and procedures for investigating cases and handle the relevant reports impartially; (2) whether the current-term Government will fully complement the work of the Select Committee to Inquire into Matters about the Agreement between Mr LEUNG Chun-ying and the Australian firm UGL Limited set up by this Council, and provide the Committee with the required documents and assistance, including allowing the government officials concerned to attend before the Committee to give evidence; and (3) given that in its judgment handed down last month on an appeal case concerning the offence of misconduct in public office ("MIPO"), the Court of Final Appeal held that the abuse of public trust in the case was contemplated by the conspirators, and the fact that the payment in return for the first appellant's favourable disposition while in the office of Chief Secretary for Administration ("CS") was accepted by him before he assumed the office did not mean the abuse of trust occurred at the time of the acceptance of the payment, and it was by agreeing to act as CS whilst in the "golden fetters" constituted by that payment that the first appellant conspired to commit an act of misconduct sufficient to satisfy the conduct element of the offence of MIPO, whether the Government will improve the system of declaration of interests by CE in the light of the judgment; if so, of the provisions to which amendments will be made; if not, the reasons for that?
6. Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT to ask: (Translation)
Recently, it came to my notice that a recruitment advertisement for a job offering handsome remunerations was circulating on the social network but it gave no details about the job nature. I then arranged my staff to get in touch with the recruiter by telephone, and learnt that to earn a wedding cash gift of as high as $200,000, the employed person only needed to first apply for a certificate of absence of marriage record at a law firm in Hong Kong, and then go to the Mainland to undergo marriage procedure with the Mainlander concerned. The recruiter stressed that the particulars of the employed person would be kept confidential, and that the marriage relationship would be maintained only for a period between six months and one year; such practice would not be regarded as bogus marriage, and was legal and would bear no consequences. Such recruitment advertisement shows that some lawbreakers have employed a new tactic to mislead members of the public into committing crimes relating to bogus marriages. Given that the summer break is drawing near, quite a number of parents are worried that young people will breach the law inadvertently as they want to make quick money. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether the authorities will adopt new measures to combat crimes relating to bogus marriages, such as collecting evidence by carrying out decoy operations during investigations, increasing the manpower for proactive investigations into suspicious cases, and seeking the imposition of heavier penalties on offenders (in particular the intermediaries and heads of bogus marriage syndicates) by the court; (2) as the summer break is drawing near, whether the Immigration Department and the Mainland law enforcement agencies will, apart from exchanging intelligence on a regular basis, step up law enforcement actions to combat crimes relating to bogus marriages; and (3) how the authorities will enhance the publicity targeting young people, reminding them not to commit crimes relating to bogus marriages; of the channels through which those young people who have been misled into committing crimes relating to bogus marriages may seek assistance from the authorities ?
*7. Dr Hon Junius HO to ask: (Translation)
The Water Supplies Department ("WSD") commenced the Replacement and Rehabilitation Programme of Water Mains ("the Programme") in 2000 to replace and rehabilitate about 3 000 kilometres of aged water mains in phases. Although the Programme was substantially completed in December 2015, incidents of water mains burst have still occurred in Hong Kong from time to time in recent months (the incident locations included Wu Chui Road near Mei Lok Lane, Tuen Mun; Connaught Road West near Water Street, Western District; Tsuen Wan section of Castle Peak Road, Tsuen Wan; and Kwun Tong Road eastbound off Kai Yip Estate), causing traffic congestion and serious nuisance to the daily lives of the residents in the vicinity. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of reports of water main burst received by WSD since the beginning of this year (with a breakdown by District Council district); (2) (i) of the total volume in cubic metres of fresh water lost during incidents of water mains burst, and the value of fresh water lost as calculated by its unit cost and (ii) whether the authorities have assessed other relevant economic losses incurred due to water mains burst, since the beginning of this year; if so, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that; (3) of the details of the latest notification mechanism adopted by WSD for handling incidents of water mains burst; and (4) as the authorities have indicated that they will, following the completion of the Programme, progressively establish the Water Intelligent Network to continuously monitor the conditions of the water supply network, and will, prior to the completion of this work, commission a consultant to undertake the relevant investigations and design work for reprovisioning in phases those aged water mains that are susceptible to failure during the transitional period, of the progress of such work; how the authorities assess the conditions of the water mains and their probability of burst, so as to reduce the occurrence of incidents of water mains burst?
*8. Hon Abraham SHEK to ask:
In 2016, the Estate Agents Authority received 156 complaints relating to properties other than local residential properties, an upsurge of 184% compared to the 55 cases in 2015. "Providing inaccurate or misleading property information" was mostly quoted as a cause for lodging the complaints. For example, the actual layouts and sizes of units in a shopping mall turned out to be vastly different from what the buyers had envisaged based on the relevant layout plans. Moreover, some buyers have pointed out that there is no provision in the Estate Agents Ordinance (Cap. 511) for regulating and monitoring the sale of commercial properties. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the government departments and public bodies responsible for handling complaints about the sale of commercial properties, and their respective responsibilities; the number of such complaints they received in each of the past five years and, among them, the number of those in which the property transactions involved were eventually terminated after the complaints had been found substantiated; (2) of the various types of assistance offered to buyers of commercial properties by the various government departments and public bodies; whether the authorities will consider designating a government department or public body to be solely responsible for offering such assistance to buyers; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) given that buyers may be disadvantaged by information asymmetry during the transaction process for commercial properties, of the measures put in place by the authorities to help buyers understand the terms and conditions relevant to the transactions, so as to avoid misunderstanding between buyers and sellers?
*9. Hon Tommy CHEUNG to ask: (Translation)
One of the amendments made by the Smoking (Public Health)(Notices) (Amendment) Order 2017, passed by this Council on the 14th of last month, is to increase the area of the graphic health warning on the packets or retail containers of tobacco products from the original covering of at least 50% to at least 85%. Some members of the tobacco industry worry that such amendment will make it more difficult for manufacturers to display their authenticity labels on the packets of tobacco products, thus making it easier for lawbreakers to mix counterfeit cigarettes with genuine cigarettes for sale. Regarding the law enforcement actions taken by the Customs and Excise Department ("C&ED") to combat the activities of buying and selling of duty-not-paid cigarettes ("illicit cigarettes") and selling of counterfeit cigarettes, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of (i) the number of law enforcement operations carried out by C&ED each year from 2013 to 2016 to combat the activities of buying and selling illicit cigarettes, (ii) the quantity of the illicit cigarettes seized in such operations and (iii) the total dutiable value involved; the respective numbers of persons who were (iv) fined and (v) imprisoned upon conviction; (2) of (i) the number of law enforcement operations carried out by C&ED each year from 2013 to 2016 to combat the activities of ordering illicit cigarettes via telephone and the Internet, (ii) the quantity of the illicit cigarettes seized and (iii) the number of persons arrested in such operations; whether C&ED has assessed the effectiveness of such law enforcement operations; if so, of the criteria adopted for conducting the assessment and the assessment outcome; (3) of the number of reports, received by C&ED each year from 2013 to 2016 through its 24-hour reporting hotline, on activities of buying and selling illicit cigarettes; whether C&ED has assessed the effectiveness of that hotline; if so, of the criteria adopted for conducting the assessment and the assessment outcome; whether C&ED has plan to provide more incentives to encourage members of the public to report such activities; if C&ED does, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (4) whether the authorities will commission an independent consultant to conduct a survey to find out the percentage of smokers buying illicit cigarettes in the smoking population in Hong Kong at present, so as to provide objective data for assessing (i) how rampant the activities of buying and selling illicit cigarettes are and (ii) the effectiveness of the efforts to combat such activities; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (5) of the measures put in place by the authorities to ease the worry of members of the tobacco industry about counterfeit cigarettes being mixed with genuine cigarettes for sale; and (6) whether the authorities will allocate additional resources to the Illicit Cigarette Investigation Division under C&ED to enable it to (i) step up its efforts in intelligence collection and detection of activities on the distribution and retail of illicit cigarettes, and (ii) conduct more sampling tests on cigarettes sold in the market, so as to find out whether there is a rising trend in the selling of counterfeit cigarettes; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*10. Hon Alvin YEUNG to ask: (Translation)
The Fire Safety (Buildings) Ordinance (Cap. 572), which has come into operation since 1 July 2007, stipulates that the fire safety of composite and domestic buildings which were constructed or with their plans of the building works first submitted for approval on or before 1 March 1987 must be enhanced to better meet the current requirements. The Buildings Department ("BD") and the Fire Services Department ("FSD"), which are responsible for enforcing the Ordinance, are conducting inspections by two phases consecutively on those composite buildings and domestic buildings which are within the scope of the Ordinance and, where necessary, issue Fire Safety Directions ("Directions"), such as the installation of water tanks, hose reel systems or other fire safety installations, to the owners or occupiers concerned for their compliance within a specified period. However, quite a number of members of the owners' corporations ("OCs") of such buildings have relayed to me that they have encountered quite a number of difficulties in complying with the Directions, including the absence of any registered fire service installation contractor ("contractor") willing to undertake the works concerned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) as the authorities expected that the first phase of inspections would be completed within nine years after the commencement of Cap. 572, whether the work concerned has now been completed; if so, of the completion date; if not, of the number and percentage of the composite buildings within the scope of the Ordinance which have been inspected as at 31 March this year, and the expected completion time of the first phase of inspections; (2) whether the second phase of inspections has commenced; if so, of the commencement date, as well as the number and percentage of the domestic buildings within the scope of the Ordinance which have been inspected as at 31 March this year; the expected completion time of the second phase of inspections; (3) of (i) the number of cases in which owners or occupiers concerned applied to FSD or BD for extension of the deadlines for complying with the Directions, and (ii) the number and percentage of such cases approved, in each of the past three years; and (4) of the concrete assistance rendered by the Government to OCs to address their problem of being unable to engage contractors to undertake fire safety works for their buildings?
*11. Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to ask: (Translation)
I have recently received several complaints from residents of Hung Hom, claiming that a nearby hotel, which opened in April this year, left its large external lighting installations switched on for long hours at night, seriously affecting their rest and even causing some of them to suffer from health problems such as seeing glare and insomnia. Regarding the problem of light pollution in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of complaints about nuisance caused by large external lighting installations received by the Environmental Protection Department in each of the past three years, and how the Department handled such complaints; (2) whether it will consider taking measures in the near future to urge the persons in charge of the enterprises concerned (including the aforesaid hotel) to switch off their large external lighting installations during late night hours or shorten the luminous time of such installations; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) whether it will conduct public consultation on introduction of legislation to regulate light pollution and initiate the legislative procedure; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*12. Hon Steven HO to ask: (Translation)
At present, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department deploys eight and three vessels to conduct around 3 000 and 1 500 patrols each year respectively to combat illegal fishing activities in marine parks/marine reserves and illegal trawling activities in Hong Kong waters ("illegal fishing"). It is learnt that persons first convicted of illegal fishing were fined about $2,000 on average, and their fishing gears were also confiscated. Some fishermen have relayed to me that as the regular patrols conducted by the authorities and their joint operations with relevant Mainland departments to combat illegal fishing ("joint operations") are not vigorous enough, coupled with the fact that the prevailing penalties for illegal fishing are negligible when compared with earnings from illegal fishing, such illicit acts cannot be eradicated, and the local fisheries resources have been severely damaged. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of (i) the number of patrols conducted and (ii) the number of joint operations mounted by the authorities in each of the financial years from 2014-2015 to 2016-2017 in the marine parks/marine reserves listed below; Marine Park/
Marine ReserveFinancial Year 2014-2015 2015-2016 2016-2017 Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park (i) (ii) Yan Chau Tong Marine Park (i) (ii) Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau Marine Park (i) (ii) Tung Ping Chau Marine Park (i) (ii) Cape D' Aguilar Marine Reserve (i) (ii) The Brothers Marine Park (i) (ii) (2) of the following figures in respect of the cases of illegal fishing respectively in the marine parks/marine reserves mentioned in (1) in each of the financial years from 2014-2015 to 2016-2017: (i) the number of complaints received, (ii) the number of cases in which illegal fishing was found during patrols or joint operations but no arrest could be successfully made, (iii) the number of persons arrested and the number of cases concerned, (iv) the number of persons convicted and the number of cases concerned, (v) the highest and lowest penalties imposed on the convicted persons, and (vi) the number of repeated offenders arrested and the number of cases concerned; (3) of (i) the number of patrols conducted and (ii) the number of joint operations mounted by the authorities in each of the financial years from 2014-2015 to 2016-2017 in the Hong Kong waters (except marine parks/marine reserves) listed below; Waters Financial Year 2014-2015 2015-2016 2016-2017 The entire Hong Kong waters (i) (ii) The waters near Cheung Chau (i) (ii) The waters near Shek Kwu Chau (i) (ii) The waters near Soko Islands (i) (ii) The waters off The Brothers (i) (ii) The waters off Sha Chau and Lung Kwu Chau (i) (ii) (4) of the following figures in respect of the cases of illegal fishing respectively in the waters mentioned in (3) in each of the financial years from 2014-2015 to 2016-2017: (i) the number of complaints received, (ii) the number of cases in which illegal fishing was found during patrols or joint operations but no arrest could be successfully made, (iii) the number of persons arrested and the number of cases concerned, (iv) the number of persons convicted and the number of cases concerned, (v) the highest and lowest penalties imposed on the convicted persons, and (vi) the number of repeated offenders arrested and the number of cases concerned; and (5) whether the authorities will consider strengthening the measures to combat illegal fishing, including (i) purchasing additional patrol vessels, (ii) increasing the number of patrols, (iii) increasing the number of joint operations, and (iv) raising the relevant penalties; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*13. Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG to ask: (Translation)
The Commissioner of Correctional Services said at the annual press conference of the Correctional Services Department ("CSD") held in February this year that CSD was still undergoing a peak period of staff wastage. On the other hand, some disciplined services staff members have relayed to me that the wastage of staff members, particularly those appointed for less than one year, in their departments is serious. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective wastage of the staff of various ranks in CSD since the beginning of this year, and the percentages of such members in the total numbers of staff members in the relevant ranks; (2) of the respective wastage of the staff of various ranks in other disciplined services (i.e. the Hong Kong Police Force, the Fire Services Department, the Immigration Department, the Customs and Excise Department and the Government Flying Service) in the 2016-2017 financial year, and the percentages of such members in the total numbers of staff members in the relevant ranks; (3) of the respective wastage of staff members appointed for less than one year in various disciplined services in each of the past five financial years, and the percentages of such members in the total numbers of staff members in the relevant ranks; and (4) whether it has gained an understanding about the detailed reasons for the staff wastage in various disciplined services?
*14. Hon LEUNG Che-cheung to ask: (Translation)
At present, there are two main arrangements for emergency ambulance service in remote areas on outlying islands: (i) police officers on arrival at the scene first check a patient's condition and then, where necessary, call a helicopter to transfer the patient to an acute hospital in the urban area, or call a marine police launch to transfer the patient to a pier in the urban area for onward transfer to an acute hospital by an ambulance, and (ii) after an ambulance has transferred a patient to a nearby public clinic, the nurse on duty there checks the patient's condition and then, where necessary, calls a helicopter to transfer the patient to an acute hospital in the urban area. Some residents on outlying islands have pointed out that the current arrangements for emergency ambulance service on outlying islands are defective. As a result, it often takes more than one hour from the making of a call for emergency ambulance service to the patient's arrival at an acute hospital and, in the past, some patients even died before arriving at hospital. Regarding the emergency ambulance service in the six districts of (a) South Lantau, (b) North Lantau (except Tung Chung New Town), (c) North Lamma Island, (d) South Lamma Island, (e) Peng Chau and Hei Ling Chau as well as (f) Cheung Chau, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) in respect of the six aforesaid districts, of the current arrangements for emergency ambulance service (i.e. the aforesaid type (i) or type (ii) arrangement, or (iii) other arrangements (please specify)) during daytime from Mondays to Saturdays ("weekdays"), and on evenings of weekdays and on Sundays and public holidays respectively, and set out such information in Table 1;
Table 1District Arrangement for emergency ambulance service
(type (i), (ii) or (iii))During daytime on weekdays On evenings of weekdays and on Sundays and public holidays (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (2) in each of the past three years, of (i) the respective numbers of emergency ambulance calls received from the six aforesaid districts by the authorities, as well as (ii) the average time and (iii) the median time taken between the receipt of calls and the patients' arrival at acute hospitals (and set out such information in Table 2);
Table 2District 2014 2015 2016 (i) (ii) (iii) (i) (ii) (iii) (i) (ii) (iii) (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (3) of the respective numbers of ambulances and logistic support appliances stationed in each of the six aforesaid districts; the respective numbers of service calls attended by the (i) ambulances and (ii) logistic support appliances in the six aforesaid districts in each of the past three years (and set out such information in Table 3);
Table 3District 2014 2015 2016 (i) (ii) (i) (ii) (i) (ii) (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (4) of the respective numbers of service calls attended by (i) helicopters and (ii) marine police launches for transferring patients from the six aforesaid districts to acute hospitals in urban areas in each of the past three years (and set out such information in Table 4); and
Table 4District 2014 2015 2016 (i) (ii) (i) (ii) (i) (ii) (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (5) whether the authorities have taken into account the additional demand brought about by picnickers when they make manpower arrangements for emergency ambulance service for districts on outlying islands during weekends and holidays; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; given that some residents on outlying islands have indicated that at present, the shortage of emergency ambulance service for outlying islands during weekends and holidays is even more acute than that on weekdays, of the causes of such situation?
*15. Hon KWOK Wai-keung to ask: (Translation)
As the former Office of the Commissioner of Insurance ("OCI") considered it necessary to strengthen the vetting of the academic qualifications of insurance intermediaries (i.e. insurance agents and insurance brokers) ("intermediaries"), the Insurance Agents Registration Board ("IARB") has earlier issued a circular requiring that with effect from 1 May this year, in respect of any application for first registration as intermediaries lodged with IARB where the applicant uses an academic qualification certificate issued by a Mainland educational institution for proving that he/she has completed Secondary Five or has attained an equivalent academic qualification, the applicant is required to submit to IARB a copy of that certificate and a specified supplementary document certifying the authenticity of that certificate. The said requirement will be extended to applications for re-registration, additional registration and renewal registration as intermediaries with effect from 1 August this year. It is learnt that for quite a number of intermediaries who completed secondary school education on the Mainland many years ago, the secondary schools at which they studied have either closed down or undergone transformation, rendering them unable to obtain the copies of the relevant academic qualification certificates. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the number of intermediaries who were registered with IARB each year since 1 January 2000 on the strength of academic qualification certificates issued by Mainland educational institutions; (2) as some intermediaries have indicated that they were informed by OCI that in respect of applications for re-registration, additional registration and renewal registration as intermediaries, IARB would only accept copies of "certificates of graduation" issued by Mainland educational institutions and would no longer accept copies of certificates bearing other titles such as "certificates of education"("學業證書"), "certificates of completion of study" ("結業證書"), "certificates of attendance" ("修業證書") and "certificates of study" ("肄業證書") which the intermediaries had submitted at the time of first registration, whether the Government knows IARB's justifications for imposing such requirement, and if IARB will reinstate the practice of accepting the copies of those certificates; (3) whether it knows the number of intermediaries who were registered with IARB on the strength of the copies of certificates bearing those other titles mentioned in (2) since 1 January 2000; (4) as IARB accepts the certificates of other academic qualifications submitted by applicants in respect of applications for re-registration, additional registration and renewal registration as intermediaries, provided that such qualifications have been obtained by the applicants before their first registration ("the cut-off time"), whether the Government knows IARB's justifications for setting such cut-off time; whether the Government will request IARB to accept academic qualification certificates obtained after the cut-off time; and (5) whether it has assessed if the rights and interests of the policyholders will be prejudiced when some intermediaries are unable to apply for re-registration, additional registration or renewal registration as intermediaries due to their failure to re-submit the copies of academic qualification certificates which they submitted at the time of first registration, rendering them no longer being allowed to handle the policies for which they are currently responsible; if it has assessed, of the outcome?
*16. Hon CHAN Kin-por to ask: (Translation)
Since 26 June this year, the Insurance Authority ("IA") has replaced the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance as the new insurance regulator in Hong Kong and taken over the Office's statutory functions, which include conducting thematic studies on the insurance industry and facilitating the development of the insurance industry. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows how IA will promote the use of financial technologies ("Fintech") by the insurance industry, including whether IA will cooperate with start-ups engaged in Fintech research and development ("R&D") or offer assistance to such start-ups (e.g. arranging sandbox testing or enhancing such start-ups' understanding of the regulatory regime of the insurance industry) with a view to applying the R&D results to the insurance industry; if IA will, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that; (2) given that following the rapid development of Fintech and innovative technology, the financial institutions in many countries are introducing services by smart robo-advisors which has resulted in a loss of frontline jobs in the financing and insurance industry of these countries, whether the Government knows IA's measures to assist local insurance practitioners in facing up to such problem; and (3) whether it knows IA's measures to facilitate the development of the insurance industry, e.g. how IA will assist the insurance industry in Hong Kong in making use of its advantage and capitalizing on the opportunities brought about by the nation's Belt and Road Initiative and the development plan of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area?
*17. Hon Frankie YICK to ask: (Translation)
Some vessel owners have indicated that in recent years, the number of yachts has been growing but berthing spaces for yachts are in short supply and charges for their use are high. As a result, more and more yachts berth at typhoon shelters, which are free of charge, thereby aggravating the problem of insufficient berthing spaces at typhoon shelters. Moreover, as there are a number of major infrastructure projects underway in Hong Kong at present, quite a number of vessels are working at sea. Such vessel owners are worried that there will not be sufficient berthing spaces at typhoon shelters for various types of vessels during typhoons and inclement weather in Hong Kong, endangering the safety of vessels and marine workers. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of (i) the total number of yachts registered and (ii) the number of yachts newly registered, in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by length of yacht (i.e. 35 feet or below, from 36 feet to 60 feet, from 61 feet to 99 feet, and 100 feet or above); (2) whether it knows the existing demand for and supply of berthing spaces for yachts; if so, set out such information by district; (3) whether it will demarcate, in various typhoon shelters, berthing areas dedicated for yachts and other vessels respectively; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (4) whether the Government has plans, apart from the plan to provide additional berthing spaces for yachts in Tung Chung, to provide additional berthing spaces for yachts in other districts; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that and the measures in place to mitigate the problem of insufficient berthing spaces at typhoon shelters; and (5) as some vessel owners have relayed to me that at present, some people use floating bridges to occupy the berthing spaces at typhoon shelters and release, upon collection of fees from yachts searching for berthing spaces, the occupied spaces for such yachts to berth, which is an act of profiteering from public facilities and is against the original purpose of typhoon shelters to provide sheltered spaces for vessels to take refuge during typhoons and inclement weather in Hong Kong, whether the Government has measures in place to curb such an act; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that and the measures in place to prevent the proliferation of the abusive use of berthing spaces at typhoon shelters?
*18. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)
The Resident Liaison Ambassador Scheme ("Ambassador Scheme"), launched by the Government in November 2011, aims at recruiting owners or tenants living in buildings which are aged 30 years or above and have no management bodies formed as Resident Liaison Ambassadors ("RLAs") to assist the relevant government departments in contacting residents of such buildings for discussing and handling daily building management matters. However, some residents of old buildings have pointed out that the Government has given inadequate support to the Ambassador Scheme, causing the expected results of the Scheme not being achieved. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) in each of the past five years, of (i) the number of buildings across the territory for which neither owners' corporations or residents' organizations had been formed nor property management companies had been hired (commonly known as "three-nil buildings") (with a breakdown by District Council ("DC") district), and (ii) the number of target buildings included in the Ambassador Scheme and the number of them in respect of which RLAs were successfully recruited (with a breakdown by DC district); (2) of the number of meetings held between the authorities and the residents with the assistance of RLAs in the past five years (with a breakdown by DC district); (3) of the number of RLAs newly recruited each year since the launch of the Ambassador Scheme, and the current number of RLAs (with a breakdown by DC district); (4) of the channels through which the Ambassador Scheme is currently publicized, and the means to recruit RLAs; (5) whether an RLA who has moved out of the building in which he or she resided can continue to serve as RLA of the building; if not, of the measures put in place by the authorities to fill the vacancy expeditiously; and (6) whether the authorities will (i) review the effectiveness of the Ambassador Scheme and (ii) allocate more resources to promote and enhance the Scheme; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*19. Hon LUK Chung-hung to ask: (Translation)
Some members of the aviation industry have pointed out that the manpower requirement of the Hong Kong International Airport is expected to surge upon completion of the project to expand the Hong Kong International Airport into a three-runway system in 2023-2024. It is therefore imperative to train up sufficient manpower for the aviation industry in the coming few years. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of aviation industry-related vocational education and training courses organized in the past five years under the Labour Department's Youth Employment and Training Programme ("YETP") as well as by various vocational training organizations (such as Vocational Training Council), and set out in a table the following information of such courses: (i) title, (ii) type, (iii) scope (such as management, security, passenger services and aircraft maintenance), (iv) mode of study or training period of programme, (v) the estimated and actual numbers of students admitted, (vi) the number of graduates and (vii) the percentage of graduates and students who were employed by the aviation industry upon completion of the relevant courses or training; (2) among the YETP students mentioned in (1), of the percentage of students receiving training allowances during the training period and the average amount of such allowances; whether it knows (i) the average monthly salary and the average working hours per week of such students during the on-the-job training period, and (ii) the number of such students who were offered employment by the relevant employers upon completion of pre-employment or on-the-job training, and among them, the number of those who quitted their jobs within one year after they were offered employment as well as the reasons involved; and (3) whether it has formulated targeted measures to encourage various vocational training organizations to organize more aviation industry-related vocational education and training courses, and attract more young people to join the aviation industry; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*20. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)
When attending a question and answer session of this Council last month, the Chief Executive of the last term pointed out that the development plan for a city cluster in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area ("Bay Area") would bring about huge and all-encompassing opportunities for Hong Kong people, and he urged Hong Kong people to "seize the opportunities" and "play an active role" in this respect. In addition, he mentioned in his blog that a number of sea-crossing and inter-city infrastructure projects for enhancing the link between the cities in the Bay Area were underway. Among them, those projects involving Hong Kong include the projects to build Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link and the Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point. However, the works in Hong Kong's territory under the three aforesaid infrastructure projects, as well as a number of major infrastructure projects in Hong Kong carried out in recent years, have repeatedly experienced massive cost overruns. To strengthen the control of construction costs of public works projects, the Development Bureau established a Project Cost Management Office ("PCMO") in June last year. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of works projects the cost estimates of which have been reviewed by PCMO so far, and the resultant cumulative savings on construction costs; (2) whether, in the coming five years, the Government has plans to use Hong Kong's fiscal reserves of over $900 billion to participate in the equity or debt financing for proposed major infrastructure projects in the Bay Area; if so, of the details (including the names of the projects concerned, the amounts of money involved, and the expected return), and whether PCMO can participate in the cost management of such projects; if it has no such plans, the reasons for that; and (3) whether, in the coming five years, the Government has plans to carry out new cross-boundary infrastructure works projects for linking Hong Kong with other cities in the Bay Area; if so, of the details and how PCMO will assist in the control of the construction costs of such projects?
*21. Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask: (Translation)
Last month, three persons attended the launch event of the "Taiwan Congressional Hong Kong Caucus" ("the Caucus") reportedly in the capacity of Members of the Legislative Council and signed a cooperation document with the Caucus. It has been reported that the Caucus shows a strong tendency towards "Taiwan Independence" and its members have even advocated propositions such as convening, with reference to the United States congressional hearings, public hearings to receive views from various parties on Hong Kong affairs, as well as promoting amendment of the Act Governing Relations with Hong Kong and Macau by Taiwan's Legislative Yuan to grant political asylum to people from Hong Kong. There are views that the Caucus is preparing to substantively intervene and interfere in Hong Kong's internal affairs, and the aforesaid Legislative Council Members who have participated in its activities are colluding with Taiwan Independence forces to promote "Hong Kong Independence", which is an act of splitting the territory of the country and challenging the "one country, two systems" principle, and is thus in violation of the oath taken by them when assuming office that they would uphold the Basic Law and bear allegiance to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has studied if Members of this Council may, under the Basic Law and existing legislation, join any organization outside Hong Kong in the capacity of Legislative Council Members and sign cooperation documents with such organizations; if they may, whether there is legislation in place to monitor or ensure that their words and deeds upon joining such organizations and signing cooperation documents with them will not violate the provisions of the Basic Law and other relevant legislation; (2) whether it has received intelligence about pro-Taiwan independence organizations currently carrying out in Hong Kong activities, e.g. establishing connections with local political organizations and providing such organizations with financial or other forms of support; of the measures in place to allay public concern about pro-Taiwan independence organizations interfering in Hong Kong's internal affairs, challenging the one country, two systems principle and threatening unity of the country; and (3) of the existing legislation and mechanisms in place to prohibit Taiwan Independence forces from interfering in Hong Kong's internal affairs; whether it has assessed if such legislation and mechanisms are effective in prohibiting any Hong Kong people (including Members of this Council) and local organizations from drawing in Taiwan Independence forces to interfere in Hong Kong's internal affairs?
*22. Hon Holden CHOW to ask: (Translation)
The CHOICE magazine, published by the Consumer Council, was launched in 1976 to provide consumers with information on product tests, service surveys, study reports, etc. Since January 2004, in addition to the print version, members of the public have been able to purchase and download an electronic version of the CHOICE magazine from the Consumer Council's website. Some members of the public have relayed to me that while most of the newspapers and magazines now provide an online version to facilitate reading by readers at any time in any place, the Consumer Council has not yet made available an online version of the CHOICE magazine. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
(1) the reasons for the Consumer Council not providing an online version of the CHOICE magazine to date; whether the Consumer Council has studied the introduction of such version with a view to widening the readership of the magazine; if the Consumer Council has studied and (i) the outcome is in the affirmative, whether such version will be provided free of charge; if not, of the reasons for that; (ii) the outcome is in the negative; of the reasons for that; if the reasons are related to a lack of resources on the part of the Consumer Council, whether the Government will increase the funding allocated to the Consumer Council; and (2) whether the Consumer Council will consider improving the contents of the print version of the CHOICE magazine to attract more readers; if the Consumer Council will, of the approach to be adopted?
* For written reply
III. Government Motion
| Proposed resolution under the Product Eco-responsibility Ordinance and the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance
Secretary for the Environment to move the motion in the Appendix. |
| (The motion was also issued on 21 June 2017
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 718/16-17) Hon HUI Chi-fung to move amending motions to the proposed resolution. (The amending motions were issued on 3 July 2017 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 780/16-17) |
| (Debate and voting arrangements for the proposed resolution under the Product Eco-responsibility Ordinance and the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance and its amending motions (issued on 4 July 2017 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 795/16-17(01)) (same as the Appendix to the Script of Council meeting of 5 July 2017)) |
IV. Members' Motions on Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments
V. Members' Bill
| Second Reading (Debate to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading
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| Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited (Merger) Bill | : | Hon CHAN Chun-ying
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| Hon CHAN Chun-ying to move Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 22 June 2017 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 733/16-17) | ||
|
Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
(Debate and voting arrangements for Committee stage of the Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited (Merger) Bill (issued on 4 July 2017 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 794/16-17(01)) (same as the Appendix to the Script of Council meeting of 5 July 2017)) | ||
VI. Members' Motions
| 1. | Reforming outdated legislation and promoting the development of innovation and technology
Hon Charles Peter MOK to move the following motion: (Translation) That this Council urges the Government to coordinate various policy bureaux in reviewing outdated legislation and, in the light of technological development, public expectations and the actual circumstances, formulating policies afresh; to achieve the abovementioned objectives, the Government should, through extensive consultation conducted in a timely manner, update obsolete legislation, introduce policies conducive to innovation and formulate innovative regulatory frameworks that maintain a balance among the concerns of stakeholders, thereby enabling Hong Kong to keep pace with the times; this Council also urges the Government to demonstrate to the public an attitude of being willing to listen to views and promoting innovation, and enact legislation suitable for the era of digital economy, in order to develop a smart city and facilitate the development and wider application of innovation and technology, thereby providing more choices for the people and upgrading the competitiveness of Hong Kong, with a view to seizing the opportunities of catching up with the pace of the international community. Amendments to the motion | |
| (i) | Hon YUNG Hoi-yan to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", as many countries and regions in the world have allocated an enormous amount of resources to the proactive development of innovation and technology," after "That"; to add "to support the development of related industries" after "afresh"; and to add "given that innovation and technology can promote the development of the game industry, the Government should expeditiously formulate a policy on the development of this industry, determine the policy bureau to be in charge of industry coordination and provide a clear blueprint for the long-term development of the local game industry;" after "with the times;". | |
| (ii) | Ir Dr Hon LO Wai-kwok to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add "the Advisory Committee on Innovation and Technology was established in April 2015 to advise the Government on strategic and developmental enhancements of innovation and technology in Hong Kong; the Advisory Committee on Innovation and Technology proposed a series of recommendations and key performance indicators in the Report of the Advisory Committee on Innovation and Technology ('the Report') published in March this year; in this connection," after "That"; to add ", based on the recommendations of the Report and the aspirations of the technology industry," after "this Council urges the Government to"; to add "and relevant mechanisms and codes," after "outdated legislation"; to add "innovative" after "introduce"; to delete "innovation" after "conducive to" and substitute with "industry development, business environment and livelihood infrastructure,"; to add "and avert the current lag in the development of innovation and technology" after "with the times"; and to add "; specific proposals include: (1) in regard to implementing various key performance indicators proposed in the Report, formulating specific policies and measures and conducting timely reviews of them; (2) requiring the tax policy unit to expeditiously make specific proposals for tax deductions for innovation and technology activities, including the provision of triple tax deductions for expenditures on research and development and design, so as to promote the development of innovation and technology; (3) while maintaining market stability, removing various regulations and restrictions for financial innovation and providing relevant legal advice and technical support for financial services enterprises, so as to assist the industry in the development and effective use of financial technology products and services; (4) including in the government procurement and tender mechanisms the requirement of promotion of technological development and increasing the weighting of this requirement in the overall score, so as to encourage enterprises to promote the development of innovation and technology; (5) using innovation and technology to make planning for transport, healthcare, environmental protection, elderly services, etc., in order to expeditiously put forward a specific blueprint for the development of a smart city; (6) reviewing outdated legislation and restrictions on the vetting and approval of amendments to land use as an endeavour to increase the supply of sites for data centres, testing and certification as well as other innovation and technology sectors, so as to promote the development of the innovation and technology industry; and (7) amending the scope of information provided by the Government as defined in the Code on Access to Information and using technology to make a detailed categorization of government information while stipulating requirements for the format and time of dissemination of information, so that various industries can make use of the relevant information to develop high-technology products" immediately before the full stop. | |
| (iii) | Hon Claudia MO to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", in view of increasingly close connection between the daily life of the people and the application of technology," after "That"; and to add "; this Council urges the Government to expeditiously review the following outdated legislation, which includes: (1) amending the Broadcasting Ordinance and the Telecommunications Ordinance to proactively support the development of new media, and require that the important personnel in free television broadcasting companies in Hong Kong must ordinarily reside in Hong Kong, so as to ensure that red capitalists will neither become string pullers behind the scene of free television broadcasters nor carry out 'Mainlandization' disguised as 'internationalization'; and (2) amending section 161 of the Crimes Ordinance to prescribe a clearer definition of the provision on 'access to computer with criminal or dishonest intent', so as to prevent people from exploiting the loophole of this provision to suppress dissidents or even hinder the development of new technology" immediately before the full stop. | |
| (iv) | Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", given rapid technological development," after "That"; to delete ", in the light of technological development, public expectations and the actual circumstances," after "legislation and"; to add "at an appropriate time based on the current situation and trends of technological development, so as to meet public expectations and social needs" after "afresh"; to add "and while tailoring to the actual social environment, having regard to the operation of existing industries and maintaining a balance among the interests of various stakeholders" after "manner"; to delete "and" after "promoting innovation,"; to delete ", in order to develop" after "economy" and substitute with "and further study opening up spatial data conducive to people's livelihood and facilitating economic development, in order to promote"; to delete "more choices" after "providing" and substitute with "a life of better quality"; and to add "; in tandem with the enactment of legislation suited to the era of digital economy, the Government should also make adequate preparations for countering threats of cyber crime by, among others, conducting a review of the relevant legislation and policies and study the introduction of electronic identity for individuals and electronic business registration that carry legal effect, so as to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the public and enterprises" immediately before the full stop. | |
| (v) | Hon YIU Si-wing to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", given the rapid development of innovation and technology worldwide," after "That"; to add "and on the premise of maintaining a balance between the interests of stakeholders and the protection of consumer rights and interests" after "manner"; to delete "," after "obsolete legislation" and substitute with "and"; and to delete "and formulate innovative regulatory frameworks that maintain a balance among the concerns of stakeholders" after "conducive to innovation". | |
| (vi) | Hon Alvin YEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add "and policies" after "outdated legislation"; to add "when they purchase goods and services" after "people"; and to add "; sharing economy has been an emerging economic model in recent years, so in order to drive Hong Kong to keep pace with the times, the Government should establish a committee to conduct studies on amendments to outdated legislation and policies, with a view to allowing the development of sharing economy in Hong Kong; for purposes of formulating relevant legislation and policies on the promotion of sharing economy, the Government should: (1) identify the potentials of sharing economy and, from the angles of social welfare, public transport, market space, etc., explore how the community can benefit from the model of sharing economy; (2) assess the effect of sharing economy on the economy of Hong Kong; (3) study the removal of various regulations and restrictions for sharing economy enterprises and provide assistance to them, including but not limited to the provision of financing for enterprises, and provide a platform for enterprises to learn from each other and share with each other their respective modes of operation; (4) conduct studies on improving the quality of the existing service industries and their ways of service delivery; and (5) while studying the formulation of relevant legislation and policies on the promotion of sharing economy, examine and amend relevant legislation on consumer protection, so that consumers can be afforded greater protection in carrying out a large volume of online transactions under the model of sharing economy" immediately before the full stop. | |
| (vii) | Hon Kenneth LEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add ", overseas experience" after "expectations"; to delete ", through extensive consultation conducted in a timely manner" after "the Government should" and substitute with "extensively consult the public and the industries, formulate competitive policies conducive to innovation"; to delete "introduce policies conducive to innovation and formulate innovative" after "obsolete legislation," and substitute with "restructure"; to delete "that maintain a balance among the concerns of stakeholders" after "frameworks" and substitute with "and set up a 'sandbox' system to allow enterprises to apply innovation and technology in a more flexible manner"; and to add "(including financial technology)" after "technology". | |
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Innovation and Technology
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| 2. | Establishing a universal retirement protection system
Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung to move the following motion: (Translation) That according to the information of the Census and Statistics Department, the Gini Coefficient in 2016 was 0.539, reflecting the severity of the disparity between the rich and the poor; the Hong Kong Poverty Situation Report 2015 released by the Commission on Poverty last year pointed out that the number of elderly people of Hong Kong living in poverty rose continuously, reaching 300 000 in 2015, indicating that the social security system introduced by the Government for the elderly was ineffective and full of flaws and loopholes; the assistance provided to the elderly under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme has long been a subject of criticism, while the Mandatory Provident Fund ('MPF') schemes have offered no protection to over 600 000 family carers, and public annuities proposed by the Government are merely investment products, the risks of which will be solely borne by individuals; after the study of the retirement protection system earlier on, the consultancy team led by Professor Nelson CHOW proposed the establishment of a non-means-tested universal Demo-grant; a public consultation on retirement protection conducted by the Government was concluded last year, and various opinion surveys and public consultation forums indicated that most members of the public supported the establishment of a non-means-tested universal retirement protection system with tripartite contributions from employees, employers and the Government and funded by higher profits tax levied on consortia, but the Government has all along evaded the follow-up actions of this proposal; in order to protect the retirement life of members of the public, this Council urges the Government to: | |
| (1) | implement the establishment of a non-means-tested universal retirement protection system with uniform payment, and the new-term Government should respond to this proposal in its first policy address; set up an inter-departmental committee led by the Chief Secretary for Administration and the Financial Secretary, and invite various stakeholders to hold discussions on issues such as the financing options and financial arrangements for universal retirement protection;
| |
| (2) | increase the provision of $50 billion mentioned in the 2015-2016 Budget for retirement protection for the elderly to $100 billion, to be used as start-up funds for the establishment of a universal retirement protection system, and ensure that the provision will not be used to optimize the Old Age Living Allowance or offset severance payments and long service payments;
| |
| (3) | make improvements to the MPF system, including abolishing the arrangement of using the accrued benefits derived from employers' MPF contributions to offset severance payments and long service payments, while ensuring that employees' existing severance payment and long service payment benefits will not be reduced; and
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| (4) | make public the estimates of expenditure on various means-tested elderly assistance schemes to be fully funded by the Government over the next 50 years, including the Higher Old Age Living Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance, Old Age Allowance, and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance.
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| Amendments to the motion | ||
| (i) | Hon LEUNG Che-cheung to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add "the Government has been continuously increasing social welfare resources, but" after "That"; to add "and it was still 0.473 on a post-tax post-social transfer basis," after "0.539,"; to delete "the severity of" after "reflecting" and substitute with "that"; to add "was still severe" after "the poor"; to add "the Government must further optimize" after "indicating that"; to delete "by the Government for the elderly was ineffective and full of flaws and loopholes; the assistance provided to the elderly under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme has long been a subject of criticism, while" after "introduced" and substitute with "for the elderly and"; to delete "have offered no protection to over 600 000 family carers, and public annuities proposed by the Government are merely investment products, the risks of which will be solely borne by individuals; after the study of the retirement protection system earlier on, the consultancy team led by Professor Nelson CHOW proposed the establishment of a non-means-tested universal Demo-grant; a public consultation on retirement protection conducted by the Government was concluded last year, and various opinion surveys and public consultation forums indicated that most members of the public supported the establishment of a non-means-tested universal retirement protection system with tripartite contributions from employees, employers and the Government and funded by higher profits tax levied on consortia, but the Government has all along evaded the follow-up actions of this proposal" after "('MPF') schemes"; to delete "implement the establishment of a non-means-tested universal retirement protection system with uniform payment, and" after "(1)" and substitute with "further optimize the arrangements for universal retirement protection, so as to achieve the objectives of 'benefiting all people and providing greater assistance to needy elderly people', and the measures include providing an Old Age Allowance free from any asset or income test to all elderly people aged 65 or above; expeditiously implementing the proposal to add a higher tier of assistance concerning the Old Age Living Allowance as set out in the 2017 Policy Address; and further relaxing the asset limits for applying for the Old Age Living Allowance;"; to delete "this proposal" after "respond to" and substitute with "the aforesaid proposals"; to delete ";" after "policy address" and substitute with ", as well as"; to delete "issues such as" after "discussions on" and substitute with "various arrangements for universal retirement protection, including"; to delete "for universal retirement protection" after "arrangements"; to delete "increase" after "(2)" and substitute with "apart from"; to delete "to $100 billion, to be used as start-up funds for the establishment of a universal retirement protection system, and ensure that the provision will not be used to optimize the Old Age Living Allowance or offset severance payments and long service payments" after "protection for the elderly" and substitute with ", ensure that there are adequate resources to support the various arrangements for universal retirement protection, including optimizing the Old Age Allowance and the Old Age Living Allowance, and addressing the issue of the MPF offsetting mechanism"; to delete "abolishing the arrangement of using the accrued benefits derived from employers' MPF contributions to offset severance payments and long service payments, while ensuring that employees' existing severance payment and long service payment benefits will not be reduced; and" after "MPF system, including" and substitute with "facilitating employees and employers to reach a consensus on the issue of the MPF offsetting mechanism; introducing more products for MPF investment, including government infrastructure bonds as well as funds linked to the return of the Exchange Fund and linked to inflation; and introducing tax deductions for MPF voluntary contributions; (4) continue to optimize the existing arrangement concerning the application for the Social Security Allowance, including introducing 'Guangdong Scheme' and 'Fujian Scheme' for the Old Age Living Allowance, and allowing elderly recipients of the Disability Allowance to receive the Old Age Allowance at the same time; (5) expeditiously introduce a public annuity scheme and expand its scale, as well as increase the issuance volumes under the Silver Bond scheme and extend the maturity of such bonds; and"; to delete the original "(4)" and substitute with "(6)"; and to delete "make public" before "the estimates" and substitute with "regularly project and announce". | |
| (ii) | Hon KWOK Wai-keung to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To add "as Hong Kong's population ages and there is no comprehensive retirement protection system in Hong Kong, the plight of elderly in poverty has begun to surface;" after "That"; to delete "set up" after "policy address;" and substitute with "through the Commission on Poverty or"; to add "to be set up and" after "committee"; to delete "and" after "the Financial Secretary,"; to delete "increase" after "(2)" and substitute with "incorporate the views of the community, such as increasing"; and to add "or allocating $220 billion from the Future Fund" after "$100 billion,". | |
| (iii) | Hon Alvin YEUNG to move the following amendment: (Translation)
To delete "in 2016 was 0.539" after "the Gini Coefficient" and substitute with "of Hong Kong has risen further in 2016 compared with that five years ago, reaching 0.539, which hit a new record high in 45 years"; to add "increasing" after "reflecting the"; to add "to formulate a timetable and a roadmap for the implementation of a universal retirement protection system" after "the Financial Secretary"; to delete "and" after "reduced;"; and to add "; and (5) formulate a blueprint for elderly policy before the implementation of a universal retirement protection system" immediately before the full stop. | |
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Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Labour and Welfare
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