A 17/18-32
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 23 May 2018 at 11:30 am
(or immediately after the meeting for the Chief Executive's Question Time
to be held at 11:00 am that day)
I. Tabling of Papers
II. Questions
1. Hon KWONG Chun-yu to ask: (Translation)
Currently, members of the public are required to pay a handling charge ranging from $6 to $10 when purchasing event or movie tickets through the websites or mobile phone applications of ticketing agencies, a majority of cinema circuits and the Urban Ticketing System ("URBTIX") under the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. However, they are not required to pay such a handling charge when purchasing tickets in person at the box offices. Some members of the public are of the view that the ratio of the relevant handling charge to ticket price is rather high, and the practice of collecting handling charge impedes the development of Hong Kong into a smart city. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the justifications for URBTIX for not collecting a handling charge at present from persons who purchase tickets through their counters, but collecting a handling charge of $8 per ticket from those who purchase tickets through its website, mobile phone application and telephone booking hotline, and whether the authorities will consider ceasing the collection of such charge; (2) whether it will consider regulating the practice of ticketing agencies, cinema circuits, etc. collecting a handling charge from persons who purchase tickets online, such as stipulating the ceiling on the ratio of the handling charge to the ticket price; and (3) whether it will consider introducing measures to reduce traders' costs for providing electronic ticketing services, so that they do not have to pass on the relevant costs to the consumers, as well as to promote the development of Hong Kong into a smart city?
2. Hon SHIU Ka-fai to ask: (Translation)
Since 2017, there has been a continued rebound in visitor arrivals to Hong Kong, reversing the downward trend since 2015 and bringing economic benefits to the local tourism and related sectors (including the retailing, catering and transport sectors). The visitor flows in districts frequented by visitors have also increased consequently. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether the authorities have, since 2017, stepped up the relevant efforts in districts frequented by visitors to Hong Kong in response to the rebound in visitor arrivals, including deploying additional manpower to clean the streets more frequently and assigning additional patrolling police officers to maintain law and order; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (2) whether it will comprehensively review and improve the current measure of deploying District Tourism Ambassadors ("DTAs") to station in Kowloon City District, including selecting candidates more stringently in the recruitment of DTAs, strengthening the training, supervision and management of those recruited, expanding their duties (e.g. answering visitors' enquiries in addition to calling upon the visitors to keep places clean and maintain smooth passages), as well as extending the measure to other districts frequented by visitors, with a view to reducing the inconvenience caused by visitors to the residents; and (3) whether it has drawn up plans that may effectively divert visitors to various districts throughout the territory (e.g. by distributing at boundary control points leaflets on the characteristics of places in Hong Kong other than those tourist hot spots, so as to attract visitors to those places), thereby allowing tourism to bring benefits to local economy and, at the same time, minimizing the inconvenience caused to certain districts by over-concentration of visitors?
3. Hon YUNG Hoi-yan to ask: (Translation)
At present, there are over 350 000 foreign domestic helpers ("FDHs") in Hong Kong. During holidays, a large number of FDHs congregate in public places, such as parks, footbridge passages and places under flyovers. They sit, eat and sleep on the ground, thus affecting the daily lives of the public, the operation of shops and the environmental hygiene in public places. The problem has persisted for many years and shows a worsening trend. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the details (to be set out by District Council district) of various popular gathering places for FDHs during holidays, including the average number of FDHs gathering, the duration of gathering, the general activities conducted by FDHs, and the number of personnel deployed by the various government departments to station in those places during the relevant periods; if it does not have such information, of the reasons for that and whether it will collect such information; the respective numbers of the various kinds of relevant complaints received by the authorities, and the respective numbers of FDHs who were given verbal warnings, issued penalty tickets, served summons and convicted for the various types of law-breaking acts, in each of the past three years; (2) given that the Government launched a scheme in 1994 to establish centres for FDHs under which the premises on loan by seven schools during weekends were used as activity centres for FDHs, but only one centre remains in operation at present, of the current or past details of each of the centres, including the years in which they were opened and closed down, the facilities provided therein, weekly opening hours and average utilization rates, as well as reasons for closure; whether the authorities have reviewed the objectives of the scheme, its operational difficulties and effectiveness; if so, of the outcome and the improvement measures; whether the authorities will consider setting up more centres in various districts for convenient use by FDHs; and (3) on the premise of balancing the rights of both FDHs and members of the public to use public places and the related obligations, of the authorities' new thinking on alleviating the problem caused by the congregation of FDHs in public places during holidays?
| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Secretary for Home Affairs |
4. Hon LEUNG Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)
Over the past decade, there has been a persistent growth in the number of cross-boundary vehicles entering Hong Kong, with that of private cars increasing by nearly 50%. The number of cross-boundary vehicles entering Hong Kong is expected to increase further in tandem with the commissioning of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge ("HZMB") within this year. Some members of the public are therefore concerned that the problem of local traffic congestion will become increasingly serious. They are also worried that the persistent increase in the quotas for cross-boundary vehicles will overload the local traffic network further, make the shortage of parking spaces more acute, and result in more traffic accidents. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of cross-boundary vehicles holding the International Circulation Permits issued by the Transport Department and the vehicle trips they made in Hong Kong, in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by vehicle class and original place of registration; whether it has estimated respectively the quotas for cross-boundary vehicles to be permitted to enter Hong Kong using HZMB and the vehicle trips to be made by such vehicles in Hong Kong in the coming five years, with a breakdown by vehicle class and original place of registration (i.e. Macao and Guangdong Province); (2) as the problem of local traffic congestion has become increasingly serious, coupled with the commissioning of HZMB within this year, and an implementation date has not been fixed for the Ad Hoc Quota Trial Scheme for Cross-boundary Private Cars (Second Phase), whether the authorities have assessed the changes in vehicle trips to be made by cross-boundary vehicles in Hong Kong in the coming five to 10 years; if not, whether the authorities will conduct an assessment expeditiously; whether they will consider lowering the quotas for cross-boundary vehicles; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and the measures to prevent the problem of local traffic congestion from being aggravated further by an excessive number of cross-boundary vehicles; and (3) of the respective numbers of drivers of cross-boundary vehicles prosecuted for various kinds of traffic offences in each of the past five years; whether it will introduce measures to enhance the road safety awareness among Mainland drivers when they drive cross-boundary vehicles in Hong Kong; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
5. Hon Dennis KWOK to ask: (Translation)
A report of an international survey organization has pointed out that among the international metropolises around the globe, Hong Kong has been dubbed the world's most unaffordable city in terms of property price for eight consecutive years. As at the third quarter of last year, the median price of residential units in Hong Kong was around $6.19 million, representing 19.4 times of the annual median income of $319,000 earned by local families. In other words, it takes a family on that income level as long as 19.4 years to acquire a property, even if it did not spend a penny nor buy any food. Meanwhile, as at the end of last year, there were a total of 9 000 unsold units in the completed private residential buildings in the territory, among which 4 000 had remained unsold for more than one year after completion. In connection with assisting local residents in acquiring properties by levying new taxes, will the Government inform this Council whether it will consider:
(1) levying new taxes on the first-hand residential units which have remained unsold for a period of time after completion to increase the cost of hoarding of units by developers, and to push them to offer the units for sale at a faster rate, with a view to increasing the supply of residential units; if so, of the details and the timetable; if not, the reasons for that; (2) levying new taxes on the vacant residential units owned by non-local residents or companies at least 25% of the beneficial interests of which are held by such persons; if so, of the details and the timetable; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) levying a capital gains tax on the sale of residential units owned by non-local residents or companies at least 25% of the beneficial interests of which are held by such persons, so as to dampen their desire to purchase residential units; if so, of the details and the timetable; if not, the reasons for that?
6. Hon HO Kai-ming to ask: (Translation)
Recently, a working woman has relayed to me that following her notifying her employer of her pregnancy last year, her supervisor repeatedly made life difficult for her, including extending her probationary period, criticizing her performance at work, hurling abuses at her for no reason and prohibiting other staff members from talking to her. After she had refused to resign of her own accord, she was dismissed summarily. Although she was reinstated upon intervention by the Labour Department ("LD"), she was eventually dismissed in less than a month after she had resumed duty from maternity leave, without receiving appropriate compensation. Regarding maternity protection for female employees, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of complaints or requests for assistance received by LD and the Equal Opportunities Commission in the past three years concerning pregnant employees being discriminated or treated in a hostile way by employers, and employees being dismissed soon after resumption of duty from maternity leave, with a breakdown by the contents of the complaints or requests for assistance; among such cases, the number of cases in which the employers concerned were convicted by the court for violation of the relevant legislation; (2) whether it will conduct an in-depth study on the special needs of pregnant employees and the difficulties they encounter at work, and survey on the prevalence of the situation of such employees being unreasonably dismissed within a certain period of time (say, in less than one month, one month to less than three months, and three months to half a year) upon resumption of duty from maternity leave; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) of the dedicated measures that have been put in place to enhance maternity protection for female employees; whether it has plans to comprehensively review and amend the Employment Ordinance, including extending the employment protection for employees against unreasonable dismissal during pregnancy to the first six months upon resumption of duty from maternity leave, so that female employees can feel at ease in regulating their physical and mental health during the period to facilitate their adaptation to the changes brought by the addition of new members to their families; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
| Public Officers to reply | : | Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Under Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs |
*7. Hon Steven HO to ask: (Translation)
Some fishermen have relayed that at present, some small fishing vessels cannot berth at typhoon shelters due to reasons such as licence restrictions or susceptibility to collision with other vessels. These fishermen have no choice but to berth their fishing vessels at places such as the outer area of typhoon shelters and breakwaters. Since such berthing locations lack embarking and disembarking facilities, fishermen can only embark on or disembark from their vessels by quite dangerous means such as climbing the boulders along the shore, striding over other small fishing vessels and making use of hand-pulled ferries and rafts. There have been cases in which some fishermen fell into the sea or sustained injuries while embarking on or disembarking from a vessel. I have proposed to the Marine Department ("MD") that reference be made to the relevant practices of local pleasure boat clubs and those around the world to provide floating bridges at typhoon shelters for berthing of small fishing vessels, but MD has rejected the proposal on the ground that it falls under the purview of a number of departments and there is currently no policy support. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has assessed if it is common for fishermen to embark on and disembark from fishing vessels berthed in the outer area of typhoon shelters and breakwaters by adopting the aforesaid quite dangerous means, and if the personal safety of them and other people is thus seriously endangered; if it has assessed and the outcome is in the affirmative, why the authorities have failed to take measures to solve the problem; if it has not assessed, of the reasons for that; (2) of the government department currently responsible for considering the proposal to provide the aforesaid floating bridges at typhoon shelters; whether it will set up an inter-departmental working group to be led by the relevant policy bureau to study the proposal and coordinate the relevant work; (3) as quite a number of fishermen of small fishing vessels have relayed that there is an acute shortage of berthing spaces in typhoon shelters in various districts, how the authorities will improve the relevant situation; (4) of the respective numbers of locally licensed vessels in the past three years that were less than 10 metres and between 10 and 15 metres in length; the number of embarking/disembarking points in various typhoon shelters in the territory in the past three years; whether it has assessed the capacity of the landing facilities, in terms of the number of vessel trips per month, in various typhoon shelters in the territory; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (5) as the Government said in reply to my question raised on 13 July 2016 that survey results indicated that the three landing facilities in Tuen Mun still had capacity to cope with more vessels and meet existing and projected demands, of the details of the survey concerned (including the criteria adopted); and (6) given that some fishing vessels are currently not allowed to enter typhoon shelters under the law, but certain wholesale fish markets and important fisheries facilities are accessible only through typhoon shelters, how the authorities assist those fishermen in selling their catch and getting replenishment?
*8. Hon Claudia MO to ask: (Translation)
The Government regularly invites, under the Sponsored Visitors Programme, political leaders as well as prominent members of the political and business sectors from various countries all over the world to visit Hong Kong. Last month, the Government invited the retired Chairman of the Law Committee of the 12th National People's Congress to visit Hong Kong under the Programme. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the time when the Government decided to invite the retired official to Hong Kong; the details of his visit to Hong Kong (including the major activities during the visit and the amounts of public expenditure on various items); the standard of the hospitality provided; (2) of the following details of the visits to Hong Kong arranged by the Government under the Sponsored Visitors Programme in each of the past five financial years: (i) dates of visits to Hong Kong, (ii) names of visitors, (iii) main purposes and other details of the visits to Hong Kong, and (iv) amounts of public expenditures (set out in tables of the same format as the table below);
Financial year:________
(i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (3) of the total expenditure incurred by the Sponsored Visitors Programme in the past five financial years and the estimated expenditure for the current financial year; (4) whether the Government has formulated standards of hospitality for receiving visitors under the Sponsored Visitors Programme; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (5) of the principles based on which the Government determines the persons to be invited to visit Hong Kong; if there is no such principles, of the reasons for that?
*9. Hon YIU Si-wing to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that during the Labour Day holiday of the Mainland (commonly known as "Labour Day Golden Week") this year, a large number of Mainland residents came to Hong Kong under the arrangement of a number of Mainland travel agencies, and set up tents and stayed overnight at designated camp sites and locations where the erection of tents was not permitted (e.g. beaches). Such a situation not only caused nuisance to the residents in the vicinity of the camp sites, but also affected environmental hygiene and natural ecology. In reply to an enquiry raised by me on related issues last year, the Government indicated that it would step up law enforcement actions and communicate with the relevant Mainland authorities. However, the problem is still worsening. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the measures and follow-up actions taken by the authorities so far since the occurrence of the aforesaid situation last year; (2) whether it has conducted investigations into cases in which organizations not holding a travel agent's licence were suspected to be running the aforesaid business; if so, of the details of the law enforcement actions taken in the past 12 months by the authorities, and the respective numbers of prosecutions and convictions concerned; if not, the reasons for that; (3) whether it reviewed, in the past three years, the booking arrangement adopted for the various designated camp sites and the supply and demand of camping areas; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; whether it will consider capping the number of persons on the camp sites so as to provide campers with a better camping experience and avoid causing excessive nuisance to the surrounding environment; and (4) given that more and more local residents and Mainland tourists are interested in going to Hong Kong's countryside for recreational purpose, whether the authorities will make available more designated camp sites and install additional facilities at existing camp sites to meet the demand; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*10. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that the Police implemented a two-month pilot scheme in New Territories North and Kowloon East at the end of last year, under which video cameras were used to assist police officers in taking law enforcement actions against six traffic offences which cause serious traffic obstructions, namely (i) picking up/setting down passengers in restricted zone, (ii) loading/unloading goods in restricted zone, (iii) unauthorized stopping at bus stop/public light bus stand/taxi stand, (iv) stopping bus, public light bus or taxi longer than necessary when picking up/setting down passengers, (v) unlawfully entering box junction, and (vi) "U" turn causing obstruction. Besides, the Energizing Kowloon East Office under the Development Bureau is conducting on-site tests on a Kerbside Loading/Unloading Bay Monitoring System ("Monitoring System") in some sections of How Ming Street and Hoi Bun Road in Kwun Tong by making use of surveillance cameras installed on on-street lampposts to assist in monitoring the situation of the loading/unloading bays in these two road segments. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of times for which law enforcement actions were taken by the Police under the pilot scheme, broken down by month and the police division to which the law enforcement location belonged; (2) of the number of prosecutions instituted by the Police under the pilot scheme in respect of each of the aforesaid traffic offences, broken down by the police division to which the law enforcement location belonged; (3) of the respective numbers of times for which the Police took law enforcement actions under the pilot scheme by ticketing the offenders on the spot and other forms, and the criteria adopted for determining the form of law enforcement action to be taken; (4) of the criteria adopted by the Police for assessing the effectiveness of the pilot scheme, and the assessment outcome; (5) as it has been reported that the authorities will expand the coverage of the pilot scheme to the whole territory within the first half of this year, whether the Police have formulated a detailed implementation plan; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (6) whether the authorities will consider using the Monitoring System to monitor the usage of and the illegal parking situation in the loading/unloading bays in the entire Kwun Tong district and the whole territory; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*11. Dr Hon CHIANG Lai-wan to ask: (Translation)
It is learnt that as some ethnic minority ("EM") women do not understand Chinese nor English, they are unable to integrate into the Hong Kong community, not to mention securing employment. The Equal Opportunities Commission ("EOC") pointed out in its submission to the Panel on Constitutional Affairs of this Council in February 2014 that "[e]thnic minority women are generally considered as one of the most vulnerable groups in Hong Kong due to their cultural and language background … [the] Government should take appropriate measures proactively to empower ethnic minority women to facilitate their integration into the local community". In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether the Government proactively took appropriate measures in the past three years to take forward the aforesaid recommendation of EOC so as to help the EM women integrate into the community; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (2) whether the Government offered in the past three years Chinese or English language courses specifically designed for newly arrived EM women; if so, of the number of EM women who attended such courses; and (3) whether the Government has offered domestic helper training courses conducted in EM languages for enrolment by EM women, in order to help them secure employment; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*12. Hon IP Kin-yuen to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the employment of academic staff by three types of institutions, namely universities funded by the University Grants Committee ("UGC"), departments of self-financing programmes under UGC-funded universities and self-financing post-secondary institutions, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the number and percentage of part-time academic staff among the academic staff employed by each type of the institutions in each of the past five academic years, as well as a breakdown of such number and percentage of part-time academic staff by their duties (i.e. (i) research and teaching, (ii) research duty only and (iii) teaching duty only); set out in a table the aforesaid figures by name of institution and rank of staff; (2) whether it knows a breakdown by employment mode (i.e. temporary contracts, fixed-term contracts of three years or less, long-term employment contracts and employment on tenure) of the number and percentage of academic staff employed by each type of the institutions in each of the past five academic years, as well as a breakdown of the number and percentage of the staff employed under each employment mode by their duties (i.e. (i) research and teaching, (ii) research duty only and (iii) teaching duty only); set out in a table the aforesaid figures by name of institution and rank of staff; (3) whether it knows the respective mechanisms adopted by each type of the institutions under which the academic staff on fixed-term contracts may be promoted to become/converted to staff on long-term employment contracts and employment on tenure, and set out the details by name of institution; (4) whether it knows the respective numbers of academic staff on (i) fixed-term contracts and (ii) long-term employment contracts of each type of the institutions who were promoted to become staff on tenure employment in each of the past five academic years, with a tabulated breakdown by name of institution and rank of staff; (5) whether it knows the number of academic staff of each type of the institutions who departed in each of the past five academic years, with a tabulated breakdown by name of institution and rank of staff; (6) whether it knows if each type of the institutions have established their salary scales for academic staff, as well as the median and average monthly salary of academic staff of each type of the institutions in the past five academic years, with a tabulated breakdown by name of institution and rank of staff; (7) whether it knows, among the academic staff currently employed by each type of the institutions, the median and average monthly salary and fringe benefits of those staff who have served in their respective positions on various ranks (i.e. Chair Professor, Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, Principal Lecturer/Instructor, Senior Lecturer/Instructor, Lecturer/Instructor I and Lecturer/Instructor II) for five years or more, with a tabulated breakdown of the figures and information by name of institution and rank of staff; (8) whether it knows, among the academic staff employed by each type of the institutions in the past five academic years, the number and percentage of those for whom the institutions provided quarters or housing allowances, with a tabulated breakdown by name of institution and rank of staff; (9) whether it knows if the academic staff of each type of the institutions may, when they are not offered contract renewal, lodge a complaint through any mechanism other than the internal mechanism of the institution concerned; if they may, of the details; and (10) whether the authorities have issued guidelines to the institutions on the remuneration packages for the academic staff employed by each type of the institutions?
*13. Hon WU Chi-wai to ask: (Translation)
The Director of Audit recommended in the Report No. 66 of the Director of Audit, which was published in April 2016, that the Rating and Valuation Department ("RVD") should seek the assistance of the Lands Department ("LandsD") in providing information on cases of unauthorized change of use of agricultural land and relevant buildings identified in the course of LandsD's law enforcement work, so that RVD could take appropriate actions promptly on cases ineligible for rates exemption. To this end, RVD and LandsD have put in place, since May 2016, a notification mechanism ("notification mechanism") under which the District Land Offices ("DLOs") in the New Territories will copy to RVD the warning letters issued for unauthorized structures on agricultural land, and RVD will give priority to handling lands and properties with higher rateable values. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of properties on agricultural lots in the New Territories assessed to rates in each of the past five years; in respect of such properties, the (i) total and (ii) average amounts of the annual rates payable, and (iii) the mean of such rates in each decile group; (2) of the respective numbers of agricultural lots, in each of the past five years, which were (i) no longer exempted from assessment to rates because their uses had been changed to those not connected to agricultural operations, and (ii) granted exemption again from assessment to rates because their uses had been reverted to those connected to agricultural operations; (3) of the number of Requisition for Particulars of Tenements ("requisition forms") issued by RVD for properties on agricultural lots, and the number and percentage of such requisition forms returned by the owners/occupants, in each of the past five years; the details of the follow-up actions taken by RVD in respect of the cases in which the requisition forms were not completed correctly and returned on time, and the number of such cases; (4) of the following information regarding the three development plans, namely the public housing development at Wang Chau, Yuen Long, Yuen Long South Development and Hung Shui Kiu New Development Area, respectively: (i) the number of agricultural lots involved, (ii) the number of lots the uses of which have been changed to those not connected to agricultural operations but for which the assessments to rates have not yet completed, (iii) the number of properties on the agricultural lots which have been assessed to rates and, in respect of such properties, the (a) total and (b) average amounts of the rates payable by the owners last year and (c) the mean of such rates in each decile group; (5) given that as at the end of March this year since the establishment of the notification mechanism, RVD has received copies of warning letters involving about 2 600 agricultural lots, of the number of the properties on such lots assessed to rates or for which Demands for Rates were issued by RVD; the average number of working days taken from the issuance of warning letters by DLOs to the issuance of Demands for Rates by RVD; (6) whether LandsD has set a target for its inspection work to ensure that the Government will not forgo any rates due to LandsD's failure to take timely law enforcement actions; and (7) apart from establishing the notification mechanism, of the measures taken by RVD in response to the aforesaid recommendation in the Audit Report; the changes in RVD's manpower and resources in the past three years for making assessments to rates in respect of properties on agricultural land?
*14. Hon Holden CHOW to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the child health assessment and rehabilitation services provided by the Government, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that the Maternal and Child Health Centres ("MCHCs") of the Department of Health ("DH") provide health promotion and disease prevention services for children from birth to five years old, of the average time elapsed between children having been suspected of having Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder ("AD/HD") to their receiving initial assessments under such services in the past five years; whether the Government has any plan to shorten such time; if so, of the details; (2) of the number of children in the past five years who were suspected of having AD/HD as initially assessed by MCHCs; (3) given that the children mentioned in (2) will be referred to Child Assessment Centres ("CACs") for further assessments, but some parents have criticized that the waiting time for children to receive further assessments is too long, whether the Government will introduce measures expeditiously to shorten such time; as DH has indicated that it has not compiled any statistical information on the average, median and longest waiting time for further assessments, whether the Government will compile the relevant statistics for a more accurate understanding of the problem of overly long waiting time with a view to introducing appropriate measures to address the problem; (4) given that the Government introduced a Pilot Scheme on On-site Pre-school Rehabilitation Services ("Pilot Scheme") in November 2015, under which interdisciplinary teams coordinated and arranged by non-governmental organizations provide outreaching on-site rehabilitation training services for children with special needs who are studying at ordinary kindergartens and kindergartens-cum-Child Care Centres ("KG-cum-CCCs"), of the number of kindergartens and KG-cum-CCCs currently taking part in the Pilot Scheme, as well as the number of children serviced by the interdisciplinary teams so far; (5) given that the Government will regularize the Pilot Scheme starting from the next school year and increase the number of service places of the Pilot Scheme from 3 000 to 7 000 in two years, how the Government will ensure that the interdisciplinary teams will have adequate manpower to cope with the additional workload; and (6) of the number of members of the interdisciplinary teams who possess the relevant professional qualifications for handling AD/HD?
*15. Hon Jimmy NG to ask: (Translation)
According to the findings of a consultancy study entitled Review of Land Requirement for Grade A Offices, Business and Industrial Uses, commissioned by the Planning Department, there will shortfalls of respectively 8.9, 53.6 and 17.4 hectares in lands for Central Business District ("CBD") Grade A Offices, Industries and Special Industries uses in the long term (up to 2041), among which the shortfall in lands for industrial uses being the most acute. However, there will be surpluses of respectively 10.5 and 32.3 hectares of lands for non-CBD Grade A office and general business uses over the same period. Regarding measures to boost the supply of industrial lands, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that some industrial buildings have been converted into or redeveloped one by one for non-industrial uses in recent years, whether the authorities have other supply of new industrial lands apart from the new sources of supply from Hung Shui Kiu New Development Area, Yuen Long South and Stonecutters Island, and have planned for more industrial areas to increase the supply of industrial lands, so as to tie in with the re-industrialization policy actively promoted by the Government in recent years; if so, of the details, including (i) the geographical distribution of such industrial lands, (ii) the relevant work schedules, and (iii) the total area of industrial lands expected to be provided; if not, the reasons for that; (2) whether the authorities will consider converting the lands for non-CBD Grade A office and general business uses, which will be in surplus, into lands for CBD Grade A Offices, Industrial and Special Industrial uses; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (3) given that in view of the increase in labour costs on the Mainland, the continued appreciation of Renminbi against Hong Kong dollars, and the Hong Kong Government's determination to vigorously promote innovation and technology in recent years, quite a number of Hong Kong manufacturers who have set up factories on the Mainland intend to relocate their high value-added manufacturing processes back to Hong Kong, whether the authorities will review and revise the definition of "industrial use", so as to increase the supply of industrial lands; if so, of the details, and whether they will plan afresh the industrial lands in the territory in accordance with the new definition of industrial use, so as to encourage manufacturers to return to Hong Kong and promote the development of Hong Kong industries; and (4) as I have learnt that although owners of private lots may apply to the Lands Department for lease modification or short term waiver in order to change the uses of the lots concerned to uses not permitted under the leases, the time taken for the vetting and approval of such applications is quite long and several government departments are involved, whether the authorities will consider setting up a dedicated inter-departmental taskforce to handle such applications, so as to enhance the efficiency of the vetting and approval process; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*16. Hon Charles Peter MOK to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the development of high-tier data centres and cross-boundary transmission of data, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the Government's timetable for putting up sites for sale by tender for the development of high-tier data centres, and the estimated time needed from the disposal of sites by the Government to the completion of the data centres concerned; (2) given that the Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation (which was signed in June last year between the Government and the Mainland authorities under the framework of the Mainland and Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement) includes the work to "strengthen exchanges between the two places regarding cross-boundary data flow, and form a joint working group to study feasible policy measures and arrangements" in respect of cooperation in electronic commerce, of the details and progress of this work; and (3) whether, in tandem with strengthening the exchanges between the two places regarding cross-boundary data flow, the authorities have formulated policies and guidelines on the arrangements for cross-boundary transfer of personal data, so as to safeguard the privacy of Hong Kong people; if so, of the details and progress of the relevant work; if not, the reasons for that?
*17. Hon Kenneth LEUNG to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that some human trafficking offenders arranged bogus marriages for to-be-trafficked persons to enable them to meet the eligibility requirements for entry into certain countries, and then force the trafficked persons to take up illegal employment or engage in prostitution activities in such countries. Regarding bogus marriage-related offences involving human trafficking, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of persons who were alleged to have entered into bogus marriages and, on this account, were (i) arrested and (ii) convicted in Hong Kong for the related offences in each year since 2008, with a breakdown by their nationality and gender; (2) of the respective numbers of persons who were alleged to have arranged bogus marriages for other persons and, on this account, were (i) arrested and (ii) convicted in Hong Kong for the related offences in each year since 2008, with a breakdown by their nationality and gender; the nationalities of the persons for whom they mainly arranged bogus marriages; (3) as the authorities have pointed out in a paper submitted recently to the Panel on Security of this Council that in respect of persons who had gained entry into Hong Kong by means of bogus marriages, the main purpose of their coming to Hong Kong was to take up illegal employment, among the persons who were arrested or convicted for bogus marriage-related offences mentioned in (1), of the respective numbers of those who were alleged to have also (i) committed the offence of taking up illegal employment, and (ii) engaged in prostitution activities, with a breakdown by their nationality and gender; whether the authorities have, during investigation of these cases, discovered if (a) these persons were forced to work in Hong Kong and were subjected to manipulation, and (b) organized crimes or human trafficking were/was involved in such cases; (4) given that paragraph 18 of the Prosecution Code of the Department of Justice ("DoJ") provides guidelines and pointers to prosecutors in respect of offences relating to the exploitation of persons and the trafficking of them for that purpose, of the number of times for which DoJ handled cases pursuant to this code when instituting prosecutions in the past five years; among such cases, of the number of those which involved bogus marriage-related offences; and (5) of the authorities' measures to combat bogus marriage-related offences involving human trafficking, and to prevent such crimes from happening in Hong Kong?
*18. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)
On Tat Estate and On Tai Estate, newly completed large-scale public rental housing ("PRH") estates located in Kowloon East, provide a total of nearly 18 000 units. In 2016, the Hong Kong Christian Service ("HKCS") and the Christian Family Service Centre ("CFSC") each received funding from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust ("the Trust") for launching a three-year community support programme respectively. These programmes aim at providing residents of these two PRH estates with a number of support services to facilitate their adaptation to the new environment and integration into the community, such as assisting them in inspecting the flats allocated to them, moving into the new flats upon intake and applying for welfare services. It is learnt that these two programmes, albeit being popular among the residents, will come to an end concurrently next year as funding will be discontinued by that time. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that several thousand families will soon move into On Tai Estate, whether the Government will support the continued operation of the aforesaid two programmes by lobbying the Trust to continue to allocate funding or through other policies, in order to benefit more families moving into these estates; (2) whether it has plans to provide subsidies as well as the sites needed for the services for the two aforesaid non-profit-making organizations to enable them to scale up their community support programmes; if so, of the timetable and the responsible government departments, as well as whether it will consider providing subsidies for them on a regular basis; (3) of the projected number of PRH estates to be completed within the coming decade, as well as the locations of and the number of families to be accommodated in such estates; (4) given the successive completion and intake of the various new PRH estates, whether the Government has assessed the community support services needed by the families moving into these estates, and whether it will increase the funding for the relevant departments to provide such families with appropriate assistance; and (5) whether it knows, apart from HKCS and CFSC, the other non-profit-making social welfare organizations that are currently providing support services for residents of newly completed PRH estates; whether the Government has subsidized the operation of such organizations; if so, of the details?
*19. Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask: (Translation)
Some psychologists have pointed out that children from single-parent families may easily develop complex emotions and hence are prone to exhibit extreme behaviours. On the other hand, since the Government's cessation in 2004 of subvention for the five single parent centres ("SPCs") operated by non-governmental organizations ("NGOs"), the services needed by single-parent families have been provided by the Integrated Family Service Centres ("IFSCs") under the Social Welfare Department ("SWD"). However, some concern groups on single-parent families have relayed to me that the services provided by IFSCs lack focus and may not meet the needs of single-parent families. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has compiled statistics on the number of single-parent families throughout the territory and the total number of children they had, in each of the past three years; if so, of the figures; among the requests for assistance handled by IFSCs in the past three years, of the number and percentage of those involving single-parent families; (2) of the support needed by the single-parent families seeking assistance from IFSCs, and the services IFSCs provide to them; (3) of the support provided by IFSCs to children from single-parent families who have emotional problems; (4) whether it reviewed in the past three years the adequacy of the support services currently provided to single-parent families and the appropriateness of the relevant arrangements; if so, of the outcome; (5) given that SWD plans to set up, within this financial year, a specialized co-parenting support centre to be operated by NGOs in each cluster, namely Hong Kong Island, Kowloon East, Kowloon West, New Territories East and New Territories West, which will be dedicated to providing services for divorced parents and their children, of the timetable for setting up such centres and the details of the services to be provided by them; and (6) whether it will consider resuming the subvention to NGOs for opening SPCs; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*20. Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT to ask:
The results of a study have found that Hong Kong is the world's largest market for shark fin trade, with blue sharks being the most heavily traded shark species for their fins. On the other hand, blue sharks have recently been included in Appendix II to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals ("CMS"), which covers migratory species that have an unfavourable conservation status and require international agreements for their conservation and management. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective weights (in kilograms) of the following shark and ray species (frozen and dried) illegally traded and seized each year since 2003, broken down by the places from where they were exported: (i) Silky shark, (ii) Scalloped hammerhead shark, (iii) Smooth hammerhead shark, (iv) Great hammerhead shark, (v) Oceanic whitetip shark, (vi) Bigeye thresher shark, (vii) Pelagic thresher shark, (viii) Porbeagle shark, (ix) Common thresher shark, (x) Basking shark, (xi) Whale shark, (xii) Great white shark, (xiii) Manta rays, (xiv) Sawfishes and (xv) Devil rays; (2) of the reporting requirements on and international obligations of the Government under CMS, and the specific actions taken by it in the past five years to fulfil its obligations; (3) of the Government's stance on some concern groups' suggestion to include blue sharks in Appendix II to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora ("CITES") set out in Schedule 1 to the Protection of Endangered Species of Animals and Plants Ordinance (Cap. 586), which covers species that are not presently threatened with extinction but may become so unless trading is controlled; (4) of other measures, apart from law enforcement actions, that the Government took in the past five years to tackle the trading of shark fins that has been banned under CITES; (5) as exporters are required to make declarations if the goods they export contain species that have been included in Appendices I and II of CITES set out in Schedule 1 to Cap. 586 (i.e. Non-detriment findings ("NDFs")), whether the Government will, having regard to the fact that Hong Kong is the world's largest market for shark fin trade, consider setting up an online platform and inviting other shark fin exporting countries to upload their NDFs onto the platform for the reference of exporting countries; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (6) whether the Government will make public its annual reports submitted in the past five years in respect of CITES; if not, of the reasons for that; (7) whether the Government will work with the relevant authorities of other major shark fin trading regions around the world on unifying the shark-related codes under the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System, so as to enhance the monitoring of the trading of shark fins of threatened shark species within those regions; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (8) whether the Customs and Excise Department will enhance the training for its officers on differentiating between shark fins in view of the large number of shark species; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (9) whether the Government will conduct a study on the consumption of shark fins by members of the public followed by introducing measures (such as introducing a labeling system for threatened species) to reduce their demand and keeping the situation under monitoring; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (10) whether the Government has plans to step up publicity to enhance the awareness of the catering industry and members of the public on the threats posed to blue sharks and other shark species the existence of which is being increasingly threatened; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (11) whether the Government will include shark conservation in the curriculum of both primary and secondary schools in order to educate the younger generation about the importance of conserving the marine ecology and the need to pay immediate attention to marine organisms the existence of which is threatened; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (12) given that β-N-methylamino-L-alanine, a ubiquitous cyanobacterial toxin linked to neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and Alzheimer's disease, was found on samples of shark fins in a study, whether the Centre for Food Safety will conduct tests on heavy metals and toxic chemicals in the cooked shark fin soup which is served at restaurants?
*21. Hon YUNG Hoi-yan to ask: (Translation)
The Office of The Ombudsman published on the 17th of last month a direct investigation report, pointing out that the leakage rate of water mains in Hong Kong was as high as 15.2%. Such wastage was equivalent to HK$530 million's worth of fresh water per year, which was enough for use by more than two million people for a year. Moreover, a think tank estimated that the fresh water lost in 2013 might have cost the Government a loss of more than $1.3 billion of its potential revenue. Regarding the management of water resources, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of (i) a breakdown of the unmetered water consumption, including leakages in government and private water mains, water consumed during fresh water treatment processes and for operational purposes, unauthorized water consumption and water consumed by customers but not metered due to inaccurate metering, as well as (ii) metered water consumption by customers, in each of the past three years (broken down by District Council district); (2) of the number of complaints received by the Water Supplies Department ("WSD") about fresh water mains leakage or burst and, among them, the number of those involving private fresh water mains, in each of the past three years (broken down by District Council district); (3) of the establishment and strength of WSD staff members currently responsible for handling complaints about water mains leakage or burst, as well as the number of proactive inspections conducted by the staff members concerned each year; whether WSD has examined if the manpower for carrying out the inspections and the inspection frequency are adequate; if so, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that; if WSD will deploy additional manpower, whether it will consider employing retired civil servants; (4) as some members of the public have relayed that in handling leakages of private water mains, WSD failed to compel the parties concerned to carry out repairs expeditiously or arrange for repairs immediately even if a substantial quantity of fresh water was draining away, whether the authorities will carry out repairs for private water mains where appropriate to reduce fresh water wastage and alleviate the nuisances caused by water leakage to residents; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (5) as the authorities have indicated earlier that they have been installing by phases master meters for private housing courts or estates in Hong Kong to monitor water losses in their communal water mains, of the progress and details of the relevant work, as well as the implementation timetable; (6) regarding the Intelligent Network Management System established by WSD to detect abnormal conditions such as leakage in water supply networks, of its coverage, the progress of the works and the implementation timetable; (7) given that water main bursts still occur from time to time despite the completion of the Replacement and Rehabilitation Programme of Water Mains in 2015, of the measures to be taken by the authorities to monitor and follow up on burst-prone water mains, and how they will prioritize the follow-up work and replacement of aged water mains, including whether they will draw up improvement work plans based on the age, leakage frequency, material, etc. of the water mains concerned; (8) as WSD has indicated that the cost of using reclaimed water for flushing is lower than that of using fresh water and seawater, whether the authorities will allocate additional resources to study ways to improve the quality of reclaimed water so as to widen its usage; (9) whether the authorities have assessed the effectiveness of the existing water conservation measures; of the authorities' future plans to raise public awareness of water conservation, such as enhancing public education, launching publicity programmes on water conservation, promoting the use of water-conserving devices as well as encouraging public and private organizations to conduct water efficiency reviews; and (10) as WSD has indicated that it is conducting a consultancy study to review the "Total Water Management Strategy" implemented in 2008, whether the authorities will consider, upon the completion of the review report, setting up a dedicated task force to take charge of the formulation of a holistic policy on and measures for the sustainable management of water resources; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*22. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)
Regarding the supply of first-hand private residential units, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of unsold first-hand private residential units on 31 December in each year from 2008 to 2017 which had been issued with occupation permits ("OPs"); (2) of the number of unsold first-hand private residential units on 31 March 2018 which had been issued with OPs, broken down by the number of years (e.g. one, two or three years) for which OPs had been issued; (3) of the number of first-hand private residential units under construction on 31 December in each year from 2008 to 2017 and on 31 March 2018 which had been sold; (4) whether it has set the following target: keeping the number of unsold first-hand private residential units which have been issued with OPs at a low level; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (5) whether the Government implemented the following measure in the past 25 years: including in the pre-sale consents a provision requiring the developers to put the residential units concerned on the market for sale within a specified period; if so, of the details of the measure (including the implementation date, content and effectiveness); and (6) whether the Government will study the implementation of the measure mentioned in (5) in the near future, in order to reduce the number of first-hand private residential units hoarded by developers; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that and the alternative measures?
* For written reply
III. Government Bill
| First Reading and Second Reading (Debate to be adjourned)
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| Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No. 4) Bill 2018 | : | Secretary for Food and Health
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IV. Members' Motions
| 1. | Proposed resolution under section 34(4) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance
Hon Alice MAK to move the following motion: Resolved that in relation to the Medical Council (Election and Appointment of Lay Members) Regulation, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 67 of 2018, and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 2 May 2018, 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 20 June 2018. | ||||
| 2. | Motion under Rule 49B(1A) of the Rules of Procedure
Hon Mrs Regina IP to move the motion in the Appendix. (The motion is jointly signed by Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT, Ir Dr Hon LO Wai-kwok and Hon CHUNG Kwok-pan) | ||||
| (The motion was issued on 9 May 2018
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 579/17-18) | |||||
| Stand-over items: Members' motions nos. 3 to 5 (since the meeting of 9 May 2018)
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| 3. | Report of the Joint Subcommittee on Long-term Care Policy
Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG to move the following motion: (Translation) That this Council notes the Report of the Joint Subcommittee on Long-term Care Policy. | ||||
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| 4. | Not forgetting the 4 June incident
Hon Tanya CHAN to move the following motion: (Translation) That this Council urges that: the 4 June incident be not forgotten and the 1989 pro-democracy movement be vindicated. | ||||
| 5. | Motion for the adjournment of the Council under Rule 16(4) of the Rules of Procedure
Hon CHAN Hak-kan to move the following motion: (Translation) That this Council do now adjourn for the purpose of debating the following issue: the impact on the interests of Hong Kong and the country arising from the remarks made by Mr Benny TAI Yiu-ting, one of the initiators of the 'Occupy Central' movement, at a forum held in Taiwan in March 2018 that Hong Kong could consider becoming an independent state. | ||||
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