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A 20/21-10

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 9 December 2020 at 11:00 am

I.
Laying of Papers on the Table of the Council

15 items of subsidiary legislation and 11 other papers to be laid on the Table of the Council set out in Appendix 1

II.
Questions

Members to ask 22 questions (6 for oral replies and 16 for written replies)
Questions for oral replies to be asked by
Public officers to reply
1.
Secretary for Transport and Housing
2.
Hon CHEUNG Kwok-kwan
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
3.
Secretary for Home Affairs
Under Secretary for Security
4.
Hon Michael TIEN
Secretary for Transport and Housing
5.
Secretary for Transport and Housing
6.
Secretary for Development
Under Secretary for Transport and Housing
Contents of 22 questions, Members to ask such questions and public officers to reply set out in Appendix 2

III.
Government Bills

First Reading and Second Reading (debate to be adjourned)
1.
:
Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
Second Reading (debate to resume), consideration by committee of the whole Council and Third Reading
2.
:
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

IV.
Government Motion

Proposed resolution under Article 73(7) of the Basic Law and section 7A of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal Ordinance (Cap. 484) on appointment of a judge from another common law jurisdiction of the Court of Final Appeal
Mover
:
Chief Secretary for Administration
Wording of the motion
:



Clerk to the Legislative Council




Appendix 1

Council meeting of 9 December 2020

Laying of Papers on the Table of the Council

Subsidiary legislation
Legal Notice No.
1.
236 of 2020
2.
237 of 2020
3.
238 of 2020
4.
239 of 2020
5.
241 of 2020
6.
242 of 2020
7.
243 of 2020
8.
244 of 2020
9.
245 of 2020
10.
246 of 2020
11.
247 of 2020
12.
248 of 2020
13.
249 of 2020
14.
250 of 2020
15.
251 of 2020
Other papers
16.
Hong Kong Housing Authority
Annual Report 2019/20
(to be presented by Secretary for Transport and Housing)
17.
18.
Communications Authority
Annual Report 2019-20
(to be presented by Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development)
19.
Independent Police Complaints Council
Report 2019/20 (including Financial Statements and Independent Auditor's Report)
(to be presented by Hon Tony TSE, Vice-Chairman of Independent Police Complaints Council)
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.




Appendix 2

22 questions to be asked at the Council meeting of 9 December 2020

Subject matters
Public officers to reply
Questions for oral replies
1
Hon Holden CHOW
Secretary for Transport and Housing
2
Hon CHEUNG Kwok-kwan
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
3
Hon KWOK Wai-keung
Secretary for Home Affairs
Under Secretary for Security
4
Hon Michael TIEN
Secretary for Transport and Housing
5
Hon CHAN Han-pan
Secretary for Transport and Housing
6
Hon Wilson OR
Secretary for Development
Under Secretary for Transport and Housing
Questions for written replies
7
Hon WONG Kwok-kin
Secretary for Food and Health
8
Hon Frankie YICK
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
9
Hon MA Fung-kwok
Secretary for Education
10
Hon Starry LEE
Secretary for Transport and Housing
11
Hon LUK Chung-hung
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
12
Hon Kenneth LAU
Secretary for Transport and Housing
13
Hon Paul TSE
Secretary for the Civil Service
14
Hon Alice MAK
Secretary for Transport and Housing
15
Hon CHAN Chun-ying
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
16
Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
17
Hon Vincent CHENG
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
18
Dr Hon Pierre CHAN
Secretary for Education
19
Hon CHAN Hak-kan
Secretary for Food and Health
20
Hon Tony TSE
Secretary for the Environment
21
Hon Elizabeth QUAT
Secretary for Innovation and Technology
22
Hon CHEUNG Kwok-kwan
Secretary for Home Affairs




Question 1
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Quota-free scheme for Hong Kong private cars travelling to Guangdong

Hon Holden CHOW to ask:
The Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Tunnel is scheduled to be commissioned on the 27th of this month. In her 2020 Policy Address delivered last month, the Chief Executive indicated that the Government would, upon the commissioning of the said tunnel, implement a "Quota-free scheme for Hong Kong private cars travelling to Guangdong via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge" ("Scheme for Hong Kong cars travelling to Guangdong") to allow eligible Hong Kong private cars to travel to and from the Guangdong Province via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge without regular quota. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the arrangements with regard to motor insurance and driving licences under the Scheme for Hong Kong cars travelling to Guangdong; what measures are in place to ensure that insurance premiums are to be set at levels that are affordable for the general public;
(2)
what technical issues are yet to be resolved at present; and
(3)
of the commencement date of the Scheme for Hong Kong cars travelling to Guangdong; whether it has assessed the impact on the commencement date brought about by the recent worsening of the epidemic situation in Hong Kong?




Question 2
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Foreign domestic helpers

Hon CHEUNG Kwok-kwan to ask:
It is learnt that the Indonesian Government will implement new requirements in January next year to dispense with the payment of placement service fees by migrant workers (including domestic helpers coming to work in Hong Kong). Instead, the expenses on Indonesian domestic helpers' applications for a passport and a certificate of having no criminal records as well as social security contributions for them in Indonesia are to be borne by their employers, while the expenses on the training they receive before coming to Hong Kong are to be borne by local governments in Indonesia. Furthermore, the Philippine Government has recently issued instructions that migrant workers are not required to pay for the expenses on the training they receive and applications for documents, which are to be borne by their employers instead. Some prospective employers of foreign domestic helpers ("FDHs") have relayed that the board and lodging expenses for FDHs to undergo compulsory quarantine in hotels upon arrival in Hong Kong, coupled with the additional expenses arising from the new requirements implemented by the Indonesian and Philippine Governments, have aggravated their financial burdens. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has sought further details of the new requirements (including the amounts of the various additional expenses to be borne by the employers of FDHs) from the Indonesian and Philippine Governments, and lobbied the two Governments to shelve the arrangements under which the employers shall pay such fees; if so, of the details; whether it has assessed the impacts of such additional expenses on the financial situations of those families that need to hire FDHs;
(2)
given that while the new requirements will greatly increase the financial burden of employers of FDHs, it is impossible to preclude that some FDHs, shortly after their reporting for duty, may terminate their contracts or deliberately perform badly to get themselves fired so as to obtain the relevant compensations, whether it has examined if such situations are unfair to the employers concerned; if it has examined and the outcome is in the affirmative, whether the Government will render assistance to such employers; and
(3)
of the respective numbers of newly hired FDHs coming from various countries last year; whether it has plans to introduce more sources of FDHs, e.g. the Mainland; if so, of the details?




Question 3
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Information that is false and prejudicial to public safety

Hon KWOK Wai-keung to ask:
In the latter half of last year when riots raged on in Hong Kong, information which was false and prejudicial to public safety, such as those discrediting the Police and inciting hatred, was prevalent on the Internet, resulting in the riots becoming increasingly violent and causing social dissension. However, there is currently no dedicated legislation in Hong Kong targeting acts of wilfully spreading such information. On the contrary, a number of countries have enacted legislation in recent years targeting such acts. For example, Germany enacted the Network Enforcement Act in 2017, France enacted the Law Against the Manipulation of Information and the Law Against False Information in 2018, and Singapore enacted the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act in 2019. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has formulated a mechanism to proactively make clarifications on false information; if so, of the details;
(2)
of the legal provisions that law enforcement agencies may invoke to combat acts of wilfully spreading false information, as well as the contents of such provisions, the threshold for conviction and the penalties; and
(3)
whether it will consider enacting dedicated legislation to combat acts of wilfully spreading on the Internet information that is false and prejudicial to public safety; if so, of the details and the legislative timetable; if not, the reasons for that?




Question 4
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Railway safety

Hon Michael TIEN to ask:
The Chief Executive indicated in the 2019 Policy Address that, in order to strengthen the Government's capabilities to monitor and certify railway projects, the Government will study the setting up of a new department specifically tasked to handle and supervise railway planning and delivery matters. However, no progress has been heard so far. In recent years, railway incidents have occurred one after another in Hong Kong. On 18 March last year, two trains collided on a track between the Central Station and the Admiralty Station during the testing of the new signalling system on the Tsuen Wan Line ("TWL"). As pointed out in the relevant investigation report, the new signalling system adopted primary, secondary and tertiary zone controllers ("ZCs"), and the incident was caused by an error made by the contractor during rectification of the tertiary ZC. Besides, between September and November this year, the media had successively uncovered several incidents of trains "taking the wrong routes" and the system mistakenly showing trains "passing a signal at danger" during the testing of the signalling system of the East Rail Line ("EAL"). Some members of the public have said that they have totally lost confidence in the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
as MTRCL announced in 2015 that it would replace by phases the signalling systems of seven railway lines, whether it knows the progress of the works concerned, and the progress of the rectification work for the tertiary ZC of TWL;
(2)
as I have learnt that MTRCL has, upon the aforesaid incidents involving the new signalling system of EAL, requested the contractor of the signalling system to rectify the software concerned, whether it knows if the relevant work has been completed; if such work has not been completed, whether it has assessed if such situation will render MTRCL unable to meet the target of commissioning the Hung Hom to Admiralty Section of the Shatin to Central Link in the first quarter of 2022; and
(3)
of the progress of the study on setting up a new department?




Question 5
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Abandoned vehicles on roads

Hon CHAN Han-pan to ask:
Some residents in the New Territories have complained that a large number of abandoned vehicles are parked on the roads in the rural areas (particularly in the vicinity of Chuen Lung), which have not only caused obstruction to pedestrians and traffic but also affected environmental hygiene. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the number of complaints received by the authorities in the past three years about abandoned vehicles on roads; the major districts involved, as well as the procedure and the time normally taken for the disposal of such vehicles;
(2)
of the number of notices issued by the authorities in the past three years under section 107(1) of the Road Traffic Ordinance to owners of those vehicles on roads, which appeared to have been abandoned, to require them to remove the vehicles; how many of such vehicles were eventually impounded and removed by the Police; how much manpower and other resources the Police use annually for the disposal of such vehicles; whether the vehicle owners concerned are charged any fees so as to recover the costs; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; which government department is at present mainly responsible for handling abandoned vehicles on roads; and
(3)
whether any legislation is currently in place to enable the authorities to prosecute owners who have abandoned their vehicles on roads; if so, of the number of prosecutions instituted in the past three years and the highest penalties imposed on the convicted persons; if not, whether the authorities will enact the relevant legislation; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that?




Question 6
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Transport infrastructure in Kowloon East

Hon Wilson OR to ask:
The Chief Executive indicated in the 2020 Policy Address that the Government had largely completed the detailed feasibility study on the Environmentally Friendly Linkage System ("EFLS") for Kowloon East. The study suggested implementing a "multi-modal" EFLS, which would be more effective and desirable than a standalone infrastructure. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has decided to give up constructing an EFLS comprising an elevated monorail; if so, of the reasons for that; if not, the details of the latest proposal;
(2)
of the implementation timetable of the multi-modal EFLS; what new measures it will, prior to the completion of the system, put in place in the short and medium term to alleviate the traffic congestion situation in Kowloon East; and
(3)
of the measures in place to ensure that the transport infrastructure of Kowloon East can cater for the needs of the development of Kowloon East into Hong Kong's second Core Business District?




Question 7
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Healthcare services in the Wong Tai Sin and Kwun Tong districts

Hon WONG Kwok-kin to ask:
Some residents of the Wong Tai Sin ("WTS") and Kwun Tong districts have relayed that in recent years, the demand for healthcare services in the districts has increased sharply, and the public hospitals in the districts have been overloaded. Moreover, there is currently a lack of public accident and emergency ("A&E") services in the WTS district. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it knows the latest progress of the expansion of Haven of Hope Hospital, the expansion of United Christian Hospital, the redevelopment of Our Lady of Maryknoll Hospital and the construction of a new acute hospital in the Kai Tak Development Area, and the respective expected dates on which their services will commence; the projected annual attendance of each of these hospitals upon completion of the projects concerned, and the extent to which the waiting time for stable new case booking at specialist outpatient clinics under the Kowloon East Cluster will be shortened, as compared with that at present;
(2)
whether it knows the additional number of healthcare personnel that the Hospital Authority ("HA") needs to recruit in order to tie in with those hospital development projects mentioned in (1), and the percentage of such number in the total number of its existing staff;
(3)
whether it will urge HA to provide evening outpatient or A&E services in Our Lady of Maryknoll Hospital, so as to bring convenience to WTS residents; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(4)
of the work progress of the district health centres ("DHCs") to be established respectively in WTS and Kwun Tong districts, and their expected commissioning dates; as the utilization rate and the number of registered members of the Kwai Tsing DHC (the first of its kind in Hong Kong) are reportedly on the low side, whether the Government has reviewed the cost effectiveness of such centres; if so, of the outcome and the improvement measures to be put in place?




Question 8
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Traffic Accident Victims Assistance Scheme

Hon Frankie YICK to ask:
Victims of road traffic accidents or their dependents (in case of death of the victims), regardless of their financial situation and the element of responsibility for the traffic accidents concerned, may apply for financial assistance under the Traffic Accident Victims Assistance Scheme ("TAVA Scheme"), the amount of which is based on the injuries sustained by or the death of the victims. In 2019-2020, the number of applications under the TAVA Scheme rose by 10% from that of the previous year. It is learnt that some insurance companies have found that the injuries sustained by some traffic accident victims were minor and they had normal mobility, but they were granted injury grant and interim maintenance grant for a long period of time (up to a maximum of 180 days), arousing suspicion that the TAVA Scheme has been abused. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the number of applications under the TAVA Scheme in the past five years, with a breakdown by the transport modes involved in the accidents;
(2)
of (i) the number of suspected fraudulent applications referred to the Police by the Social Welfare Department, and (ii) the number of cases in which the persons involved were convicted of fraud offences, and what penalties were imposed on them by the court, in the past five years;
(3)
whether it will step up efforts to verify the information submitted by the applicants (including certification issued by doctors) to prevent fraud and abuse cases; and
(4)
given that at present, the eligibility criteria for the TAVA Scheme are just that the traffic accident has been reported to the Police and the victim has been certified to have sustained an injury requiring hospitalization of no less than three days or issued with proof of medical leave of no less than three days by a doctor, whether the authorities will review if such eligibility criteria are too lax and need to be tightened; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?




Question 9
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Electronic teaching materials

Hon MA Fung-kwok to ask:
To prevent the spread of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 epidemic in schools, schools replaced face-to-face classes with online teaching and learning on a number of occasions this year, leading to a surge in the demand for electronic teaching materials. Some members of the education publishing sector have relayed that during the epidemic, they have provided teachers and students with a large quantity of electronic teaching materials for free, and the additional expenditure so incurred has aggravated their heavy financial burden. Regarding electronic teaching materials, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the additional electronic teaching materials in support of online teaching and learning provided to schools by the Education Bureau ("EDB"), since the outbreak of the epidemic; how EDB ensures that adequate electronic teaching materials are available to schools and students to meet their needs of online teaching and learning;
(2)
whether EDB has provided support to the education publishing sector for producing electronic teaching materials; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; whether EDB will introduce in the coming year subsidy schemes for production of electronic teaching materials; and
(3)
whether EDB will, making good use of the opportunity arising from the surge in the needs for electronic teaching materials due to the epidemic, review the Fourth Strategy on Information Technology in Education in the long run, with a view to formulating new strategies and implementation measures for strengthening the support for schools, teachers, students, parents and the education publishing sector, so as to promote e-learning; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?




Question 10
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Housing problem of the grassroots families

Hon Starry LEE to ask:
On 16 April this year, the Government set up the Task Force for the Study on Tenancy Control of Subdivided Units ("the Task Force") to study the feasibility of, and possible options for, implementing tenancy control of subdivided units ("SDUs"). In addition, the Government will launch a trial scheme in July next year to disburse cash allowance to grassroots families that have been awaiting the allocation of public rental housing units for a prolonged period ("the rent allowance scheme"). On the other hand, as revealed by the findings of a survey on the housing problem of the grassroots families conducted last month by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, 88.9% of the respondents considered that the Government's measures for supporting SDU households were inadequate, 65.2% of the respondents supported the implementation of tenancy control, and 86.1% of the respondents hoped that the Government would address, through the introduction of tenancy control of SDUs, the problem of landlords overcharging SDU households of water and electricity tariffs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the measures in place to assist the Task Force in further expediting its work, with a view to completing the study in the first quarter of next year as targeted or even earlier, so that the relevant bill may be passed within the current term of the Legislative Council;
(2)
whether the Task Force will study the enactment of legislation to stipulate a cap on rent increase for SDUs, provide for security of tenure, require that tenancy agreements must be made in the form of written standard contracts, and prohibit landlords from overcharging water and electricity tariffs;
(3)
whether it can expedite the launch of the rent allowance scheme and disburse, prior to the implementation of the scheme, allowance to grassroots families through the Community Care Fund's One-off Living Subsidy for Low-income Households Not Living in Public Housing and Not Receiving Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Programme; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(4)
of the new plans in place to build more transitional housing in the urban areas?  




Question 11
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Government outsourced service contracts

Hon LUK Chung-hung to ask:
The Chief Executive announced on 10 October 2018 that in respect of those government outsourced service contracts that relied heavily on the engagement of non-skilled workers ("contracts"), the Government would introduce measures which sought to enhance the protection of the employment terms and conditions as well as labour benefits of such non-skilled workers ("new measures"). The new measures would be applicable to those contracts tendered from 1 April 2019 onwards. As for the contracts still at the tendering stage or already awarded during the period between the day on which the new measures were announced and 31 March 2019, transitional arrangements would be put in place by the Government: the new terms would be incorporated into the relevant contracts having regard to the actual circumstances to enable the workers concerned to benefit from such measures, and the Government would provide service contractors ("contractors") with top-up payments in this regard. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
among the contracts awarded respectively by the four major procuring departments (i.e. (i) Leisure and Cultural Services Department, (ii) Housing Department, (iii) Food and Environmental Hygiene Department and (iv) Government Property Agency) which are still in force, of the respective numbers and percentages of those to which (a) either the transitional arrangements or the new measures are applicable ("contracts under the new terms"), and (b) neither the transitional arrangements nor the new measures are applicable ("contracts under the old terms"); the respective numbers of non-skilled workers engaged by contractors under these two types of contracts, with a breakdown by service category and range of hourly wages;
(2)
whether it knows, among the non-skilled workers engaged by contractors of contracts under the old terms, the number of those who resigned after 10 October 2018 and before the expiry of such contracts, with a breakdown by reason for resignation; among these resigned workers, the number of those who have subsequently been engaged by contractors of contracts under the new terms; and
(3)
as the Chief Executive undertook at the beginning of this year that a review of the new measures would be completed by the end of this year, of the details, progress and expected completion date of the review?




Question 12
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Traffic congestion problems in New Territories East

Hon Kenneth LAU to ask:
It has been reported that the several ongoing housing development projects (i) at Shap Sze Heung, Sai Sha Road, Sai Kung, (ii) on the four land lots near Cheung Muk Tau Village, Sai Sha Road, Ma On Shan, (iii) at Whitehead, Ma On Shan, and (iv) at Pak Shek Kok, Tai Po can accommodate a total population of about 70 000. Moreover, the Hong Kong Science Park Expansion Programme will offer more than 30 000 jobs upon completion. Some residents of New Territories East ("NTE") are concerned that the traffic congestion problems at a number of locations in NTE during peak hours will become increasingly serious. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it knows the following information about each of the aforesaid housing development projects: (i) project name, (ii) number of flats to be provided, (iii) number of residents to be accommodated, (iv) number of private car parking spaces to be provided, (v) number of public car parking spaces to be provided, (vi) anticipated year of completion, and (vii) gross floor area (set out in a table);
(2)
whether it has assessed, upon the intake of residents of the aforesaid housing development projects, the rates of increase in the (i) traffic volume and (ii) traffic volume/capacity ratio on Sai Sha Road, Ma On Shan Road, Tate's Cairn Highway, Sha Lek Highway, Sha Tin Road, Tolo Highway, the roundabout on Chak Cheung Street near MTR University Station, and Shek Mun Interchange; whether it has assessed if these roads/road sections will reach saturation at that time; if it has assessed and the outcome is in the affirmative, of the mitigation proposals;
(3)
of the measures in place to reduce the traffic load brought to Sai Kung, Ma On Shan and Tai Po by these housing development projects;
(4)
whether it has plans to construct a new road tunnel linking Sha Tin and Kowloon so as to alleviate the traffic congestion at the Lion Rock Tunnel and the Tate's Cairn Tunnel; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; 
(5)
as it has been reported that the scale of an ongoing housing development project at Shap Sze Heung, Sai Sha Road, Sai Kung is very large and comparable to that of City One Shatin and Whampoa Garden, whether the Government (i) has assessed the long-term transport needs of residents commuting between Shap Sze Heung and Ma On Shan, (ii) will take measures to prevent the occurrence of traffic congestion problems, and (iii) will construct an extension of the Ma On Shan Line with the addition of a Shap Sze Heung Station, and provide additional bus and green minibus feeder services; if so, of the details (including the implementation timetable); if not, the reasons for that; and
(6)
whether it will consider afresh the suggestion of adding a Pak Shek Kok Station or a Science Park Station along the East Rail Line; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?




Question 13
(For written reply)

(Translation)

The Government's anti-epidemic efforts

Hon Paul TSE to ask:
To cope with the epidemic, a number of government departments curtailed their public services on several occasions this year. After resumption of public services, the offices under the departments concerned, such as the Transport Department's offices located in Admiralty and Cheung Sha Wan, as well as the Immigration Department's office located in the Immigration Headquarters, were crowded with a large number of people. Although some members of the public had made appointments online, they still often needed to wait for more than an hour. Some members of the public have queried that such arrangements were confusing, and the packing of over 100 persons in a cramped office who had to wait in a long queue for receiving services would result in the epidemic spreading easily. On the other hand, some members of the public have criticized the Government's anti-epidemic measures to be "half-baked", resulting in the epidemic surging wave upon wave. For instance, the compulsory quarantine measures for persons arriving in Hong Kong are not strict, including that (i) some persons undergoing home quarantine may be living with their family members, (ii) hotels which receive quarantined persons may concurrently receive non-quarantined persons, (iii) persons arriving in Hong Kong need to go to their places of quarantine on their own using public transport, and (iv) quarantined persons have not been closely monitored to see if they have taken off their electronic tracking wristbands, left their places of quarantine or met with their relatives and friends who visit them. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has noticed the situation of a large number of members of the public gathering in the aforesaid offices; of the measures in place to enhance the administrative efficiency of such offices and improve their operational arrangements, so as to prevent a large number of members of the public from gathering there for a long time during the epidemic;
(2)
whether it has received complaints about the offices of other government departments, apart from the aforesaid offices, having the same situation; if so, of the names of the departments concerned and the number of complaints received; and
(3)
to achieve the target of "zero" infection, whether the Government will, by making reference to the Mainland's successful anti-epidemic experience, take the following measures: requiring that all persons arriving in Hong Kong from foreign places must be escorted and taken to their places of quarantine by personnel who have put on a full set of anti-epidemic gear using designated vehicles, and undergo quarantine in designated hotels dedicated for compulsory quarantine purpose, as well as expeditiously conducting universal testing, as recommended by Prof. ZHONG Nanshan, a Mainland anti-epidemic expert and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, to identify asymptomatic patients and cut the transmission chain?




Question 14
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Ancillary transport facilities in new development areas

Hon Alice MAK to ask:
The Government is implementing the Kwu Tung North and Fanling North New Development Areas ("NDAs") project, the development items of which will, upon completion, provide more than 70 000 residential flats, accommodating a population of over 190 000. Some members of the public have criticized the poor transport planning of NDAs. For example, the Northern Link ("NL") connecting a new Kwu Tung station on the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line of the East Rail Line ("ERL") to the Kam Sheung Road Station on the West Rail Line ("WRL") has been proposed in as early as 2000 but the construction works of which have not yet commenced. They have pointed out that as passengers travelling between ERL and WRL currently need to interchange at Hung Hom Station but they may in future take trains heading in a direction opposite to the current one and interchange via NL, NL may even out the two-way passenger patronage of ERL and WRL, thereby relieving the loading of these two rail lines during peak hours. As such, they consider that the Government should expedite the construction of NL. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the latest anticipated (i) commencement date of works for NL, (ii) commissioning date of NL and (iii) passenger carrying capacity of NL, as well as the anticipated respective passenger volumes of ERL and WRL to be diverted by NL;
(2)
whether NL will operate under the concession approach; if so, of the details; if not, the approach to be adopted for operating NL;
(3)
of the details of the existing mechanism for monitoring railway works; given that railway construction works in recent years have often experienced serious cost overruns and delays, how the Government will step up the monitoring of the construction works for NL to be undertaken by the MTR Corporation Limited and its contractors;
(4)
whether, according to the latest estimation, NL can be completed concurrently with NDAs in 2031; whether it has formulated any plan to use other modes of public transport, before the completion of the new railway project, to cope with the additional transport needs arising from the progressive completion of the development items in NDAs; and
(5)
whether it has assessed if, under the circumstance that the construction of NL has not been implemented for a prolonged period of time, ERL and WRL can cope with the additional transport needs arising from the newly increased population along the rail alignment; if it has assessed, of the outcome and the authorities' remedial measures?




Question 15
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Virtual banks

Hon CHAN Chun-ying to ask:
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority ("HKMA") has granted banking licences to eight virtual banks so far. It has been reported that the seven virtual banks which have commenced operation have 300 000 customers with deposits totalling around $7.8 billion. However, incidents involving the networks and operating systems of a number of virtual banks have occurred in recent months, including those in which customers were unable to log in, the networks were under cyberattack, and the transaction records as set out in monthly statements were wrong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether HKMA has required that the networks and operating systems of virtual banks must comply with the specified security standards before such banks may commence operation; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(2)
whether HKMA has initiated investigations or taken other follow-up actions in respect of the aforesaid incidents; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(3)
whether HKMA will introduce measures to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents; if so, of the details?




Question 16
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Licensing requirements for money changers

Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to ask:
Operators of money changers are required to hold a Money Service Operator Licence ("the Licence") granted by the Commissioner of Customs and Excise for operating money changing service. It is learnt that in February this year, the Customs and Excise Department ("C&ED") published the revised Money Service Operators Licensing Guide ("the Licensing Guide"). The revisions concerned include the prohibition on the running of other business on the premises on which a money changer operates ("such premises"). Recently, the applications for renewal of the Licence made by several money changers operating in the markets under the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") and the Housing Department ("HD") were rejected for the reasons that (i) other businesses (e.g. selling of newspapers and snacks) were being run on such premises, and (ii) the tenancy contracts for such premises did not contain a provision specifying the operation of a money changer as one of the permitted uses. Such applicants subsequently made a request to FEHD and HD that such a provision be added, but the request was rejected. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the respective numbers of (a) new and (b) renewal applications for the Licence (i) received and (ii) rejected by C&ED in each of the past three years; among the rejected applications, the respective numbers of those rejected for the two aforesaid reasons;
(2)
as the Licensing Guide has not stipulated that the tenancy contract for such premises must contain the aforesaid provision, of the legal basis for C&ED to reject the Licence renewal applications on grounds of absence of such a provision in the relevant tenancy contracts; and
(3)
whether C&ED had, before it published the latest Licensing Guide, consulted members of the money changing sector on the revisions concerned and whether C&ED has, after publishing it, widely publicized the new requirements among such members and helped them adapt to the new requirements; if not, of the reasons for that?




Question 17
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Measures to support the exhibition industry

Hon Vincent CHENG to ask:
The exhibition industry has brought considerable benefits to Hong Kong. For example, in 2016, the exhibition industry contributed $52.9 billion to Hong Kong in expenditure effects, equivalent to 2.1% of the Gross Domestic Product, and provided 77 000 full-time jobs. The exhibition industry, under the impact of the epidemic, has come to a standstill for nearly one year and, as a result, the organizers of exhibitions, exhibitors and practitioners of the industry have suffered tremendous losses and some companies are on the verge of closing down. However, among the three rounds of relief measures launched by the Government, only one measure is directly related to the exhibition industry: the Convention and Exhibition Industry Subsidy Scheme ("the Subsidy Scheme"). Under the Scheme, the Government will provide a 100% venue rental subsidy for organizers of those exhibitions held/to be held during the period from 3 October this year to 2 October next year at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre ("HKCEC") and the AsiaWorld-Expo ("AWE"). Regarding the measures to support the exhibition industry, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it knows the respective numbers of exhibitions that were not held as scheduled at (i) HKCEC and (ii) AWE since February this year, and set out, by exhibition name, the original exhibition dates and the latest status (cancelled or postponed);
(2)
whether it knows the names and details of the various exhibitions scheduled to be held next year at (i) HKCEC and (ii) AWE; the latest details of the various exhibitions held/to be held at those two venues this month (including the number of exhibitors);
(3)
whether it has requested the managers of HKCEC and AWE to formulate contingency plans to specify the measures to be taken, when more exhibitions need to be postponed or cancelled due to the epidemic, to reduce the losses suffered by the organizers, exhibitors and practitioners concerned;
(4)
as it has been reported that a certain number of large-scale international exhibitions originally scheduled to be held in the fourth quarter of this year have been postponed to the fourth quarter of next year, and the Subsidy Scheme only covers the exhibitions held/to be held during the period from 3 October this year to 2 October next year, whether the authorities will extend the period covered by the Subsidy Scheme by three months, so that such international exhibitions may benefit; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(5)
as the Chief Executive indicated in the 2020 Policy Address that the Government would expand the funding scope of the SME Export Marketing Fund to provide funding support for institutions with proven track record to organize large-scale exhibitions targeting "the local market" or virtual exhibitions, of the specific details such as the relevant eligibility requirements and the amount of funding support, as well as the implementation timetable; and
(6)
as some members of the exhibition industry have anticipated that the exhibition industry will need at least two years to fully recover, of the authorities' measures to (i) support the practitioners of the exhibition industry and the related trades, and (ii) ensure that upon resumption of economic growth in various countries, Hong Kong's position in the international exhibition industry will not be taken by the neighbouring cities?




Question 18
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Study tours and exchange tours of schools

Dr Hon Pierre CHAN to ask:
The Coronavirus Disease 2019 epidemic which broke out at the beginning of this year has swept across the globe. Due to the needs for prevention of the epidemic, the Education Bureau ("EDB") has reminded all schools in Hong Kong to suspend exchange/study tour activities outside Hong Kong. Moreover, as all of the destinations of study tours and exchange tours (collectively referred to as "study tours") have implemented immigration control and quarantine measures, the relevant flights have been cancelled, and the Government has issued the Red Outbound Travel Alert ("OTA") on all overseas countries/territories, the study tours that schools originally scheduled for this year have all been cancelled. As a result, quite a number of disputes between schools, travel agents and insurance companies over the arrangements for dealing with the aftermaths have erupted. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the number of study tours organized by schools in each of the past three school years, and among such tours, the number of those subsidized by the Government and the amount of subsidy involved, with a breakdown by (i) school type (i.e. kindergarten, primary school and secondary school) and (ii) destination;
(2)
whether it has assessed what specific effects that the OTA System has on how schools, travel agents and insurance companies make arrangements for study tours;
(3)
of the existing guidelines setting out the arrangements for travel agents to make refunds for a study tour which has been cancelled due to objective circumstances (e.g. an epidemic, OTA of Red or above, immigration restrictions imposed at the destination of the study tour, or any other force majeure causes); whether it knows how travel agents generally handle refund matters in such circumstances; as some travel agents have indicated to the schools that they will make no refund of tour fees or deposits for study tours that have been cancelled due to such circumstances, of the measures put in place by the Government to protect the rights and interests of schools, teachers and students;
(4)
given that the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong ("TIC") has issued two sets of guidelines, namely the Code of Business Practice on Study Tours and Exchange Tours and the directive on "cancellation of package tours for reasons beyond control", whether it knows if TIC will penalize those travel agents which have failed to comply with such guidelines when handling matters on study tours (including the drawing up of contracts);
(5)
whether the existing codes of practice and regulations concerned have stipulated that upon receipt of the deposit paid by the school concerned and a mutual agreement that the travel agent should take out travel insurance on behalf of the school, a travel agent commissioned to organize a study tour is required:
(i)
to provide services such as making reservation of air tickets and accommodations on behalf of the school and, upon request of the school, produce proof of the expenses so incurred, to ensure that the money concerned is not misappropriated, and
(ii)
to take out expeditiously travel insurance for the study tour to ensure protection for the school as well as its teachers and students in the event that the study tour is cancelled;
if not, whether the authorities will amend the relevant codes of practice and regulations to make such requirements, so as to protect the rights and interests of schools, teachers and students;
(6)
of the respective numbers of complaints about study tours received by (i) EDB, (ii) the Travel Agents Registry, (iii) the Hong Kong Police Force and (iv) TIC since February this year, with a breakdown by nature of complaints, school type, the size of the study tour in terms of the total number of teachers and students (each group spanning 20 persons), and the group to which the disputed amount of money belonged (each group spanning $100,000); the issues involved in such complaints which fall into the scope of investigation, as well as the progress of processing such complaints and the outcome of their follow-up actions;
(7)
whether EDB will (i) amend the Guidelines on Study Tours Outside Hong Kong to stipulate that upon announcement by EDB that all schools in Hong Kong should suspend all their face-to-face activities due to an epidemic or under other circumstances, the relevant arrangements will also be applicable to study tours outside Hong Kong, and (ii) organize seminars for schools on how to avoid inadvertently falling into traps in the contracts and suffering losses when organizing study tours;
(8)
whether EDB, the Security Bureau, the Tourism Commission and TIC will collaborate in formulating guidelines in respect of the relevant responsibilities to be borne by the school and the travel agent concerned and the refund arrangements in the event of cancellation of a study tour under the following circumstances: the Government has issued OTA of Red or Black on the destination of the study tour and the authorities of such destination have imposed immigration restrictions, which make the study tour unable to make departure; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that; and
(9)
given that an outbound traveller who has suffered from a loss of outbound fare arisen from the closing down of the licensed travel agent which he/she patronized, may apply for an ex gratia payment of up to 90% of the loss from the Travel Industry Compensation Fund, whether such an arrangement is applicable to a study tour already cancelled but the licence of the travel agent concerned has been revoked before the refund dispute is settled?




Question 19
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Prevention of cruelty to animals

Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask:
Regarding the prevention of cruelty to animals, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether the Police have conducted investigations into the following cases of suspected animal cruelty that occurred in recent months:
(i)
in October, 10-odd free-roaming cats in Peng Chau went missing after having allegedly been captured,
(ii)
on 1 October, a rabbit with grease dirt all over the body was found abandoned in a car park in Shek O Beach,
(iii)
on 25 October, five dogs, allegedly not being taken proper care of, were found in a flat in Hung Hom persistently emitting odour,
(iv)
on 28 October, a dog carcass, wrapped in a plastic bag, was found in the sea off Hung Hom,
(v)
at the end of October, a number of carcasses of stray cats, allegedly died of food poisoning, were found in Tung Chung,
(vi)
in early November, a number of stray dogs in Hung Shui Kiu went missing after having allegedly been captured,
(vii)
on 3 November, a pigeon in Tai Po was shot and injured by a man with an air gun,
(viii)
on 3 November, a pet cage containing carcasses of cats and dogs was found on a shingle beach on Lantau Island,
(ix)
on 5 November, a carcass of a cat with its stomach cut open was found in Kwai Chung,
(x)
on 6 November, a dog, which had sustained serious injuries after having allegedly been attacked, was found in Yuen Long,
(xi)
on 7 November, a carcass of a beheaded wild pig with its stomach cut open was found in Wong Chuk Hang,
(xii)
on 16 November, two home-raised lambs were killed and buried in a banana forest in Yuen Long, and
(xiii)
on 21 November, a cat was allegedly burnt by corrosive fluid or hot water in Sheung Shui;
if so, of the details, including whether such cases have been referred to the investigation teams dedicated to handling cases of animal cruelty for investigation, and the number of those cases which the Police are investigating in the direction of animal cruelty;
(2)
given that the Government received 150 reports of suspected animal cruelty in the first half of this year, but as at 21 October of this year, the Government instituted prosecutions against the persons concerned in only five of such cases, whether it has reviewed if the number of prosecutions is on the low side; if it has reviewed and the outcome is in the affirmative, whether it has assessed if it is due to the presence of deficiencies in the existing law enforcement procedure;
(3)
whether it will set up a dedicated hotline for reporting animal cruelty cases, with a view to expediting the handling of such cases; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(4)
whether it will instil the concept of caring for animals in students starting from kindergarten; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(5)
whether it has studied the reasons for people committing acts of cruelty to animals, and the measures to curb such acts; if not, of the reasons for that;
(6)
as the Government plans to amend the Road Traffic Ordinance (Cap. 374) to enlarge the scope of "animal" under section 56 of that Ordinance, with a view to imposing a duty on the driver to stop his/her vehicle in case the vehicle is involved in a traffic incident which has caused damage to a dog or cat, of the relevant legislative timetable; and
(7)
as the Government plans to amend the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance (Cap. 169) to further safeguard animal welfare, whether the Government will introduce the relevant bill into this Council within this legislative session?




Question 20
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Management of car parking spaces

Hon Tony TSE to ask:
In recent years, some parking spaces for private cars ("PCs") in public and private car parks have been retrofitted with charging facilities for electric vehicles ("EVs") ("EV parking spaces"), and some of them have been designated as parking spaces reserved for EVs. Some PC drivers have relayed that there are problems in the management of car parking spaces, including a mismatch between the supply of and demand for car parking spaces. For example, (i) some electric PC ("e-PC") drivers wish to charge their vehicles but they cannot find vacant EV parking spaces (the causes for this situation including that such parking spaces are occupied by fuel-engined PCs or by EVs which have finished charging, and (ii) some fuel-engined PC drivers cannot park their vehicles as all general car parking spaces are occupied (the causes for this situation including that drivers of EVs are requested to move their EVs to general car parking spaces upon completion of charging), and the vacant EV parking spaces are reserved for EVs (some of which being located in the most convenient locations). Moreover, the real-time parking space information currently provided by some car parks at their entrances do not indicate the respective numbers of general and EV parking spaces among the vacant car parking spaces available, rendering PC drivers unable to find suitable car parking spaces after entering the car parks. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
among the registered PCs in Hong Kong at present, of the number and percentage of them which are e-PCs;
(2)
of the current number of EV parking spaces in Hong Kong and, among them, the number of those which are reserved for EVs, with a breakdown by (i) District Council district and (ii) type of car parks (i.e. public and private);
(3)
whether it has drawn up the criteria for determining the numbers and the relative proportion of general car parking spaces, EV parking spaces and parking spaces reserved for EVs in Hong Kong, so as to ensure that land uses are optimized; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and whether it will expeditiously commence this work; and
(4)
whether it will issue guidelines to the operators of public and private car parks in respect of (i) better management of EV parking spaces, (ii) reasonable allocation of the locations of general car parking spaces and EV parking spaces, (iii) codes for using parking spaces reserved for EVs, and (iv) information on EV parking spaces to be included in the real-time parking space information?




Question 21
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Social media analytics platform

Hon Elizabeth QUAT to ask:
The Office of the Government Chief Information Officer ("OGCIO") is providing support to the various policy bureaux/government departments ("B/Ds") to assist them in implementing big data analytics projects, such as developing a social media analytics platform ("the analytics platform") so that B/Ds may, by analysing information on the social media, gauge the social sentiment better, for reference in policy formulation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether the research and development ("R&D") work for the analytics platform is undertaken by OGCIO itself, or by the contractor for the "big data analytics platform"; whether, during the design process, the various B/Ds are/were involved in the R&D work; if so, of their roles; of the commencement date of the R&D work, and the total amount of expenditure incurred so far, together with a breakdown; the estimated amount of expenditure and manpower needed for operating the analytics platform each year;
(2)
of the functions and features of the analytics platform; and
(3)
whether the analytics platform has come into operation; if so, of
(i)
the date on which it came into operation,
(ii)
a list of B/Ds using the platform,
(iii)
the number of registered users,
(iv)
the number of people using the platform each month, with a breakdown by hours of use, and
(v)
actual examples of government departments having gauged the social sentiment better as a result of using the analytics platform?




Question 22
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Safe venues for celebrations by members of the ethnic minorities

Hon CHEUNG Kwok-kwan to ask:
On the 15th of last month, a fire broke out in a unit of a tenement building in Yau Ma Tei, resulting in more than 10 casualties. It has been reported that the unit concerned was an unlicensed Nepali restaurant, in which several Nepali families were celebrating Tihar and holding a birthday party at the time of the incident. During Tihar, all Nepali households observe the custom by lighting up candles or oil lamps on the floor. It is suspected that the fire was caused by some candles on the floor next to the restaurant entrance setting alight inflammable objects. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has gained an understanding of the customs of the religions and traditional festivities of the various ethnic minority communities in Hong Kong and, among them, those activities which may pose safety hazards; whether it will step up publicity and education efforts targeting at members of the ethnic minorities to enhance their awareness of safety when conducting festivities;
(2)
whether it will make proposals to the leaders of ethnic minority communities on conducting festivities in a manner that can ensure safety, and provide them with the assistance and resources needed, such as providing electric candles used for celebrating Tihar as a replacement for live candles; and
(3)
as some members of the ethnic minorities have indicated that, owing to the lack of activity venues, they have no choice but to gather and celebrate festivals in unlicensed restaurants or residential units which are not provided with sufficient fire safety facilities, whether the Government will immediately examine if there are adequate venues available to members of the ethnic minorities for conducting activities safely, and designate, for their priority use, certain venues in those districts where relatively more members of ethnic minorities reside (such as Sham Shui Po, Yau Tsim Mong, Wan Chai and Yuen Long)?