Revised version
OP 96/97-14(1)
(Issued at 11:00 am on 6.1.97)

The Legislative Council
Order Paper
Wednesday 8 January 1997 at 2:30 pm

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I. Papers

Sessional Papers 1996-97
II. Questions
III. Government Motions

Costs in Criminal Cases Ordinance
IV. Government Bills

First Reading
Second Reading

• Debates to be adjourned
• Debates to be resumed
Committee Stage and Third Reading
V. Members' Motions

1. Improvement to building management
2. Comprehensive review of fire safety measures
VI. Members' Bills

First Reading
Second Reading

• Debate to be adjourned
• Debate to be resumed
Committee Stage and Third Reading

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I. Papers

Sessional Papers 1996-97

1. No. 58 - Report by the Controller, Government Flying Service on the Administration of the Government Flying Service Welfare Fund for the year ended 31 March 1996

(to be presented by the Secretary for Security)

2. No. 59 - Report of changes to the approved Estimates of Expenditure approved during the second quarter of 1996-97 Public Finance Ordinance: Section 8

(to be presented by the Secretary for the Treasury)

II. Questions

1. Mr TSANG Kin-shing to ask : (Translation)

It is reported that in a recent highway accident, a boulder was suspected of falling from a dump truck or goods vehicle and striking through the windscreen of a vehicle travelling behind, causing serious injury to the driver of the vehicle concerned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the total number of similar accidents in the past three years and the number of persons injured or killed in such accidents;
2. whether such accidents are caused by rubbles falling from moving dump trucks or good vehicles carrying sand and gravel; if so, of the number of drivers or owners of such vehicles who have been successfully prosecuted; and
3. whether the Government has considered adopting measures to prevent the occurrence of traffic accidents resulting from rubbles falling from moving dump trucks and goods vehicles?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport

2. Mr LAW Chi-kwong to ask :

It is learnt that the Police manuals stipulate the standard procedures for police officers to follow when discharging their duties. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the reasons why the Police has not released the Police manuals for public information following the implementation of the Code on Access to Information on 1st April 1996;
2. whether the procedures set out in the Police manuals are consistent with the provisions of the Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance; and
3. given that certain groups such as battered spouses, handicapped persons and marginal youth have complained that police officers often do not respect their legal rights and neglect their special needs when handling cases involving them, whether the Government will consider consulting these groups with a view to making appropriate changes to the Police manuals so as to safeguard the interests of the groups concerned?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

3. Dr John TSE to ask : (Translation)

Regarding the provision of facilities to wheelchair users, will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the percentage of public places in the territory such as restaurants and cinemas which are provided with access facilities for wheelchair users;
2. of the current number of at-grade crossings provided with dropped kerbs to facilitate crossing by wheelchair users;
3. of the Government's plans to improve access facilities for wheelchair users; and whether the Government has considered introducing legislation requiring the provision of such facilities in non-domestic premises built before 1984; and
4. how the Government ensures that the access facilities originally designed for wheelchair users in privately-owned premises are actually made available for use by wheelchair users upon occupation of the premises?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands

4. Mr NGAN Kam-chuen to ask : (Translation)

Under the ex-gratia zonal compensation system in the New Territories, a uniform rate will be applied across different compensation zones in the resumption of land for a single project. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the reasons for not applying a uniform rate for land resumption in the Route 3 project, which is a large scale road project stretching across several compensation zones;
2. given that the Western Railway Project requires the resumption of vast stretches of land in the New Territories, whether the Government will apply a uniform rate across different compensation zones in the resumption of land for this project; if not, why not; and
3. having regard to the latest amendment to the ex-gratia zonal compensation system classifying "those areas that are affected by essential projects with territory-wide significance" as "Zone A", whether the different compensation zones covered by the Western Corridor Railway Project will be upgraded to "Zone A" as a result of this amendment; if so, of the additional amount of compensation that the Government has to pay for land resumption; if not, why not?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands

5. Mr IP Kwok-him to ask : (Translation)

It is reported that over 10,000 residents will be affected by the Housing Society's redevelopment programmes at Kwun Lung Lau and Tanner Hill Estates. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

1. whether the Housing Branch will provide assistance to the residents affected by the above redevelopment programmes; if so, what the details are; and
2. given that a number of the affected residents had been on the Housing Authority's Waiting List before moving into the above estates, whether the Government knows if the Housing Authority will consider allocating public housing units to these residents as a resettlement option?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Housing

* 6. Dr HUANG Chen-ya to ask : (Translation)

Does the Government know:

1. which public hospitals have psychiatric wards and which public hospitals only provide psychiatric consultation service; and
2. of the number of non-psychiatric cases, as well as the categories of such cases, in public hospitals requiring psychiatric consultation in the past year; and the number of patients in these cases who had to wait for more than 24 hours before receiving psychiatric consultation service?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

* 7. Mr LAU Chin-shek to ask : (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the current Gini coefficient reflecting the distribution of wealth in the territory according to the data obtained from the 1996 Population By-census;
2. assuming that all households in the territory are equally divided into ten groups according to their income, of the respective ratios of the total income of the various groups to the territory's total household income; and
3. whether consideration will be given to publishing the median household income and the above ratios in the quarterly reports of the General Household Survey?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services

* 8. Mr CHEUNG Man-kwong to ask : (Translation)

Regarding the infiltration of triad elements into schools and students committing criminal offences, will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the numbers of cases in which students were prosecuted and convicted respectively for involvement in triad activities in each district in the past three years, together with a breakdown of such cases by category of offence and number of students/schools involved;
2. how the authorities concerned handle cases of students involved in triad activities; and what measures are in place to curb the infiltration of triad elements into schools;
3. of the numbers of cases in which students were prosecuted and convicted respectively for criminal offences (other than involvement in triad activities) in each district in the past three years, together with a breakdown of such cases by category of offence, number of students/schools involved; and
4. how the authorities concerned handle cases of students committing the offences mentioned in (c) above; and what measures are in place to enhance the cooperation with schools in preventing commission of crimes by students?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

* 9. Miss CHAN Yuen-han to ask : (Translation)

Since the implementation of the Nurses Registration (Amendment) Ordinance in 1996, the use of the term "nurse" is restricted to registered nurses and enrolled nurses only. Does the Government know:

1. of the number of persons without recognised nursing qualifications currently employed in patient care work in private hospitals;
2. the number of persons employed in patient care work in private hospitals who have been dismissed for not possessing a recognised nursing qualification, since the enactment of the above Ordinance; and
3. whether the Government will request the management of the private hospitals concerned to consider employing the persons mentioned in (a) above on a short-term contract basis, so as to enable them to continue with their patient care work until they have obtained a recognised nursing qualification?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

*10. Dr HUANG Chen-ya to ask : (Translation)

Is the Government aware of:

1. the number of psychiatric patients, together with a breakdown of the categories of psychiatric illness of such patients, admitted into public hospitals in the past year; and
2. the respective numbers of new and known psychiatric patients admitted through the accident and emergency departments in public hospitals, together with a breakdown of the categories of psychiatric illness of such patients, in the same period?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

*11. Dr David LI to ask :

It is reported that the number of registered new organ donors is drastically below the number of people in need of kidney transplant, and that doctors fear a slowdown in the number of registered organ donors may have serious repercussions over the next five years. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the number of registered new organ donors in each of the past three years;
2. of the reasons for the public’s reluctance to register as organ donors; and
3. whether additional resources will be provided for the launching of publicity campaigns to enhance the public's awareness of the importance of organ donation?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

*12. Mr LEUNG Yiu-chung to ask : (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council of:

1. the number of cases heard before the Labour Tribunal involving the award of costs to either party in each of the past three years, together with the details of such cases relating to the following:
   1. the numbers of cases in which costs were awarded to employers and employees respectively;
   2. a breakdown of such cases by different ranges of costs awarded; and
   3. the largest and smallest amounts of costs awarded; and
2. the numbers of cases adjudicated by each presiding officer in the past three years involving the award of costs to employers and employees respectively?

Public Officer to reply : Chief Secretary

*13. Dr LAW Cheung-kwok to ask : (Translation)

It is reported that the Accident Insurance Association of Hong Kong has advised motor insurance companies of its proposed increases in premiums for motor insurance cover for 1997, with the premiums for third party liability insurance cover for various categories of private motor vehicles increasing by 50%. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

1. whether the Government has any mechanism to monitor the adjustment of third party liability insurance premiums for motor vehicles; if not, why not; and
2. whether it has any knowledge of the mechanism adopted in the United Kingdom, the United States, Japan and Singapore in monitoring the level of third party liability insurance premiums for motor vehicles?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services

*14. Mr WONG Wai-yin to ask : (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the total number of non-franchised bus routes awarded by the Transport Department in the past three years;
2. of the number of applications for the operation of non-franchised bus routes rejected by the Transport Department in the past three years and the reasons for rejection;
3. of the average time taken by the Transport Department to process applications for the operation of non-franchised bus routes, as well as the present number of non-franchised bus routes pending approval;
4. of the total number of non-franchised bus routes known to be operating illegally in the past three years, and the major districts in which these bus routes were operated; and
5. whether the problem of illegal operation of non-franchised bus routes is worsening; if so, what the reasons are?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport

*15. Miss Emily LAU to ask :

The Government informed the Advisory Council on the Environment on 28 October last year that the two pumps at the Shatin and Taipo sewage treatment plants, which were designed to transport industrial and farm waste from Tolo Harbour to Victoria Harbour, have failed to function properly and this has resulted in the two sewage treatment plants functioning at below half of its capacity. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:

1. the reasons for the two pumps failing to function properly;
2. the magnitude of the problem arising from such failure and its effects on the residents in the neighbourhood of the two sewage treatment plants;
3. the name of the contractor who was responsible for building the two sewage treatment plants; and
4. the remedial actions which have been taken by the authority concerned, and the party which will pay for the cost of the repair works?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Works

*16. Mr Howard YOUNG to ask :

Will the Government inform this Council whether it has an estimate of the extra benefits which will be brought to the tourism industry as a result of an upsurge in the number of visitors arriving in the territory in the period immediately before the transfer of sovereignty on 1 July this year; if so, what the details are?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Economic Services

*17. Mr CHIM Pui-chung to ask : (Translation)

In view of the significant decline in the business of the insurance industry in the past year, will the Government inform this Council:

1. whether the above situation is caused by vicious competition within the industry; and
2. whether it has assessed the impact of any serious incident (such as the closing down of an insurance company) on the entire insurance industry and the reasonable protection of the insured will be ensured?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services

*18. Dr John TSE to ask : (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council whether it has considered introducing legislation requiring the designation of non-smoking areas in public places such as offices, restaurants and department stores; if not, what the reasons are?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

*19. Mr CHEUNG Man-kwong to ask : (Translation)

Regarding the operation of private schools for specialized subjects or private tutorial centres ("private tutorial schools") and the safety facilities in the premises of these schools, will the Government inform this Council:

1. of the number of complaints lodged with the Education Department in the 1995-96 school year regarding private tutorial schools operating without registration, and how such complaints were handled by the Education Department;
2. of the number of Inspectors of Schools deployed to inspect private tutorial schools periodically to check whether they have been registered, together with the number of schools found to be unregistered and the number of warning letters issued, in the corresponding period; as well as the reaction of the private tutorial schools concerned;
3. whether any prosecutions were instituted against unregistered private tutorial schools in the corresponding period; if so, of the number of successful prosecutions and the highest and lowest penalties imposed by the court;
4. how the authorities concerned ensure that the premises of private tutorial schools are in conformity with the provisions in the relevant legislation regarding fire escape, sanitary condition and enrolment limit, so as to protect the students' personal safety; and
5. whether consideration will be given to stepping up inspections and increasing the penalties prescribed in the relevant legislation so as to achieve a deterrent effect and protect the interest of the consumers?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education and Manpower

* For written reply.

III. Government Motions

Costs in Criminal Cases Ordinance

Attorney General:

That the Costs in Criminal Cases Rules, made by the Acting Chief Justice on 25 November 1996, be approved.

IV. Government Bills

First Reading

1. Legal Aid (Amendment) Bill 1996

2. Enduring Powers of Attorney Bill

3. Powers of Attorney (Amendment) Bill 1996

4. Freight Containers (Safety) Bill

Second Reading

Debates to be adjourned

Debates to be resumed

Committee Stage and Third Reading

V. Members' Motions

1. Improvement to building management

Mr IP Kwok-him : (Translation)

That, in view of the fact that at present a lot of commercial/residential buildings and private buildings encounter severe difficulties in dealing with maintenance coordination and management matters, this Council urges the Home Affairs Branch to consider enhancing the existing power given to Owners’ Corporations so as to improve the efficiency in building management, and requests the Home Affairs Branch to provide substantial and active support to enable the setting up of Owners’ Corporations in all buildings in the territory as early as possible.

Amendment to Mr IP Kwok-him's motion

Mr James TO : (Translation)

To delete "in view of the fact that at present a lot of commercial/residential buildings and private buildings encounter severe difficulties in dealing with maintenance coordination and management matters" and substitute with "despite the passing of amendments to the Building Management Ordinance by this Council in 1993, some private commercial/residential buildings still encounter difficulties in dealing with inspection, maintenance and management matters"; to delete "consider enhancing the existing power given to Owners' Corporations so as to improve the efficiency in building management" and substitute with "conduct a comprehensive review of the existing formation method, power and operation of Owners' Corporations, the mechanism for monitoring the quality and work of management companies, and the relevant legislation, so as to improve the efficiency of building management and safeguard the interests of property owners"; and to delete "to enable the setting up of Owners' Corporations in all buildings in the territory as early as possible" and substitute with "in encouraging the setting up of more Owners' Corporations and to set up a standing consultative committee for discussing building management matters".

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Home Affairs

2. Comprehensive review of fire safety measures

Mrs Selina CHOW : (Translation)

That, although the Governor has appointed an independent commission with extensive legal powers to inquire into the fifth alarm fire which broke out recently at Garley Building in Yau Ma Tei and caused serious casualties, and the interim and final reports on the inquiry are expected to take half a year and a year to complete, this Council therefore strongly demands that the Fire Services Department, the Buildings Department, the Labour Department and the other departments concerned should, in accordance with the internal investigation report and the recommendations made by the public, take immediate corresponding actions, so as to eliminate as far as possible any potential danger that may trigger similar incidents and prevent the recurrence of such tragedies before the completion of the inquiry, and that the respective departments concerned should brief this Council on the immediate actions they plan to take and report the progress of such actions on a regular basis.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Security

VI. Members' Bills

First Reading

Trade Unions (Amendment) Bill 1997

Second Reading

Debate to be adjourned

Debate to be resumed

Committee Stage and Third Reading