LegCo Panel on Constitutional Affairs

Minutes of Meeting held on Thursday, 3 October 1996 at 9:30 a.m. in Conference Room B of the Legislative Council Building

Members Present :

Members Absent:

Clerk in attendance :

Mrs. Betty LEUNG: Chief Assistant Secretary (2) 3

Staff in attendance :

Mrs. Justina LAM: Assistant Secretary General 2
Miss Erin TSANG: Senior Assistant Secretary (2) 7

I. Election of chairman and deputy chairman

II. Terms of reference

III. Schedule of meetings for the 1996-97 session

IV. Items for discussion at the next regular meeting

I. Election of chairman and deputy chairman

Hon SZETO Wah and Hon Ambrose LAU were elected chairman and deputy chairman of the Panel respectively.

II. Terms of reference

2. The meeting agreed that the Panel should continue to adopt the terms of reference of the last session for this session.

III. Schedule of meetings for the 1996-97 session

3. Members agreed that the future meetings of the Panel would be held on the third Monday of every month at 10:45 a.m. in Conference Room A of the LegCo Building. Since the next meeting (i.e. 21 October 1996) would fall on a public holiday, members decided to re-schedule it for 14 October 1996 at 10:45 a.m.

IV. Items for discussion at the next regular meeting

4. The Chairman went through the list of outstanding items which had been issued as Appendix II of the agenda with members.

5. Panel members discussed whether the subject of demographic projections ( LegCo Paper No. CB(1)1711/95-96 refers ) should form an item for discussion by the Panel. Hon CHEUNG Man-kwong doubted its relevance to the terms of reference of the Panel. Hon Emily LAU informed the meeting that the Environmental Affairs Panel had agreed to study the issue at its meeting to be held in November. The meeting then agreed that the Panel would not study the issue.

6. The Chairman drew members' attention that there were no policy branches dealing with matters relating to the two Municipal Councils. Although the two Councils enjoyed autonomy and that the LegCo did not intend to interfere with their autonomy, members still considered it worthwhile to discuss the constitutional relationship between the LegCo and the two Municipal Councils at the next meeting for the sake of public interests.

7. Hon CHEUNG Man-kwong then raised his concern that corruption and bribery activities might occur in the selection exercise for the Chief Executive for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) since there could be a keen competition between the prospective candidates. He asked whether existing provisions of the local legislation could apply to the selection exercise which was to take place in Hong Kong. The Chairman then said that the Basic Law provided that the Chief Executive would be selected by election or through consultations held locally, i.e. Hong Kong. In this regard, Hong Kong law might apply to illicit and corruptive activities relating to the said selection exercise. Yet, he agreed that the Secretary for Constitutional Affairs, legal adviser from the Legal Department and the Commissioner of ICAC should be invited to comment on the issue, in particular as to whether there were existing legislative provisions to prevent bribery and corruption in such exercise, how preventive measures could be taken and what action the Hong Kong Government could possibly take to prevent bribery and corruption if there were no existing preventive measures. Hon Emily LAU added that legal advice from the Legal Service Division should also be sought.

8. After deliberation, members agreed that the following subjects should form standing items for discussion in all the future regular meetings:

Progress of work of the Joint Liaison Group; and
Issues related to the formation of the first Hong Kong SAR Government and co-operation with the Preparatory Committee.

9. There being no other business, the meeting ended at 9:50 a.m.

LegCo Secretariat
9 October 1996
* other commitments

Last Updated on 13 August 1998