PLC Paper No. CB(3) 385
Ref: CB(3)/V/SFG

Paper for the House Committee Meeting on 28 November 1997
Proposed Formation of Parliamentary Liaison Subcommittee

Purpose

This paper seeks the advice of the House Committee on whether a Parliamentary Liaison Subcommittee should be formed to deal with liaison with parliamentarians outside Hong Kong. One of the first tasks of the proposed subcommittee, if formed, will be to consider an invitation from the Singapore Parliament Hong Kong-Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Group to visit Singapore in the first quarter of 1998.

Background

2. For the purposes of establishing contacts and developing closer relationship with other legislatures, the former Legislative Council had set up four parliamentary friendship groups since 1992. These were the Hong Kong-Japan Parliamentarians Committee, the Hong Kong-Canada Parliamentary Friendship Group, the Hong Kong-Australia Parliamentary Friendship Group and the Hong Kong-European Parliament Parliamentary Friendship Group. Co-ordination of the activities with these bodies was the responsibility of the then House Committee Subcommittee on Parliamentary Friendship Groups. The terms of reference of the Subcommittee are in the Appendix. All Members of the former Council were entitled to participate in the activities of these friendship groups. Such activities were mainly social and apolitical, providing opportunities for exchange of views among parliamentarians. The more recent exchanges with the counterparts included a reception of a delegation from the Japan/Hong Kong Parliamentarian League in May 1996 and a visit of former LegCo Members to the Australian Parliament in September 1996.

3. The Commissioner of the Republic of Singapore in Hong Kong first put forward the idea of forming a Hong Kong-Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Group in September 1996. The proposal was discussed and endorsed by the former House Committee, but was shelved because of the impending General Elections in Singapore at that time. A Hong Kong-Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Group was therefore not formed.

Invitation to visit Singapore

4. The Chairman of the current Singapore Parliament Hong Kong-Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Group wrote earlier this month to inform the President of the formation of the Friendship Group in Singapore and to invite the 鐈ong Kong members of the Parliamentary Friendship Group�to visit Singapore in the first quarter of 1998.

Proposed Parliamentary Liaison Subcommittee

5. In order to assist the House Committee in considering invitations such as the one from Singapore and other parliamentary liaison matters, Members are invited to consider whether the House Committee should form a Parliamentary Liaison 　 Subcommittee with terms of reference comparable to those of the former Subcommittee on Parliamentary Friendship Groups. The immediate task of the Subcommittee, if formed, will be to consider matters relating to the proposed visit, e.g. whether to form a Hong Kong-Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Group in Hong Kong, whether to accept the invitation and, if so, the date of visit, the size of the delegation, the budget and other arrangements. The subcommittee may also be tasked with the responsibility for the overall coordination of all parliamentary liaison activities between the Council and other parliamentary organisations outside Hong Kong, and for considering future proposals for setting up friendship groups.

Decision sought

6. Members are invited to decide whether a Parliamentary Liaison Subcommittee should be formed as proposed in paragraph 5 above.

Provisional Legislative Council Secretariat
25 November 1997

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