Legislative Council

LC Paper No. CB(2) 291/99-00
(These minutes have been seen by the Administration)

Ref : CB2/BC/35/98

Minutes of the first meeting of the Bills Committee on
Hong Kong Sports Development Board (Amendment) Bill 1999
held on Tuesday, 26 October 1999 at 10:45 am
in Conference Room B of the Legislative Council Building

Members Present :

Hon Timothy FOK Tsun-ting, SBS, JP (Chairman)
Hon HO Sai-chu, SBS, JP
Hon Fred LI Wah-ming, JP
Hon NG Leung-sing
Hon MA Fung-kwok
Hon Ambrose CHEUNG Wing-sum, JP
Hon Gary CHENG Kai-nam, JP
Hon Howard YOUNG, JP
Hon Andrew CHENG Kar-foo
Hon CHOY So-yuk
Dr Hon TANG Siu-tong, JP

Absent with Apologies :

Hon Cyd HO Sau-lan
Hon Christine LOH Kung-wai

Public Officers Attending :

Mr David LAN, JP

Secretary for Home Affairs

Mr Peter CHEUNG

Deputy Secretary for Home Affairs

Mr William SHIU

Principal Assistant Secretary for Home Affairs (Task Force)

Mr Jonathan McKinley

Principal Assistant Secretary for Home Affairs (Recreation and Sport)

Ms Phyllis POON

Government Counsel

Clerk in Attendance :

Mr LAW Wing-lok

Chief Assistant Secretary (2) 5

Staff in Attendance :

Mr Stephen LAM

Assistant Legal Adviser 4

Miss Mary SO

Senior Assistant Secretary (2)8

I. Election of Chairman

1 Mr Timothy FOK Tsun-ting was elected Chairman of the Bills Committee.

2. The Chairman declared interest as he was the President of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (S.F. & O.C.) and a member of the Hong Kong Sports Development Board (HKSDB).

II. Meeting with the Administration

3. At the invitation of the Chairman, Secretary for Home Affairs (SHA) said that the Hong Kong Sports Development Board (Amendment) Bill 1999 (the Bill) sought to expand the membership of the HKSDB from the existing 13 to 17 by adding one more representative from the S.F. & O.C. and six other members, as well as to change the name of the "Amateur Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong" to the "Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China" to reflect the change which had taken place earlier this year. SHA pointed out that the proposed expansion of the membership of the HKSDB was intended to enhance the representativeness of the HKSDB and to bring in more expert advice and community input. The proposal was one of the recommendations contained in the "Consultant's Report on Culture, the Arts, Recreation and Sports Services" published in March 1999.

4. SHA further said that following the gazettal of the Bill on 25 June 1999, it had come to the knowledge of the Administration that various "National" Sports Associations (NSAs) had written to Members of the Legislative Council expressing the view that there should be a comprehensive debate and review of the policy on the provision of sports services prior to the consideration of the Bill. In the light of this, the Home Affairs Bureau had held a joint meeting with the NSAs concerned on 19 August 1999 to discuss the matter. SHA pointed out that the NSAs generally accepted the expanded membership of the HKSDB as proposed in the Bill. They hoped that the Bill should be used as a vehicle to bring about greater reform to the provision of sports services in Hong Kong. SHA further said that the Administration had explained to the NSAs that reform to the provision of sports services could be achieved through gradual implementation of administrative measures rather than by legislative means.

5. Mr Gary CHENG enquired about the reason for giving the S.F. & O.C. an additional seat on the HKSDB. SHA replied that given the important role of the S.F. & O.C. in sports development, the Administration considered it appropriate to enhance the representativeness of S.F. & O.C. on the HKSDB. SHA added that the enlarged membership for the HKSDB would include persons from the business community, sportspersons of distinction, and other persons believed to have contributions to make to the development of sport.

6. In reply to Mr Fred LI's enquiry, Deputy Secretary for Home Affairs (Dep SHA) said that the proposed deletion of the membership of the chairmen of the Provisional Urban Council and Provisional Regional Council or their representatives from the HKSDB had been included in the Provision of Municipal Services (Reorganisation) Bill.

7. Mr LI further enquired about the reason for increasing the membership of public officers on the HKSDB from one to no more than three. Dep SHA replied that the Administration's thinking was that the SHA and the incumbent of the proposed new post of the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services should be made ex-officio members of the HKSDB. The remaining seat could accommodate a designate Government official or, where the need arose, a sportsman of distinction who was himself/herself a public officer.

8. Mr Andrew CHENG was of the view that it was not an appropriate time for the Administration to introduce the Bill, having regard to the fact that the Bills Committee on the Provision of Municipal Services (Reorganisation) Bill had not yet completed its work and that the new administrative framework for the provision of sports and recreation services had yet to be worked out. Mr CHENG pointed out that the letters from the NSAs and the submission from the S.F. & O.C. entitled "Moving towards a new sports structure and future" (already circulated to members vide LC Paper Nos. CB(2) 176/99-00 (01) & (02)) showed that the views of the sports community were different from that of the Administration.

9. In reply, SHA said that the Bill could be considered independently, since no provision therein was contingent upon the dissolution of the two Provisional Municipal Councils. Moreover, the term of the current membership of the Board would expire on 31 March 2000. SHA however pointed out that as the Bill arose out of the overall exercise to reorganize municipal services, the Administration considered it prudent to pursue the passage of the Bill in parallel to the Provision of Municipal Services (Reorganisation) Bill.

10. Mr MA Fung-kwok said that the Bills Committee should meet representatives from the sports community to hear their views on the provision of sports services. Mr Gary CHENG, Mr HO Sai-chu, Mr NG Leung-sing, Mr Ambrose CHEUNG and Miss CHOY So-yuk shared Mr MA's view.

11. Mr Andrew CHENG pointed out that inviting deputations to give views on the policy aspect of provision of sports services might be outside the ambit of the Bill whose prescribed aim was to expand the membership of the HKSDB.

12. Assistant Legal Adviser said that according to the Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council, amendments to bills must be related to the subject matter of the bill and to the subject matter of the clause to which it related. He further said that deputations might send in written submissions or make oral representations. Where oral representations were made, the Chairman could ask the deputations to restrict their representations to the subject matter of the Bill.

13. Mr Howard YOUNG opined that matters relating to the policy on provision of sports services should be discussed in the Panel on Home Affairs.

14. Dep SHA advised members that the Panel on Home Affairs had met with representatives of the sports community on 18 May 1999 to discuss the new structure for sports and recreation proposed in the Consultant's Report. He added that the Bills Committee on the Provision of Municipal Services (Reorganisation) Bill had also considered the consequential amendments to the Hong Kong Sports Development Ordinance (Cap. 1149) at its meeting held last week.

15. The Chairman suggested that submissions should be invited from the NSAs, the S.F. & O.C. and the HKSDB. He also said that a meeting should be held as soon as possible to discuss the submissions. Members agreed.

16. Dep SHA said that the Administration would provide a paper on new administrative framework for sports and recreation services for members' information at the next meeting of the Bills Committee.	Adm

III. Date of next meeting

17. Members agreed that the next meeting of the Bills Committee would be held on Tuesday, 9 November 1999 at 8:30 am in Conference Room A of the Legislative Council Building.

18. The meeting ended at 11:55 am.

Legislative Council Secretariat
8 November 1999