PANEL ON PLANNING, LANDS AND WORKS(Papers) 29 Apr 99

For information
on 29 April 1999

Legislative Council Planning, Lands and Works Panel

Progress of Year 2000 Compliance Exercise in
Government Departments and Non-Government
Organisations funded or regulated by Government
(Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau)

Purposes

1. This paper is intended to cover the progress on the Y2K programme for Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau (PELB) and the Departments and Non-Government Organisations (NGO)¹ within the Planning, Lands and Buildings policy areas. Y2K issues in respect of environment will be covered in the Legislative Council Panel on Environmental Affair.

2. It serves to:-

give the present positions how PELB, and the departments and NGO under its purview, address and resolve the Y2K problems;
outline how ready we are to meet the millennium rollover; and
cover the strategy in the time leading to the turn of the century for better readiness to the millennium challenges.

Work on Y2K Resolution So Far

3. PELB is responsible for policy formulation for the programme areas relating to planning, lands, buildings and environment. Regarding the first three programme areas, four Departments and one NGO (Land Development Corporation), would be involved.

4. PELB has long recognised the need to resolve the Y2K problem in time. In mid-1994, PELB and its Departments started to address the impact of the Y2K problem on their departmental systems.

5. In resolving the Y2K problem, we closely follow the guidelines and directives issued by the Steering Committee on Year 2000 Compliance chaired by the Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting. The progress of Y2K compliance works in PELB and Departments under its purview was monitored through quarterly progress reports in 1998 and monthly reports in 1999.

6. PELB and Works Bureau have jointly set up a dedicated team since September 1998 to oversee the Y2K compliance work in these two bureaux as well as departments and NGO within their respective purview. Its role is to monitor and review the progress of Y2K compliance work both in the Bureau and its group of Departments. The team comprises a Chief Engineer as the team leader and a full time Assistant Secretary (electronics engineer) as the team member supporting the team functions.

Present Position & Progress

7. As at 15 March 1999, there is no mission-critical system² in PELB. 70 mission-critical systems (including computer, embedded and line communication systems) have been identified in the Departments/NGO under the policy purview of planning, lands and buildings. Of these, 55 (78.6%) of them have been confirmed as Y2K compliant or rectified. Another 5 (7.1%) mission-critical systems can be rectified by resetting the clock on or after 1 January 2000.

8. The rectification work for the remaining 10 (14.3%) mission-critical systems which are still Y2K non-compliant will be completed before the end of June 1999.

9. To date, the Y2K compliance programme in PELB and its departments/NGO has been progressing according to plan. The remaining rectification work will be closely monitored and is expected to be completed as scheduled.

Town Planning

10. Regarding the town planning programme areas, the mission-critical system for preparation of town plans, which is essential for supporting development control and enforcement against unauthorised developments has been rectified and confirmed to be Y2K compliant.

Land Registration

11. The Land Registration System has been rectified and confirmed to be Y2K compliant. The remaining non-compliant mission-critical systems, which support the public counter search facility and collection of service charges, will be rectified before the end of June 1999.

Lands Developments

12. The Valuation Information System which supports the disposal of land parcels to the community, has been rectified and confirmed to be Y2K compliant.

13. All the mission-critical systems in the Land Development Corporation have been confirmed as Y2K compliant or rectified.

Building Safety

14. All mission-critical computer systems within the Buildings Department have been confirmed as Y2K compliant or rectified. Hence, the critical business areas relating to building safety will not be affected.

The Way Forward

15. In the time leading to the turn of the century, we shall concentrate our efforts to ensure that the continuity of critical business under the purview of PELB will not be affected by the Y2K problem. In addition, we will monitor the Y2K readiness of other service providers and business partners whom we rely on to ensure service continuity.

16. We will put in place contingency plans to guard against any disruption in the critical services provided by PELB and its departments/NGO to the public. In this process, we will consider the scope, resources requirements, sustainability, associated triggers and activation mechanism. The contingency plans of our departments are expected to be completed by July 1999 and PELB aims to complete a review of these plans by August 1999.

17. In October 1999, we will carry out a review on the overall Y2K readiness of critical business under the Bureau's purview. Also, we will make an assessment on any risk that may impact on our transition to the Year 2000. The review will provide an additional level of confidence to meet the millennium challenges.

18. In November 1999, we will review the set up and arrangement of emergency support for the imminent transition to the year 2000. This review will assess the status of the Departments for their readiness to deal with the rollover to 1 January 2000 and their associated logistical arrangements.

Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau
April 1999

1. This paper covers Buildings Department (BD), Lands Department (LandsD), Land Registry (LR), Planning Department (PlanD), and Lands Development Corporation (LDC).

2. Critical systems are those systems whose proper functioning is related to public health and safety, the provision of critical service to the public, and payment and revenue collection