A 99/00-27

Legislative Council

Agenda
Wednesday 10 May 2000 at 2:30 pm


I. Tabling of Papers

Subsidiary Legislation / InstrumentsL.N. No.
1.Rules of the High Court (Amendment) Rules 2000

129/2000
2.Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Confined Spaces) Regulation (L.N. 18 of 1999) (Commencement) Notice 2000

130/2000
3.Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Safety Management) Regulation (Cap. 59 Sub. Leg.)(Commencement) Notice 2000

131/2000
4.Electricity Supply Lines (Protection) Regulation (L.N. 96 of 2000) (Commencement) Notice 2000

132/2000

Other Papers

1. No.97 -Traffic Accident Victims Assistance Fund Annual Report by the Director of Social Welfare Incorporated for the year from 1 April 1998 to 31 March 1999
(to be presented by Secretary for Health and Welfare)

2. No.98 -The Government Minute in response to the Report No. 33 of the Public Accounts Committee dated February 2000
(to be presented by Chief Secretary for Administration, who will address the Council)

II. Questions

1. Hon Martin LEE to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the use of less-polluting vehicle fuels to reduce air pollution in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of its specific plans to promote the switch to ultra-low sulphur diesel by diesel vehicle owners;

  2. of the progress of the discussion with the Mainland authorities on unifying the specifications for diesel fuels used in Hong Kong and the Mainland; and

  3. apart from the introduction of liquefied petroleum gas taxis and mini-buses, of the progress of the study on the introduction of less-polluting vehicle fuels, and the proposed target dates for their introduction?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment and Food

2. Dr Hon LEONG Che-hung to ask: (Translation)

The Public Health Report No. 3 on Viral Hepatitis & Liver Cancer and Unintentional Injuries in Children published by the Department of Health in 1998 contained 27 recommendations on actions that should be taken to reduce injuries and deaths of children. In this connection, will the Government inform this council:

  1. of the actions taken and tasks achieved in respect of each of the recommendations; and

  2. of the annual reduced figures since 1998 in respect of each of the following aspects, namely, deaths from unintentional injuries, childhood deaths caused by motor vehicle crashes, reported childhood road casualties and deaths from falls, and how they compare to the relevant baseline figures set in the Report for these aspects over the period 1990-95?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

3. Hon HUI Cheung-ching to ask: (Translation)

Regarding Hong Kong's position as an entrepot for trade between Taiwan and the Mainland, will the Government inform this Council whether:

  1. it knows the total value of re-exports lost per month since and as a result of the commencement of operation of the offshore transport centre in Kaohsiung, Taiwan in April 1997;

  2. it has assessed the impact on Hong Kong's position as an entrepot, upon the establishment of direct transport, trade and postal links (the so-called three small-scale links) between Taiwan's three offshore islands, namely Quemoy, Matsu and the Penghu Archipelago and Xiamen and Mawei of Fujian Province in the Mainland; if so, of the assessment results; and

  3. it has studied the impact on Hong Kong's position as an entrepot and its economy, upon the establishment of the three links on a full scale between Taiwan and the Mainland; if so, of the details of the study?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Trade and Industry

4. Dr Hon LUI Ming-wah to ask: (Translation)

As quite many units in factory buildings situated on old industrial areas are left vacant, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the respective total areas of vacant units in government and private flatted factories at present;

  2. whether it will allow the setting up of hostels or activity centres for senior citizens in these vacant units; if not, of the reasons for that; and

  3. of the progress of promoting the redevelopment of old industrial areas?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Planning and Lands

5. Hon Albert HO to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that, for the investigation of a corruption case, the Zhaoqing law enforcement department dispatched officers to Hong Kong in 1995 to search the abode of a Hong Kong resident who was involved in the case. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether it knows if the law enforcement departments of the Mainland have enforced the Mainland laws in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region since the reunification of Hong Kong with China; if they have, of the scope of their powers, the legal authority of their powers, the procedure for exercising such powers, and the number of times and details of their enforcement action; and

  2. how it protects the human rights and freedom of Hong Kong residents from being infringed upon unlawfully by the law enforcement departments of the Mainland?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

6. Hon Ambrose LAU to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that the organizer of an international conference originally scheduled to be held in Hong Kong had changed the venue of the conference to another city because it considered the air pollution problem in the territory to be severe. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:

  1. the number of complaints about air pollution in Hong Kong which it received from overseas businessmen and tourists over the past three years;

  2. a comparison of the present air quality in Hong Kong with that in other cities which are frequently used as venues for international conferences; and

  3. the measures and solutions that can be implemented immediately to avoid the recurrence of similar incidents?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment and Food

*7. Hon Mrs Sophie LEUNG to ask: (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the location of aqua privies under the management of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department;

  2. whether the cleansing frequency for individual aqua privy is adjusted in the light of its location and usage rate; if so, of the details;

  3. of the methods employed for cleaning up aqua privies; and

  4. of the average unit cost for cleaning up aqua privies?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment and Food

*8. Hon David CHU to ask: (Translation)

One of the methods used to dispose of undetonated bombs is to dump them at the waters between Po Toi Island and Beaufort Island. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the amount of explosives disposed of at the aforesaid waters over the past three years;

  2. whether it has assessed the impact of the explosives on the marine environment and the ecology of the waters concerned; and

  3. whether it has informed the fishermen of the locations of the waters dumped with explosives; and of the measures adopted to ensure their safety?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

*9. Hon CHOY So-yuk to ask: (Translation)

It is learnt that a contractor was awarded a works contract at a tender price of $4,800 per unit to install sanitary wares for the Home Ownership Scheme units in Siu Sai Wan. He then subcontracted the works to another contractor at $1,600 per unit, who then further subcontracted the works at $800 per unit to a third party. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether it knows the subcontracting incident stated above; if it does, of the details;

  2. whether it knows if similar situation occurs in other housing flats under the Home Ownership Scheme; if so, of the details; and

  3. of the measures to preclude any decline in the quality of materials and workmanship for public housing works as a result of multi-level subcontracting?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Housing

*10. Hon Michael HO to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the composition and operation of the Medical Council of Hong Kong, the Nursing Council of Hong Kong and the Supplementary Medical Professions Council ("SMPC"), will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether it knows the respective numbers of general meetings held by these bodies in each of the past five years;

  2. of the number and proportion of registered supplementary medical practitioners among the members of the SMPC at present, and the professions of other SMPC members;

  3. of the reasons for the Supplementary Medical Professions Ordinance (Cap. 359) providing for the establishment of various professional boards only under the SMPC, instead of setting up a council for each relevant profession; and

  4. how the existing regulatory framework of the supplementary medical professions in Hong Kong compares with those of advanced countries in America and Europe?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

*11. Hon LEE Kai-ming to ask: (Translation)

On the 14th of last month, heavy downpours caused serious and extensive flooding in Yuen Long. It has been reported that the flooding was partly attributable to the blockages of rivers and drainage channels caused by the West Rail project works. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether it has assessed if the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation ("KCRC") and its contractors undertaking the construction of the West Rail should be held responsible for the flooding; if the assessment result shows that they should bear the responsibility, whether the KCRC and the contractors concerned will be required to offer compensation to the residents who have suffered losses in the flooding; if the assessment result is in the negative, of the rationale for that;

  2. whether it has requested the KCRC to issue a code of practice to the West Rail contractors concerning flood prevention and to closely monitor such contractors to ensure that they comply with the code; if not, of the reasons for that; and

  3. of the measures it will take to strengthen the monitoring of infrastructural projects in order to prevent flooding due to the construction works?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Works

*12. Hon LAW Chi-kwong to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the diseases contracted by local residents and the provision of inoculation service for new arrivals from the Mainland, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the number of newborn babies who died or suffered disabilities because of German measles infection during pregnancy, and the number and percentage of female new arrivals from the Mainland who received inoculations against German measles at maternal and child health centres, over the past five years;

  2. of the number of new cases of pulmonary tuberculosis during the past five years, and the number of those patients who were new arrivals from the Mainland; and

  3. how it will provide effective vaccination to those new arrivals from the Mainland who are already above the normal age for receiving the inoculation service; and whether it has any plans to provide inoculation services against German measles and pulmonary tuberculosis etc. for all new arrivals from the Mainland, as well as the respective annual amounts of resources required for these inoculation services?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

*13. Dr Hon TANG Siu-tong to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the transboundary movement of "living modified organisms", the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity ("the Convention") endorsed in January this year a protocol on biosafety ("the Protocol"), which will be signed by the parties to the Convention between May and June. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:

  1. it knows if the Central People's Government has plans, after signing the Protocol, to invoke Article 153 of the Basic Law to extend the application of the Protocol to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("HKSAR"); if not, whether the HKSAR Government can participate in relevant meetings in future and the capacity in which it may participate in those meetings;

  2. it has information on "living modified organisms" imported to, exported from and re-exported via the territory, and other information such as the categories, quantity, places of origin and safety test results in relation to those organisms; if not, whether it will consider establishing a mechanism to collect such information; and

  3. it will consider restricting temporarily the import, export and re-export of "living modified organisms" before the Protocol comes into effect; if not, of the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment and Food

*14. Hon LEE Wing-tat to ask: (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council of:

  1. the policy bureaux and departments which now have web-pages or electronic mail ("E-mail") boxes at their web-sites for receiving public complaints;

  2. the number of complaints received by each policy bureau and department via its webpage or E-mail box since January this year; and

  3. the average time taken by each policy bureau and department to make the first substantive response to such complaints?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting

*15. Hon YEUNG Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council of the respective numbers of approved and rejected applications made by employers to the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority for retaining their existing occupational retirement schemes, and the reasons for such applications being approved or rejected?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services

*16. Hon NG Leung-sing to ask: (Translation)

It has been reported that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority ("HKMA") intends to issue guidelines on the licensing of Internet banks in Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the gist of the guidelines;

  2. of the manner in which the HKMA consulted the banking industry in respect of the draft guidelines, and the response of the industry;

  3. how the HKMA will ensure that the security level of the computer systems of the Internet banks is adequate, and whether locally-registered authorized institutions and those registered overseas are subject to different regulatory requirements;

  4. whether the HKMA has strengthened the training of its staff in relation to the monitoring of Internet banking business; if so, of the relevant details; and

  5. whether, in the light of the development of Internet banking, it has plans to review the existing legislation regulating the banking industry and to revise the measures being taken for reforming the industry; if so, of the details of such plans; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services

*17. Hon TAM Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)

The Administration has invoked the Railways Ordinance (Cap. 519) to resume a piece of industrial land in Tsuen Wan for the construction of the West Rail (Phase I), thereby affecting the livelihood of the factory owners operating in more than 700 units. Regarding compensation payable to these factory owners, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the criteria adopted for determining the ex-gratia compensation rate for disturbance payment; and

  2. whether it will consider increasing the amount of compensation as well as the provision of bridging loans; if not, of the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Planning and Lands

*18. Ir Dr Hon HO Chung-tai to ask: (Translation)

It was reported that a power substation of China Light and Power Company Limited had recently been vandalized. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:

  1. it knows the details of the incident and has requested the company to submit a report on this incident;

  2. it has discussed with or advised the company on measures to strengthen the security of its power supply facilities; if it has, of the details; and

  3. it will request the company to submit an assessment report about the impacts on electricity supply when various power supply facilities are damaged?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Economic Services

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

In respect of the appointment of Certificated Masters/Mistresses as Primary School Masters/Mistresses, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the justifications for capping the maximum number of Primary School Master/Mistress (Senior Teacher) posts at 35% of the total number of senior teacher posts in each Government Primary School; of the reasons for not subjecting Aided Primary Schools to this requirement; whether it has assessed if the incentive for Certificated Masters/Mistresses to pursue further studies will be dampened by the fact that all Primary School Master/Mistress (Senior Teacher) posts for which a quota has been set are filled; if the assessment result is in the negative, of the rationale for that;

  2. of the respective numbers of serving Certificated Masters/Mistresses at various ranks to be appointed as Primary School Masters/Mistresses, vacant posts in the Primary School Master/Mistress grade, as well as serving Certificated Masters/Mistresses who are qualified but will not be appointed as Primary School Masters/Mistresses in Government Primary Schools for the coming academic year; and

  3. whether it has plans to relax the requirement that the number of Primary School Master/Mistress grade posts in each Primary school should not exceed 35% of the teaching staff establishment of the school?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education and Manpower

*20. Hon SIN Chung-kai to ask: (Translation)

Will the Government inform this Council whether it will request the Securities and Futures Commission to:

  1. study the relevant regulatory requirements in advanced countries in America and Europe and, by reference to such requirements, draw up guidelines to prohibit intermediaries of the stock and futures markets from publishing statements or market analyses, or making trading recommendations to their clients for the purpose of influencing the prices of securities and futures, and thereby seeking advantage; and

  2. amend the relevant codes and guidelines to the effect that intermediaries are required to declare regularly the securities and futures trading activities they, their employees and representatives conduct as principals, and impose sanctions against those intermediaries failing to comply with such requirements?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services

*For written reply.

III. Bills

Second Reading (Debate to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading

Revenue (No.2) Bill 2000 : Secretary for the Treasury

IV. Motions

Proposed resolution under the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance

Secretary for Health and Welfare to move the following motion:

RESOLVED that the following Regulations, made by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board on 5 April 2000, be approved -

  1. the Pharmacy and Poisons (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2000; and

  2. the Poisons List (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2000.

(The two Regulations have been issued on 14 April 2000 under LC Paper No. CB(3)799/99-00)

V. Members' Motions

1. Encouraging people to achieve continuous self-improvement

Hon Ambrose LAU:

That, as the report of the Commission on Strategic Development has pointed out that 'the "bubble economy" has generated a "get rich quick" mindset that could seriously undermine the strong work ethic that has long been associated with the Hong Kong workforce. There is also concern that, in some quarters, a dependency culture has developed and with it, increasing and sometimes unrealistic expectations as to both the role of the Government and its ability to provide additional services', this Council urges the Government, while introducing appropriate policies to improve people's livelihood, to adopt positive measures to encourage the community to give full play to the Hong Kong spirit which embodies continuous self-improvement, assiduousness and adaptability.

Public Officers to attend: Secretary for Education and Manpower
Secretary for Health and Welfare

2. Opposing Taiwan becoming independent

Hon TSANG Yok-sing: (Translation)

That this Council opposes Taiwan becoming independent.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Constitutional Affairs


Clerk to the Legislative Council