The LegCo Reporter
2004-2005
Issue No. 11 (3 February 2005)



At its meeting on 2 February 2005, the Legislative Council passed the following four resolutions:

(1)Resolution moved by the Secretary for Economic Development and Labour relating to the Employees' Compensation Ordinance (Amendment of Second Schedule) Order 2004.

(2)Resolution moved by the Secretary for Economic Development and Labour relating to the Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 2) Order 2004.

(3)Resolution moved by the Secretary for Commerce, Industry and Technology relating to the Telecommunications (Method for Determining Spectrum Utilization Fees) (Third Generation Mobile Services) (Amendment) Regulation 2004 and the Telecommunications (Level of Spectrum Utilization Fees) (Second Generation Mobile Services) Regulation.

(4)Resolution moved by Hon Miriam LAU Kin-yee relating to the extension of the period for amending the Merchant Shipping (Prevention of Pollution by Sewage) Regulation and the Merchant Shipping (Prevention and Control of Pollution) (Fees) Regulation.


At the same meeting, the Council passed the following motion with no legislative effect:

    Motion on "Monitoring the post-retirement employment of the Chief Executive, principal officials under the accountability system and civil servants at directorate level with private-sector organizations", moved by Hon CHEUNG Man-kwong as amended by Hon TAM Yiu-chung

    "That, since the approval granted in recent years to a number of civil servants at directorate level for their post-retirement employment with private-sector organizations has aroused public concern, in order to fortify the prevention of civil servants at directorate level from taking up post-retirement employment that involves conflicts of interests with their previous service in the Government, this Council urges the Government to immediately tighten up, monitor the implementation of and strictly enforce the policies and measures governing the post-retirement employment of civil servants at directorate level with private-sector organizations, which should include:
    (a)imposing across the board a sanitization period of at least one year for directorate officers;
    (b)prohibiting directorate officers from taking up employment with private-sector organizations during their pre-retirement leave to guard against double pay;
    (c)identifying loopholes in the work of the Advisory Committee on Post-retirement Employment to prevent the Committee from becoming a rubber stamp which approves applications indiscriminately;
    (d)making public information on the approvals granted by the Government for civil servants at directorate level to take up post-retirement employment with private-sector organizations; and
    (e)closely monitoring the changes in the nature of post-retirement employment taken up by directorate officers with private-sector organizations after such approvals have been granted so as to ensure that there is no conflict of interest between their post-retirement employment and their previous service in the Government;
    furthermore, this Council also calls upon the Civil Service Bureau to expeditiously complete the investigation into the incident of Ms Elaine CHUNG Lai-kok and publish the relevant report, and urges the Administration to strictly enforce the relevant policies by exercising appropriate and forceful regulation over the post-departure or post-retirement employment of the Chief Executive and the principal officials under the accountability system with private-sector organizations, so as to achieve the policy direction of 'resolutely against collusion between business and the Government to eliminate any transfer of benefits' announced in the Chief Executive's 2005 Policy Address, thereby ensuring that upon the departure of the Chief Executive, principal officials and directorate officers, they do not enter into any business or take up any employment which may constitute a conflict of interest with their previous service in the Government or adversely affect the image of the Government."