A 15/16-22
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 20 April 2016 at 11:00 am
I. Tabling of Papers
| Subsidiary Legislation / Instruments | L.N. No. | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Noise Control (General) (Amendment) Regulation 2016 | 42/2016 |
| 2. | Noise Control (Air Compressors) (Amendment) Regulation 2016 | 43/2016 |
| 3. | Noise Control (Hand Held Percussive Breakers) (Amendment) Regulation 2016 | 44/2016 |
| 4. | Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (Amendment of Second Schedule) Order 2016 | 45/2016 |
| 5. | Hospital Authority Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 1) Order 2016 | 46/2016
|
II. Questions for Written Replies
1. Hon Cyd HO to ask: (Translation)
It is learnt that some staff members of care and attention homes for the elderly ("C&AHs") have referred emotionally unstable residents to the mental hospitals under the Hospital Authority. The family members of these residents believe that such a practice of C&AHs is to punish those residents who are not cooperative. Moreover, some residents have been sentenced to Siu Lam Psychiatric Centre ("SLPC") for treatment. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
(1) the number of cases in which C&AHs referred their residents to various mental hospitals in each of the past three years (with a tabulated breakdown by name of mental hospital), and the general reasons for making such referrals; (2) the number of cases in which residents were sentenced to SLPC for treatment in each of the past three years and the general reasons for the sentences; (3) among the cases in (1) and (2), the number of days for which residents stayed in mental hospitals or SLPC (set out the breakdown in the table below); and Number of days in mental hospitals/SLPC Number of residents 2013 2014 2015 Not more than 2 days 3 to 5 days 6 to 14 days More than 14 days (4) among the cases in (1) and (2), the number of residents who were referred to mental hospitals by C&AHs or sentenced to SLPC more than once, and whether the reasons for referring or sentencing the residents to such institutions again were generally the same as the reasons for referring or sentencing them to such institutions for the first time; the number of days for which residents stayed in such institutions when they were referred or sentenced to such institutions again (set out the breakdown in the table below)? Number of days in mental hospitals/SLPC Number of residents 2013 2014 2015 Not more than 2 days 3 to 5 days 6 to 14 days More than 14 days
2. Hon SIN Chung-kai to ask: (Translation)
Some cultural and arts organizations have complained to me that the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD") has, over the years, repeatedly rejected their applications for hiring performance venues under LCSD. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the dates and number of days of closure of each performance venue under LCSD in each of the past three years due to repair and maintenance or other reasons, as well as the number of days available for hire by organizations; (2) of the number of applications rejected by LCSD, in each of the past three years, for hiring performance venues, and the names of the organizations making such applications; the general reasons for LCSD's refusal to let its performance venues to such organizations; and (3) whether LCSD has drawn up a blacklist of organizations that are prohibited from hiring its performance venues; if LCSD has, of such lists for the past three years; if not, whether LCSD has looked into the reasons for individual organizations' repeated failure to hire such performance venues?
3. Ir Dr Hon LO Wai-kwok to ask: (Translation)
The Permanent Secretary for the Environment is responsible for formulating environmental policies, while the Director of Environmental Protection ("DEP") is responsible for executing such policies (including carrying out certain statutory functions). Since 1 July 2007, these two offices have been taken up by the same person. Some members of the community are concerned about the role conflicts arising from one person performing the dual roles of policy formulation and execution, and therefore suggest that the authorities should consider reverting to the previous practice of appointing different persons to take up the two offices and filling the DEP post with a professional grade staff member of the Environmental Protection Department ("EPD"), so as to ensure the impartiality of DEP in performing the relevant duties. In response to a question raised by a member at the meeting of the Panel on Environmental Affairs of this Council on 22 October 2012, the Secretary for the Environment ("Secretary") indicated that there would be room for improvement and review in this regard. As it has been more than three years since the Secretary made the aforesaid response, will the Government inform this Council, whether the authorities have, in the light of the concerns and recommendations of members of the community, reviewed the division of work between and operation of the Environment Bureau and EPD, as well as the personnel arrangements for the aforesaid two posts, etc.; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment
4. Dr Hon LAM Tai-fai to ask: (Translation)
Recently, some people have announced the establishment of the Hong Kong National Party ("HKNP") which has a mission to seek the independence of Hong Kong, arousing concerns among various sectors. The Central Authorities, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("SAR") and members from the pro-establishment camp have, one after another, criticized that such a move is in contravention of the Basic Law. The Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has pointed out that the incident has far exceeded the limit of freedom of speech and touched the bottom line of the "one country, two systems", and that he trusts that the SAR Government will handle the issue in accordance with the law and never allow this carbuncle to turn into a big trouble. The Chief Executive has stated that the interests of Hong Kong people have all along come first when the SAR Government implements policies, and there is no need for people to take the issue onto the level of safeguarding their interests through advocating independence of Hong Kong. Furthermore, in response to media enquiries, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice ("DoJ") has stated that advocacy of the independence of Hong Kong is contrary to Articles 1 and 12 of the Basic Law, and DoJ will keep a close watch on the issue and take appropriate actions as necessary. However, according to a professor from the Faculty of Law of the University of Hong Kong, the Basic Law only governs the power of the Government and it does not bind the general public. Some members from the pro-democratic camp have opined that a person does not contravene any provision of the existing legislation merely by expressing views advocating the independence of Hong Kong. There are comments that the emergence of views advocating the independence of Hong Kong is related to the fact that SAR has not, after a long time, enacted laws in accordance with Article 23 of the Basic Law to prohibit any act of treason, secession, etc., and it is therefore necessary for Hong Kong to get well prepared for enacting legislation on Article 23. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has assessed if HKNP is a legitimate organization; if it has assessed, of the outcome and justifications; if not, the reasons for that; (2) as the Government has made it clear that views advocating the independence of Hong Kong are in contravention of the Basic Law, and the SAR Government will "take action according to the law", how and when the authorities will "take action according to the law" about such views; (3) whether it has assessed if views the advocacy of independence of Hong Kong are in contravention of the existing legislation; if it has assessed and the outcome is in the affirmative, of the legal provisions involved, as well as how and when the authorities will deal with the contravention cases concerned; if they will not deal with those cases, of the reasons for that; (4) whether it will apply to the Court for an injunction to prohibit organizations advocating the independence of Hong Kong from organizing any activities; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (5) whether it has assessed why some people advocate the independence of Hong Kong; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (6) whether it has assessed the impacts of the views advocating the independence of Hong Kong on the development of Hong Kong; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (7) whether it has conducted any survey on Hong Kong people's response to the views advocating the independence of Hong Kong; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (8) whether it has assessed if any foreign forces are involved in the actions striving for and advocating the independence of Hong Kong; if it has assessed, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (9) whether it has found out in what ways views advocating the independence of Hong Kong have touched the bottom line of the "one country, two systems"; if it has, of the details; (10) of the specific measures and strategies to curb the continued dissemination of views advocating the independence of Hong Kong; (11) given that Article 27 of the Basic Law stipulates that Hong Kong residents shall have freedom of speech, of the press and of publication, as well as freedom of association, of assembly, of procession and of demonstration, whether it has assessed if the expression of views advocating the independence of Hong Kong has exceeded the limit of the freedom of speech which Hong Kong residents enjoy under the Basic Law; if it has assessed and the outcome is in the affirmative, of the details; if the outcome of the assessment is in the negative, the justifications for that; (12) whether it has assessed if the emergence of views advocating the independence of Hong Kong is related to the fact that the SAR still has not yet enacted legislation on Article 23 of the Basic Law; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (13) whether it has reviewed the effectiveness of the work carried out by the SAR Government in the past to promote the Basic Law, and reviewed if there are any inadequacies in such work, which have resulted in some people putting forward advocacies that are in contravention of the Basic Law; if it has, of the details, and how it will enhance the effectiveness of such work; if not, the reasons for that?
5. Hon Dennis KWOK to ask:
A mercury-containing organic compound, thimerosal, has been widely used as a preservative in vaccines. As thimerosal allegedly contributes to the development of autism and other neurological disorders in children, there have been concerns over the safety of vaccines containing thimerosal. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether public antenatal check-up services currently include laboratory tests on the levels of mercury and other heavy metals in the blood of pregnant women; if not, of the reasons for that; if so, the respective average levels of mercury and other heavy metals found in the blood samples taken in the past 12 months, and whether the authorities have traced the sources of the mercury and other heavy metals found in the blood samples; (2) whether public neonatal care services currently include laboratory tests on the respective levels of mercury and other heavy metals in the blood of infants; if so, of the average levels of the mercury and other heavy metals found in the blood samples taken in the past 12 months, and whether the authorities have traced the sources of the mercury and other heavy metals found in the blood samples; and (3) whether public hospitals and health centres currently provide any mercury-free vaccines, in particular thimerosal-free vaccines, for infants; if not, of the reasons for that; if so, whether the authorities have conducted any laboratory tests on the mercury level in the blood of those infants who were injected with such vaccines; if so, of the relevant average level in the blood samples taken in the past 12 months; whether the authorities have traced the sources of the mercury found in the blood samples?
6. Prof Hon Joseph LEE to ask: (Translation)
The non-emergency ambulance transfer service ("NEATS") of the Hospital Authority ("HA") mainly provides point-to-point transport service for geriatric day hospital patients, discharged patients and specialist out-patient clinic patients in need of such service. In reply to my question on 30 June 2010, the authorities indicated that HA would keep NEATS under review having regard to the service demand. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
(1) whether the utilization rate of the aforesaid service has increased since 2010, and set out, by year and hospital cluster, the average daily person-times using the service and the average waiting time, since 2010; (2) (i) the number of non-emergency ambulances, their average age and the number of those which had been in use for over 10 years, in each year since 2010, with a breakdown by hospital cluster, and (ii) whether HA has increased the number of non-emergency ambulances since 2010; if so, the number; (3) the number of cases of and causes for non-emergency ambulances being late for picking up patients, and the number of relevant complaints received by HA, since 2010; if such information is unavailable, whether HA will consider keeping such records; and (4) whether HA assessed in the past three years if NEATS was sufficient to meet the demand; if HA did and the outcome was in the negative, whether HA has planned to increase the number of non-emergency ambulances, replace those ambulances which have been in use for over 10 years and recruit additional manpower so as to enhance the efficiency of such service; if HA has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
7. Hon Tony TSE to ask: (Translation)
With the rapid development of unmanned aircraft systems ("UASs"), they have become increasingly versatile and are used for purposes including recreation, aerial photography, search, and monitoring of event progress. It has been reported that UASs may possibly be used by lawbreakers for criminal purposes. In recent years, the governments of a number of countries have strengthened the regulation of UASs. For example, the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States has recently introduced a requirement that anyone who owns a UAS weighing more than 250 grams and less than 25 kilograms must register before operating the UAS outdoors, so that the identity of the owner can be tracked down when an accident involving UAS has occurred. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of reports of accidents involving UASs (including remote-controlled model aircrafts and helicopters) received by the authorities in each of the past three years, together with the causes, location and casualties of each accident; (2) whether the authorities conducted any review of the current legislation in the past three years to see if the regulation and requirements regarding the various aspects of UASs such as manufacturing, import, sale and ownership still suit the present circumstances, and whether they will, by making reference to the practice of the United States, require owners of UASs to register; if such a review was conducted, of the outcome and details of the follow-up actions taken; if they will require owners to make such registrations, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) given that any person using a UAS (regardless of its volume or weight) for reward, such as providing aerial photography service, must comply with the requirement stipulated in Regulation 22 of the Air Transport (Licensing of Air Services) Regulations (Cap. 448 sub. leg. A) by applying for a permit with the Civil Aviation Department ("CAD") before operating a UAS and observing the conditions stipulated in the permit granted by CAD in providing the service, how the authorities ensure that all individuals or companies using UASs for reward have been granted a permit and observe the conditions stipulated therein; of the total number of non-compliance cases recorded by the authorities in the past three years, and the penalties imposed on the offenders?
8. Dr Hon LEUNG Ka-lau to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("the Liaison Office") has earlier invited the Hospital Authority ("HA") to recommend 30 young doctors to attend a one-week national studies programme for Hong Kong doctors ("the Programme") to be held in Beijing in April this year. The participants invited are those junior doctors who have four to five years of service. The participants are granted paid study leave by HA during their attendance at the Programme, with airfare to be subsidized by HA and their expenses on meals, accommodation and transportation in Beijing to be borne by the Liaison Office. Some doctors of public hospitals have written to me expressing grave concern about the aforesaid arrangement. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the criteria based on which HA has approved paying the airfare for its staff members attending the Programme with public money and granting them paid study leave; (2) as some doctors of public hospitals have pointed out that according to its human resources procedures, HA generally would subsidize its healthcare staff members to attend work-related exchanges or seminars only, whether it knows the direct relevance between the contents of the Programme and the frontline clinical duties of the junior doctors attending the Programme, as well as the benefits towards their clinical work to be gained by participating in the Programme; (3) whether it knows the number of times since 1997 for which HA was invited by the Liaison Office to send its staff members to attend similar programmes, and the following information in respect of each programme: (i) purposes, (ii) venue, (iii) target participants, (iv) contents, (v) the details of sponsorships received, and (vi) the number of participants, broken down by their years of service and grade; (4) whether it knows the details of the sponsored training programmes organized by HA jointly with local or overseas organizations in the past 10 years, and set out in a table the following information in respect of each programme: (i) the name of the programme, (ii) the year in which the programme was held, (iii) the name of the co-organizer(s), (iv) the amount of sponsorships received, (v) the number of participants, and (vi) the number of days of paid study leave granted by HA to those staff members; and (5) as it has been reported that recently, there has been a surge in the utilization of public hospital services and an acute shortage of healthcare manpower (e.g. the waiting time for semi-urgent and non-urgent patients at the accident and emergency departments is as long as 10-odd hours, and the inpatient bed occupancy rates of the medical wards of some public hospitals have persistently stood at 130%), whether it knows if HA has considered the manpower situation of the departments concerned before making arrangements for its doctors to attend the Programme; whether HA will, in the light of the shortage of doctors and the substantial increase in workload, consider not to send doctors to attend programmes unrelated to their clinical duties again in future?
9. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that quite a number of residents of subsidized housing have recently complained about the serious problem of rodent infestation in their housing courts/estates, which has affected their daily living and even posed hazards to their health. Although the residents concerned have made as much efforts as possible to improve the hygiene conditions of their flats, due to the poor results of the rodent disinfestation operations carried out by the authorities in the common areas of these housing courts/estates, the rodent infestation problem cannot be uprooted. Besides, some residents have relayed to me that pest problem in the eateries in their housing courts/estates is quite serious as well. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council, in the past three years:
(1) of (i) the number of complaints received by the Housing Department ("HD") and the Hong Kong Housing Society ("HKHS") about rodent infestation in residential flats in the subsidized housing courts/estates under their management, and (ii) the respective numbers of complaints about rodent infestation and pest problem in the eateries there, with a tabulated breakdown by type of housing and District Council district; (2) of the specific follow-up actions taken by HD and HKHS on the complaints in (1), with a tabulated breakdown by the outcome/progress (e.g. settled, to be handled) of the handling of such complaints; (3) whether HD and HKHS stepped up cleaning operations in those housing courts/estates with relatively more such complaints received; if not, of the reasons for that; if they did, the weekly increase in the frequency of cleaning, and whether the number of such complaints received subsequently has decreased; and (4) of the details concerning the follow-up actions taken by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") on the complaints about rodent infestation and pest problem in the eateries in such housing courts/estates, including the number of prosecutions instituted, and the respective numbers of eateries imposed with licence suspension, licence revocation and other penalties; whether FEHD stepped up inspections on the eateries concerned upon receiving complaints against them; if not, of the reasons for that; if FEHD did, whether the number of complaints received subsequently against such eateries has decreased?
10. Hon IP Kwok-him to ask: (Translation)
In the first quarter of this year, the Centre for Health Protection recorded more than 200 severe influenza cases. According to the Hospital Authority ("HA"), there has been an acute demand for public hospital services arising from this winter influenza surge. On the other hand, the Government currently provides, through various schemes, free or subsidized seasonal influenza vaccination ("IV") to people in priority groups, mainly young children and the elderly. As at mid-March, about 570 000 people received IV under those schemes, but the population of young children (i.e. aged five or below) and elderly people (i.e. aged 65 or above) was 1.5 million at the end of last year, showing an unsatisfactory vaccination coverage. On enhancing the measures to tackle the next winter influenza season, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it will arrange as early as possible free IV for people in the aforesaid age groups upon the onset of autumn this year, so as to reduce the incidence rate of influenza in the next winter influenza season; if it will, of the schedule; if not, the reasons for that; (2) given that about 40% of elderly people at present are living in public housing estates, whether the Government will, apart from continuing to implement the Elderly Vaccination Subsidy Scheme, arrange the nursing staff of public or private healthcare facilities to go to various housing estates to provide free IV to elderly residents so as to enhance the coverage; if it will, of the schedule; if not, the reasons for that; (3) given that under the Residential Care Home Vaccination Programme implemented by the Government, free IV is provided to residents of residential care homes for the elderly and residential care homes for persons with disabilities, whether it knows if there are residential care homes which have been unable to secure any doctor visiting them to provide the relevant vaccination to their eligible residents in 2015-2016; if there are, the reasons for that and the number of residents involved; (4) whether it will arrange the nursing staff of public or private healthcare facilities to go to all kindergartens in Hong Kong to provide free IV to young children so as to enhance the coverage; if not, of the reasons for that; and (5) whether it has assessed the annual expenditure on providing free IV comprehensively to all people in the aforesaid age groups, and how such figure compares with HA's additional expenditure and the social costs incurred by the major outbreak of seasonal influenza during the period from January to March this year?
11. Hon Alice MAK to ask: (Translation)
Since 2013, the Transport Department ("TD") and various franchised bus companies have been pursuing rationalization of franchised bus services based on an "Area Approach" ("bus service rationalization") for various districts to review franchised bus services in a holistic manner on a district basis, with a view to improving bus routes, easing traffic congestion and reducing emissions. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective districts bus service rationalizations for which have been completed, are being pursued and will be pursued; when TD expects to complete bus service rationalizations across the territory; (2) in respect of each district the bus service rationalization for which has been completed or is being pursued, of the respective numbers of those routes (i) which are newly introduced, (ii) whose services have been/will be enhanced, (iii) whose frequencies have been/will be improved, (iv) which are newly included in bus-bus interchange concession schemes, (v) whose services have been/will be curtailed, (vi) which have been/will be cancelled or amalgamated, and (vii) whose frequencies have been/will be reduced, and the relevant bus numbers, with a breakdown of such information in the table below; District (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) (3) whether it has reviewed the effectiveness of bus service rationalizations; if it has, of the districts such reviews for which have been completed and the outcome of the reviews; if not, how the authorities get to know the effectiveness of bus service rationalizations; (4) given that some members of the public have relayed to me that direct bus routes from Tsing Yi to New Territories North and land boundary control points and vice versa are lacking, and that despite the proximity of Tsing Yi to the airport, the bus services plying between Tsing Yi and the airport are also inadequate, of the criteria adopted by TD for planning the bus services for Tsing Yi; whether TD will assess and examine afresh the demand of the residents of Tsing Yi for bus services; if TD will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (5) given that quite a number of cross-harbour bus routes currently plying new towns (e.g. No. 948 plying between Cheung On Estate, Tsing Yi and Causeway Bay (Tin Hau)) only operate during peak periods, with some of them providing uni-directional service only, of the criteria adopted by TD for planning cross-harbour bus routes for new towns, and among such criteria, the weighting of the views of the residents in the service areas; whether TD will introduce new cross-harbour bus routes on a pilot basis?
12. Hon LEUNG Che-cheung to ask: (Translation)
At present, patients with episodic diseases may book in advance consultation timeslots at general out-patient clinics ("GOPCs") within the next 24 hours through the telephone appointment system ("appointment system") of the Hospital Authority ("HA"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
(1) the respective numbers of consultation quotas reserved for allocation by the appointment system in respect of the morning, afternoon and evening sessions on weekdays and holidays in various GOPCs in New Territories West at present (set out in a table); (2) regarding the daily consultation quotas reserved for allocation by the appointment system in respect of the morning, afternoon and evening sessions in various GOPCs in New Territories West at present, the respective average time lapse between the commencement of quota allocation and completion of allocation of all quotas (set out in a table); (3) in each of the past three years, the number of appointments for which patients failed to show up after securing consultation quotas through the appointment system, and the percentage of that number in the total number of appointments; how various GOPCs handled the consultation timeslots concerned; (4) regarding the situation where patients with episodic diseases, having failed to secure the consultation quotas for GOPCs, switch to seek consultation at the accident and emergency ("A&E") departments of public hospitals, whether HA has conducted any study on the pressure caused by such situation to the services of A&E departments; if HA has, of the details; and (5) whether HA will consider launching a mobile phone application interface for the appointment system, so as to make it more convenient and faster for members of the public to make advance booking for consultation timeslots; if HA will, of the details?
13. Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to ask: (Translation)
Since 6 January this year, the South East New Territories Landfill located in Tseung Kwan O has been designated to receive only construction waste, and the domestic, commercial and industrial waste that the landfill used to receive has to be diverted to other refuse transfer stations ("transfer stations") and landfills ("new measure"). Quite a number of the residents in Mei Foo and the neighbouring residential areas (including the "West Kowloon Four-Little-Dragon Estates" and Hoi Lai Estate) have relayed to me that as refuse collection vehicles travel to and from the West Kowloon Refuse Transfer Station more frequently under the new measure, and the Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works has increased the volume of sewage it handles upon completion of its extension works, the odour problem in the district has worsened. The residents often have to keep their windows closed and switch on air-conditioners to insulate themselves from the odour. They have also pointed out that as the transfer station is already overloaded, quite a number of refuse collection vehicles need to queue up for a long time to enter that transfer station every day, emitting odour and blocking the traffic during such process. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has reviewed the impacts of the new measure on the loading of the various transfer stations and on the residents near the transfer stations; if it has, of the details; whether it has assessed if the implementation of the new measure is fair to the residents near the transfer stations, and whether it has formulated any long-term plan to improve the waste diversion; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (2) of the number of complaints about the odour problem that the authorities received from the residents of the aforesaid district and the follow-up actions taken in each of the past five years; whether they have conducted any study on the relationship between the odour problem in the district and the transfer station; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (3) given that while the new facilities of the Stonecutters Island Sewage Treatment Works were commissioned at the end of last year to enable the sewage treatment works to treat more sewage, the residents nearby are complaining about the worsening of the odour problem, whether the Government has reviewed the management and effectiveness of the existing deodourization facilities at the sewage treatment works; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (4) given that the odour in the aforesaid district partly comes from the food waste in the domestic waste, whether the authorities have any measures in place to encourage members of the public to further reduce food waste?
14. Hon IP Kin-yuen to ask: (Translation)
At the end of last year, some private organizations which operated playgroups for pre-school children suddenly closed down one after another, causing financial losses to quite a number of parents who had prepaid the fees. Such cases also aroused concern about the adequacy of the authorities' current regulation of playgroups operated by private organizations. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the number of organizations operating playgroups in each year since 2012, with a breakdown by District Council district; if such information is unavailable, of the reasons for that; (2) whether the existing legislation has prescribed certain requirements to be met by persons or organizations operating playgroups; if so, of the details; (3) whether it knows the following information regarding the playgroup activities conducted at the venues under the Leisure and Cultural Services Department in each of the past three years: the total number of such activities, names of the operators, contents of such activities, names of the venues, and total number of participating young children; (4) whether it will consider providing venues in various districts for non-profit making organizations to operate playgroups, so as to meet the demand of parents; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (5) as it is learnt that the United Kingdom has put in place a system for regulating organizations which provide pre-school educational services, including the requirements that a specified proportion of the staff members of organizations operating playgroups for pre-school children must have received relevant training, and that they are subject to regular inspections, whether the Government will, by making reference to such a practice, regulate the playgroups operated in Hong Kong by private organizations, so as to ensure that young children can participate in the relevant activities in a safe environment, and that such activities are beneficial to such children's physical and psychological development; and (6) given that the Government has indicated in the Policy Agenda of this year's Policy Address and related documents that it will implement a two-year pilot project to help grandparents become well-trained child carers in a home setting while promoting life-long learning and active ageing for such elderly grandparents, whether the Government will make reference to this initiative and support more non-profit making organizations in providing parents with training in respect of enhancing children's physical and psychological development through playgroup activities, so as to promote parent-child and parenting education as well as to help parents and children develop healthy and fruitful lives?
15. Dr Hon KWOK Ka-ki to ask: (Translation)
At present, the Urban Renewal Authority ("URA") conducts a freezing survey on the commencement date of the implementation of a redevelopment project (i.e. the date on which a notice in respect of that project is first published in the Gazette), and makes acquisition offers to the property owners in the proposed redevelopment project areas after all necessary planning procedures for the project have been completed. In the event that URA cannot reach agreements with the property owners concerned on issues such as acquisition prices and vesting of titles, it may, under the Urban Renewal Authority Ordinance (Cap. 563), apply to the Government requesting it to resume the relevant titles under the Lands Resumption Ordinance (Cap. 124) so that the relevant titles would revert to the Government. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the following information in respect of each of the redevelopment projects of URA since 2010 (set out the information in the table below by name of project): (i) the commencement date of the implementation of the project; (ii) the number of tenants at the time of the freezing survey; (iii) the number of registered tenants who had moved out of the properties before URA completed the acquisition of the relevant titles or the relevant titles reverted to the Government; (iv) the date(s) on which URA made its acquisition offers to the property owners; (v) the number of registered tenants involved in those properties for which URA completed acquisition within six months after making its acquisition offers; (vi) the number of registered tenants involved in those properties for which URA completed acquisition within the period from the seventh to 12th month after making its acquisition offers; (vii) the number of registered tenants involved in those properties for which URA completed acquisition within the period from the 13th to 24th month after making its acquisition offers; (viii) the date(s) on which the relevant property titles reverted to the Government (if applicable); and (ix) the number of registered tenants involved in those properties the titles of which reverted to the Government; and Name of project (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) (viii) (ix) Domestic tenant Non-domestic tenant Domestic tenant Non-domestic tenant Domestic tenant Non-domestic tenant Domestic tenant Non-domestic tenant Domestic tenant Non-domestic tenant Domestic tenant Non-domestic tenant
(2) given that it often takes a long time for URA to complete the acquisition of property titles or for the Government to resume the relevant titles within the proposed redevelopment project areas, and that prior to the completion of such, URA will not formally process the compensation/ex-gratia payments and rehousing arrangements that the affected tenants may receive, whether the Government has evaluated the distress that such situation may cause to the affected tenants, and whether it has advised URA to make improvements by expeditiously processing the compensation/ex-gratia payments and rehousing arrangements that the affected domestic and non-domestic tenants may receive?
16. Dr Hon Kenneth CHAN to ask: (Translation)
Currently, a site in the Central promenade, which is 150 metres long and has an area of about 0.3 hectare, has all along been fenced off and watched by security guards. According to the authorities, the site has been set aside for use as a military dock by the People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison ("the Garrison"). In reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on 16 March this year, the Secretary for Development has advised that as the military dock is a military facility, the site is not suitable to be opened for public use before it is handed over to the Garrison. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the amount of public resources spent on the maintenance, management and security matters of the site last year; (2) of the specific justifications for the authorities' making the aforesaid remark that the site is not suitable to be opened for public use; whether the authorities will review regularly the suitability of opening the site for public use; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (3) of the ordinance under which the Government is empowered to fence off the site and prevent members of the public from gaining access to and using the site; and (4) whether it will take actions against members of the public who have gained unauthorized access to the site; if it will, of the actions to be taken by the Government, and whether the actions include prosecution; of the legal basis of such actions and the government departments responsible for taking such actions?
17. Hon KWOK Wai-keung to ask: (Translation)
Under the Employment (Amendment) Ordinance 2014 which came into operation on 27 February last year ("the law on paternity leave"), eligible male employees are entitled to three days' paternity leave for each confinement of their spouse or partner, and to receive paternity leave pay at the rate of 80% of their average daily wages. Regarding the implementation of the law on paternity leave, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has compiled statistics on the number of male employees who have taken paternity leave during the period from 27 February last year to date, and the number of families involved; if it has, of the following information concerning such male employees: (i) the type of organizations in which they work (i.e. public/private), (ii) the number of days of paternity leave taken (i.e. less than three days, three days, four days, five days, six days, seven days and more than seven days), (iii) the manner in which the paternity leave was taken (i.e. in one go, on separate days, and others), (iv) the time when paternity leave was taken (i.e. within three to four weeks before the expected date of delivery of the child, within one to two weeks before the expected date of delivery of the child, within the first to the second week beginning on the actual date of delivery of the child, within three to four weeks beginning on the actual date of delivery of the child, within five to 10 weeks beginning on the actual date of delivery of the child, and others), and (v) the rate of paternity leave pay (i.e. 100%, 80% of the male employee's average daily wages, and others); and (2) given that the authorities have undertaken to review the operation of the law on paternity leave one year after its implementation, and explore areas for improvement of the relevant arrangements, whether such a review has commenced; if so, of the contents of the review and its progress; if not, the reasons for that and when the review will commence?
18. Hon WU Chi-wai to ask: (Translation)
According to the arrangement made by the Fire Services Department ("FSD") and the Hospital Authority ("HA"), the territory is divided into 20 catchment areas, and the ambulances under FSD will take patients to the designated hospitals or clinics within the catchment areas where they are located. However, patients in critical conditions will be taken to the nearest hospital. On the other hand, some residents of the Wong Tai Sin ("WTS") district have complained to me that as there is no acute hospital in the district, and Our Lady of Maryknoll Hospital ("OLMH") in the district provides out-patient services only up to 10:00 pm, when chronically ill patients who regularly attend follow-up consultations at OLMH are in need of medical care late at night, such patients have no choice but to call an ambulance to take them to Queen Elizabeth Hospital ("QEH") or other acute hospitals outside the district for treatment. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) among the patients taken to hospital by the ambulance in each of the past three years, of the number and percentage of those who died in transit, with a breakdown by District Council district in which such patients boarded the ambulance; whether it has assessed, among those cases in which the patients died in transit to hospital, the percentage of those in which the patients died as a result of not having arrived at the accident and emergency ("A&E") departments in time to be saved (set out in a table); (2) whether it knows, among the patients taken to hospital by the ambulance mentioned in item (1), (i) the respective numbers and percentages of those patients whose conditions were categorized as critical, emergency, urgent, semi-urgent and non-urgent upon their arrival at the A&E departments, as well as (ii) the number of those who regularly attended follow-up consultations at OLMH (set out in a table); (3) in each of the past three years, (i) of the total number of patients who boarded the ambulance in the WTS district, and (ii) among such patients, the respective numbers and percentages of those who were taken to United Christian Hospital, QEH, Kwong Wah Hospital and other hospitals (set out in a table); (4) of the respective average time taken (i) from FSD's receipt of the emergency calls concerning the patients mentioned in item (3) to the arrival of the ambulance at the scene, and (ii) from such patients' boarding the ambulance at the scene to their arrival at the A&E departments; (5) as I have learnt that OLMH had provided 24-hour out-patient services before it was incorporated into HA's structure, and some residents of the WTS district have proposed that such services be resumed at OLMH, whether the authorities have assessed the additional resources required for implementing this proposal, and whether they will consider this proposal so that the chronically ill patients in the district can go to OLMH when they are in need of medical care late at night; if not, of the reasons for that; and (6) how the services to be provided by OLMH after its redevelopment compare with those currently provided by it; of the expected time that the Government will submit to this Council the funding proposal for the redevelopment of OLMH?
19. Hon TANG Ka-piu to ask: (Translation)
Railways are the backbone of Hong Kong's public transport system. However, the railway passenger throughput has been rising in recent years, arousing concerns about whether the carrying capacity of the railway system is able to meet the service demand. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows in respect of the various stations along the East Rail Line, the Kwun Tong Line and the Tsuen Wan Line, the respective design passenger throughput of (i) the stations as a whole, (ii) platforms, (iii) ticket gates and (iv) entrances (set out in a table); the respective actual average passenger flows of (v) those stations as a whole, (vi) platforms, (vii) ticket gates and (viii) entrances during peak hours and non-peak hours in the past five years (set out in a table); (2) whether it knows the names of those railway stations whose actual passenger flows at present have exceeded their design passenger throughput ("overloaded") during peaks hours, and the respective percentages by which they are overloaded (set out in a table); (3) whether it knows the measures the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL") has put in place to ease the passenger flows at various railway stations; whether the company has formulated specific measures for each of the overloaded stations to ease their passenger flows; if MTRCL has, of the details; if not; the reasons for that; (4) whether it knows if MTRCL has (i) assessed the safety and fire hazards of various railway stations when they are overcrowded with passengers or overloaded, and (ii) formulated contingency measures and arrangements for crowd control to deal with unexpected incidents that may occur during peak hours, so as to ensure the safety of passengers; if MTRCL has, of the assessment results of various stations along the East Rail Line, the Kwun Tong Line and the Tsuen Wan Line; (5) whether it knows if MTRCL has planned to expand the stations along the East Rail Line, the Kwun Tong Line and the Tsuen Wan Line or has formulated other measures to increase the design passenger throughput of those stations; if MTRCL has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (6) as it has been reported that the Urban Renewal Authority has suggested lending some spaces to MTRCL for it to carry out the redevelopment project for the Kwun Tong Station (including replacement of tracks and widening of platforms and station concourse), whether the Government will support and help facilitate that redevelopment project; if it will, of the follow-up work to be undertaken; if not, the measures the authorities have in place to address the problem of that station being overloaded?
20. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)
The "Energizing Kowloon East" initiatives launched by the Government include "Action Area 2 - Kwun Tong Ferry Pier Waterfront Development" ("Action Area 2") to complement the tourism node to be developed at the former Kai Tak runway. On the other hand, the kaito ferry service plying between the Kwun Tong Public Pier and the Kai Tak Runway Park Pier (near the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal) made its first journey on the 9th of this month. Upon making a visit to that area on that day, I have found that the problems relating to transport connectivity of that area and water quality of the Kwun Tong Typhoon Shelter are yet to be solved. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has assessed if the water quality of the Kwun Tong Typhoon Shelter is suitable for water-friendly activities (e.g. dragon boat races, etc.) to be held there; of the improvement plans that the Government has in place to deal with the poor water quality; (2) given that the Environmental Impact Assessment Report of the Kai Tak Development approved in 2009 has made recommendations including the following: an artificial opening of 600 metre wide be made at the north of the former runway near Kowloon City, and that it is learnt that this measure will help direct the rainwaters from the Kai Tak Nullah and the treated sewage from the Shatin Sewage Treatment Works to flow towards To Kwa Wan, as well as change the water flow at the Kai Tak Approach Channel from a west-to-east to an east-to-west direction, while at the same time taking in seawater coming from Lei Yue Mun, thereby improving the water quality of the Kwun Tong Typhoon Shelter, whether the authorities will implement this recommendation; (3) given that some Kwun Tong residents have relayed to me that it is very inconvenient for them and the guests of the hotels in that district to travel between the MTR Station and Action Area 2, and that the kaito ferry service connecting the end of the Kai Tak runway with the Kwun Tong waterfront and Action Area 2 is available only on weekends and public holidays, whether the Government will expeditiously implement the construction of the Environmentally Friendly Linkage System for Kowloon East (which includes a monorail system together with the pedestrian linkage bridge), or construct a temporary floating pedestrian bridge, and extend the kaito ferry service to weekdays, so as to enhance the pedestrian linkage system in that area, thereby facilitating the holding of cultural and recreational activities in Action Area 2 in future, as well as making it more convenient for members of the public to commute to and from that area; and (4) as some members of the public have relayed to me that there are quite a number of homeless people staying in the vicinity of the Kwun Tong Public Pier, of the measures the Government has in place to assist those homeless people in finding accommodation elsewhere, so as to avoid their obstructing members of the public and tourists in using the kaito ferry service?
21. Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask: (Translation)
Exhaust emission from vehicles is one of the major sources of air pollution in Hong Kong. In March 2011, the Government allocated $300 million to set up a Pilot Green Transport Fund ("PGTF") to fund the testing of related green and innovative technologies by the public and goods transport sectors so as to improve air quality. However, some environmentalists have pointed out that the Government currently does not have a comprehensive plan for developing green transport. They have also pointed out that quite a number of advanced countries in Europe and the United States as well as Mainland China have been proactively promoting green transport and, therefore, the Government should catch up with them. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows, among the beneficiary organizations funded under PGTF to purchase vehicles using green transport technologies, the number of organizations which have chosen this type of vehicles when purchasing new vehicles after the completion of the two-year trial period; if none of these organizations have done so, whether it has looked into the reasons for that; (2) given that the Government proposed in 2010 the target of "30% of the private cars in Hong Kong [being] electric or hybrid vehicles by 2020", how far away from the target the current situation is; whether the authorities have assessed the prospect of achieving the target and what new measures they will take to achieve the target; (3) given that the Government amended in June 2011 the planning guidelines for new buildings to recommend that 30% of private car parking spaces in a new building be installed with general electric vehicle chargers, whether it knows, among those car parks in private residential buildings which were completed before the planning guidelines were so amended, the number of car parks which are currently installed with such charging facilities; (4) given that the "SmartBike" service was launched in 2014 as a trial programme by the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority and the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals BiciLine Cycling Eco-Tourism Social Enterprise to encourage better use of bicycles by the public, whether the authorities will allocate land to set up more bike rental points and extend the programme to other districts; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (5) whether it has plans to step up publicity and public educational efforts to promote public awareness of the benefits that a green transport system will bring to public health and economic development, thereby garnering public support for the development of such a system; if it does, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; whether the Government has provided incentives to encourage active public engagement in the development of such a system; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
22. Hon Frederick FUNG to ask: (Translation)
Some members of the public have recently relayed to me that drinking fountains are not provided for public use in the open spaces (including parks, gardens and playgrounds) of public housing estates and Home Ownership Scheme courts ("housing estates/courts") currently managed by the Housing Department ("HD"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the housing estates/courts in the open spaces of which drinking fountains are provided; and (2) whether drinking fountains are currently included in the standard provisions for housing estates/courts; if they are not, of the reasons for that; whether the authorities will conduct a review in this respect to consider making drinking fountains a standard provision, with a view to meeting the needs of the public, and promoting the drinking of more water as a way of healthy living and encouraging members of the public to reduce buying fattening drinks with a high sugar content from retail outlets or vending machines?
III. Government Bills
| Second Reading (Debate to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading
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| 1. | Appropriation Bill 2016
| : | The Financial Secretary
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| Other Public Officers to attend
the Second Reading debate
| : | Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Secretary for Food and Health Secretary for Development | |||||||||
| Amendments to Heads of Estimates in
committee of the whole Council on the Appropriation Bill 2016 | |||||||||||
| Hon Claudia MO, Hon Albert CHAN, Hon CHAN Chi-chuen, Hon Emily LAU, Hon James TO, Hon Albert HO, Dr Hon Helena WONG, Hon Gary FAN, Hon WONG Yuk-man, Hon CHEUNG Kwok-che, Dr Hon Fernando CHEUNG, Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung, Hon LEE Cheuk-yan, Hon Cyd HO, Hon IP Kin-yuen and Dr Hon KWOK Ka-ki to move the Committee stage amendments in the Appendix.
(These amendments were also issued on 19 April 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 532/15-16) (Debate and voting arrangements for Committee stage of the Appropriation Bill 2016 (issued on 19 April 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 536/15-16)) | |||||||||||
| Other Public Officers to attend the Committee stage
| : | The Chief Secretary for Administration
The Secretary for Justice Secretary for Transport and Housing Secretary for Labour and Welfare Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Secretary for Security Secretary for Education Secretary for Food and Health Secretary for the Environment Secretary for Development Secretary for Innovation and Technology Secretary for Home Affairs Secretary for the Civil Service Under Secretary for Home Affairs Under Secretary for the Environment Under Secretary for Transport and Housing Under Secretary for Security Under Secretary for Food and Health Under Secretary for Education Under Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Under Secretary for Development Under Secretary for Labour and Welfare Under Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Under Secretary for Innovation and Technology | |||||||||
| 2. | The Hong Kong Institute of Education (Amendment) Bill 2016
| : | Secretary for Education
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| 3. | Eastern Harbour Crossing Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2015
| : | Secretary for Transport and Housing
| ||||||||
| Secretary for Transport and Housing to move Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 13 April 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 515/15-16) | |||||||||||
| 4. | Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2016
| : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
| ||||||||
| 5. | Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Amendment) Bill 2015
| : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury | ||||||||
| |||||||||||
| (Debate and voting arrangements for Committee stage of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Amendment) Bill 2015 (issued on 17 March 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 483/15-16(01)))
| |||||||||||
| 6. | Property Management Services Bill
| : | Secretary for Home Affairs
| ||||||||
| Secretary for Home Affairs to move Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 29 January 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 345/15-16) | |||||||||||
| (Debate and voting arrangements for Committee stage of the Property Management Services Bill (issued on 1 March 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 435/15-16(01)))
| |||||||||||
| 7. | Chinese Permanent Cemeteries (Amendment) Bill 2015
| : | Secretary for Home Affairs
| ||||||||
| Secretary for Home Affairs to move Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 13 April 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 512/15-16) | |||||||||||
| 8. | Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No. 4) Bill 2015
| : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
| ||||||||
| Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury to move
Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 13 April 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 516/15-16) | |||||||||||
| 9. | Promotion of Recycling and Proper Disposal (Product Container) (Amendment) Bill 2015
| : | Secretary for the Environment
| ||||||||
| Secretary for the Environment to move Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 13 April 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 514/15-16) | |||||||||||
| 10. | Companies (Winding Up and Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment) Bill 2015
| : | Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
| ||||||||
| Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury to move
Committee stage amendments
(The amendments were issued on 13 April 2016 under LC Paper No. CB(3) 513/15-16) | |||||||||||
| 11. | Electoral Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Bill 2015
| : | Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
| ||||||||
| 12. | Judiciary (Five-day Week) (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2016
| : | The Chief Secretary for Administration
| ||||||||
| 13. | Interception of Communications and Surveillance (Amendment) Bill 2015
| : | Secretary for Security
| ||||||||
| |||||||||||
IV. Government Motions
V. Members' Motions on Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments
VI. Members' Bills
| First Reading
Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited (Merger) Bill Second Reading (Debate to be adjourned) | ||
| Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited (Merger) Bill | : | Hon NG Leung-sing
|
| Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
| ||
| Second Reading (Debate to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading
| ||
| Kowloon Tong Church of the Chinese Christian and Missionary Alliance Incorporation (Amendment) Bill 2014 | : | Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG
|
VI. Member's Motion
Motion under the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance
Hon WONG Yuk-man to move the following motion:
That this Council appoints a select committee to inquire into the clashes between the Police and members of the public in Mong Kok from the night of 8 February to the early morning of 9 February 2016 which caused injuries to many people, and other related matters; and that in the performance of its duties the committee be authorized under section 9(2) of the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance (Cap. 382) to exercise the powers conferred by section 9(1) of that Ordinance.
Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Security
Clerk to the Legislative Council