A 98/99 -21(1)

Legislative Council

Agenda
Wednesday 6 January 1999 at 2:30 pm

Members will please note the operational details in the attached LC Paper No. CB(3) 1001/98-99.

I. Papers

Subsidiary LegislationL.N. No.
1.Country Parks (Designation) (Consolidation) (Amendment) Order 1998382/98
2.Lung Fu Shan Country Park (Designation) Order 1998383/98
3.Hotel and Guesthouse Accommodation (Exclusion) Order384/98
4.Designation of Libraries (Urban Council Area) (No.5) Order 1998385/98
5.Designation of Museums (Amendment) Order 1998 386/98
6.Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Public Markets) (Designation and Amendment of Tenth Schedule) (No. 2) Order 1998387/98
7.Declaration of Markets in the Urban Council Area (Amendment) (No. 2) Declaration 1998388/98
8.Solicitors' Practice (Amendment) (No. 4) Rules 1998389/98
9.Estate Agents Ordinance (Cap. 511) (Commencement) (No. 2) Notice 1998390/98
10.Ozone Layer Protection (Controlled Refrigerants) Regulation (Cap. 403 Sub. Leg.) (Commencement) Notice 1998 391/98
11.Tax Reserve Certificates (Rate of Interest) (No.5) Notice 1998392/98
12.Travel Industry Compensation Fund (Amount of Ex Gratia Payments and Financial Penalty) (Amendment) Rules 1998394/98
13.Employees Retraining Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 2) (No. 2) Notice 1998395/98
14.Industrial Training (Clothing Industry) (Amendment) Ordinance 1998 (40 of 1998) (Commencement) Notice 1998396/98
15.Import and Export (Registration) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 1998 (L.N. 334 of 1998) (Commencement) Notice 1998397/78
16.Introduction of the Euro Ordinance (41 of 1998) (Commencement) Notice 1998398/98

Sessional Papers

1.No.81-Report by the Controller, Government Flying Service on the Administration of the Government
Flying Service Welfare Fund for the year ended 31 March 1998
(to be presented by Secretary for Security)

2.No.82-Report by the Commissioner of Police on Police Welfare Fund for the period 1 April 1997 - 31 March 1998
(to be presented by Secretary for Security)

Report

Report of the Bills Committee on Securities (Insider Dealing) (Amendment) Bill 1998

(to be presented by Hon Andrew WONG, Chairman of the Bills Committee)

II. Questions

1. Hon Ambrose LAU to ask: (Translation)

According to reports, the Government anticipates that from the current financial year onwards, the number of graduates completing degree courses and diploma courses in Social Work will exceed the number of vacancies available in the Social Work profession in each of the next five years. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether it knows the kinds of alternative professions such graduates have joined after failing to obtain employment in the Social Work field over the past two years; and among the fresh graduates in Social Work, the respective numbers of those who have joined the Social Work profession, those who have taken up employment in other professions, as well as those who are still looking for employment;

  2. whether it will consider recruiting more social workers to meet the increasing demand of the community for welfare services at the present economic downturn; if so, of the details; if not, why not; and whether it has assessed if the overall number of social work posts will be increased by contracting out certain services originally provided by the Social Welfare Department to non-governmental organizations through tendering exercises; and

  3. of the specific measures in place to encourage Social Work graduates who fail to secure jobs in the Social Work profession immediately after graduation to enrol in postgraduate courses or participate in voluntary social work?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Health and Welfare

2. Hon Christine LOH to ask:

Regarding the relation between Hong Kong and Taiwan, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of its policy on visits to Taiwan paid by SAR Government officials, and of the factors regarded as meriting support for Taiwanese officials' applications to visit Hong Kong;

  2. of the channels through which the Hong Kong Special Administration Region Government and the Taiwan authorities discuss issues of mutual concern, such as the issuance of travel visas and, in case of emergency, the assistance to be rendered to those Hong Kong residents who are of Chinese nationality whilst they are in Taiwan; and

  3. of the extent of contacts between the SAR Government and the Taiwan authorities for discussing issues of mutual concerns?
Public Officers to reply:Secretary for Constitutional Affairs
Secretary for Security

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

Regarding the psychiatric services and counselling services provided to people suffering from psychiatric and emotional problems in this year and the last two years, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether it knows the Hospital Authority's ("HA") annual expenditure on various psychiatric services, the target service levels set for such services, and the establishment of the relevant medical staff; whether it has assessed the adequacy of resources allocated to the Hospital Authority in meeting the demand of mental patients in Hong Kong;

  2. of the respective numbers of self-inflicted injury, attempted suicide and suicide cases committed by mental patients while awaiting the next consultation; and
  3. of the resources allocated to Government and non-Government organizations for providing counselling services on emotional problems?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Health and Welfare

4. Hon WONG Yung-kan to ask: (Translation)

It is reported that recently quite a number of fishing vessels and river trade vessels from the Mainland have been entering the waters of Hong Kong to purchase large quantities of industrial diesel oil (commonly known as "marked oil") at marine fuelling stations in Hong Kong for onward sale in the Mainland. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the existing stipulations governing the entry of Mainland vessels into the waters of Hong Kong;

  2. whether it knows if safety appliances for the proper transportation of large quantities of marked oil have been installed on these Mainland vessels, and of the actions that will be taken by the Administration against those vessels transporting large quantities of marked oil without these safety appliances; and

  3. whether assessment has been conducted to see if the above-mentioned purchasing activities have led to a shortage of supply of marked oil at marine fuelling stations for use by fishing vessels of Hong Kong; if there is such a shortage, whether the Administration is aware of the remedial measures taken by the suppliers concerned?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Economic Services

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

It is reported that the number and distribution of steel bars in the pre-cast concrete components used for building some of the external walls of Tin Shing Court, a Home Ownership Scheme ("HOS") estate under construction, are below standard, and this may cause cracks or leakages on the walls of the affected flats. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether the Housing Department has investigated the case; if so, of the outcome; if not, why not;

  2. of the circumstances under which the Government will take punitive measures against and claim compensation from building contractors of HOS projects and developers of housing estates under the Private Sector Participation Scheme; and

  3. whether, in the event that HOS projects are not completed on schedule, compensation will be made to the affected prospective owners, and priority given to those who have decided to rescind the sale and purchase agreements in favour of purchasing flats at the next HOS flats sale?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Housing

6. Hon Bernard CHAN to ask: (Translation)

It is reported that Mr LEE Kuan-yew, Senior Minister of Singapore, has said that the leading cadre of the Hong Kong Government lack experience in "crisis management", resulting in their inability to stay calm in face of crisis. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether assessments have been made on the performance of various bureaux and departments in the past two years in handling various important issues, such as the avian flu and the Asian financial turmoil; if so, whether the assessment results indicate that senior officials lack crisis-management experience; and

  2. of the specific plans in place to strengthen the alertness, crisis-handling capabilities and management skills of officials when faced with crisis?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Civil Service

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

Regarding the supply of private residential units, will the Government inform this Council whether:

  1. it knows the respective areas of building land presently held by various major property developers;

  2. it knows the total area of residential units which major property developers plan to put up for sale in each of the next five years; and

  3. property developers are required to complete building and sell the residential units within a certain period of time after the acquisition of building land from the Government; if so, the number of projects that did not meet this requirement in the past five years and its percentage of the total number of projects?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands

*8. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)

Article 14(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether the Special Administration Region Government will grant political asylum upon requests; if so, whether people from Mainland China and Taiwan are included;

  2. whether the policy in (a) above differs from that of the former British Hong Kong Government;

  3. of the total number of applications for political asylum received by the Administration since 1 July 1997; and among them, the respective numbers of cases approved or rejected;

  4. of the procedure adopted by the Administration in processing such applications; how it compares with the procedure adopted by the former British Hong Kong Government;

  5. whether the Administration has to consult the Central People's Government with regard to the granting of political asylum to applicants; and

  6. whether the Administration will hand over the personal information of asylum seekers to the Central People's Government?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

*9. Hon Mrs Miriam LAU to ask: (Translation)

At present, drivers using the Lantau Link are only required to pay the two-way tolls for the Link when leaving Lantau. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it has any plan to demolish the toll booths on the section of the Lantau Link heading towards Lantau, so as to avoid misunderstanding, which may give rise to traffic accidents, by drivers who are not familiar with such a toll collection arrangement; if not, of the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport

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

Will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the present system for granting awards and commendations to civil servants who have achieved outstanding performance in their work or made contributions to public service;

  2. how this system compares with that in force before Hong Kong's reunification with China; and

  3. whether it has announced the reasons or good deeds for which a civil servant was awarded or commended; if so, whether it has assessed the effects of such announcements; if not, why not?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Civil Service

*11.Hon Mrs Miriam LAU to ask: (Translation)

Section 45(2)(c) of the Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374 sub. leg. D) provides that when in charge of a taxi, a driver shall, while the taxi is available for hire, not loiter or stop elsewhere than at a taxi stand except through accident or unavoidable cause. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether it constitutes a breach of the above provision if a taxi driver drives around to look for fare or stops the taxi at a place other than a taxi stand to wait for passengers;

  2. of the number of taxi drivers convicted of breaching the provision in each of the past three years, and the average penalties imposed on the convicted drivers by the court; and

  3. whether the Government has examined if there is a need to amend the provision in the light of the fact that taxi drivers nowadays need to drive around to look for fare or stop the taxis elsewhere than at a taxi stand to wait for passengers; if no amendment is considered necessary, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport

*12. Hon LAU Wong-fat to ask: (Translation)

It was reported that on 4 December last year, a private car got out of control in Kowloon Tong and knocked over a traffic sign post, which fell and killed a child on the pavement. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the number of traffic accidents which involved the knocking over of traffic sign posts in the past five years; together with the number of pedestrians who were injured and killed in the accidents; and

  2. whether it will consider improving the design of traffic sign posts so as to reduce the number of casualties in such accidents?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport

*13. Hon SIN Chung-kai to ask:

Regarding the protection of privacy and integrity of information transmitted over the Internet, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the measures it has taken to ensure that providers of Internet services and fixed telecommunication network services adopt reliable security measures; and

  2. whether it will consider requiring each applicant of Public Non-Exclusive Telecommunications Service Licence to submit a detailed plan on data security measures before such application will be approved?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting

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

It is reported that speculations on textile quotas have become active recently, and some small and medium manufacturers have to purchase textile quotas at high prices from manufacturers holding such quotas. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:

  1. it has assessed the extent of speculation activities in textile quotas; and

  2. it has plans to alter the quota allocation system, including reallocating the quotas; if so, of the details; if not, why not?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Trade and Industry

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

The Administration has pledged to study the feasibility and economic benefits of promoting water-cooled air-conditioning systems in 1998. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the current progress of the study;

  2. of the current legislation or code of practice regulating the use of such air-conditioning systems in commercial premises;

  3. whether it has gathered statistics on the percentage of commercial premises using such air-conditioning systems, against the total number of such premises; and

  4. whether it has adopted measures to promote such air-conditioning systems in commercial premises; if not, why not?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands

*16. Dr Hon David LI to ask:

An international magazine has predicted that Hong Kong will drop from being the best to the 12th best place in the world to conduct business best between 1999 and 2003. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council the measures it will take to maintain Hong Kong's competitive edge among other business centres in the region, such as Singapore, Taiwan and Shanghai?

Public Officer to reply : Financial Secretary

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

As many students studying in whole-day primary and secondary schools order lunchboxes from food suppliers through their schools collectively, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. of the number of such suppliers at present;

  2. whether such suppliers are graded according to the hygiene conditions of their food factories; if so, of the details;

  3. of the number of cases in which students fell sick allegedly as a result of consuming contaminated food provided by such food suppliers in each of the past five years; together with the number of suppliers involved in these cases; and

  4. of the measures in place to strengthen the regulatory control over the hygiene conditions in such food factories, in order to prevent incidents whereby students fall sick as a result of consuming contaminated food?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Health and Welfare

*18. Hon LAU Kong-wah to ask: (Translation)

In connection with the impact of the construction of West Rail on the level of fares of East Rail, will the Government inform this Council:

  1. whether it knows the details of the two West Rail contracts recently awarded by the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation ("KCRC") and of the comparative values of the two contracts and their original estimated expenditures; and

  2. whether it knows if KCRC will increase the fares of East Rail to facilitate the financing of the West Rail?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Transport

*19. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the granting of acting allowance to civil servants who take up temporary acting appointments in government departments, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:

  1. of the rationale for granting acting allowance to civil servants in government departments, given that most private companies do not grant such allowance to their staff;

  2. of the total amount of such allowance granted in the last financial year; and

  3. whether consideration will be given to abolishing such allowance?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Civil Service

*20. Hon Timothy FOK to ask: (Translation)

Regarding the promotion of the development of the film industry, will the Government inform this Council of the specific measures to:

  1. encourage film workers to produce more films of high quality and high artistic value; and

  2. raise the audience's ability to appreciate films?
Public Officer to reply: Secretary for Information Technology and Broadcasting

* For written reply.

III. Bills

First Reading

1. Adaptation of Laws (No.13) Bill 1998

2. Adaptation of Laws (No.15) Bill 1998

3. Adaptation of Laws (No.12) Bill 1998

4. Adaptation of Laws (No.14) Bill 1998

5. Adaptation of Laws (No.16) Bill 1998

6. Adaptation of Laws (No.17) Bill 1998

7. Adaptation of Laws (No.11) Bill 1998

Second Reading (Debates to be adjourned)

1. Adaptation of Laws (No.13) Bill 1998:Chief Secretary for Administration
2. Adaptation of Laws (No.15) Bill 1998:Chief Secretary for Administration
3. Adaptation of Laws (No.12) Bill 1998:Secretary for Justice
4. Adaptation of Laws (No.14) Bill 1998:Secretary for Home Affairs
5. Adaptation of Laws (No.16) Bill 1998:Secretary for Home Affairs
6. Adaptation of Laws (No.17) Bill 1998:Secretary for Home Affairs
7. Adaptation of Laws (No.11) Bill 1998:Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands

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

Securities (Insider Dealing) (Amendment) Bill 1998:Secretary for Financial Services

IV. Members' Motions

1. Organ donation

Hon LAU Chin-shek: (Translation)

That this Council urges the Government to legislate for the implementation of the "opt-out scheme for organ donation" to ensure that needy patients can undergo organ transplants surgery early and, prior to the implementation of the opt-out scheme, the Government should adopt administrative measures to indicate the wish of donors on their personal documents such as identity cards or driving licences, so that their wish to donate their organs after death is stated more clearly.

Public Officer to attend : Secretary for Health and Welfare

2. Reviewing the waste management policy

Hon CHOY So-yuk: (Translation)

That this Council urges the Government to immediately review the waste management policy and, under the principle of sustainable development, to consider setting up a Renewable Resources Centre, with a view to systematically take measures to assist the development of waste paper and other recycling industries, including widely consulting the industries concerned, environmental protection and labour organizations as well as other relevant bodies, expeditiously reviewing the waste disposal charging scheme, actively considering the alternative of collecting a recovery deposit from waste producers for the purpose of establishing a recycling fund, and encouraging the recycling sector to develop environmental protection industries geared to local needs, thereby creating employment opportunities for the underprivileged in the community; at the same time, additional supporting facilities should be introduced expeditiously to facilitate the separation and recovery of waste by the public; the Government should also enhance environmental protection education among government officials and the public, and require all government departments to give priority to the use of recycled products wherever possible, in order to achieve ultimately the desirable results of enhancing the effectiveness of environmental protection, revitalizing the local market for environmental protection industries, improving the investment environment for the recycling industries and their competitiveness internationally, saving the Government's resources and creating employment opportunities.

Amendment to Hon CHOY So-yuk's motion

Hon Christine LOH: (Translation)

To delete"the alternative of"; and to delete"from waste producers"and substitute with"on certain waste products".

Public Officer to attend: Secretary for Planning, Environment and Lands

Clerk to the Legislative Council

Legislative Council

LC Paper No. CB(3) 1001/98-99

Council Meeting on 6 January 1999

Further to the Notice issued under LC Paper No. CB(3) 929/98-99 of 16 December 1998 and the preliminary Agenda of 29 December 1998, I forward the Agenda for the meeting on Wednesday 6 January 1999.

2. Members are invited to note that, with the completion of the enhancement work on the Electronic Voting System, Members who wish to ask supplementary questions on an oral Questions during Council meetings may now indicate their wishes by pressing the "Request-to-speak" buttons in front of their seats. The names of those Members requesting to ask supplementaries on the oral Question will appear on the monitors of the President and the Clerk, in the order in which the buttons are pressed. Members will please note the operational details in the attached LC Paper No. CB(3) 1010/98-99.

3. The President has agreed that the enhanced system be put to trial with effect from the Council meeting on 6 January 1999. During the trial period, a Member who neglects pressing the button but raises his/her hand to ask supplementaries may still catch the eye of the Clerk who will register the Member's request. Whether a Member may be called and the order in which a Member will be called by the President to ask supplementary questions are not determined solely by the order in which he/she presses the button. The President also takes into account other factors, such as the number of supplementary questions a Member has asked in the current session, the known interest of the Member in the subject of the question, and the number of Members in the queue etc, in deciding whom she should call.

(Ray CHAN)
for Clerk to the Legislative Council

Encl.

LC Paper No. CB(3) 1010/98-99

Electronic Registration of Members' requests
to raise Supplementary Questions during Council meetings

  • Before a Question is asked, the indicator light of the Request-to-speak button will be turned off automatically.

  • The system will start registration when the Member is called upon to ask a Question and from then onwards Members please press the Request-to-speak button to register their wish to ask supplementaries on an oral Question. The indicator light of the buttons will light up, to show that the system has registered the Members' request. The system will also put Members on the queue according to the order they pressed their buttons.

  • Although it is a long-standing practice that the Member who raises the Question will ask the first supplementary, he/she should still press the Request-to-speak button so that the system can keep an accurate record of supplementaries asked by Members.

  • When a Member is called upon by the President to ask a supplemententary, the Request-to-speak indicator light in front of the Member's seat will be turned off and the electronic system will register that the Member is allowed a supplementary, and will update the number of supplemetaries asked by the Member so far.

  • A Member who wishes to ask a second supplementary on the same Question should press the Request-to-speak button again after he/she has asked the first supplementary.

  • The system will register a Member's request to ask a supplementary once the Request-to-speak button has been pressed, and a Member needs not be alarmed if the indicator light for the Request-to-speak button is turned off before he/she asks the supplementary. If the indicator light is turned off and a Member is not too sure if his/her name has been registered for an Oral Question, he/she may press the Request-to-speak button once more. The Member's order will not be affected in this case.

  • When it comes to a new Question, the queue will start anew and all indicator lights for the Request-to-speak buttons will be turned off automatically.

  • A Member who wishes to ask follow-up questions, seek elucidation or raise a point of order during Question Time should indicate so by standing up.
Legislative Council Secretariat
4 January 1999