A 12/13-24

Legislative Council

Agenda

Wednesday 17 April 2013 at 11:00 am and
Thursday 18 April 2013 at 9:00 am

I. Tabling of Papers



Subsidiary Legislation / InstrumentsL.N. No.
1.Frontier Closed Area (Amendment) Order 201349/2013
2.Frontier Closed Area (Permission to Enter)(Amendment) Notice 201350/2013
3.Banking (Capital) (Amendment) Rules 201351/2013
4.Banking (Disclosure) (Amendment) Rules 201352/2013
5.Residential Care Homes (Persons with Disabilities) Ordinance (Commencement) Notice 201353/2013

Other Papers

1.No. 86-Financial Reporting Council
Annual Report 2012
(to be presented by Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury)

2. No. 87-Quality Education Fund
Financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2012
(to be presented by Secretary for Education)

3. No. 88-Education Development Fund
Financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2012
(to be presented by Secretary for Education)

4.No. 89-Research Endowment Fund
Financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2012
(to be presented by Secretary for Education)

5.No. 90-Report No. 60 of the Director of Audit
on the results of value for money audits - March 2013
(to be presented by the President of the Legislative Council)

6.Report No. 14/12-13 of the House Committee on Consideration of Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments
(to be presented by Hon Andrew LEUNG, Chairman of the House Committee)


II. Questions for Written Replies



1. Hon CHAN Chi-chuen to ask: (Translation)


The deadline for the Education Bureau to accept applications for tuition fee revision for kindergartens for the 2013-2014 school year expired in early March this year. It has been reported earlier in the press that, in the face of pressure from cost hikes including rents and teacher salaries, etc., the rates of increase in kindergarten tuition fees applied for this year range from about 5% to 10%; and the situation is particularly severe in the North District, where almost 30% of the 41 kindergartens participating in the Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme ("PEVS") intend to raise their tuition fees, with the highest rate of increase reaching 10%. Some parents from the North District have relayed that they face heavy financial burden because the voucher value has remained at the level of $16,800 per student per annum without adjustment. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)apart from the report on the review of PEVS submitted by the Education Commission in 2010, whether the Government has reviewed the scheme since its launch in the 2007-2008 school year; whether it will adjust the voucher value in response to changes in the economic conditions; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (b)in addition to PEVS, whether the Government has formulated policies to help parents cope with the fee hikes of early childhood education, and whether it has considered providing more assistance to the early childhood education sector in resolving their difficulties in operating the business?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

2. Hon Christopher CHEUNG to ask: (Translation)


Some members of the public have relayed to me that the number of bank branches providing counter services has been decreasing continuously, causing inconvenience to their daily lives. In addition, some residents in Cheung Chau and Ping Chau have complained that as there are insufficient automatic teller machines ("ATMs") on the islands and the ATMs operate on different network systems ("systems"), they cannot cope with the demand of residents and tens of thousands of tourists during holidays. As a result, long queues are often formed before ATMs and services of ATMs suspended from time to time due to overloading. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)whether it knows the respective numbers of bank branches and ATMs in Hong Kong in each of the past three years, as well as the rates of change each year;

    (b)whether it knows the ratios of Hong Kong population to the number of bank branches and ATMs in each of the past three years, with a breakdown of the number of ATMs by the 18 District Council districts and, among them, of the respective ratios of ATMs to the total numbers under the systems of Electronic Teller Card and Joint Electronic Teller Services Limited;

    (c)whether the Government has put in place measures (such as providing incentives to banks or providing space at premises of public service organizations) to ensure that basic banking services are available in a district when its population has reached a specified number; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (d)whether it knows the respective numbers of residents on various outlying islands with regular ferry services, the numbers of tourists to the islands, as well as the numbers of bank branches with counter services on the islands, in each of the past three years;

    (e)whether it knows the respective numbers of ATMs (with a breakdown by system) and the person-times using ATMs on various outlying islands in the past three years, as well as the number of occasions of service suspension; and

    (f)given that some members of the public have relayed that there is almost no bank counter services on outlying islands, and the services of ATMs under individual systems are always suspended due to overloading, whether the Government will urge banks to increase the numbers of ATMs under different systems on various outlying islands with regular ferry services (in particular Cheung Chau and Ping Chau) in order to cope with the demand; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

3. Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to ask: (Translation)


Recently, the Government has planned to build four residential blocks of 37 to 39 storeys on Northwest Kowloon Reclamation Site 6 ("Site 6") in Sham Shui Po, which is bounded by Sham Mong Road, Hing Wah Street West, Tonkin Street West and West Kowloon Highway (this site is zoned "Comprehensive Development Area" in the Approved South West Kowloon Outline Zoning Plan No. S/K20/28). It has also planned to re-zone a nearby site with an area of about 0.61 hectare bounded by Sham Mong Road, Fat Tseung Street West and Ying Wah Street from "Open Space" to "Residential (Group A)" to make way for building a block of about 40 storeys under the Home Ownership Scheme. On the other hand, I have received requests for assistance from Sham Shui Po residents. They consider that Sham Shui Po is a densely populated district with many tall buildings, and yet the Government still plans to build "a row" of high-rise buildings on Site 6 which is at present the only window for air ventilation in the district, and this will inevitably create a wall effect and affect air ventilation and the environment in the district. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)on the premise of dovetailing with the sustainable development of the district, whether the Government will conduct further public consultation on the gross floor area and height of the blocks as well as the plot ratio, etc., of the aforesaid development projects, with a view to preserving the only window for air ventilation in Sham Shui Po at present, and to avoid creating a wall effect; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (b)given the absence of a large community hall in Sham Shui Po at present, whether the cultural and recreational facilities planned to be built by the Government on Site 6 include a town hall with a 1 000-seat multi-purpose hall; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (c)whether the Government has included beautifying West Kowloon and constructing a green city in the broad direction for its land development policy at present; if it has, whether it will review if the undertaking of the aforesaid development projects is contrary to that direction; and

    (d)whether the Government will consider, targeting at the aforesaid development projects, setting up a steering group comprising representatives from the Development Bureau, the Transport and Housing Bureau, the Environment Bureau and the Home Affairs Bureau, so as to ensure that the development projects will not affect the quality of life of Sham Shui Po residents; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

4. Hon Michael TIEN to ask: (Translation)


In recent years, an increasing number of parents enrol their children in playgroups for pre-school infants ("playgroups"), hoping to enhance the mental development of the infants or nurture the infants' physical and social skills. However, as playgroups are not subject to regulation by the Child Care Services Ordinance (Cap. 243) and the Education Ordinance (Cap. 279), some members of the public are concerned about the safety, quality and fees of playgroups, e.g. variations in quality and teacher-to-students ratio of playgroups, some playgroup operators demanding parents to make advance payment of fees for several months, and parents having no access to information on the playgroups for reference when enrolling their children in such playgroups. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
  • (a)the authorities have regularly collected data and information about playgroups, including the numbers of playgroup operators and infants participating in playgroups; if they have, of the responsible government department, and whether they can provide such information; if they have not collected such information regularly, the reasons for that;

    (b)the authorities have vetted the qualifications and background of playgroup operators and group teachers; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (c)it will stipulate requirements in respect of the teacher qualifications, teacher-to-students ratio and programme contents of playgroups and exercise regulatory control in these respects; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (d)it will set a ceiling on the amount of advance payment of fees which playgroup operators may collect; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (e)it will require playgroup operators to disclose to infants' parents the particulars of their playgroups (including teacher qualifications, teacher-to-students ratio and programme contents, etc.); if it will, how it will exercise regulatory control; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

5. Hon WONG Kwok-hing to ask: (Translation)


Among the 75 000 public rental housing ("PRH") units planned to be built by the Transport and Housing Bureau in the coming five years, only about 200 units will be located on Hong Kong Island, which are insufficient to meet the demand. It has been reported that the authorities are studying the feasibility of building PRH on a number of sites on Hong Kong Island, including a number of vacant sites in the western part of Kennedy Town, the sites of the temporary campus of the Hong Kong Academy at Ka Wai Man Road and the adjacent former Police Married Quarters, as well as the site of the former Mount Davis cottage area. The Hong Kong Housing Authority is also examining the feasibility of redeveloping Wah Fu Estate. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of the number of PRH units on Hong Kong Island allocated to PRH applicants in each of the past three years; apart from the aforesaid sites, of the sites on Hong Kong Island which are being examined by the authorities for building PRH, as well as these sites' respective locations, areas and numbers of PRH units to be provided;

    (b)of the progress and anticipated completion time for the feasibility studies on building PRH on the aforesaid sites; whether there are construction timetables at present, as well as these sites' respective areas and numbers of PRH units to be provided; and

    (c)of the progress and anticipated completion time for the feasibility study on the redevelopment of Wah Fu Estate; whether there is a redevelopment timetable at present; whether any sites will be earmarked for rehousing the residents affected by the redevelopment; if so, of the locations and areas of such sites; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

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


Some Tuen Mun residents have relayed that since its commissioning in August 2007, the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point ("the Control Point"), which connects Futian in Shenzhen, has all along been one of the major boundary crossings to the Mainland for residents in New Territories West. However, there is currently no direct means of public transport available to Tuen Mun residents travelling to the Control Point during daytime, and they can only take a green minibus ("GMB") of route no. 44B or 44B1 to the Lok Ma Chau (San Tin) Public Transport Interchange first, and then change to a bus or minibus to the Control Point. Such an arrangement has caused inconvenience to the residents. On the other hand, GMBs of the two routes are permitted to access the Control Point from 11:00 pm to 6:30 am. Tuen Mun residents have all along been striving for full-day access to the Control Point by GMBs of the aforesaid routes, and the Tuen Mun District Council has also passed a motion in support of such request, but the authorities have rejected it so far. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)whether it has assessed the current daily transport demand of Tuen Mun residents for travelling to and from the Control Point, as well as whether the existing public transport services can meet that demand; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (b)of the reasons for the authorities' rejection of the aforesaid request, and whether the authorities will consider afresh allowing GMBs of the aforesaid routes to access the Control Point during daytime, or making other arrangements, in order to meet the transport demand of Tuen Mun residents for travelling to and from the Control Point; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

7. Hon Tony TSE to ask: (Translation)


Some professionals have relayed to me that in recent years, the Government has sold land more and more often by tender. However, the tendering procedure lacks transparency. For example, the Government announces the tender results and details of the successful bids only, and it will not make public the numbers of qualified and unqualified bids received, the highest and lowest bidding prices, or the reasons why other bids are unsuccessful, etc. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of the respective numbers of sites sold by the Government through auction and tender in each of the past five years; whether relatively fewer sites were sold by auction; if so, of the reasons for that; the criteria based on which the Government decides on the means of land sale to be adopted;

    (b)whether the Government will comprehensively review and enhance the current procedure for the sale of land by tender, so as to increase its transparency; if it will, of the details of the review and the implementation timetable; if not, the reasons for that and whether it will conduct such a review in future;

    (c)whether the Government will sell land, particularly the residential sites, more often by auction in future; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (d)whether the Government will draw up and announce a land sale programme covering a longer period (e.g. three to five years) to replace the current practice of announcing the land sale programme on a quarterly basis, so as to enable the market and members of the public to better grasp the situation of future supply of land and property units; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

8. Dr Hon LEUNG Ka-lau to ask: (Translation)


Will the Government inform this Council whether it knows the following details of the claims of medical negligence received by the Hospital Authority ("HA") in the past five years:
  • (a)the latest numbers of such cases (set out in the following table, broken down by handling method and result);

    Year in which the cases were reported20082009201020112012
    Total number of cases




    Number of cases settled out of court




    Number of cases referred to mediation




    Number of cases settled during mediation




    Number of cases settled after mediation




    Number of cases referred to arbitration




    Number of cases settled through arbitration




    Number of cases ruled by the court






    (b)the latest figures concerning the amounts of compensation and relevant costs involved in such cases (set out in the following table, broken down by handling method and result);

    Year in which the cases were reported20082009201020112012
    Total amount of compensation paid




    Amount of compensation paid in respect of cases settled out of court




    Amount of compensation paid pursuant to the agreements reached by mediation




    Amount of compensation paid pursuant to arbitration awards




    Amount of compensation paid pursuant to court rulings




    Mediation fees paid by HAMediators




    Lawyers




    Others




    Arbitration fees paid by HAArbitrators




    Lawyers




    Others




    Legal fees paid by HALawyers




    Court




    Others*





    * excluding fees related to mediation and arbitration

    (c)a breakdown of the number of such cases by the year in which they were reported and the type of medical negligence involved (set out in table form); and

    (d)the number of medical practitioners involved in such cases (set out in table form, broken down by the year in which the cases were reported and their ranks)?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

9. Hon WONG Yuk-man to ask: (Translation)


One of the work of the Office of the Communications Authority ("OFCA"), established in April 2012, is to deal with complaints lodged by consumers about telecommunications and broadcasting services. Quite a number of members of the public have relayed to me that their complaints about telecommunications and pay television services were rejected by OFCA, making them feel perplexed and unsure of the scope of complaints accepted by OFCA. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of:
  • (a)the respective numbers of complaints about telecommunications and pay television services received by OFCA since April 2012 and, among such complaints, the number of those which had been followed up, with a breakdown by type of complaints; and

    (b)the plan of OFCA to publicize among the public the scope of complaints it accepts?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development

10. Hon MA Fung-kwok to ask: (Translation)


According to the reports of the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority, among the 5 399 Secondary Five students who studied the Visual Arts ("VA") subject under the New Senior Secondary Academic Structure ("NSSAS") in the 2010-2011 school year, only 4 393 continued to study the subject when they were promoted to Secondary Six, representing a reduction of 18.6%. In addition, the number of candidates who sat for the VA subject in the first Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education ("HKDSE") Examination in 2012 was 4 425, which was much less than those of candidates sitting for the VA subject in the former Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination (9 512 candidates in 2000, and around 6 500 to 6 800 candidates in each year from 2008 to 2010). Besides, it has been reported that a survey conducted earlier by the Visual Arts Education Concern Core Group indicates that only 10% of the VA teachers interviewed concurred with the VA subject curriculum under NSSAS, and the teachers interviewed generally considered that the marking scheme of the HKDSE Examination was too stringent. Only 53.5% of the candidates obtained the results of Level 3 or above in the VA subject in the first HKDSE Examination, while in each year from 2009 to 2011, an average of 93.9% of the candidates obtained the results of comparable level at Grade E or above in that subject in the Hong Kong Advanced Level ("HKAL") Examination. On the other hand, only a small number of tertiary institutions offering art or related undergraduate programmes have specified in their admission requirements for such programmes that students who have obtained specified results in the VA subject in the HKDSE Examination will be accorded priority. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of the respective numbers of Secondary Four, Five and Six students taking the VA subject in the 2012-2013 school year;

    (b)whether the Government has examined the reasons for the drop in the number of candidates sitting for the VA subject in the HKDSE Examination and why quite a number of students dropped the subject in the course of their study; if so, of the details, whether such phenomenon was related to the curriculum design, examination assessment criteria or the results of the candidates sitting for the first HKDSE Examination, and which factor had a greater impact;

    (c)whether the authorities have examined the reasons why the percentage of candidates obtaining Level 3 or above in the VA subject in the HKDSE Examination is lower than those of the candidates obtaining Grade E or above in the VA subject in the HKAL Examination, and whether such a situation is related to the curriculum design and examination assessment criteria of the subject; whether the authorities will consider taking measures to make such percentages comparable; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

    (d)whether the authorities have assessed the impact of the drop in the number of students for the VA subject under NSSAS on the frontline teachers of arts education and on those schools which offer such programmes, and whether they have drawn up measures to tackle this problem; whether they have assessed the impacts of this problem on Hong Kong's art education as well as nurturing of talents in creative arts, and of the Government's measures to tackle the problem;

    (e)whether the Government has studied the reasons for the low recognition for the curriculum of the VA subject under NSSAS among the teachers of the subject; if so, of the details and the improvement measures to be taken by the Government; of the mechanism that the Government currently has to ensure that views of frontline teachers of the VA subject on the subject can be conveyed to the authorities, and how the authorities will respond to such views;

    (f)whether it knows, among the students who enrolled in the art or related undergraduate programmes offered by Hong Kong's tertiary institutions last year, the number of those students who had previously studied the VA subject under NSSAS;

    (g)whether it has assessed the reasons for the relatively low recognition of HKDSE results of VA subject by the local tertiary institutions concerned, and of the improvement measures; whether it will consider suggesting the tertiary institutions concerned to accord priority to those students who have studied the VA subject, when drawing up their admission requirements for art or related programmes; if it will not, of the reasons for that; and

    (h)whether the authorities have reviewed the implementation of the VA subject curriculum under NSSAS, and whether the curriculum can achieve the expected targets of the curriculum reform?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

11. Hon Gary FAN to ask: (Translation)


It has been reported that the Coastal Defense and Anti-Smuggling Office of Guangdong Province disclosed at the end of last year that 95% of the travellers commuting between Guangdong Province and Hong Kong several times on the same day were parallel traders. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of the respective monthly numbers of mainland people entering Hong Kong on multiple endorsements (i.e. multiple-entry permits) through land boundary control points during the period from April 2009 to February 2013 (set out a breakdown of the figures by month and the number of days between their entries and departures in the following table);

              Number of persons

    Month    		 Number of days between entries and departures
    Same day2 to 3 days4 to 7 daysMore than
    7 days to
    1 month
    April 2009



    May 2009



    June 2009















    (b)of a breakdown of the mainland people entering and leaving Hong Kong on the same day referred to in (a) (set out the breakdown, by the number of entries to Hong Kong made on the day they entered and left Hong Kong and by month, in the following table); and

             Number of persons

    Month    		 Number of entries on the same day
    1 entry2 entries3 entries4 or more entries
    April 2009



    May 2009



    June 2009















    (c)of the numbers of the mainland people referred to in (a) who were arrested, prosecuted and convicted in Hong Kong because of their participation in parallel trading activities (set out a breakdown of the numbers by month in the following table)?

    MonthNumber of mainland people arrestedNumber of mainland people prosecutedNumber of mainland people convicted
    April 2009


    May 2009


    June 2009










Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Security

12. Hon KWOK Wai-keung to ask: (Translation)


It has been reported that among the Hong Kong tour group participants who died in the hot air balloon explosion incident in February this year in Luxor, Egypt, six of them had, before the journey, taken out travel insurance policies which did not cover "aerial activities". The insurance company concerned indicated that hot air balloon rides were regarded as aerial activities and hence no compensation would be made. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)whether it knows in respect of the travel insurance taken out in each of the past three years, the total gross premiums, the number of persons insured, the number of claims and a breakdown of it by reason (e.g. loss of properties, physical injuries and deaths by accident, etc.), and the total amount of compensation paid by insurance companies;

    (b)of the number of complaints about travel insurance and a breakdown of it by type in each of the past three years; among them, of the number of complaints in which compensation had been paid in the end and the total amount of compensation involved, as well as the number of those in which compensation had not been paid in the end and the reasons for that;

    (c)whether it has assessed the present situation of travel insurance being sold by means of "sub-contracting" (i.e. the sale of travel insurance products of insurance companies is sub-contracted by qualified travel insurance agents to other insurance agents), and how the authorities ensure that the sub-contracted travel insurance agents have received adequate professional training;

    (d)as accidents involving Hong Kong people travelling abroad have occurred from time to time in recent years, whether the authorities have conducted studies on enhancing the protection of travel insurance for members of the public travelling abroad; if they have, of the details; if not, whether they will consider conducting such a study; and

    (e)given that the authorities have indicated in the Budget published recently that they will commence within this year the legislative work for establishing an independent Insurance Authority, of the authorities' plan to step up regulation of the sale of travel insurance through the Authority?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

13. Dr Hon Helena WONG to ask: (Translation)


According to the "Monitoring of Solid Waste in Hong Kong" reports published by the Environmental Protection Department, the average daily quantities of wood/rattan waste from 2007 to 2011 were 344, 407, 326, 295 and 318 tonnes respectively. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)whether it has studied the respective causes for the quantity of wood/rattan waste in 2008 being higher than that in 2007, and the quantity of such waste in 2011 being higher than that in 2010;

    (b)whether it has studied the causes for the downward trend in the quantity of wood/rattan waste from 2008 to 2010;

    (c)of a breakdown by source of the average daily quantity of wood/rattan waste disposed of, and their percentages in the average daily total quantity, in each year from 2007 to 2012, set out in the following table;

    Average daily quantity (tonnes)／percentage in the average daily total quantity
    YearSource of waste
    Logistics industry
    (e.g. wooden pallets, etc.)    		Construction industry
    (e.g. formwork, scaffolding, etc.)    		Decoration industry
    (e.g. wood flooring, etc.)     		Exhibition industry
    (e.g. exhibition panels and frames, etc.)    		Catering industry
    (e.g. wooden and bamboo chopsticks, etc.)    		Branches trimmed off or felled treesFestival decorations
    (e.g. Christmas trees, peach blossoms, etc.)    		Total
    2007







    2008







    2009







    2010







    2011







    2012









    (d)of a breakdown, by way of treatment, of the average daily quantity of wood/rattan waste, and their percentages in the average daily total quantity, in each year from 2007 to 2012, set out in the following table; and

    Average daily quantity (tonnes)/percentage in the average daily total quantity
    Year Way of treatment
    Separation, recovery and recyclingDisposal at landfillsExportOthers (please specify)Total
    2007




    2008




    2009




    2010




    2011




    2012






    (e)whether the authorities have launched any programmes to encourage members of the public and the industrial and commercial sectors to carry out separation, recovery and recycling of wood waste in the past three years; if so, set out such programmes and their effectiveness by year; if not, of the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Environment

14. Hon James TO to ask: (Translation)


The Personal Data (Privacy) (Amendment) Ordinance 2012 ("Amendment Ordinance") has come into full operation with effect from 1 April this year. One of the new requirements therein is that before using personal data in direct marketing or providing personal data to another person for use in direct marketing, the data user must notify the data subject of its intention of so doing and receive an indication of no objection from the data subject. Under the grandfathering arrangement provided under the Amendment Ordinance, if an organization has, prior to the coming into effect of the aforesaid requirement, informed customers of the purpose of collecting and using their personal data as well as approached customers in its direct marketing activities, and the customers have never raised objection to such activities, the organization concerned may continue to use the relevant personal data in direct marketing after the requirement has come into effect. Therefore, quite a number of organizations, such as banks and telecommunications service companies, etc., issued letters to their existing customers before 1 April, notifying them that the organizations would use their personal data in direct marketing, and if the customers did not agree to such practice, they might notify the organizations that they exercise their opt-out rights against direct marketing. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)given that quite a number of data subjects are not aware that their ignoring of such notification letters is tantamount to agreeing to the continued use of their personal data in direct marketing by the organizations concerned, whether the authorities know if the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data ("PCPD") has assessed whether the aforesaid requirement will thus fail to effectively prevent the personal data of the existing customers of these organizations from being used in direct marketing continuously without their knowledge;

    (b)whether it knows if the arrangements (including whether customers are able to download reply forms from the organizations' web sites) provided by various banks and telecommunications service companies facilitate their customers to respond to the aforesaid notification letters received before 1 April to indicate their objection to the use of their personal data in direct marketing, or to raise requests for ceasing such use in future, and whether the contents of the reply forms provided by these organizations have violated the New Guidance on Direct Marketing issued by PCPD in January this year; if these organizations have not provided such facilitating arrangements or the contents of their reply forms have violated the New Guidance, whether PCPD will request these organizations to make improvement;

    (c)whether it knows if most of the organizations have allowed their customers to choose separately in the reply forms whether they agree to receive direct marketing messages sent via various channels (e.g. mails, person-to-person telemarketing calls, mobile phone messages and emails, etc.);

    (d)whether it knows if most of the organizations have allowed their customers to specify separately in the reply forms whether they agree to the organizations (i) using their personal data in the direct marketing of the organizations' products and services; and (ii) providing their personal data to another person for use in direct marketing; if such options have not been provided, whether PCPD will request the organizations to make improvement;

    (e)whether it knows if most of the banks have allowed their customers to choose separately in the reply forms whether they agree to receive direct marketing messages in respect of various kinds of products (e.g. bank deposits, mortgage loans, personal loans, credit cards, investments, insurance and Mandatory Provident Fund products, etc.); if such options have not been provided to the customers, whether PCPD will request the banks to make improvement; and

    (f)whether it knows when PCPD will review the implementation of the aforesaid requirement with a view to safeguarding personal data from being used in direct marketing without the express consent of the data subjects?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs

15. Hon Dennis KWOK to ask:


Under the Employees Compensation Assistance Ordinance (Cap. 365), injured employees who are unable to recover payments of damages from their employers are required to prove their claims in court before they may claim payments from the Employees Compensation Assistance ("ECA") Fund. The ECA Fund Board is, however, not liable to pay interests on those damages that have been awarded, nor is it liable for the costs incurred by the employee in proving the case in court and obtaining judgment against the employer. In a recent court case, the presiding judge has expressed his "disquiet" at the aforesaid rules in the concluding section of his judgment, and suggested that if steps are not taken to address the problem "as quickly as possible," there might be a case for judicial review of the relevant provisions. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it has any plans for introducing amendments to the Ordinance to ensure that it adheres to the relevant legal principles and to alleviate the current hardship faced by injured employees applying for payments from the ECA Fund; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Labour and Welfare

16. Hon Claudia MO to ask: (Translation)


In recent years, the Government earmarked about $1.3 million per year for the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department ("AFCD") to euthanize animals. Many animal welfare groups have expressed concern in this regard. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of the actual expenditure incurred by AFCD for catching and euthanizing animals in the past three financial years, together with the detailed accounts (such as the costs for purchasing medical equipment and the administration expenses, etc.);

    (b)of the detailed causes for the rise of the unit euthanasia cost from $102 in 2009-2010 to $138 in 2011-2012;

    (c)of the respective numbers of those animals reclaimed/re-homed and euthanized among the stray animals caught by AFCD in the past three financial years; for how long such animals had been kept on average before they were reclaimed/re-homed or euthanized;

    (d)of the number of abandoned animals received by AFCD in 2012-2013; the respective numbers of those animals reclaimed/re-homed and euthanized among the animals received by AFCD in the past three financial years;

    (e)whether the animals' health conditions are a major factor in AFCD's consideration for euthanasia; of the number of healthy animals euthanized in the past three financial years;

    (f)whether AFCD has formulated clear criteria and detailed practical guidelines on animal euthanasia for relevant staff members and veterinary surgeons to follow; if it has, of the details, as well as the dates on which such criteria and guidelines were formulated and last revised, and whether there is a third party to monitor the compliance or otherwise of the process of animal euthanasia with the guidelines; if there are no criteria and guidelines, whether AFCD will consider formulating them and stipulating in the guidelines the requirement for a third party to monitor the whole process;

    (g)of the methods currently adopted by AFCD to euthanize animals, and whether such methods include the use of inhalable gases and drug injection; if such methods are included, of the gases and drugs used, as well as the parts of the animal's body (e.g. veins in the limbs, veins in the neck or the heart) where the injection is administered; and

    (h)of the measures implemented by AFCD in 2012-2013 to enhance the management of stray animals and promote animal welfare, as well as the actual expenditure incurred?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

17. Hon WU Chi-wai to ask: (Translation)


In 2008, the Government announced the implementation of the Total Water Management ("TWM") Strategy for a balanced supply and demand of raw water, through strengthening water conservation and developing alternative water sources, so as to support the sustainable development of Hong Kong. Regarding the progress of the implementation of the TWM Strategy and related measures, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of Hong Kong's projected demand for water in each year from 2014 to 2030 based on Hong Kong's current population trend; as the Government indicated in February 2011 that it would conduct a domestic water consumption survey that year and "consider the feasibility of establishing water conservation targets for the medium term and other water saving targets in addition to the total water saving target", of the current progress of establishing such water saving targets;

    (b)as the Government indicated in 2008 that it would "conduct trials in projects of appropriate scale and nature to gather experience and encourage private developers to consider [using reclaimed water]", of the works projects in which pilot schemes on the use of reclaimed water had been carried out by the Government in the past three years, apart from the pilot schemes on the use of reclaimed water at Ngong Ping and Shek Wu Hui for toilet flushing and other non-potable uses, as well as the number of private developers which had participated in such pilot schemes (set out the names of the works projects concerned as well as the contents and results of related pilot schemes);

    (c)as the Government indicated in May 2010 that it had implemented some trial schemes in schools and government facilities for recycling grey water and harvesting rainwater for other non-potable uses, of the number of such trial schemes implemented in schools and government facilities since 2009, as well as the related details and effectiveness; as the Government indicated in October 2011 that it had conducted a consultancy study to establish technical standards for recycling grey water and harvested rainwater for non-potable uses, of the progress of such study and the establishment of the technical standards;

    (d)of the respective annual water consumption levels of the top five government departments in water consumption and main uses of water consumed (e.g. cleansing of streets or vehicles, irrigation, etc.) in the past three years, and whether such figures had included the water consumption of these departments' outsourced service contractors;

    (e)whether it has separately drawn up short and long term water saving targets as well as guidelines on water consumption for various government departments; if so, of the details; as the Government indicated in May 2010 that it had "planned to commission a consultancy study on water consumption practice of major government departments", of the progress of such study;

    (f)as the Government indicated in May 2010 that it was reviewing the water tariff structure to encourage reduction of water consumption, of the outcome of the review and the follow-up policy proposals;

    (g)whether it has compiled statistics on or estimated the annual quantity of rainwater discharged to the sea via drainage facilities (e.g. drainage tunnels, flood storage ponds, etc.) or due to overflow from reservoirs; if so, of such figures in each of the past three years; if not, the reasons for that;

    (h)apart from the plan to construct an overflow transfer tunnel from Kowloon Byewash Reservoir to Lower Shing Mun Reservoir to conserve water resources, whether the Government studied or implemented other inter-reservoirs overflow transfer schemes in the past five years;

    (i)whether it has regularly tested the water quality of the rainwater running through the stormwater drainage system to see if such water is suitable for non-potable uses; if so, of the outcome of such tests in the past three years; if not, whether it will plan to carry out such tests; and

    (j)whether currently it has any plan to collect rainwater running through the stormwater drainage system and supply such water to some government departments for non-potable uses, or to conduct related studies; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Development

18. Dr Hon KWOK Ka-ki to ask: (Translation)


It has been reported that the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") issued a "Notice to Remove Obstruction" ("Notice") under the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Cap. 132) to an elderly scavenger at Wellington Street in Central on 5 December 2012, ordering her to remove her articles placed on the road and the pavement within four hours, or else further law enforcement actions would be taken. Some members of the public have pointed out that there are commercial publicity materials placed for a long time on quite a number of streets in various districts in Hong Kong, while some print media place and distribute newspapers and magazines at various MTR exits, pedestrian crossings and major pedestrian links, and some organizations also set up booths on the streets as well as hang up banners to propagate their beliefs in various districts. They have queried why the authorities do not take law enforcement actions against the people concerned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of the number of complaints received by FEHD in the past five years from various districts in Hong Kong about the articles of elderly scavengers causing street obstruction and becoming an eyesore, etc., and among them, the respective numbers of cases in respect of which FEHD had issued Notices and instituted prosecutions;

    (b)of the number of complaints received by FEHD in the past five years from various districts in Hong Kong about commercial activities (including demonstration and promotion of commercial products as well as registration for telecommunications services such as broadband connections and mobile network, etc.) and publicity activities of organizations causing street obstruction, etc., and among them, the respective numbers of cases in respect of which FEHD had issued Notices and instituted prosecutions;

    (c)of the number of complaints received by FEHD in the past five years from various districts in Hong Kong concerning print media placing and distributing newspapers and magazines at various MTR exits, pedestrian crossings and major pedestrian links, and among them, the respective numbers of cases in respect of which FEHD had issued Notices and instituted prosecutions; and

    (d)whether the authorities will, upon receipt of the complaints mentioned in (a) to (c), determine if law enforcement actions are to be taken on account of the identities of the persons under complaint, the numbers of complaints against them and the gravity of the cases; if they will, of the specific standards of and legal basis for law enforcement?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Food and Health

19. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)


According to media reports, some schools have installed closed-circuit television ("CCTV") systems in classrooms, and students, members of the education sector and human rights organizations have criticized that this practice might infringe on the privacy of students. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
  • (a)whether they know if the schools concerned had consulted the stakeholders before installing CCTV systems in classrooms and assessed the impact of such practice on the privacy of students; whether they know the clarity of the facial images recorded in the CCTV systems in these schools, and whether the school authorities had complied with the Guidance on CCTV Surveillance Practices issued by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data;

    (b)whether they know the total number of schools (including kindergartens, primary schools and secondary schools) which have installed or are installing CCTV systems in classrooms as at March this year, and the average number of CCTV cameras installed in classrooms by such schools; the number of schools which had installed CCTV systems in classrooms but subsequently stopped using them;

    (c)whether the authorities currently have measures in place to ensure that schools install CCTV systems in the school premises only under the circumstances that the installation will not infringe the privacy of students; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

    (d)whether the authorities have issued guidelines to schools concerning the installation of CCTV systems to remind them of the procedure which schools are required to follow, including regulation of the security and retention period as well as restrictions on transfer to third parties of the data collected; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Education

20. Hon Ronny TONG to ask: (Translation)


It has been reported that the Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office ("HKMAO") of the State Council disclosed earlier that the Chief Executive ("CE") had informed him by telephone of the Government's decision to introduce Buyer's Stamp Duty ("BSD") on the eve of its announcement on 26 October last year. In response to the reports, CE said that the purpose of his call was to "inform" rather than "asking for instructions" from HKMAO, since BSD targeted on non-local buyers and it was necessary to undertake both "internal diplomacy" and "external diplomacy". In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of the criteria based on which the decision to notify HKMAO in advance was made; why HKMAO and not the Ministry of Commerce was notified;

    (b)whether the Government has put in place a set of security measures to ensure that information on market-sensitive policies will not be divulged prior to their announcement by the authorities; if it has, of the details of such measures; if not, the reasons for that;

    (c)whether it has assessed if the notification of HKMAO in advance has violated the confidentiality principle of the Executive Council ("ExCo"); if the assessment result is in the affirmative, whether any punishment has been imposed; if the assessment result is in the negative, of the justifications for that, and whether ExCo Members are no longer required to comply with the confidentiality requirements; if they are no longer required to do so, of the reasons for that; if they are required to do so, how it assures that ExCo Members comply with the relevant requirements;

    (d)whether it had adopted measures to ensure that relevant information concerning the introduction of BSD would not be divulged by officials of HKMAO or other mainland authorities prior to the announcement of such information; if it had, of the details of the measures; if not, the reasons for that;

    (e)given that foreign investors are equally affected by BSD, whether the Government had informed international investors or officers of the consulates in Hong Kong prior to the implementation of BSD; if it had, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and the criteria and reasons based on which the authorities decided not to notify officers of the consulates in Hong Kong in advance, and whether one of the reasons was that it was unnecessary to "undertake external diplomacy";

    (f)whether the Government has put in place a set of criteria for deciding whether it is necessary to notify certain organizations in advance prior to the introduction of new policies; if it has, of the criteria; and

    (g)whether the Government of the current term has, since its inauguration, informed officials of HKMAO or other mainland authorities of its confidential new policies prior to their announcement, apart from the introduction of BSD; if it has, set out the details in table form; if not, of the reasons for that; whether the aforesaid practice of notifying HKMAO in advance will become a precedent; whether the authorities will undertake not to notify HKMAO in advance prior to the announcement of confidential new policies in future in order to realize the principles of "One Country Two System" and "Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong"?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for Transport and Housing

21. Hon Mrs Regina IP to ask: (Translation)


The Junior Police Officers' Association of the Hong Kong Police Force ("JPOA") has relayed to me issues concerning burial at Gallant Garden for police officers who died on duty. JPOA has pointed out that, under the existing policy, the remains of police officers who died on duty and had not been awarded a bravery medal have to be exhumed, after six years of burial at Gallant Garden, for re-interment in permanent urn (commonly known as "kam tap") spaces or columbarium niches in the Garden after cremation. JPOA has indicated that relocating the remains of civil servants who died on duty from earth burial spaces of two feet times six feet to kam tap spaces of two feet times two feet located only less than 10 metres away cannot really conserve the land resources at Gallant Garden effectively. However, the arrangement shows no respect to those who sacrificed their lives for Hong Kong and also brings grief to their family members again. On the other hand, at present, all civil servants who died on duty while performing "exceptional bravery acts" in their final duties and posthumously awarded a bravery medal by the Chief Executive are given permanent earth burial. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
  • (a)of the respective numbers of earth burial spaces, kam tap spaces and niches for remains after cremation at Gallant Garden, as well as those which have been taken up at present; the current number of permanent earth burial spaces and the percentage of such number in the total number of earth burial spaces;

    (b)of the definition for "exceptional bravery acts"; the difference between such definition and that for "death on duty", and whether the authorities have classified the acts associated with "death on duty" into "bravery" and "non-bravery" acts;

    (c)given that at present, the authorities have already stipulated the condition for civil servants who died on duty to be buried at Gallant Garden, i.e. a civil servant who "dies as a result of injuries received in the actual discharge of his duty; without his own serious and wilful misconduct; and on account of circumstances attributable to the nature of his duty", of the reasons why there are different earth burial arrangements for civil servants who died on duty while performing bravery acts and those who died on duty and have equally met such condition;

    (d)given that JPOA has suggested that the authorities allow all civil servants who "sacrificed their lives for Hong Kong" to be given permanent earth burial at Gallant Garden and that "to have sacrificed lives for Hong Kong" should be defined as "a civil servant who loses his life as a result of unexpected reasons while discharging operational duties, or who courageously stands against danger and gives his life eventually", whether the authorities have commenced relevant studies in response to such suggestions, and if the results of the studies reveal that the authorities, due to prevailing legal principles and inability to effect legislative amendments, are unable to allow permanent earth burial for all civil servants who died on duty, whether the authorities will make reference to the practices of foreign countries (e.g. constructing private graveyards), so as to allow permanent earth burial for all civil servants who died on duty; and

    (e)given that at present, the expenses for exhumation and relocation, after six years of burial, of the remains of civil servants who died on duty are borne by the family members concerned, whether the authorities will consider paying the expenses on their behalf (especially those families which have lost their major bread winners)?
Public Officer to reply : Secretary for the Civil Service

22. Hon Paul TSE to ask: (Translation)


The High Court handed down a judgment in February this year that the Chinachem Charitable Foundation Limited ("Chinachem Foundation") is the trustee of an estate of tens of billion of Hong Kong dollars and shall strictly abide by the provisions of the will concerned and apply the estate for charitable purposes. The estate includes the assets of the Chinachem Group. On the other hand, according to earlier media reports, the former Director of Corporate Governance of the Chinachem Group ("the Director") has pointed out that PricewaterhouseCoopers has assumed three roles at the same time as the estate administrator as well as the auditor and a member of the Chief Executive Officer's office of the Chinachem Group, rendering the Group deviating considerably from good corporate governance and jeopardizing the Group's revenue. It has also been reported that as disclosed by the Director, certain personnel arrangements of the Chinachem Group are not conducive to the discharge of duties by the Chinachem Foundation as the estate trustee. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether the Secretary for Justice will, in his capacity as the Protector of Charities, investigate and follow up on whether the trustee of the aforesaid estate has exercised due diligence to protect the assets of the Chinachem Group, which form part of the estate, with a view to enabling the estate to be preserved properly and applied for charitable purposes; if he will, of the follow-up actions to be taken; if not, the reasons for that?

Public Officer to reply : The Secretary for Justice

III. Bills



First Reading

Stamp Duty (Amendment) Bill 2013

Second Reading (Debate to be adjourned)

Stamp Duty (Amendment) Bill 2013:Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury

Second Reading (Debate to resume)

Appropriation Bill 2013:The Financial Secretary


IV. Motion



Proposed resolution under section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Secretary for Food and Health to move the motion in Appendix 1.

(The motion was also issued on 12 April 2013
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 480/12-13)

V. Members' Motions



1.Proposed resolution under section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Hon Vincent FANG to move the motion in Appendix 2.

2.Proposed resolution under section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Hon Cyd HO to move the motion in Appendix 3.

3.Proposed resolution under section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Ir Dr Hon LO Wai-kwok to move the motion in Appendix 4.

4.Proposed resolution under section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Hon Paul TSE to move the motion in Appendix 5.

5.Proposed resolution under section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Hon CHUNG Kwok-pan to move the motion in Appendix 6.

6.Proposed resolution under section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Hon Dennis KWOK to move the motion in Appendix 7.

(The motions of Hon Vincent FANG, Hon Cyd HO,
Ir Dr Hon LO Wai-kwok, Hon Paul TSE,
Hon CHUNG Kwok-pan and Hon Dennis KWOK
were also issued on 15 April 2013
under LC Paper No. CB(3) 486/12-13)

7.Proposed resolution under section 34(4) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance

Hon WONG Ting-kwong to move the following motion:

Resolved that in relation to the -

(a)Companies (Revision of Financial Statements and Reports) Regulation, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 34 of 2013; and

(b)Companies (Disclosure of Information about Benefits of Directors) Regulation, published in the Gazette as Legal Notice No. 35 of 2013,

and laid on the table of the Legislative Council on 27 March 2013, the period for amending subsidiary legislation referred to in section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 1) be extended under section 34(4) of that Ordinance to the meeting of 15 May 2013.

Clerk to the Legislative Council