A 14/15-7
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 26 November 2014 at 11:00 am
I. Tabling of Papers
| Subsidiary Legislation / Instruments | L.N. No. |
|---|---|
| Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Public Pleasure Grounds) (Amendment of Fourth Schedule) (No. 2) Order 2014 | 140/2014 |
Other Papers
II. Questions
1. Hon Ronny TONG to ask: (Translation)
The Kai Tak Cruise Terminal ("the Terminal"), built at a cost of over $8.2 billion by the Government with the aim of developing it into the Asia cruise hub, was commissioned in June last year. The Government has awarded a 10-year tenancy for operating and managing the Terminal to an operator which is required to pay the Government a fixed rent of about $13 million in total, plus a variable rent based on a progressive percentage of the operator's gross receipt. Up to the end of this year, there will be a total of 37 ship calls at the Terminal only, and only 55 ship calls are expected for next year. On the other hand, it has been reported that there were respectively more than 100 ship calls at the cruise terminals in Singapore and Shanghai in the second year after their commissioning in 2012, and quite a number of cruise vessels have chosen to homeport at these two terminals. In this respect, the performance of Hong Kong is poor vis-à-vis the performances of these two places. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it knows:
(1) the financial position of the Terminal since its commissioning, including the fixed rent and variable rent paid by the operator to the Government, as well as the various recurrent and non-recurrent expenses; the estimated income and expenditure of the Terminal in the coming 10 years; (2) the berthing fees that the operator currently charges cruise vessels, as well as the annual rental income it derives from leasing the commercial facilities of the Terminal; the amount of annual variable rent that the Government currently receives from the operator, and its percentage in the operator's annual gross receipts; and (3) whether, other than the cruise company, which is one of the shareholders of the operator, that will homeport one of its cruise vessels at the Terminal for a period of four months next year, there are cruise companies planning to choose the Terminal as the homeport for their vessels; whether the authorities had set any targets in respect of the number of cruise vessels to homeport at the Terminal, its annual total number of ship calls and its annual total receipts when they planned to build the Terminal; if they had not, of the reasons; if they had, the details of that?
2. Hon LEUNG Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)
The yearly Hong Kong Marathon ("HK Marathon") organized by the Hong Kong Amateur Athletic Association ("HKAAA") will be held on 25 January next year. In recent years, the arrangements for the HK Marathon have repeatedly been subject to criticisms and considered lagging far behind similar races held in places such as Europe, the United States and Japan. For example, the replenishment of supplies provided by HKAAA for participants was highly insufficient; members of the public were unable to cheer participants on both sides of the race routes of the HK Marathon as most sections of the race routes were on expressways which were not easily accessible; and the time limits for wheelchair races were too short, resulting in most of the wheelchair athletes being unable to finish their races. Moreover, as the accounts of the HK Marathon lack transparency and HKAAA has been suspected of reaping money, some runners have called for a boycott of this year's HK Marathon to air their protest. While HKAAA has all along been organizing the HK Marathon on a self-financing basis, the Government has been providing tremendous support for the event in various aspects, such as traffic diversion arrangements, maintenance of order, and provision of ambulance services, which involves large amounts of public resources. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether:
(1) it will consider opening up certain road sections in the city centre to allow the race routes of the HK Marathon to traverse the city centre and extending the duration of road closure to enable the community to participate in the HK Marathon and members of the public to cheer the runners, thereby enhancing their interaction; (2) it will suggest to HKAAA extending the time limits for wheelchair races to give athletes sufficient time to finish their races; whether it will consider providing subsidies to persons with disabilities to provide them with more opportunities to participate in wheelchair races; and (3) it will request HKAAA to make public the accounts of the HK Marathon; whether it will consider introducing competition by encouraging other local and overseas organizations to bid for the hosting of the HK Marathon; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
3. Hon SIN Chung-kai to ask: (Translation)
At its meeting held on the 23rd of last month in Geneva, the United Nations ("UN") Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women ("the Committee") considered the report submitted by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("HKSAR") on Hong Kong's fulfillment of her obligations under the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The Committee published its concluding observations on the 7th of this month, putting forward a number of recommendations to HKSAR Government. In this connection, will the Executive Authorities inform this Council:
(1) as the Committee is concerned that maternity leave in Hong Kong is limited to 10 weeks which does not comply with international standards, and urges the authorities to increase the maternity leave period, as well as their efforts to promote the use of flexible working arrangements and paternity leave to encourage men to participate equally in childcare responsibilities, whether the authorities will accept and implement the Committee's recommendations with a view to complying with international standards; (2) as the Committee has pointed out the low level representation of women in politics in HKSAR, and recommends the authorities to conduct a study on the impact of the electoral system of functional constituencies on the equal participation of women in political life, whether the authorities will conduct such a study; if they will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) as the Committee is concerned that women foreign domestic helpers ("FDHs") are subjected to abuse and unfavourable working conditions, and urges the authorities to strengthen the protection of FDHs from discrimination and abuse by employers and by recruitment and placement agencies, whether the authorities will accept the recommendation?
4. Hon TAM Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)
Some members of the public have relayed to me that the remarks about the rule of law recently made on a number of occasions by some politicians with legal background, who are also supporters of the illegal road occupation movement, may have misled the public. For instance, these politicians have claimed that even if some people have deliberately breached the law, the rule of law will not be undermined insofar as they subsequently turn themselves in to bear the legal consequences, and that the rule of law does not mean unconditional compliance with the law. In addition, these politicians have also criticized the Police for their earlier arrest of two occupiers for allegedly fighting with three other persons in a public place, claiming that these two occupiers were then merely exercising "the power of citizens to arrest" under section 101A of the Criminal Procedure Ordinance ("section 101A") to stop those three persons from throwing objects at the occupiers. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has studied the impacts of the aforesaid remarks made by these politicians (i.e. the rule of law will not be undermined insofar as the people who have deliberately breached the law subsequently turn themselves in, and the rule of law does not mean unconditional compliance with the law, etc.) on the proper understanding of the public about the concept of the rule of law; if the study outcome indicates that there are negative impacts, how the authorities will refute such remarks; if the study outcome indicates that there are no negative impacts, of the justifications for that; (2) whether it will step up publicity and education to instill in members of the public the correct concept of the rule of law; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) whether it can clearly explain "the power of citizens to arrest" under section 101A in concrete terms, including the criteria for determining whether members of the public have lawfully exercised such power, as well as the degree of force they may use in arresting suspected offenders?
5. Hon Dennis KWOK to ask: (Translation)
In February this year, the Subcommittee on Issues Relating to Air, Noise and Light Pollution under the Panel on Environmental Affairs of this Council submitted its report to the Panel, putting forth a number of suggestions on issues relating to the improvement to air quality to be made by the Government, etc. Regarding the progress of the follow-up actions on these measures which the Government has pledged to take, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that the Air Quality Objectives must be reviewed at least once every five years as required by the law and the authorities have undertaken to report to the Panel on Environmental Affairs of this Council before the end of next year on the progress of formulating the approach and methodology for conducting the review, of the progress of such task, including whether the authorities will submit regular progress reports before reporting such progress to the Panel so that the first review can be rolled out in 2019; what criteria the authorities plan to adopt for assessing the health hazards caused by air pollution; (2) as the authorities have indicated that the Environmental Protection Department is launching the strengthened emission control on petrol and liquefied petroleum gas vehicles by using roadside remote sensing equipment and dynamometer for emission testing while the Transport Department is planning to adopt dynamometer-based emission testing in its vehicle roadworthiness examination, of the progress and effectiveness of the two tasks; whether the two departments have worked together to enhance the effectiveness of the tests; if they have, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) since it was as early as the middle of last year when the authorities stated that it was upgrading an air quality modelling system known as "Pollutants in the Atmosphere and their Transport over Hong Kong" (i.e., "PATH"), of the reasons why the new system will not be launched until January next year, and the present progress of such task; what measures the authorities will take to help research institutions such as universities and green groups, etc. learn about the new system?
6. Hon Kenneth LEUNG to ask: (Translation)
On the 1st of this month, the Police uncovered a double murder case in a flat in Wan Chai in which two Indonesian women were killed. It has been reported that these two women were sex workers who entered Hong Kong on visit visas and one of them overstayed. Regarding the personal safety of sex workers (especially those entering the territory on visit visas), will the Government inform this Council:
(1) in each of the past five years, of the number of persons (including mainland residents) who entered the territory on visit visas and, among them, the number of those who overstayed but were not arrested, as well as the respective numbers of persons who were arrested for alleged overstaying and contravening the conditions of stay; a breakdown by nationality of the number of such persons arrested; among the persons arrested, the number of those who allegedly engaged in sex work; what measures the authorities have put in place to reduce cases of overstaying and contravention of conditions of stay by persons who enter the territory on visit visas; (2) of the measures taken by the authorities to protect the personal safety of sex workers (including educating them on how to protect themselves), and the details of implementation of such measures in the past three years; and (3) whether the Police have estimated the current number of sex workers in Hong Kong; in each of the past five years, of the respective numbers of cases reported to the Police on intimidation, assault, theft, indecent assault, rape and murder committed against sex workers, as well as the number of prosecutions instituted by the authorities against the suspects in such cases; among such cases, the number of those involving persons entering the territory on visit visas; what measures the Police took, when investigating such cases involving sex workers, to protect these sex workers' privacy and safety as well as to protect them from discrimination?
*7. Hon Tommy CHEUNG to ask: (Translation)
Some members from the tourism, exhibition, retail and catering industries have relayed to me that since its commissioning in June 2013, the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal ("the Terminal") has all along not been fully utilized. As a result, the terminal building has very few visitors and the shop tenants there have poor business. Yet, the Wine and Dine Festival, which was re-sited to the Terminal and held at the end of October this year, had a record-breaking attendance as high as 180 000, demonstrating that the Terminal has the potential for holding large-scale trade fairs or international mega events, thus creating more business opportunities for the aforesaid industries. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the names of the activities planned to be held at the Terminal next year by the Terminal's operator as well as the expected number of participants of and amount of spending to be brought by each of such activities; (2) whether it has plans to position the Terminal as a venue for holding large-scale trade fairs or international mega events and launch promotional activities accordingly; if it has such plans, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (3) as members of the aforesaid industries have also relayed that due to the inadequate parking spaces for private cars and the limited capacities of nearby roads, it is difficult for the Terminal and its vicinity to accommodate a large number of private cars going there, thereby limiting the types of trade fairs that can be held at the Terminal, whether the authorities have any improvement measure in this respect; and (4) whether it has examined how the Terminal may, through holding trade fairs and international mega events at the Terminal, attract more high-end visitors to visit Hong Kong via the cruise vessels that berth at the Terminal?
*8. Hon Michael TIEN to ask: (Translation)
As a number of hillside housing estates have not yet been provided with escalators and lifts, the residents there have to walk up and down many steps or slopes when commuting to and from the housing estates, which is particularly inconvenient to the elderly and persons with disabilities. In this connection, the authorities established in 2009 an assessment system for the provision of hillside escalator links and elevator systems ("the assessment system"). Subsequently, the authorities gave scores under the assessment system to 18 territory-wide project proposals and set their implementation priorities. It has been reported that most of the construction works for these projects have not yet commenced and there is no timetable for completion. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the basis upon which the authorities formulated the scoring criteria under the assessment system and determined the respective weightings of various considerations (i.e. circumstantial, beneficial and implementation factors); (2) given that the authorities will, in evaluating the circumstantial factors of a project proposal, consider the steadiness of existing pedestrian flow in the district concerned, whether the authorities will consider at the same time the population structure of such district, so as to ensure a more accurate assessment for each project proposal; and (3) given that the authorities did not conduct the feasibility studies on the aforesaid 18 project proposals at one go and such studies took/take two to four years to complete, and that most of these project proposals are currently still in design and consultation stages, whether the authorities will take measures, such as increasing the manpower of the Highways Department, to expedite the progress of the studies and the works concerned, so as to benefit the residents living in hillside areas at the soonest possible time?
*9. Hon Claudia MO to ask: (Translation)
I have recently received complaints from the parents, students and ex-teachers of a school, alleging that the school has been incessantly admitting ethnic minority ("EM") students in a bid to avoid being requested by the Government to cease operation due to under-enrolment under the policy on consolidation of schools (commonly known as "closure of schools"). However, the school has not provided appropriate learning support for these students who have therefore become the victims of the prevailing education policy. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether the Education Bureau ("EDB") received complaints in the past three years about EM students not receiving appropriate learning support in schools; if it did, how EDB followed up such complaints; if not, whether EDB will take the initiative to understand the learning condition of EM students and consider setting up a task force to conduct investigations; (2) whether EDB has measures in place to prevent schools from enrolling, in a bid to avoid closure of schools, EM students to a number beyond the coping capacity of their teaching resources; if EDB does, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (3) whether EDB will conduct regular reviews to see if those schools which have admitted relatively more EM students but whose total numbers of students are on the low side have sufficient teaching resources, so as to ensure that EM students can receive appropriate learning support and integrate into school life; (4) of the name of each of the schools which admitted 10 or more EM students in the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 school years (please use codes to replace school names if it is considered inappropriate to make public the names of the schools concerned), the districts in which the schools are situated, as well as the respective numbers of EM students admitted by each school and their percentages in the total numbers of students, broken down by the race and grade of EM students; and (5) of the number of schools which admitted EM students in the 2014-2015 school year, with a breakdown by the number of EM students admitted (below 10, 10 to 19, 20 to 29 and 30 or more) and its percentage in the total numbers of students?
*10. Hon WONG Ting-kwong to ask: (Translation)
Earlier on, some intermediaries for foreign domestic helpers ("FDHs") relayed to me that some Hong Kong residents sent their FDHs employed in Hong Kong to perform domestic duties in their properties on the Mainland. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has looked into the situation where employers send FDHs to perform domestic duties in their properties on the Mainland; if it has, of the details, including whether such a situation has become increasingly common; if it has not looked into the situation, the reasons for that; whether such practice of the employers is regulated under the existing legislation; (2) whether it received, in the past three years, complaints made by FDHs for being sent by employers to perform domestic duties on the Mainland, as well as requests for assistance due to injuries at work on the Mainland; if it did, whether the authorities provided assistance to these FDHs; whether these FDHs are protected by the labour legislation of Hong Kong when they are on the Mainland; and (3) whether it will step up its publicity and education efforts to enhance the understanding of FDHs and intermediaries for FDHs of employees' rights and benefits, the restrictions imposed on employers in assigning duties to FDHs as well as occupational safety; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*11. Hon Emily LAU to ask: (Translation)
The Chief Executive ("CE") of the last term announced on 26 February 2012 the establishment of the Independent Review Committee for the Prevention and Handling of Potential Conflicts of Interests ("the Committee"), and appointed the retired Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal as its Chairman. The Committee was responsible for reviewing the regulatory systems for the prevention of conflicts of interests concerning CE, Non-Official Members of the Executive Council, and Officials under the Political Appointment System. The Committee submitted its report ("the Report") in May of the same year, putting forward 36 recommendations. The recommendations included enacting legislation to set up an Independent Committee to handle matters relating to granting approvals for solicitation and acceptance of advantages by CE, as well as amending the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance ("the Ordinance") to apply section 3 of the Ordinance to CE and to stipulate that CE had to obtain permission from the Independent Committee for acceptance of any advantage. In this connection, will the executive authorities inform this Council:
(1) as it has been more than two and a half years since the Report was published, of the reasons why the authorities have not yet introduced to this Council any legislative proposal to amend the Ordinance, including the problems encountered; when the authorities expect the relevant proposals to be introduced to this Council; (2) of the number of recommendations in the Report that the authorities have studied and dealt with so far; those recommendations that will be implemented in the coming year, as well as the recommendations that are not accepted by the authorities and the reasons for that; and (3) whether the authorities have assessed if the non-implementation of the various recommendations in the Report after a long time will arouse public concern that the authorities do not have the commitment to deal with and prevent potential conflicts of interests concerning CE, Non-Official Members of the Executive Council, and Officials under the Political Appointment System; if they have assessed, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that?
*12. Dr Hon Kenneth CHAN to ask: (Translation)
In recent years, tertiary institutions funded by the University Grants Committee ("funded institutions") have admitted quite a number of non-local students to their sub-degree, undergraduate and postgraduate programmes ("programmes offered by funded institutions"). Regarding the pursuit of studies by those students in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows, in each of the past three academic years, the number of non-local students studying in programmes offered by funded institutions, with a breakdown by institution, programme category and the place of origin of the students; (2) whether it knows, in each of the past three academic years, the number of cases in which non-local students were found to have used false or forged academic qualifications to apply for admission to programmes offered by funded institutions, and the follow-up actions taken by the Government and the institutions concerned, and set out the information by institution; (3) whether it knows, in each of the past three academic years, the number of cases in which non-local students studying in programmes offered by funded institutions sought assistance from the institutions concerned as they were unable to adjust to the campus life in Hong Kong, and the follow-up actions taken by the institutions concerned, and set out the information by institution and nature of the cases; (4) whether it knows the measures currently taken by various institutions and the Government to help non-local students adjust to the learning environment in Hong Kong, and whether they have plans to review such measures in the near future; if they do, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (5) whether it has plans to adjust the policy on funded institutions' admission of non-local students to their sub-degree and undergraduate programmes; if it does, of the details; and (6) whether it has plans to lower the upper limit of the proportion of non-local students being admitted to programmes offered by funded institutions, so as to avoid the situation of individual programmes admitting an excessively high proportion of non-local students, thereby reducing the prospects of local students being admitted to such programmes; if it does, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*13. Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT to ask: (Translation)
The Double Haven (Yan Chau Tong) Geo-Area ("the Geo-Area") of the Hong Kong Global Geopark of China covers places such as Sha Tau Kok and Lai Chi Wo. Some residents living in the vicinity of the Geo-Area have relayed to me that very few travellers visit the Geo-Area due to inadequate ancillary transport facilities for the Geo-Area. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that at present, travellers visit Lai Chi Wo mainly by ferry from the Sha Tau Kok pier ("STK pier") but the travellers must produce a Closed Area Permit ("CAP") issued by the Police for entry to the STK pier, which is located inside the Frontier Closed Area ("FCA"), whether the Government will consider relaxing the relevant restrictions, such as issuing CAPs to group visitors, so as to facilitate travellers visiting Lai Chi Wo via the STK pier, thereby providing impetus to the economic development in Sha Tau Kok; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (2) whether it will consider removing the area around the STK pier from the coverage of FCA, so as to facilitate travellers visiting the Geo-Area; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) whether it will consider incorporating the following work into the policy areas for which the Tourism Commission is responsible: the Geo-Area's tourism development, enhancement of its ancillary facilities (such as pier facilities) and promotion of the Geo-Area to overseas tourists; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*14. Hon Charles Peter MOK to ask: (Translation)
The Commission on Strategy Development ("CSD"), for which the Central Policy Unit provides research and meeting services support, held a meeting on 31 July this year to discuss Hong Kong's positioning in China's 13th Five-Year Plan for the National Economic and Social Development. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) as some CSD members suggested at the meeting that Hong Kong should explore her participation in the Internet financing business on the Mainland, whether the authorities have drawn up specific plans in this regard; if they have, of the details, including Hong Kong's positioning as well as how it ensures that the credibility of Hong Kong's current or future financial regulatory regimes in the international arena will be maintained; (2) as some CSD members suggested at the meeting that studies be conducted on how to reduce the discrepancies between Hong Kong and the Mainland in respect of Internet security systems relating to financial services, whether the authorities have conducted studies on such discrepancies, including the differences between the two places in the requirements and standards for Internet security systems; if they have conducted such studies, of the details; whether they have considered adopting in Hong Kong the standards for Internet security systems on the Mainland in order to reduce the discrepancies between the two places; if they have considered, of the details; if not, what specific measures the authorities have in place to strengthen Hong Kong's Internet security set up and promote the adoption of Hong Kong's standards for Internet security systems on the Mainland, so as to enhance the security levels and international credibility of the Internet security systems in both places; whether the authorities have plans to enhance the cooperation with the Mainland on Internet security systems in areas other than financial services; if they have such plans, of the details; and (3) whether the authorities have assessed the impacts on Hong Kong's freedom of information that may be brought by the cooperation between Hong Kong and the Mainland in respect of Internet financing and Internet security systems, and what measures the authorities will take to ensure that the cooperation between Hong Kong and the Mainland will not cause Hong Kong's freedom of information to be affected by the implementation of Internet censorship on the Mainland; if they have assessed, of the details?
*15. Hon TAM Yiu-chung to ask: (Translation)
The Bus-Bus Interchange ("BBI") on Tuen Mun Road (Kowloon-bound) in Siu Lam, Tuen Mun, and the BBI on Tuen Mun Road (Tuen Mun-bound) in Tai Lam Kok, Tuen Mun, were commissioned in December 2012 and July last year respectively. Regarding the utilization of the BBIs, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the average number of bus trips and bus routes using the aforesaid BBIs during the following time slots on a working day at present;
Kowloon-bound
(Number of bus trips)Tuen Mun-bound
(Number of bus trips)Number of routes 7 am to 8 am 8 am to 9 am 7 pm to 8 pm 8 pm to 9 pm 9 pm to 10 pm (2) whether it has set a level of utilization of the BBIs which is considered to be saturated; if it has, of the details; (3) whether it has assessed if other vehicles passing by the BBIs will be endangered when the number of buses utilizing the BBIs has exceeded the latter's capacity; if such an assessment has been made, of the outcome; and (4) whether it has planned to expand the BBIs to accommodate more buses?
*16. Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT to ask: (Translation)
The Audit Commission ("Audit") conducted reviews on the management of public markets under the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") in 2003 and 2008, revealing that there were quite a number of long-standing vacant or non-trading stalls in the markets and making recommendations for improvement to FEHD. However, it has been recently reported that the aforesaid situation has not improved at all. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the current vacancy rate in each public market; (2) given that public market stall tenants who use their stalls for storage purposes and not for trading are in breach of the tenancy agreements, of the measures to be taken by FEHD to curb this situation; (3) whether FEHD has any new measures to increase the customer flow of those markets with a high vacancy rate in order to improve their business environment, and whether the Government has any plan to redevelop these markets for other uses in order to make optimal use of public resources; if it does, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (4) as it is suggested that the Government should, by making reference to the operation mode of Shang Yin Shui Chan fish market in Taiwan, redevelop some public markets in the urban areas and turn them into new attractions, thereby revitalizing these markets, whether the Government will study the feasibility of the suggestion; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (5) as there are views that the Government should contract out the management of public markets to the private sector in order to enhance the management efficiency, whether the Government will study if such a practice is feasible; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*17. Hon Kenneth LEUNG to ask: (Translation)
On the 6th of this month, the Government issued a press release indicating that the expenditures of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities Project ("the Project") might exceed the approved project estimate by $5 billion. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the approved and latest estimates of expenditure of various works items under the Project and, among the various works items, the respective increases in expenditure, and their percentages in the approved estimates, of those major expenditure items (e.g. wages, construction materials and engineering equipment) which will likely involve overspending; (2) whether there are any mechanism and method in place at present to mitigate the impact of adjustments in construction costs on the overall expenditures of the Project; if there are, of the details; and (3) whether it has conducted a study on the overspending of the Project to reduce the overspending amounts by improving the tendering process, the procurement work, the division of labour, and the contract design, etc.?
*18. Hon Vincent FANG to ask: (Translation)
In a paper submitted to a panel of this Council in January this year, the Government indicated that it had identified 152 potential housing sites, and expected that such sites would be made available for housing development in the coming five years (i.e. from 2014-2015 to 2018-2019) for the provision of about 215 000 residential units. Nevertheless, it is necessary for the authorities to make amendments to the respective statutory plans of these sites for change of land use and increase in development intensity before such sites can be used for housing development. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the location/address, site area and original use of each of the 152 sites (set out in Table 1 according to the order of the District Council districts);
Table 1
District Council district Location/address Site area
(square metre)Original use Central and Western Wan Chai … (2) of a breakdown, by type of housing (i.e. public housing, Home Ownership Scheme ("HOS") and private housing) and by District Council district, of the 215 000 residential units to be provided on the 152 sites (set out in Table 2);
Table 2
District Council district Number of residential units to be provided Public housing HOS Private housing District total Central and Western Wan Chai … Total (3) of the progress in making amendments to the respective statutory plans of the 152 sites; among such sites, of the number of sites which will be available for housing development in accordance with the schedule originally forecast, and the number of units that can be provided on these sites; and (4) whether the Government has identified, apart from the 152 sites, new potential housing sites; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*19. Hon Jeffrey LAM to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that since the occurrence of the road occupation movement ("the occupation movement"), most of the frontline police officers have been required to work overtime and have even been subjected to abuses hurled at them from time to time by the protesters and supporters of the occupation movement. As a result, they have become physically and mentally exhausted and even their relationship with family members has been affected. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) since the occurrence of the occupation movement, of (i) the shift arrangements for police officers, (ii) the number of staff members of the Police who worked overtime for performing duties relating to the occupation movement and the total numbers of hours and days of such overtime work, and (iii) among these staff members, the respective numbers of those who are regular police officers, auxiliary police officers and civilian staff members; and the respective percentages of such numbers in the total numbers of the staff members concerned; (2) how the Police compensate the staff mentioned in (1) for the overtime work performed by them; (3) since the occurrence of the occupation movement, of the number of police officers who were injured when performing duties relating to the occupation movement, or suffered from emotional problems, fell ill or sought help from the Hong Kong Police Force because of excessive pressure; and (4) whether it has assessed the impacts of the occupation movement on the manpower of the Police so far; if it has assessed, of the outcome?
*20. Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask: (Translation)
The Government has implemented the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora through the enactment of the Protection of Endangered Species of Animals and Plants Ordinance (Cap. 586). However, it is learnt that at present, Hong Kong remains a hotspot for illegal trading of endangered species, and such illegal trading is increasingly rampant on the Internet. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of (i) the respective numbers of cases of illegal trading of species covered by Cap. 586 which were cracked down by the authorities, (ii) the types, quantities and market values of the species involved in those cases, and (iii) the numbers of persons concerned who were convicted, as well as the maximum and the minimum penalties imposed on them, in each year since 2011; whether there has been an upward trend in the numbers of these cases in recent years; if so, how the authorities will step up actions to curb such illegal activities; (2) whether the authorities have taken law enforcement actions against the illegal trading of endangered species on the Internet; if they have, of the annual number of prosecutions instituted by the authorities and the penalties imposed on the convicted persons in the past five years; whether the authorities have stepped up publicity and education on the Internet with a view to enhancing public awareness of the protection of endangered species; (3) of the countries/regions of origin of the endangered species seized by the authorities; whether the authorities have put in place notification mechanisms with the countries/regions concerned and joined hands with them in law enforcement; (4) of the respective numbers of licences and certificates issued by the authorities for import and export of endangered species in each year since 2011, with a breakdown by type of species; whether there has been an upward trend in these numbers in recent years; if so, of the reasons for that; whether the authorities will consider issuing less of such instruments; and (5) how the authorities handle the endangered species seized during law enforcement actions?
*21. Hon WONG Kwok-hing to ask: (Translation)
It has been reported that 27 primary school students collectively suffered from acute gastroenteritis earlier and prior to that, they had drunk water from the drinking fountains in Tai Po Waterfront Park. This incident has aroused public concerns. Regarding the hygiene conditions of the drinking fountains in the public parks under the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD"), will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that the authorities have, in response to the aforesaid incident, taken water samples from some drinking fountains in Tai Po Waterfront Park for laboratory tests, of the relevant test results (including whether the drinking fountains concerned have been contaminated); (2) of the respective numbers of reports received by LCSD in the past three years about members of the public seeking medical treatment and being hospitalized for feeling sick after drinking water from the drinking fountains in public parks; the number of complaints received by LCSD about the hygiene conditions of the drinking fountains, as well as the mechanism for following up such complaints; (3) whether LCSD regularly conducts tests on the quality of water from the drinking fountains in public parks; if it does not, of the reasons for that; if it does, the manpower so deployed and the amount of expenses so incurred in the past three years, and whether the test results indicated that the water quality met the standards for drinking water; (4) whether LCSD will enhance the sanitization and maintenance of the drinking fountains in public parks, so as to improve the quality of drinking water from the drinking fountains; if it will, of the details, including whether it will allocate additional manpower and financial resources to carry out such work; if not, the reasons for that; whether the sanitization and maintenance for the drinking fountains in public parks are currently carried out by outsourced contractors; if so, whether it will consider deploying civil servants to carry out such work instead, with a view to improving the hygiene conditions of the drinking fountains; and (5) given that some experts on infectious diseases have pointed out that drinking fountains can easily become the agents for spreading pathogens, whether LCSD will replace all the drinking fountains in public parks, so as to enhance the protection for public health; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
*22. Hon Alan LEONG to ask: (Translation)
According to the paper submitted to the Panel on Constitutional Affairs of this Council by the Government on the 20th of last month, the 2014 Final Register of electors contained 3 507 786 registered electors for geographical constituencies, representing a registration rate of 73.5%. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the annual numbers of persons eligible for registration as electors from 2012 to 2014; (2) of (i) the annual numbers of persons eligible for registration as electors in each District Council ("DC") district from 2012 to 2014, and (ii) among them, the number of those who had not registered as electors, with a breakdown by the age group and gender to which they belong set out in Table 1; and (3) in respect of each of the past three DC general elections (held in 2003, 2007 and 2011), of (i) the number of persons eligible for registration as electors in each DC district and (ii) among them, the number of those who had not registered as electors, as well as (iii) the number of persons who voted in the elections, with a breakdown by the age group and gender to which they belong set out in tables of the same format as Table 2?
Table 1 (M - male; F - female)
DC district Age group Total 18-20 21-25 26-30 31-35 36-40 41-45 46-50 51-55 56-60 61-65 66-70 71 or above M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F Central and Western (i) (ii) Wan Chai (i) (ii) ...
Table 2 (M - male; F - female)
DC district Age group Total 18-20 21-25 26-30 31-35 36-40 41-45 46-50 51-55 56-60 61-65 66-70 71 or above M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F Central and Western (i) (ii) (iii) Wan Chai (i) (ii) (iii) ...
* For written reply
III. Bills
| Second Reading (Debate to resume), Committee Stage and Third Reading | |||
| 1. | Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Bill | : | The Secretary for Justice |
| The Secretary for Justice to move Committee stage amendments (The amendments were issued on 18 November 2014 under LC Paper No. CB(3)176/14-15) | |||
| (Debate and voting arrangements for Committee stage amendments to the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Bill (issued on 25 November 2014 under LC Paper No. CB(3)208/14-15(01))
| |||
| 2. | Statute Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014 | : | The Secretary for Justice |
| The Secretary for Justice to move Committee stage amendments (The amendments were issued on 20 November 2014 under LC Paper No. CB(3)182/14-15) | |||
| (Debate and voting arrangements for Committee stage amendments to the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014 (issued on 25 November 2014 under LC Paper No. CB(3)209/14-15(01)) | |||