The Legislative Council ("LegCo") will hold a meeting on Wednesday (5 July) at 11:00 am in the Chamber of the LegCo Complex.  During the meeting, Members will debate a motion on establishing a universal retirement protection system.

The motion, moved by Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung, states: "That according to the information of the Census and Statistics Department, the Gini Coefficient in 2016 was 0.539, reflecting the severity of the disparity between the rich and the poor; the Hong Kong Poverty Situation Report 2015 released by the Commission on Poverty last year pointed out that the number of elderly people of Hong Kong living in poverty rose continuously, reaching 300 000 in 2015, indicating that the social security system introduced by the Government for the elderly was ineffective and full of flaws and loopholes; the assistance provided to the elderly under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme has long been a subject of criticism, while the Mandatory Provident Fund ('MPF') schemes have offered no protection to over 600 000 family carers, and public annuities proposed by the Government are merely investment products, the risks of which will be solely borne by individuals; after the study of the retirement protection system earlier on, the consultancy team led by Professor Nelson CHOW proposed the establishment of a non-means-tested universal Demo-grant; a public consultation on retirement protection conducted by the Government was concluded last year, and various opinion surveys and public consultation forums indicated that most members of the public supported the establishment of a non-means-tested universal retirement protection system with tripartite contributions from employees, employers and the Government and funded by higher profits tax levied on consortia, but the Government has all along evaded the follow-up actions of this proposal; in order to protect the retirement life of members of the public, this Council urges the Government to:

(1)    implement the establishment of a non-means-tested universal retirement protection system with uniform payment, and the new-term Government should respond to this proposal in its first policy address; set up an inter-departmental committee led by the Chief Secretary for Administration and the Financial Secretary, and invite various stakeholders to hold discussions on issues such as the financing options and financial arrangements for universal retirement protection;

(2)    increase the provision of $50 billion mentioned in the 2015-2016 Budget for retirement protection for the elderly to $100 billion, to be used as start-up funds for the establishment of a universal retirement protection system, and ensure that the provision will not be used to optimize the Old Age Living Allowance or offset severance payments and long service payments;

(3)    make improvements to the MPF system, including abolishing the arrangement of using the accrued benefits derived from employers' MPF contributions to offset severance payments and long service payments, while ensuring that employees' existing severance payment and long service payment benefits will not be reduced; and

(4)    make public the estimates of expenditure on various means-tested elderly assistance schemes to be fully funded by the Government over the next 50 years, including the Higher Old Age Living Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance, Old Age Allowance, and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance."

Hon LEUNG Che-cheung, Hon KWOK Wai-keung and Hon Alvin YEUNG will move separate amendments to Hon LEUNG Kwok-hung's motion.

Hon Charles Peter MOK will move a motion on reforming outdated legislation and promoting the development of innovation and technology.  The motion states: "That this Council urges the Government to coordinate various policy bureaux in reviewing outdated legislation and, in the light of technological development, public expectations and the actual circumstances, formulating policies afresh; to achieve the abovementioned objectives, the Government should, through extensive consultation conducted in a timely manner, update obsolete legislation, introduce policies conducive to innovation and formulate innovative regulatory frameworks that maintain a balance among the concerns of stakeholders, thereby enabling Hong Kong to keep pace with the times; this Council also urges the Government to demonstrate to the public an attitude of being willing to listen to views and promoting innovation, and enact legislation suitable for the era of digital economy, in order to develop a smart city and facilitate the development and wider application of innovation and technology, thereby providing more choices for the people and upgrading the competitiveness of Hong Kong, with a view to seizing the opportunities of catching up with the pace of the international community."

Hon YUNG Hoi-yan, Ir Dr Hon LO Wai-kwok, Hon Claudia MO, Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT, Hon YIU Si-wing, Hon Alvin YEUNG and Hon Kenneth LEUNG will move separate amendments to Hon Charles Peter MOK's motion.

On bill, Members will resume the Second Reading debate on the Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited (Merger) Bill.  If the Bill is supported by Members and receives its Second Reading, it will then go through the Committee stage and be read the third time.

On motions, the Secretary for the Environment will move a proposed resolution under the Product Eco-responsibility Ordinance and the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance to seek the Council to approve the Product Eco-responsibility (Regulated Electrical Equipment) Regulation.

Hon Jeremy TAM will move a proposed resolution under section 34(4) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance to extend the period for amending the Hong Kong Civil Aviation (Investigation of Accidents) (Amendment) Regulation 2017 and the Air Navigation (Hong Kong) Order 1995 (Amendment) Order 2017 laid on the table of the Council on 14 June 2017 to the first meeting of the next session of LegCo. 

Hon Starry LEE will move a motion under Rule 49E(2) of the Rules of Procedure.  The motion states: "That this Council takes note of Report No. 23/16-17 of the House Committee laid on the Table of the Council on 5 July 2017 in relation to the Financial Institutions (Resolution) (Protected Arrangements) Regulation and the Financial Institutions (Resolution) Ordinance (Commencement) Notice 2017." 

Meanwhile, Hon Tanya CHAN, Chairman of the Panel on Environmental Affairs; Dr Hon Helena WONG, Chairman of the Panel on Food Safety and Environmental Hygiene; Hon CHAN Han-pan, Chairman of the Panel on Transport; Hon CHAN Hak-kan, Chairman of the Panel on Security; Hon KWOK Wai-keung, Chairman of the Panel on Public Service; Hon Martin LIAO, Chairman of the Panel on Constitutional Affairs; and Dr Hon Elizabeth QUAT, Chairman of the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting, will present the 2016-2017 Reports of the related Panels and address the Council respectively.
 
During the meeting, Members will ask the Administration 22 questions on various policy areas, six of which require oral replies.  

The agenda of the above meeting can be obtained via the LegCo Website (http://www.legco.gov.hk).  Please note that the agenda is subject to change, and the latest information about the agenda could be found on the LegCo Website.

Members of the public are welcome to observe the proceedings of the meeting from the public galleries of the Chamber of the LegCo Complex.  They may reserve seats by calling 3919 3399 during office hours.  Members of the public can also watch or listen to the meeting via the "Webcast" system on the LegCo Website.

Ends/Monday, 3 July 2017
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