Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region

Some members of the retail industry have relayed that the disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments persisting for more than half a year and the recent pneumonia epidemic have dealt a heavy blow to the retail industry, bringing the business turnover down by 30% to 70%. Quite a number of shop operators have closed down or are prepared to close down their businesses, whilst those who continue their businesses have to arrange their staff to take no pay leave, stop providing replacement for staff members who have left, or even lay off staff, in order to reduce costs. Some shopkeepers have relayed to me that their total monthly income has reduced significantly from $30,000 to $40,000 in the past to around $10,000, which has gravely affected their livelihood. Employees who need to raise children or make mortgage repayments are in greater financial straits. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

whether it will consider introducing concessionary measures for retailers and eateries to enable them to obtain interest-free loans for paying staff salaries; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(2)

given that low-income employees and self-employed persons are exempted from making Mandatory Provident Fund ("MPF") contributions in an amount equivalent to 5% of their income, and that the authorities announced in January this year that they would make the relevant contributions on behalf of those persons, whether the authorities will draw reference from this measure and make MPF contributions on behalf of the owners and staff of retail shops for six months to one year; and

(3)

given that a rental concession for another six months has been provided by the Government for the retail shops operating in its properties, whether the authorities have other measures in place to urge the landlords of private shop premises (especially the landlords of shopping centres) to follow the Government's practice and reduce the rents of their tenants so as to ride out the hard times with the shop operators in the retail industry?

Question 2
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Shatin to Central Link

Hon Kenneth LAU to ask:

The Shatin to Central Link ("SCL"), which is under construction, is divided into the Tai Wai to Hung Hom Section and the Hung Hom to Admiralty Section. The former links up the existing West Rail Line ("WRL") with the Ma On Shan Line to form the Tuen Ma Line ("TML"), and a section of TML from Wu Kai Sha Station to Kai Tak Station is named TML Phase 1. TML Phase 1 was commissioned on the 14th of last month, and Hin Keng Station, the expanded part of Diamond Hill Station and Kai Tak Station were also put into operation at the same time. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

whether it has assessed the passenger throughput of the various stations along TML Phase 1 during peak and non-peak hours at the initial stage of commissioning of the line, as well as the impacts on the passenger throughput of the various stations along WRL and the effect of diverting road traffic in the Tuen Mun district to be brought about by the commissioning of TML Phase 1; if so, of the details;

(2)

given that in recent months, train services have been repeatedly disrupted owing to demonstrations and the facilities of MTR stations have been vandalized repeatedly, of the measures to be taken by the authorities to protect the facilities of the various stations along TML Phase 1 and minimize the impacts of demonstrations on train services; and

(3)

of the latest timetable for the full commissioning of SCL, and the new measures in place to ensure the quality of the construction works and the completion of the works on schedule?

Question 3
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Complaints about teachers' professional conduct

Hon IP Kin-yuen to ask:

Earlier on, the Education Bureau indicated that among the complaints about teachers' professional conduct received from June to December last year, the majority of them pertained to teachers being alleged to have posted on social media inappropriate messages such as hate remarks, committed provocative acts, used inappropriate teaching materials, and committed unlawful acts. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of the total number of complaints received since June last year, and the number of such complaints lodged anonymously; a breakdown of such complaints by nature, and the number of complaints in respect of which the Council on Professional Conduct in Education have filed a case for investigation;

(2)

of the legal provisions or codes on the basis of which the authorities have considered those complaints relating to posting "hate remarks" or committing "provocative acts" (please quote the contents of the relevant provisions or codes); and

(3)

as the authorities have indicated that society has its moral bottom lines and consensus on what constitute "hate remarks" and "provocative acts", whether the authorities will consider (i) making public, on the premise of not disclosing matters of personal data privacy of the complainees, the "hate remarks" and "provocative acts" involved in those complaints which were found substantiated, for public comments, and (ii) accepting an appeal and conducting a review on the relevant complaint cases when the public opinion so formed or the complainee considers that the remark or act concerned is not tantamount to transgressing the moral bottom lines and consensus of society?

Question 4
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Tackling the novel coronavirus epidemic

Hon KWONG Chun-yu to ask:

The World Health Organization has described the outbreak of novel coronavirus as a pandemic in view of the outbreak having spread to more than 110 countries and territories around the world. Regarding the tackling of the epidemic, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

whether it has grasped the whereabouts of the people who came from Hubei Province and are now staying in Hong Kong; if so, of their number and, among them, the respective numbers of those who are receiving treatment in hospitals and those who have been admitted to quarantine centres; if not, the reasons for that;

(2)

of the total number of face masks in the Government's stock as at the 3rd of this month; the new measures in place to ensure that there is a sufficient supply of compliant face masks for use by healthcare personnel and that members of the public can buy face masks at reasonable prices; and

(3)

as a medical team of the University of Hong Kong has projected that the local epidemic will reach its peak in May this year, whether the existing manpower in medical, nursing and various allied health grades as well as the current number of isolation beds are sufficient to tackle the epidemic, and whether the Government has made adequate preparations for tackling the epidemic in the light of the aforesaid projection or its own projection; if not, of the reasons for that?

Question 5
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Impacts of the novel coronavirus epidemic on Hong Kong

Hon Charles Peter MOK to ask:

The novel coronavirus epidemic has now spread to more than 110 countries and territories around the world and has been described as a pandemic by the World Health Organization. In recent days, a number of persons from the Mainland, who had been confirmed to have been infected with the virus, withheld the information of having visited the Mainland when seeking medical treatment, withheld the relevant circumstances when making health declarations, or refused to cooperate with the authorities. Some members of the public have relayed to me that they are gravely worried that the Government's failure to "completely close all boundary control points" will lead to a rise in locally infected cases, thereby imposing an unbearable burden on Hong Kong's public healthcare system. Regarding the impacts of the epidemic on Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

among the non-local persons who had entered Hong Kong from the Mainland and had been confirmed in Hong Kong to have been infected with the virus, of the number of those who successfully gained entry into Hong Kong as they had not been identified as suspected cases, as well as the respective average duration of their stay in Hong Kong at the time they showed the relevant symptoms and they were confirmed to have been infected; whether it will immediately suspend granting entry permission to all non-local persons who have recently visited any Mainland cities or come to Hong Kong via the Mainland, and temporarily forbid Hong Kong residents from travelling to the Mainland, until the epidemic is under control; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(2)

given that there are countries (including Italy and Kuwait), one after another, banning flights to and from Hong Kong or entry of Hong Kong residents, how the Government convinces the international community that the epidemic will not be spread to other places by people coming from Hong Kong or by Hong Kong residents; and

(3)

given that some elderly persons, grass-roots families and the disadvantaged groups are unable to acquire face masks at a reasonable price, whether the Government will allocate funding from the Community Care Fund for purchasing face masks, and sell those face masks to Hong Kong residents in need at a low price at designated locations; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Question 6
(For oral reply)

(Translation)

Supplies of anti-epidemic items

Hon LAM Cheuk-ting to ask:

Due to the rampant novel coronavirus epidemic, face masks are in acute shortage. As indicated by the Chief Executive, the Government has, apart from conducting an open tender exercise, adopted a multi-pronged approach to procure face masks worldwide. It has contacted more than 400 suppliers from nearly 20 countries, but the procurement efforts have not been very successful. In view of this, government personnel must meet several criteria (including being sick, being frontline officers or going to crowded places) before they are allowed to wear face masks, with a view to economizing on the use of face masks. Those who do not meet the criteria are not allowed to wear face masks, and they are required to take the face masks off even if they are wearing one. Some members of the public have pointed out that the authorities have serious inadequacies in the reserve and supplies of anti-epidemic items such as face masks, causing immense anxiety and panic purchases of such items among members of the public. Some of them even queued up overnight to buy face masks. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of the quantities of anti-epidemic items in the Government's stock, the number of months that such quantities may meet the consumption by public officers, healthcare personnel and members of the public, as well as the changes of such quantities, on the day of 23 January this year when the Mainland authorities announced the lockdown of the Wuhan City and on each day thereafter;

(2)

whether it has established a mechanism for the reserve of anti-epidemic items such as face masks; if so, of the details of the mechanism, including the reserve quantity of each type of such items, and the number of months of consumption by public officers, healthcare personnel and members of the public based on which such quantities have been determined; if it has not, of the reasons for that and whether it will establish such mechanism; and

(3)

of a breakdown, by name of country, of the number of suppliers which the Government has contacted, the number of face masks ordered and the number of face masks already delivered to Hong Kong (set out in a table); whether it has reviewed the reasons why the Government's efforts of procuring face masks worldwide have not been very successful; if so, of the review outcome and the improvement measures, including whether it will enter into regular procurement agreements with suppliers of anti-epidemic items so as to ensure stable supplies of such items?

Question 7
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Face masks produced by the Correctional Services Department

Hon SHIU Ka-chun to ask:

Regarding the face masks produced by the Correctional Services Department ("CSD"), will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of (i) the quantity of face masks produced by CSD, and (ii) the respective quantities of such face masks supplied to the various government departments and non-governmental organizations, in each month of the past three years;

(2)

of the respective quantities of face masks currently kept in the stock of the various government departments, and whether, to avoid hoarding, such departments have set a limit on the quantity of face masks kept in the stock;

(3)

of the mechanism adopted by the Government for determining the quantities of face masks to be allocated to various government departments, and how such departments handle those face masks which will not be used before the expiry dates; and

(4)

as the Chief Executive has indicated that the 700 000 face masks per month made available by CSD's increased production will be given to cleansing service contractors for use by the cleaning workers hired by them, of the relevant details?

Question 8
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Hong Kong residents stranded on the Mainland

Hon James TO to ask:

To curb the spread of the novel coronavirus epidemic, a number of Mainland provinces, cities, counties, towns and villages have implemented closed management one after another since early January this year, under which the entry and exit of persons and vehicles are subject to stringent restrictions. It is learnt that thousands of Hong Kong residents are currently stranded on the Mainland. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

whether it knows the current number of Mainland-stranded Hong Kong residents, with a breakdown by (i) their whereabouts and (ii) the age group to which they belong (i.e. aged below 18, 18 to 60, and above 60); among such persons, the respective numbers of pregnant women and infants aged below one;

(2)

of the respective to-date numbers of Mainland-stranded Hong Kong residents who have (i) requested the SAR Government to deliver medicaments to them from Hong Kong and (ii) obtained such medicaments, with a breakdown by their whereabouts; if it has received requests for the delivery of medicaments from Hong Kong residents stranded in places outside Hubei Province on the Mainland, whether it has made the arrangements; if not, whether it can make the arrangements expeditiously; whether it has, by drawing reference from the practices adopted by overseas postal administrations, arranged the use of unmanned aircraft systems to deliver medicaments to Hong Kong residents who are located at places with inconvenient transport links or those who cannot go out conveniently;

(3)

of the to-date number of Mainland-stranded Hong Kong residents confirmed to have been infected with the novel coronavirus, together with a breakdown by the gender and age group (covering 10 years each) to which they belong; among such persons, the number of those who have been admitted to hospitals for medical treatment, together with a breakdown by their whereabouts; and

(4)

whether the offices of the SAR Government on the Mainland have liaised with the Mainland authorities to discuss how arrangements can be made to assist Mainland-stranded Hong Kong residents in returning to Hong Kong (e.g. conducting novel coronavirus testing on them in batches, and making transport arrangements to take persons confirmed uninfected back to Hong Kong); if so, of the details of the relevant preparatory work (including the arrangements for the quarantine and isolation of such residents after their return to Hong Kong) and the progress made so far?

Question 9
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Relief measures of the Government

Hon Elizabeth QUAT to ask:

Some members of the public have relayed that Hong Kong's economy, after being dealt double blows last year by the Sino-United States trade conflicts and the disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments, and then being ravaged this year by the novel coronavirus epidemic, is now on its last legs. As the economic prospect is not optimistic and the tide of unemployment is coming inexorably, small and medium enterprises as well as grass-roots people are particularly bearing the brunt. Regarding the relief measures of the Government, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

whether it will implement the relief measures (including allowing employers in the severely hit industries to hold over payments of the provisional profits tax) which were proposed by the political party to which I belong, and implement these measures expeditiously under an approach of special arrangements for special circumstances; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(2)

whether the funds under the $30 billion Anti-epidemic Fund set up by the Government may be used for the following purposes: (i) subsidizing small and medium enterprises in paying their employees' salaries, and (ii) providing subsidies to the employees whose income has been affected by the epidemic (especially those who are unable to cross the boundary daily to go to work because of the implementation of the infection prevention measures); if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(3)

as the grass-roots people cannot afford anti-epidemic items the prices of which have shot up due to the shortage of supply, and many of them lack anti-epidemic awareness, whether the Government will (i) step up anti-epidemic publicity among them and (ii) supply anti-epidemic items to them at reasonable prices; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(4)

as anti-epidemic items are currently in short supply, of the measures put in place to help trades and industries such as retail, property management and private healthcare to acquire anti-epidemic items for use by their frontline staff; and

(5)

given that quite a number of members of the public are currently unable to acquire anti-epidemic items such as face masks, whether the Government will consider afresh adopting administrative measures or invoking its statutory power to prohibit hoarding of such items, to centralize the procurement and distribution of such items (including imposing restrictions on the selling prices and purchase quantities), and to make daily announcement on the stock of such items available on the market, so as to ensure that members of the public can acquire such items at reasonable prices?

Question 10
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Impacts of the epidemic on schools and parents of students

Hon HUI Chi-fung to ask:

In view of the rampant novel coronavirus epidemic, the Education Bureau ("EDB") earlier on has extended for several times the class suspension arrangements for all primary and secondary schools, kindergartens and special schools in Hong Kong, and classes will resume on 20 April this year at the earliest. Regarding the impacts of the epidemic on schools and parents of students, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

as some parents of kindergarten students hold the view that since their children have not been able to go to school for the whole months of February and March, it will only be reasonable that they are not required to pay for these two months' tuition fees, whether EDB will consider paying the tuition fees for February and March on behalf of the parents of all kindergarten students in Hong Kong; if not, of the measures in place to assist parents with financial difficulties;

(2)

of the details of the various support provided by EDB for schools since the outbreak of the epidemic, and whether EDB will provide subsidies to schools in need for paying expenses such as rents and salaries; and

(3)

given that there are nearly 28 000 cross-boundary students in Hong Kong, how EDB ensures that the epidemic on the Mainland will not spread to the schools in Hong Kong through such students upon class resumption, in order to safeguard the health of all students and teachers?

Question 11
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Supply of face masks to non-governmental organizations

Dr Hon Helena WONG to ask:

The Government stated on 1 February this year that before the occurrence of the novel coronavirus epidemic, the Correctional Services Department ("CSD") had supplied face masks produced by it to certain non-governmental organizations ("NGOs"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of the quantity of face masks produced by CSD last year; among them, the quantity of those supplied to NGOs, with a breakdown by name of NGO; and

(2)

whether NGOs are required to pay for the face masks supplied; if so, of the criteria for determining the charges; if not, whether the Government has established a mechanism for monitoring the use of such face masks to prevent such face masks from being sold for profits or transferred to non-specified users; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Question 12
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Legislation against acts of spreading rumours

Hon WONG Ting-kwong to ask:

It is learnt that some people have been spreading rumours on the Internet recently, claiming that there might be a shortage of essential livelihood commodities due to the novel coronavirus epidemic. As a result, some members of the public snapped up and stockpiled commodities such as rice and toilet paper, making the rumours come true. On the other hand, the Court of Final Appeal handed down a judgment on an appeal case in April 2019, ruling that as the acts of the respondents had not involved access to another person's computer, the respondents had not committed the offence under section 161(1)(c) of the Crimes Ordinance (Cap. 200) (i.e. the offence of obtaining access to a computer with a view to dishonest gain for himself or another). Some members of the legal sector have pointed out that as a result of the said judgment, the authorities might no longer be able to prosecute rumour-mongers by invoking the said provision. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

whether any legislation is currently in place to prosecute persons who wilfully spread false information which is likely to give rise to panic among members of the public; if so, of the details, as well as the number of prosecutions instituted in the past five years and the penalties imposed on the convicted persons; and

(2)

whether it will, on the premise of safeguarding freedom of speech, study the enactment of dedicated legislation to combat acts of wilful spread of such information; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Question 13
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Reduction, recovery and recycling of waste textiles

Hon CHAN Hoi-yan to ask:

Some environmentalists have relayed that at present, the Environmental Protection Department ("EPD") has not actively promoted the reduction, recovery and recycling of waste textiles (including used clothes and other used textile products). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of (i) the disposal quantity and recovery rate of waste textiles, and (ii) the quantity and percentage of waste textiles recovered through the Community Used Clothes Recycling Bank Scheme under the Home Affairs Department, in each of the past five years; if such figures are unavailable, whether the Government will gather them;

(2)

whether EPD has set targets on (i) the quantity of reduction, (ii) the recovery rate and (iii) the recycling rate in respect of waste textiles; if so, of the details and the specific measures taken to achieve such targets; if not, whether EPD will set such targets;

(3)

of the respective numbers of applications for subsidies made to the Environment and Conservation Fund (i) received and (ii) approved by the authorities in each of the past five years in respect of used clothes recovery projects, and the total amount of subsidies granted;

(4)

as waste textiles currently are not the major waste items to be recovered under both the Community Recycling Network and the Community Green Stations, whether EPD will consider including waste textiles in these two programmes or other programmes implemented by EPD;

(5)

whether EPD will (i) collaborate with educational bodies to set up used clothes recovery boxes and organize recovery activities in schools, so as to increase the recovery quantity of waste textiles and enhance community engagement, and (ii) provide education and services relating to repairing clothes and recycling of used textile products, so as to encourage members of the public to reduce waste at source; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(6)

whether EPD has put in place new measures to encourage more non-profit making organizations and community groups to take part in the recovery of used clothes, so as to promote community-wide participation?

Question 14
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Issues relating to the novel coronavirus epidemic

Hon WU Chi-wai to ask:

Since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus epidemic, demand for face masks in Hong Kong has remained high. Quite a number of members of the public and healthcare workers have demanded the Government to "close all border control points" to curb the spread of the epidemic to Hong Kong, but the Government has refused. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

whether it knows, in the past six months:

(i)

the respective weekly quantities of (a) import, (b) export, (c) re-export and (d) net import of face masks effective in filtering viruses, and

(ii)

the respective monthly quantities of such face masks produced by the Correctional Services Department ("CSD") and local private enterprises and, among such face masks, the respective quantities of those for local consumption and for export;

(2)

as a healthcare team of the University of Hong Kong has projected that the epidemic in Hong Kong will reach its peak in May this year, of the Government's projections for the coming three months in respect of:

(i)

the overall demand in Hong Kong for face masks effective in filtering viruses, and

(ii)

the weekly quantities of such face masks which will be (a) imported into Hong Kong, and (b) produced respectively by CSD and local private enterprises;

(3)

of the criteria currently adopted by the Government for determining the quantity of face masks effective in filtering viruses to be maintained in stock by the Government for internal use, and how many months' consumption that such quantity of face masks can meet;

(4)

of the respective quantities of face masks that various government departments have (i) obtained from the Government Logistics Department, (ii) consumed, and (iii) stockpiled, since January this year; the respective projected quantities of face masks to be allocated to the various departments in the coming month;

(5)

of the circumstances under which the Government will consider (i) distributing face masks free of charge to members of the public and those organizations in need (e.g. elderly centres or social welfare organizations), and (ii) amending the Reserved Commodities Ordinance (Cap. 296) to specify face masks as a reserved commodity, so as to stabilize the supply of face masks;

(6)

of the number of quarantine residential units which will be needed in the coming three months, as projected by the Government; whether the Government has (i) discussed with the Central People's Government on borrowing parts of the barracks of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Hong Kong Garrison for use as isolation/quarantine facilities, and (ii) studied the construction of isolation/quarantine facilities on the site reserved for the Phase 2 development of the Hong Kong Disneyland; if so, of the details (including the costs and the commencement dates for works);

(7)

given that although the Mainland authorities suspended on 2 and 7 February this year respectively the processing of applications by Mainland residents for travel endorsements and for business visit endorsements to visit Hong Kong, they will still approve applications for visiting Hong Kong with urgent purposes such as studying, seeking medical treatment and attending funerals, of (i) the weekly number of Mainland residents entering Hong Kong during the period from 1 January to 1 February this year, and (ii) the weekly number of Mainland residents entering Hong Kong since 2 February this year (with a tabulated breakdown by type of endorsements and specific reasons for visiting Hong Kong (e.g. seeking medical treatment and attending funeral)); and

(8)

as the number of confirmed cases of the infection recorded in the Guangdong Province has been on the rise recently, whether the Government will consider further tightening the immigration arrangements to temporarily suspend the entry of all Mainlanders to Hong Kong; if not, of the reasons for that?

Question 15
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Veterinary and pet shop services

Hon CHAN Hak-kan to ask:

Regarding veterinary and pet shop services, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of (i) the number of veterinary surgeons registered under the Veterinary Surgeons Registration Ordinance (Cap 529), (ii) the ratio of registered veterinary surgeons to pets, and (iii) the number of veterinary surgeons convicted of contravening Cap 529 and the punishments imposed on them, in the past five years;

(2)

whether the authorities currently deploy officials to conduct inspections on veterinary clinics on a regular basis; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; of the reasons why the authorities do not keep, on a routine basis, records on the number of veterinary clinics and related information; whether the authorities will change such practice; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(3)

whether it knows the following information in each of the past five years:

(i)

the numbers of complaints against veterinary surgeons and veterinary clinics received by the Veterinary Surgeons Board ("VSB"), and the major subject matters of such complaints;

(ii)

the respective numbers of complaints referred to the Preliminary Investigation Committee and the Inquiry Committee of VSB for follow up actions;

(iii)

regarding those complaints for which investigations were completed, of the average, longest and shortest time taken by VSB to conclude the investigations; and

(iv)

the number of veterinary surgeons found guilty of professional misconduct or neglect, and the punishments imposed on them;

(4)

given that while some veterinary surgeons have been complained for several times and found guilty of professional misconduct or neglect, VSB currently only publishes on its website the orders made within one year and the findings of disciplinary inquiries made within three years by the Inquiry Committee, whether the authorities will suggest VSB to modify such practice and publish on its website the names of all non-compliant veterinary surgeons and the veterinary clinics concerned for public inspection; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(5)

as some members of the public have pointed out that the complainants have to provide substantive supporting evidence when lodging complaints with VSB, but the veterinary clinics do not provide the medical records and X-ray films of animals to their owners and, in some cases, even do not return the dead bodies of the animals to their owners, whether the authorities know if VSB has required veterinary surgeons and veterinary clinics to provide the medical records of animals to their owners upon their requests; if VSB has, of the details; if VSB has not, the reasons for that; among the complaints received by VSB in the past three years, of the respective numbers of those (i) having problems of the provision of supporting evidence and (ii) which could not be followed up due to such problems;

(6)

as some members of the public have relayed that the operation of veterinary clinics (including the procedures on operations, the care given to animals staying overnight at the clinics and treatment of the dead bodies of animals) lacks transparency, of the authorities' respective improvement measures;

(7)

as many members of the public have relayed that the fees for veterinary services are high and not clearly set out, whether the authorities know if VSB will require veterinary clinics to provide their customers with a schedule of fees and charges, so that animal owners can make informed choices in the selection of services; if VSB will, of the details; if not, whether VSB will consider making public the standard fees and charges for various types of medical consultation and treatments, laboratory tests and operations for reference of members of the public;

(8)

as some members of the public have relayed that some animal owners cannot afford private veterinary services which are expensive, whether the authorities will consider afresh (i) offering subsidies to non-profiting-making bodies for the provision of inexpensive veterinary services, or (ii) introducing medical vouchers for animals; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(9)

given that this Council has passed amendments to Cap 529, one of which is to enlarge the membership of VSB from 10 to 19members (with six of the seats to be filled by registered veterinary surgeons elected by members of the profession), and that the authorities have made subsidiary legislation on the election of the six members, of the confirmed date of the election and, with the increase in the number of members, the anticipated reduction in the time taken on average by VSB in handling a complaint; and

(10)

as it has been reported that an incident occurred in Tai Po earlier on in which a groomer of a pet shop was alleged to have abused dogs, of the measures put in place by the authorities to step up the monitoring of such type of practitioners in the trade; the number of complaints against pet shops received by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department in the past five years and the follow-up actions taken?

Question 16
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Hard-surface soccer pitches under
the Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Dr Hon Pierre CHAN to ask:

Regarding the hard-surface soccer pitches under the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD"), will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of the respective current numbers of the three types of soccer pitches, i.e. (a) 5-a-side hard-surface soccer pitches, (b) 7-a-side hard-surface soccer pitches and (c) 11-a-side hard-surface soccer pitches, and set out the following information on each soccer pitch by type of soccer pitch in separate tables of the same format:

(i)

the District Council district in which it is located,

(ii)

name (for venues with more than one soccer pitch, provide also the relevant names (e.g. "Soccer Pitch No. 1")),

(iii)

whether it is located indoors or outdoors,

(vi)

size (length and width) (metres),

(v)

utilization rate in 2018,

(vi)

utilization rate in 2019,

(vii)

whether or not the design is in compliance with the standards of the Federation Internationale de Football Association ("FIFA") for international matches, and

(viii)

whether or not the design is in compliance with the standards of FIFA for non-international matches;

(2)

of the method for calculating the utilization rates of hard-surface soccer pitches;

(3)

of (a) the average number and percentage of cases in which hirers failed to take up booking sessions in respect of each of the aforesaid three types of hard-surface soccer pitches, and (b) the number of complaints received by LCSD about suspected transfer of user permits or approval letters by hirers of hard-surface soccer pitches, in each of the past three years, together with statistics on (i) the default notice issued and (ii) the temporary suspension of the eligibility of the bodies concerned for priority venue booking, in respect of such cases by LCSD; and

(4)

whether there are on-site staff on duty in all hard-surface soccer pitches at present; if not, of the number of occasions, in each of the past three years, on which LCSD deployed officers to those venues without on-site staff on duty for the purpose of verifying the identity of hirers?

Question 17
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Use of shock bombs and flash bangs by the Police

Hon Kenneth LEUNG to ask:

It has been reported that the Police used shock bombs and flash bangs when handling public events in November last year. Regarding the use of such weapons by the Police, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of the details of the cases involving the use of the aforesaid weapons by police officers in public events since June last year, including (i) the numbers of police officers concerned, (ii) the quantities of the weapons used, and (iii) the purposes of using the weapons, and set out the information by date;

(2)

whether it has investigated if the use of the aforesaid weapons by the police officers referred to in (1) on the dates concerned was in compliance with the relevant guidelines; if it has investigated and the outcome is in the affirmative, of the details of the guidelines; if the investigation outcome is in the negative, whether the Police will institute disciplinary proceedings against the police officers concerned;

(3)

of the details of the guidelines on the safe use of such weapons provided by the manufacturers, including but not limited to (i) the shortest safe distances from the targeted people to be maintained, and (ii) the limits on the frequencies of the continuous use;

(4)

of the level of force that the Police has classified the aforesaid weapons to be;

(5)

of the respective maximum levels of brightness and volume of sound generated by the aforesaid weapons in continuous use and in single-time use;

(6)

of the respective harms to the human body at the worst in the short term and long term that may be caused by the use of the aforesaid weapons under the circumstances that the relevant safety guidelines are (i) complied with and (ii) not complied with;

(7)

whether the aforesaid weapons are suitable for use in crowd management; whether it knows the law enforcement agencies outside Hong Kong that have used such weapons for that purpose;

(8)

whether the Police have drawn up guidelines to ensure that the use of the aforesaid weapons will not cause crowd panic and then lead to stampede incidents; if so, of the details of the guidelines; and

(9)

of the number of occasions on which the aforesaid weapons have been used by the Police since the reunification of Hong Kong, and the types of crimes allegedly committed by the suspects against whom such weapons were used?

Question 18
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Efforts on rodent control and epidemic prevention

Hon Jimmy NG to ask:

Since the announcement by the Government in May last year that three cases of human infection of rat Hepatitis E virus had been found, a total of eight such cases have been recorded in Hong Kong, with the death of one infected patient. Some members of the public are concerned about whether there has been a small outbreak of this infectious disease in the community. In addition, it has been reported that pneumonic plague cases have been found in recent months in various districts in the northern part of the Mainland, once triggering panic about human-to-human transmission of the disease. There are comments that as the residents of Hong Kong and the Mainland commute between the two places frequently, the risk of these epidemics being imported from the Mainland to Hong Kong cannot be ruled out, and that there is an immense need for the Government to improve its efforts on rodent control and epidemic prevention. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

as it has been reported that while the total number of rodent complaints received each year by the District Council members of various districts was between 300 and 900, the Rodent Infestation Rates ("RIRs") compiled by the Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") failed to reflect the actual situation as they all along indicated that rodent infestation in various districts was on the low side, and, of the latest progress of the Government's efforts in enhancing the sensitivity of RIRs;

(2)

as FEHD's annual reports have indicated that the number of rodents killed by FEHD in each of the past 11 years was between 20 000-odd and 40 000-odd, and its annual average expenditure on rodent control was $150 million (representing an average cost of more than $4,000 for killing each rodent), of the Government's new measures to enhance the cost effectiveness of the anti-rodent efforts;

(3)

as a research report has pointed out that quite a number of "three-nil" buildings (i.e. buildings without owners' corporations, owners' committees or property management companies) are hygiene and rodent blackspots, how the Government will improve this situation;

(4)

as there are comments that rodent infestation problems in public places often cannot be eradicated due to the lack of coordination among the various government departments, how the Government will strengthen the cooperation among the government departments concerned in their anti-rodent efforts;

(5)

regarding the prevention of the aforesaid infectious diseases, whether the Government conducted last year any researches jointly with local and international academic institutions specialized in infectious diseases and public health; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(6)

regarding the prevention of the import of plague from places outside Hong Kong, whether the Government will review its standing practices concerning epidemic prevention at the boundary control points, the Outbound Travel Alerts, etc., as well as introduce new measures for prevention of epidemics; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Question 19
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Promoting the development of innovation and technology

Hon Elizabeth QUAT to ask:

As a major initiative of the Government, InnoHK aims at developing Hong Kong as the hub for global scientific research collaboration. This involves the establishment of world-class research clusters at the Hong Kong Science Park ("HKSP") with research and development ("R&D") laboratories set up by world-renowned institutions and commercial entities to conduct collaborative scientific researches. On the other hand, the Government indicated in October last year that it was pressing ahead with the establishment of two world-class research clusters at HKSP, with one being Health@InnoHK focusing on healthcare technologies and the other being AIR@InnoHK on artificial intelligence and robotics technologies, and that it had already received 65 proposals from world-renowned universities and research institutes. On promoting the development of innovation and technology, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of the respective progress in the establishment of the aforesaid clusters; the number of admission applications received, approved and rejected by the authorities to date in respect of each cluster, as well as the average amount of subsidy granted to those institutions/entities whose admission and subsidy applications have been granted;

(2)

among the admission applications (i) received and (ii) approved in respect of each cluster, of the respective numbers of those submitted by world-renowned institutions and commercial entities, and set out the name of the world-renowned institutions and commercial entities whose applications have been approved;

(3)

given that the authorities will adopt the seven criteria set out in the Guidance Notes for Admission to Health@InnoHK & AIR@InnoHK ("the Guidance Notes") when vetting and approving applications for admission to the clusters, of the weighting of each criterion in the assessment, and whether the criteria include "peer assessment"; as the Guidance Notes stipulate that the proposed R&D programmes must "have a reasonable likelihood of being adopted or commercialized, if the R&D programme is successful", whether those admission applications with R&D programmes not involving commercialization will be considered;

(4)

given that non-profit-making R&D laboratories set up by non-profit-making institutions at the aforesaid clusters may only get R&D subsidy for a period of four to five years in respect of each R&D programme, how the Government ensures that such institutions will still be able to continue taking forward the relevant R&D programmes upon expiry of the subsidy period;

(5)

of the strategy formulated by the Government to dovetail InnoHK with Hong Kong's re-industrialization;

(6)

as the Chief Executive indicated in last year's Policy Address Supplement that the Government would examine the establishment of the third InnoHK research cluster, (i) of the progress and timetable of the relevant work, (ii) the area of focus of that cluster, and (iii) whether its mode of operation will be different from that of the aforesaid two clusters; and

(7)

as a think tank has suggested the Government to set up mega research institutes similar to the Broad Institute of the United States and the Francis Crick Institute of the United Kingdom to encourage intensive collaboration among researchers from different disciplines and institutes across the world and conduct cutting-edge research programmes, whether the Government will consider the suggestion; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that?

Question 20
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Video clips recorded with video cameras by the Government

Hon Charles Peter MOK to ask:

At present, disciplined services such as the Hong Kong Police Force ("HKPF") and the Immigration Department ("ImmD"), as well as government departments such as the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD"), the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department and the Housing Department, have installed closed-circuit television ("CCTV") camera systems in areas under their purview or in public places, or provided their staff with body-worn video cameras ("BWVCs"). As the authorities may identify the individuals recorded by comparing their facial features recorded by CCTV cameras with the personal data in relevant databases, some members of the public are worried that law enforcement agencies may use the CCTV cameras in public places for recording large quantities of video clips, possibly intruding on personal privacy. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of the details of the existing CCTV cameras installed by each of the government departments concerned (set out in the table below);

		Government department
Details of CCTV camera systems		HKPF	…	LCSD
(i)	Installation location(s) and quantity of cameras
(ii)	Use(s) of video clips
(iii)	Brand(s) and model(s) of camera lenses
(iv)	Resolution of cameras
(v)	Retention period of video clips
(vi)	Date of installation/ updating of system
(vii)	Procurement date and amount of expenditure
(viii)	Name of supplier and the country to which it belongs
(ix)	Whether auto-tracking function is available (if so, whether the function has been activated)
(x)	Whether face detection function is available (if so, whether the function has been activated)
(xi)	Whether pickup function is available (if so, whether the function has been activated)

(2)

of the number of occasions last year on which HKPF requested other government departments to provide the CCTV video clips recorded by them, with a tabulated breakdown by (i) the month in which the request was made, (ii) the name of the department concerned, (iii) ‍thed ate on which the video clip was recorded, (iv) the location where the video clip was recorded, (v) the length of the video clip, and (vi) whether the request was acceded to;

(3)

of the number of video clips recorded last year during public events by police officers using BWVCs and hand-held video cameras, with a tabulated breakdown by the month in which the video clip was recorded and the public event concerned; the current storage details of such video clips, including the respective numbers of video clips which (i) have been retained due to their evidential value, (ii) will be produced in court as evidence, (iii) have been destroyed, and (iv) have been retained for more than 31 days; the number of requests, made under the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486) by persons recorded in such video clips, for access to the relevant video clips, and the number of such requests acceded to; and

(4)

whether HKPF has, since January last year, (i) made use of software such as video explorer, advanced image processing and facial recognition to identify individuals in the video clips recorded by CCTV cameras, and (ii) sought other government departments' permission for using the personal data in the databases under such departments' purview (e.g. the Smart Identity Card database under ImmD) for making comparisons with the facial features recorded by CCTV cameras for the purpose of identification of individuals?

Question 21
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Implementation of the amendments made
to the Nurses Registration Ordinance

Prof Hon Joseph LEE to ask:

It is learnt that since 1997, the nursing sector has been advocating the enhancement of the credibility, transparency and governance capabilities of the Nursing Council of Hong Kong ("NCHK") as well as the achievement of the aim of professional autonomy through the introduction of amendments to the Nurses Registration Ordinance (Cap. 164). In June 1997, the former Legislative Council passed the amendments to the Ordinance, which included the addition of section 3(2)(ca) to stipulate that six of the members of NCHK shall be elected among registered nurses and enrolled nurses in a manner provided for by the Ordinance. However, that provision has not yet been implemented so far. In addition, the Government indicated in May 2018 that according to legal advice, further amendments to Cap.164 were needed before the subsidiary legislation for the election of the aforesaid six members could be introduced. The authorities would invite NCHK to submit proposals to follow up the recommendations in the Report of the Strategic Review on Healthcare Manpower Planning and Professional Development published by the Government in 2017 and related matters. The issue of that provision not having been implemented would then be dealt with together. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of the latest progress of the follow-up work undertaken by the authorities for implementing that provision, as well as the timetable for the implementation of that provision?

Question 22
(For written reply)

(Translation)

Legal aid services

Hon Tony TSE to ask:

Under the Legal Aid Ordinance (Cap. 91), a person granted legal aid ("aided person") may nominate solicitor/counsel of his/her own choice to be his/her legal representative. The Legal Aid Department ("LAD") may, on the grounds that the number of legal aid cases assigned to that nominee has exceeded the limit, reject the nomination and ask the aided person to make another nomination from the Legal Aid Panel. However, some members of the legal sector have relayed that currently there are still quite a number of solicitors/counsels who have been assigned a large number of legal aid cases and, among those solicitors/counsels, some have delayed the handling of such cases on various grounds possibly due to excessive workload. Such situation may jeopardize the interests of various litigation parties and compromise justice. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1)

of the respective numbers of solicitors and counsels to whom the number of legal aid cases assigned exceeded the limit, in each of the past five years;

(2)

of (i) the respective numbers of legal aid cases taken up by the top five solicitors and counsels who were assigned the highest numbers of legal aid cases, and (ii) the total amount of fees received by each of the top five solicitors and counsels who had received the largest amounts of fees respectively for civil and criminal legal aid cases, in each of the past five years;

(3)

whether LAD has compiled information on its rejection of the nominations of solicitors/counsels made by aided persons;

(i)

if so, of the number of such cases in the past five years, the respective numbers of solicitors and counsels involved, and the reasons for rejecting such nominations; if there were no such cases, whether LAD will review if the current criteria and limits for assigning cases are too lax;

(ii)

if not, how LAD reviews the effectiveness of the criteria concerned, and whether LAD will compile the relevant information; and

(4)

whether LAD uncovered, in the past five years, any case of solicitors/counsels unreasonably delaying the handling of the legal aid cases assigned to them; if so, whether LAD reviewed if such solicitors/counsels had concurrently taken up too many legal aid cases, and of LAD's follow-up actions taken?

Legislative Council

Agenda Wednesday 18 March 2020 at 11:00 am

I.Laying of Papers on the Table of the Council

II.Questions

III.Government Bills

IV.Government Motion

Council meeting of 18 March 2020 Laying of Papers on the Table of the Council

22 questions to be asked at the Council meeting of 18 March 2020

Agenda

Wednesday 18 March 2020 at 11:00 am

I.
Laying of Papers on the Table of the Council

II.
Questions

III.
Government Bills

IV.
Government Motion

Council meeting of 18 March 2020

Laying of Papers on the Table of the Council