A 2022-10
Legislative Council
Agenda
Wednesday 6 April 2022 at 11:00 am
(Remote meeting by video conferencing)
I.
Laying of Paper on the Table of the Council
The paper to be laid on the Table of the Council set out in
Appendix 1Questions
Members to ask 22 questions (6 for oral replies and 16 for written replies)
Questions for oral replies to be asked by
Public officers to reply
1.
Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
2.
Secretary for Food and Health
3.
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Under Secretary for Labour and Welfare
4.
Secretary for Transport and Housing
5.
Secretary for Transport and Housing
6.
Secretary for Transport and Housing
Contents of 22 questions, Members to ask such questions and public officers to reply set out in
Appendix 2Government Bill
Second Reading (debate to resume), consideration by committee of the whole Council and Third Reading
:
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Members' Motions
Motion on "Reforming the poverty alleviation policies and strategies of Hong Kong"
Mover
:
Hon TANG Ka-piu
Wording of the motion
:
8 amendment movers
:
Hon Mrs Regina IP, Hon Stanley NG, Hon Dennis LEUNG, Hon Stanley LI, Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG, Hon LAM Chun-sing, Hon YUNG Hoi-yan and Hon TANG Fei
(Amendments set out in LC Paper No.
CB(3) 56/2022 issued on 21 January 2022)
Public officers to attend
:
Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Under Secretary for Labour and Welfare
Motion to take note of a report of the House Committee on consideration of subsidiary legislation and other instruments
Mover
:
Hon Starry LEE
Wording of the motion
:
Public officer to attend
:
Secretary for Food and Health
(Debate arrangement set out in LC Paper No.
CB(3) 181/2022 issued on 30 March 2022)
Clerk to the Legislative Council
Appendix 1
Council meeting of 6 April 2022
(Remote meeting by video conferencing)
Laying of Paper on the Table of the Council
22 questions to be asked at the Council meeting of 6 April 2022
(Remote meeting by video conferencing)
Subject matters
Public officers to reply
Questions for oral replies
1
Hon Judy CHAN
Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs
2
Hon Dominic LEE
Secretary for Food and Health
3
Hon Paul TSE
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
Under Secretary for Labour and Welfare
4
Hon KWOK Wai-keung
Secretary for Transport and Housing
5
Hon Edward LEUNG
Secretary for Transport and Housing
6
Hon Vincent CHENG
Secretary for Transport and Housing
Questions for written replies
7
Hon Kingsley WONG
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
8
Dr Hon Junius HO
Secretary for Innovation and Technology
9
Hon YIM Kong
Secretary for Food and Health
10
Hon LAM San-keung
11
Hon Kenneth LAU
Secretary for Food and Health
12
Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG
Secretary for Home Affairs
13
Hon CHAN Yuet-ming
Secretary for Development
14
Prof Hon Nelson LAM
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
15
Hon Louis LOONG
Secretary for Development
16
Hon Michael TIEN
17
Hon TANG Fei
18
Hon CHAN Chun-ying
Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury
19
Hon Doreen KONG
Secretary for Home Affairs
20
Hon CHEUNG Kwok-kwan
Secretary for Food and Health
21
Dr Hon TAN Yueheng
Secretary for Food and Health
22
Hon LAM So-wai
Secretary for the Environment
Question 1
(For oral reply)
(Translation)
Date of the Chief Executive Election
Hon Judy CHAN to ask:
Section 10(1) of the Chief Executive Election Ordinance stipulates that if the office of the Chief Executive ("CE") becomes vacant on the expiry of the term of office of CE, the date of the election to fill the vacancy should be set on the first Sunday of the period of 95 days preceding the expiry of the term of office. According to overseas experience, the transition period of the old and new governing teams is relatively short in general, with an aim to avoid uncertainty in policy direction and a decline in the motivation of officials. Taking the United States as an example, the period between the presidential election and the inauguration of the president of the current term is only two months or so. However, if the CE of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region does not run for re-election, the transition period will start earlier at the end of the nomination period, which can be as long as four months before the new governing team takes office. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has plans to review the requirement that the date of CE election should be set on the first Sunday of the period of 95 days preceding the expiry of the term of office of CE, so that a new requirement can be introduced for the CE elections to be held after the Sixth Term CE Election; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(2)
given that even if the Election Committee cannot elect the new CE on the First Polling Day, the Returning Officer can still set the Sunday which is the 42nd day after the termination of the proceedings for the election as the Second Polling Day, whether the Government will, after taking into account such an arrangement, adjust the date for holding CE elections after the Sixth Term CE Election, so as to shorten the transition period of the old and new governing teams; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Question 2
(For oral reply)
(Translation)
Leveraging smart healthcare to improve public healthcare services
Hon Dominic LEE to ask:
There are views that since the outbreak of the fifth wave of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 epidemic, the public healthcare system has been paralyzed, and one of the major reasons for this is the failure of healthcare policies to integrate with the concept of smart healthcare to improve public healthcare services and enhance the operational efficiency of hospitals. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it will expeditiously integrate the many existing healthcare-related mobile applications and websites and set up a multi-functional "One-Stop Healthcare" electronic platform, so as to facilitate members of the public to make consultation appointments, receive artificial intelligence-enabled preliminary diagnosis, pay medical fees, access basic medical records, receive medication reminders, etc.; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and whether it will consider doing so;
(2)
whether it has, in the light of the current epidemic, encouraged members of the public to join the "Electronic Health Record Sharing System" (known in abbreviated form as "eHRSS"), so that the Government can assist in population health management through analyzing the relevant big data, thereby formulating healthcare strategies and publicity programmes more precisely to prevent the spread of diseases; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(3)
whether it will expeditiously introduce into various public healthcare institutions smart healthcare systems, such as management systems applicable to patients who have made appointments to check in, bed management systems, self-service payment kiosks, artificial intelligence-enabled diagnostic systems and smart pharmacies, so as to ameliorate the problem of manpower shortage and reduce administrative work; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and whether it will consider doing so?
Question 3
(For oral reply)
(Translation)
The outflow of professionals and capital
Hon Paul TSE to ask:
As pointed out in an increasing number of reports, an alarm is currently raised in Hong Kong for an unprecedented outflow of professionals and capital. While the Immigration Department has pointed out that the number of applicants for renunciation of Chinese nationality hit a record high in 10 years in 2021, the Securities and Futures Commission has remarked that its overall staff turnover rate surged to 12% in 2021, and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority has reportedly met with the top management in the banking sector regarding a number of senior bankers' successive exits from Hong Kong. A member of the existing Election Committee has even pointed out candidly in a letter to the Chief Executive that many talents have joined the brain drain out of Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has compiled statistics on the number of professional outflows from Hong Kong (with a breakdown by Hong Kong permanent residents and foreign nationals) and the situation of capital outflow, in each of the months since January 2021;
(2)
given that some members of the public have criticized the Government for not saying a word about the wave of exodus of professionals and enterprises from Hong Kong in both the 2021 Policy Address and the recently released Budget, of the Government's reasons for making such a decision, and whether it will, in view of the outflow of more and more local talents, foreign-funded enterprises and capital from Hong Kong, assess afresh and revise timely the public finance, demographic structure, economic development, productivity and international competitiveness of Hong Kong; and
(3)
whether it has relayed timely to the Central People's Government the phenomenon of outflow of professionals and capital; if so, of the details, and whether it will present the relevant record to this Council, so that this Council may discuss and follow up the policies and initiatives formulated by the Government for retaining professionals and people's confidence and lessening the desire of the middle class and professionals to emigrate elsewhere; if it has not, of the reasons for that?
Question 4
(For oral reply)
(Translation)
Subsidized sale housing
Hon KWOK Wai-keung to ask:
Some studies have pointed out that, among the subsidized sale housing (including Home Ownership Scheme and Green Form Subsidized Home Ownership Scheme) flats put up for sale by the Government in recent years, some have been resold not only in as soon as the third year from first assignment but also at a resale premium of over 100 percent. Regarding subsidized sale housing, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it will consider prohibiting the resale of newly completed subsidized sale housing flats in the open market upon payment of premium, with a view to differentiating between private housing and subsidized sale housing markets, and imposing revenue sharing on owners who have earned considerable profits from the resale of such flats, so as to send a clear message to society that subsidized sale housing is not for speculation;
(2)
given the very wide gap between the supply of and demand for subsidized sale housing, whether the Government will revise the supply mechanism of such flats, such as adjusting the supply this year by drawing reference from the number of oversubscription of such flats last year, and at the same time formulate as soon as possible measures to invite private developers to participate in the construction of such housing, so as to increase the supply; and
(3)
in order to make the prices of subsidized sale housing affordable for families with limited income, whether the Government will enhance the mortgage arrangements applicable to subsidized sale housing, including exploring the feasibility of introducing progressive payment mortgage; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that?
Question 5
(For oral reply)
(Translation)
The proposed North Island Line
Hon Edward LEUNG to ask:
In the Railway Development Strategy 2014, the Government put forward the construction of the North Island Line ("NIL") to connect the MTR Tung Chung Line and Tseung Kwan O Line, with a view to diverting the harbour-crossing passenger traffic, alleviating the loading of the MTR Island Line and improving the east-west connectivity of Hong Kong Island. However, after a lapse of seven years, the Government has not yet drawn up a works schedule for NIL. In addition, it has been reported that at the end of last year, the Government significantly revised the designed alignment of NIL. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the latest designed alignment of NIL (including whether the Tamar Station and the Causeway Bay North Station will be retained), and the expected time when the Government will announce the works schedule;
(2)
given that the MTR Tuen Ma Line was fully commissioned last year, while the MTR East Rail Line cross-harbour extension is expected to be commissioned in the middle of this year, whether it has assessed if the commissioning of these railway lines will exacerbate the passenger loading of the Island Line, thereby making the construction of NIL for diverting passenger flow a more pressing need; and
(3)
of the measures in place to expedite the NIL project; the solution in place prior to the commissioning of NIL for alleviating the problem of the Island Line's passenger throughput reaching its maximum capacity?
Question 6
(For oral reply)
(Translation)
Regulation of subdivided units
Hon Vincent CHENG to ask:
The Landlord and Tenant (Consolidation) (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 ("the Ordinance") for tenancy control on subdivided units ("SDUs") took effect on 22 January this year. The Government has indicated that the Rating and Valuation Department ("RVD"), which is responsible for the implementation of the Ordinance, has set up a section to help acquaint the public with the new regulatory regime under the Ordinance, handle enquiries, provide free advisory and mediatory services, as well as publish the reported rent data of SDUs. Moreover, the Government has engaged non-governmental organizations to set up six district service teams and establish a web-based information portal. On the other hand, it has been reported that before the commencement of the Ordinance, some tenants of SDUs had been unreasonably evicted by their landlords. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the current total number of SDUs whose tenancies are subject to the regulation of the Ordinance, and the average levels of the reported rents of SDUs set out by District Council districts;
(2)
of the relevant work progress of RVD and the district service teams as well as on the web-based information portal; how the Government ensures that the landlords and tenants of SDUs have complied with the requirements under the Ordinance, and whether it will conduct random on-site inspections or adopt other approaches to find out if the tenants have been evicted or overcharged for miscellaneous fees or bills on water and electricity; if so, of the details; and
(3)
as it has been reported that during the epidemic, there was a case of "one confirmed patient infecting three households" among the tenants of SDUs who were undergoing home isolation, which reflects that the living environment of the tenants of SDUs is in dire need of improvement, whether the Government will set policy objectives for further regulating SDUs and "bidding farewell to SDUs"; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Question 7
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Non-skilled employees engaged by government service contractors
Hon Kingsley WONG to ask:
To enhance the protection of the employment terms and conditions as well as labour benefits of non-skilled employees ("employees") engaged by government service contractors ("contractors"), the Government has implemented improvement measures since 1 April 2019. It also put in place transitional arrangements for government outsourced service contracts ("contracts") which were at the tendering stage or already awarded during the period between 10 October 2018 and 31 March 2019 (collectively referred to as "improvement measures"). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
in respect of each of the four major procuring departments (i.e. the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, the Housing Department, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, as well as the Government Property Agency), of the number of contracts under the department which were in force in the past three years, and the number of employees involved in such contracts; the percentage of such employees in the department's overall manpower, and among such employees, the number of those who had not benefited from the improvement measures (with a breakdown by service category, range of hourly wages and contract period);
(2)
among the contracts currently in force under each of the aforesaid departments, of the number of those contracts which have stipulated paid meal breaks for employees, as well as the number of employees involved in such contracts and the percentage of such employees in the total number of employees engaged under all the contracts;
(3)
among the employees who were engaged under the contracts mentioned in (1) and had been employed under a continuous contract for not less than one year, of the number of those who were paid contractual gratuities in the past three years upon completion/termination of their contracts in accordance with the improvement measures, and the amounts involved; if there were employees who had not been paid the gratuities, of the reasons for that;
(4)
of a breakdown by type of the complaints received by the Government in the past three years about contractors failing to duly carry out their contractual obligations under the improvement measures, as well as the number of those cases in which the contractors concerned were penalized because the complaints had been found substantiated, and the penalties imposed; and
(5)
of the additional expenditure and the number of contracts involved in each of the years since the implementation of the improvement measures, and whether the Government has plans to: (i) review again the implementation situation of the improvement measures, (ii) extend the scope of application of such measures to the outsourced service contracts of public organizations and subvented service organizations, (iii) include in the contracts a provision that the contractor should provide paid meal breaks for its employees, (iv) further increase the weighting for "technical" (including employment terms and conditions for employees) scores in the marking schemes for tender assessments, as well as (v) downsize outsourced services and switch to employing staff on civil service agreement terms to provide services with a long term need?
Question 8
(For written reply)
(Translation)
The "Hong Kong Health Code" system
Dr Hon Junius HO to ask:
Due to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 ("COVID-19") epidemic, normal traveller clearance between Hong Kong and the Mainland has not been resumed for more than two years, and quarantine measures have caused great inconvenience to the flow of relevant personnel. In December last year, the Government, in preparation for quarantine-free travel between Hong Kong and the Mainland, launched the "Hong Kong Health Code" ("HKHC") system to facilitate HKHC users to transfer their personal data, including their COVID-19 nucleic acid test results and vaccination records, through the system to the "Guangdong Health Code" ("Yuekang Code") system for the purpose of health declaration upon entry to Guangdong Province. However, quite a number of members of the public have relayed that the procedures for applying for registration of an HKHC account are complicated, and some people are even unable to apply successfully for registration of an account. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the respective numbers of applications for account registration received, approved and rejected by the Government since the launch of the HKHC system;
(2)
whether it has compared the functions, operations as well as the merits and demerits of the HKHC system with those of the Yuekang Code system; if so, of the details; and
(3)
given that users of the HKHC system need to interface with the Yuekang Code system through the system's code conversion function when travelling between Hong Kong and the Mainland, whether the Government will explore introducing an HKHC that is mutually recognized by Hong Kong and the Mainland, or allowing users of the HKHC system to directly use the Yuekang Code system, so as to obviate the need for going through the process of code conversion between the systems?
Question 9
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Mobilizing healthcare resources of the Mainland and Hong Kong
to fight the epidemic
Hon YIM Kong to ask:
The number of persons confirmed to have contracted the Coronavirus Disease 2019 in Hong Kong hit the record high time and again in recent months, making the healthcare system severely overloaded. Recently, the State President has given important instructions on Hong Kong's work of fighting the epidemic, including that the Hong Kong SAR Government should mobilize all available manpower and resources, and that the various relevant Central Authorities and local authorities should render their full support to the Hong Kong SAR Government for it to accomplish the work of fighting the epidemic. It is learnt that the authorities and quite a number of enterprises on the Mainland have responded actively, and have planned to mobilize Mainland healthcare resources at various levels to help Hong Kong fight the epidemic, including offering Hong Kong people voluntary services such as free online diagnoses and treatments by appointment through a "State-owned Enterprises' Telehealth Platform" with which over 400 doctors from major Mainland hospitals have signed contracts. In addition, some Mainland enterprises and individuals have donated anti-epidemic proprietary Chinese medicines ("pCms") to Hong Kong people. In respect of mobilizing available healthcare resources of the Mainland and Hong Kong to fight the epidemic, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has, in view of the emergency situation of the epidemic, exempted the aforesaid healthcare platform and its Mainland doctors from the relevant statutory requirements in respect of licensing and registration for a specified period, so as to enable Mainland healthcare professionals to help Hong Kong fight the epidemic expeditiously; if so, whether it has, at the same time, exempted the Mainland-registered medicines prescribed by such doctors and provided by Mainland hospitals to Hong Kong patients from the relevant registration, and arranged a "green lane" for the speedy delivery of such medicines to Hong Kong patients; if it has not granted the relevant exemptions, of the reasons for that, and the measures put in place to mobilize Mainland healthcare resources to help Hong Kong fight the epidemic;
(2)
whether it has, in view of the emergency situation of the epidemic, exempted the Mainland-registered pCms donated by the aforesaid Mainland enterprises and individuals from registration, so as to enable such pCms to be distributed to Hong Kong people for free; if not, whether it has issued clear guidelines to prevent Mainland enterprises and individuals from donating pCms which are not permitted to be used in Hong Kong; and
(3)
as it has been reported that the authorities have recently mobilized private doctors in Hong Kong to provide remote diagnostic and treatment services to members of the public, of the specific plan for this; whether it has, at the same time, mobilized the registered Chinese medicine practitioners across the territory to provide such services; if not, of the reasons for that?
Question 10
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Solicitors practising as a solicitor corporation
Hon LAM San-keung to ask:
In 2017, the State President pointed out that the Hong Kong Government should be able to "make decisions after discussions and put the decisions into actions". However, quite a number of persons of the legal profession have relayed to me that the law-making process in Hong Kong is lengthy because the Government often "makes no decision after discussion and takes no action after a decision is made" in respect of legislative proposals on which the profession has been consulted. For example, the provisions relating to the incorporation of solicitors' practice ("the relevant provisions") in the Legal Services Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance 1997, which was enacted in as early as June 1997, have not yet been brought into operation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the reasons why the relevant provisions have not yet been brought into operation;
(2)
given that section 73(1)(a)(i) of the Legal Practitioners Ordinance (Cap. 159) empowers the Council of the Law Society of Hong Kong to make rules relating to the professional practice of solicitors and foreign lawyers, whether it knows the contents and the progress of drafting of the rules and subsidiary legislation relating to the incorporation of solicitors' practice, and when they will be introduced into this Council for scrutiny;
(3)
whether it has drawn up a timetable for implementing the relevant provisions and amending the relevant subsidiary legislation; if so, of the details; and
(4)
whether it has regularly reviewed the drafting and consultation processes of legislation; if so, of the details; of the measures in place to expedite such processes, so that the legislation in Hong Kong can keep pace with the times?
Question 11
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Costs of Coronavirus Disease 2019 testing services
Hon Kenneth LAU to ask:
Since 2020, the Government has been procuring Coronavirus Disease 2019 nucleic acid testing services ("testing services") from three private testing service providers (i.e. Sunrise Diagnostic Centre established by BGI, China Dragon Inspection and Certification (Hong Kong) Limited (a subsidiary of China Inspection Company Limited), and Prenetics) ("the contractors"), with the charge for each test from about $300. Some members of the public have queried that the Government's expenses on procuring testing services are higher than those of the authorities of the Mainland and Macao. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the following details, as at February this year, of the testing services procured by the Government: (i) the price for each test, (ii) the cumulative number of tests conducted, (iii) the cumulative testing expenses, (iv) the place of origin of the test reagent and (v) the cost of each dose of test reagent, and set out the relevant information by contractor;
(2)
whether it knows the following details of the testing services procured by the authorities of the Mainland and Macao: (i) the price for each test, (ii) the place of origin of the test reagent and (iii) the cost of each dose of test reagent, and set out the relevant information by contractor;
(3)
of the criteria and tendering procedure adopted by the Government for procuring testing services; whether it has (i) conducted a comparison between the prices paid by the Hong Kong Government and the authorities of the Mainland and Macao for procuring testing services, and examined the causes leading to the differences, and (ii) drawn reference from the relevant procurement experience of the Mainland and Macao, so as to study the feasibility of lowering the testing expenses (e.g. adopting test reagents produced on the Mainland); if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and how it ensures that the procurement price is reasonable; and
(4)
given that community testing centres provide self-paid testing services to members of the public through specimen collection of combined nasal and throat swabs, and the charge for each service is $240, whether it has provided subsidies to the contractors of the community testing centres for such self-paid testing service; if so, whether the rates of the subsidies provided to the contractors for each test are consistent, and of the respective rate of subsidy for each test as well as the cumulative amount of subsidy provided?
Question 12
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Ensuring libraries' collections comply with the requirements of
the Hong Kong National Security Law
Dr Hon Priscilla LEUNG to ask:
It has been reported that since the implementation of the Hong Kong National Security Law, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD") has, on several occasions, reviewed whether the collections of its public libraries comply with the requirements of the Hong Kong National Security Law, and removed some of the books from the shelves. In addition, the Education Bureau has issued a circular to schools to remind them to remove from their libraries' collections those books which are suspected to be in breach of the Law. On ensuring libraries' collections comply with the requirements of the Hong Kong National Security Law, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the number of items of library materials in LCSD's public libraries that LCSD has reviewed in the light of the implementation of the Hong Kong National Security Law, and set out, by the title of such materials, the categories (e.g. books, videos, e-books) to which such materials belong, as well as the authors/speakers and the review results of such materials;
(2)
as some government subvented organizations (e.g. schools and social welfare organizations) have set up libraries, whether the Government has made available a list of those library materials which the public libraries have already removed from the shelves for reference by the operators concerned, or conducted inspections on such libraries so as to ensure their collections comply with the requirements of the Hong Kong National Security Law; and
(3)
whether it has grasped the current number of private libraries in Hong Kong which are open to the public, and the situation of their operators' compliance with the Hong Kong National Security Law; if so, of the details; if not, whether it will expeditiously conduct a review, and the ways for ensuring the collections concerned comply with the requirements of the Law?
Question 13
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Land resumption in and development of
the Northern Metropolis
Hon CHAN Yuet-ming to ask:
Regarding the land resumption in and development of the Northern Metropolis, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has plans to invoke the Lands Resumption Ordinance (Cap. 124) to resume lands for the development of the Northern Metropolis; if so, of the location, area and compensation arrangements in respect of the lands concerned;
(2)
whether the lands resumed by virtue of Cap. 124 as mentioned in (1) will be included in the Land Sale Programme; if so, of the details, and whether there were any precedents; if so, of the following information in respect of such lands in the past 10 years: year of land resumption, year of sale to developer, land premium, location, lot number and area (set out in a table); and
(3)
whether it will introduce policies for the Northern Metropolis whereby village land will be developed jointly by land stakeholders and developers, and revise the New Territories Small House Policy so that small buildings can be constructed by combining the small house concessionary rights (i.e. the entitlement of a New Territories male indigenous villager over 18 years old to one concessionary grant during his lifetime to build one small house), with a view to optimizing the use of valuable land resources, addressing the housing problems of villagers, and allowing villagers to share the benefits of land development; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Question 14
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Attracting China Concept Stock companies to list in Hong Kong
Prof Hon Nelson LAM to ask:
The Financial Secretary has pointed out in the Budget delivered in February this year that, as Mainland enterprises need to face increased risks and uncertainties of listing in overseas markets, quite a number of China Concept Stock ("CCS") companies have chosen to return. The Government has already made preparations for attracting quality CCS companies to list in Hong Kong, so as to enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong as a global financing platform. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has formulated specific plans for attracting quality CCS companies to list in Hong Kong; if so, of the details and timetable;
(2)
as there are analyses pointing out that with the United States ("US") Congress's passage of the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act in 2020, CCS companies failing to meet the relevant audit requirements need to be delisted from the US in 2024 at the earliest, whether the Government has assessed the number of CCS companies which may be affected and need to switch to listing in Hong Kong; and
(3)
as there are comments pointing out that political conflicts between China and the US may result in the need for CCS companies to be delisted from the US and switch to listing in Hong Kong within an extremely short period of time, whether the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited and the relevant regulators have put in place contingency mechanisms and measures to regulate the relevant CCS companies; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Question 15
(For written reply)
Relief measures regarding
uncompleted residential developments
Hon Louis LOONG to ask:
Some members of the real estate and construction sectors have relayed that recently, the severe outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 ("COVID-19") epidemic has caused the suspension of various government services, hence a significant delay in the processes for securing statutory approvals (e.g. approvals for general building plans from the Buildings Department and the Lands Department) and various approvals under lease for developments. Furthermore, as construction sites have to be closed upon discovery of confirmed COVID-19 cases to prevent the spread of the epidemic, the overall progress of the construction works of uncompleted residential developments has been significantly delayed, causing serious difficulties for their timely completion. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it will consider offering a new round of free extension of the Building Covenant ("BC") period similar to the relief measure it introduced in April 2020; if so, of the time span of such free extension;
(2)
whether it will consider amending the standard form of Agreement for Sale and Purchase ("ASP") under the Lands Department Consent Scheme ("the Scheme") for sale of residential units in uncompleted developments to expressly include the outbreak of a pandemic/epidemic as one of the reasons that the Authorized Person ("AP") for a development may grant an extension of the material date for completion of the development; if so, whether the Government will consider taking steps, such as issuance of a practice note or circular letter, to provide clear guidance on the same to APs of those developments in respect of which uncompleted units have already been sold under the Scheme but have encountered difficulties in timely completion due to the COVID-19 epidemic; and
(3)
whether it will, in the imminent future, implement other relief measures to help the sectors to minimize the risks involved in not being able to comply with the BC period or the material date as specified in the ASP under the Scheme due to the severe outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic?
Question 16
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Demand and supply situation
of native-speaking English teachers
Hon Michael TIEN to ask:
The Education Bureau ("EDB") has implemented since 1998 the Native-speaking English Teacher Scheme ("NET Scheme") in public-sector primary and secondary schools to provide one native-speaking English teacher ("NET") post for each public-sector primary and secondary school that meets the relevant criteria. It is learnt that given the prolonged closure of boundary control points due to the ongoing epidemic in Hong Kong, there has been an imbalance in the demand for and supply of NETs caused by quite a number of NETs leaving Hong Kong for reasons of homesickness or family reunion, etc. on the one hand, and the difficulties faced by schools in recruiting NETs from overseas to fill the vacancies on the other. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the respective numbers of retention and attrition of NETs in public-sector primary and secondary schools and the corresponding percentages, in each of the past five school years; the projection of the relevant figures for the current and next school years;
(2)
of EDB's measures to resolve the problem of demand-supply imbalance of NETs;
(3)
as quite a number of schools have relayed that the long period of compulsory quarantine required to be undergone by persons arriving from overseas to Hong Kong has been the main reason for NETs' leaving the service or their reluctance to come and teach in Hong Kong during the epidemic, of the corresponding countermeasures put in place by EDB; and
(4)
given that it has been over four years since the Government completed in 2016 and 2017 respectively its evaluation of the "NET Scheme in Primary Schools" and the "Enhanced NET Scheme in Secondary Schools" under the NET Scheme, whether EDB has plans to conduct the relevant evaluation afresh with a view to reviewing the objectives and effectiveness of the NET Scheme in a timely manner, thereby ensuring the proper use of education resources; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Question 17
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Values education on national identity
Hon TANG Fei to ask:
There are comments pointing out that the "anti-national education" incident, the illegal "Occupy Central" Movement and the illegal incidents of serious violence that took place in Hong Kong in the past all involved the participation of a large number of young students, reflecting that there was a serious problem with values education in Hong Kong. With the further implementation of "patriots administering Hong Kong" in Hong Kong, the Education Bureau ("EDB") has introduced the Values Education Curriculum Framework, proposing to nurture in students 10 values, including "national identity", and encouraging schools to implement national education to help students learn about the country's Constitution, the Basic Law and the Hong Kong National Security Law, etc. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
of the specific measures adopted by EDB for changing the situation where national education cannot be fully rolled out in schools in the past; how it ensures that such measures are effective in reversing the seriously distorted values of students;
(2)
whether EDB has considered consolidating the learning elements relating to national education currently embedded in different subjects and teaching them as an independent subject, so as to resolve the problem of "fragmentation" of national education, thereby enabling students to receive national education in a more systematic manner and foster a stronger value of national identity; and
(3)
how EDB will further enhance national education, including whether it will design syllabuses and teaching contents that cater for the characteristics of students of different age groups, so as to elevate students' learning interest and sense of national identity?
Question 18
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Payment arrangements for residential property transactions
Hon CHAN Chun-ying to ask:
It is learnt that as the existing payment arrangements for residential property transactions (i.e. the practice of banks disbursing mortgage loans through law firms) may pose risks to the banks and customers concerned, the Hong Kong Association of Banks and the Hong Kong Association of Restricted Licence Banks and Deposit-taking Companies ("the industry associations"), in consultation with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, have formulated a proposal on payment arrangements for property transactions ("the new proposal") and sought comments thereon from their member institutions, and will also test out the operational processes of the new proposal. The new proposal suggests that the mortgage loan proceeds advanced to the buyer should, without routing through the account of the law firm engaged by the buyer, be disbursed to the seller's mortgage bank directly by the buyer's mortgage bank, which should issue a payment confirmation with irrevocable effect to the buyer's lawyer for confirmation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it knows the comments which the industry associations have received during their consultation with their member institutions on the new proposal;
(2)
whether it has studied what aspects in the property transaction process require the special attention of both buyers and sellers under the new proposal;
(3)
whether it has studied the circumstances under which the payment confirmation issued by a bank will cease to have irrevocable effect, and if there are any remedial measures in place; and
(4)
whether it knows the details of the test conducted on the operational processes of the new proposal; whether it will engage an independent third party organization to review the relevant results?
Question 19
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Default on maintenance payments
Hon Doreen KONG to ask:
Some women's groups have relayed to me that the situation of default on maintenance payments has worsened in recent years, and persons who are owed maintenance payments have no way to lodge complaints. The Government indicated in June 2019 that it had commissioned through the Family Council a research team in June 2018 to conduct a "Further Study on the Phenomenon of Divorce in Hong Kong", which would explore matters relating to maintenance payments, and the study was expected to be completed within 18 months. However, the Government indicated in May 2021 that the study was still underway. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether the authorities have completed compiling a report on the aforesaid study; if not, of the reasons for that;
(2)
whether the authorities have compiled the study report based on the information collected in or before 2018; if so, whether it has assessed if the report can fully reflect the recent actual situation in Hong Kong, including the impacts of the economic downturn amid the epidemic on the situation of default on maintenance payments; and
(3)
as the Government indicated in May 2021 that the study report would be submitted to the Family Council for consideration and discussion, and the Government would, having regard to the findings of the study, the views of the Family Council and other relevant factors, consider the way forward, whether the Government has commenced the relevant work; if so, of the specific timetable for the future work?
Question 20
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Preventing the spread of the epidemic from animals to humans
Hon CHEUNG Kwok-kwan to ask:
In January this year, samples of hamsters collected from a pet shop were tested positive for the Coronavirus Disease 2019 virus. To minimize the risks of spreading the epidemic, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department ("AFCD") strongly advised members of the public to surrender their hamsters purchased from local pet shops which involved two import consignments to AFCD for humane dispatch. However, some people stopped members of the public from surrendering hamsters to AFCD outside the New Territories South Animal Management Centre of AFCD, and took over the hamsters concerned. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether the existing legislation (including the Public Health (Animals and Birds) Ordinance (Cap. 139) and the Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance (Cap. 599), as well as the related subsidiary legislation) expressly empowers AFCD, the Department of Health or other government departments to (i) order members of the public to surrender a particular type of animals kept by them on the ground that there is a risk of virus transmission from such type of animals to humans, and (ii) impose penalties on those persons who obstruct members of the public from complying with such an order; if so, of the reasons why the relevant government departments did not exercise such powers in the aforesaid incident; if not, whether it will amend the legislation to expressly confer such powers on the relevant departments to enable them to effectively discharge their duties of protecting public hygiene and safeguarding the health of members of the public?
Question 21
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Dental care services
Dr Hon TAN Yueheng to ask:
Some members of the public have relayed that there are only 11 public dental clinics in Hong Kong, and the shortfall in services has very often driven members of the public to seek consultation from private dentists. Moreover, given the exorbitant fees charged by private dentists and the Government's inadequate support for the elderly in respect of dental services, many grass-roots elderly do not seek treatment until their conditions have aggravated, thus missing the opportunities to receive early diagnosis and treatment. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it will review the policy concerning the provision of dental services to the elderly and, by drawing reference from the practice of setting oral health goals for different age groups (i.e. people aged 5, 12, 18 and 35 to 44), set such goals for the elderly; if so, of the details;
(2)
whether it will raise the amount of subsidy granted under the Elderly Dental Assistance Programme and relax the eligibility criteria; if so, of the details and timetable;
(3)
given that the 40-odd government dental clinics in Hong Kong mainly provide services to civil servants and their dependants at present, and only a small number of them provide the public with general public dental services at designated sessions, whether the Government will consider assigning more clinics for providing such services and increasing the number of consultation sessions for such services; if so, of the details; and
(4)
as there are views that the ratio of the number of dentists to the population is very low in Hong Kong, whether the Government has any measures in place to increase the number of dentists; if so, of the details and timetable?
Question 22
(For written reply)
(Translation)
Facilitating the achievement of carbon neutrality
in existing buildings
Hon LAM So-wai to ask:
Last year, the Environment Bureau announced "Hong Kong's Climate Action Plan 2050", setting a target for Hong Kong to achieve carbon neutrality before 2050. According to an estimate by a non-profit-making organization, for the majority of some 42 000 existing buildings in Hong Kong, assessments relating to green buildings have not been conducted nor has information relating to energy saving and emission reduction been prepared. On facilitating the achievement of carbon neutrality in existing buildings, will the Government inform this Council:
(1)
whether it has plans to assist the minority owners or property management companies of existing buildings in conducting assessments relating to green buildings or preparing information relating to energy saving and emission reduction, so that members of the public can understand the progress of achieving carbon neutrality in various existing buildings; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(2)
whether it has provided appropriate support for the minority owners or property management companies of existing buildings to assist them in carrying out building energy saving improvement works, thereby enhancing the energy efficiency of the buildings and expediting the achievement of carbon neutrality in such buildings; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(3)
whether it will set up a one-stop platform to facilitate the minority owners and property management companies of existing buildings to engage contractors, through simple tender procedures, for carrying out building energy saving improvement works and preparing information relating to energy saving and emission reduction; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?