LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5253
OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
Wednesday, 22 April 2020
The Council met at Eleven o'clock
MEMBERS PRESENT:
THE PRESIDENT THE HONOURABLE ANDREW LEUNG KWAN-YUEN, G.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE JAMES TO KUN-SUN
THE HONOURABLE LEUNG YIU-CHUNG
THE HONOURABLE ABRAHAM SHEK LAI-HIM, G.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE TOMMY CHEUNG YU-YAN, G.B.S., J.P.
PROF THE HONOURABLE JOSEPH LEE KOK-LONG, S.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE JEFFREY LAM KIN-FUNG, G.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE WONG TING-KWONG, G.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE STARRY LEE WAI-KING, S.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE CHAN HAK-KAN, B.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE CHAN KIN-POR, G.B.S., J.P.
DR THE HONOURABLE PRISCILLA LEUNG MEI-FUN, S.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE WONG KWOK-KIN, S.B.S., J.P.
5254 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
THE HONOURABLE MRS REGINA IP LAU SUK-YEE, G.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE CLAUDIA MO
THE HONOURABLE MICHAEL TIEN PUK-SUN, B.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE STEVEN HO CHUN-YIN, B.B.S.
THE HONOURABLE FRANKIE YICK CHI-MING, S.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE WU CHI-WAI, M.H.
THE HONOURABLE YIU SI-WING, B.B.S.
THE HONOURABLE MA FUNG-KWOK, S.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE CHARLES PETER MOK, J.P.
THE HONOURABLE CHAN CHI-CHUEN
THE HONOURABLE CHAN HAN-PAN, B.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE LEUNG CHE-CHEUNG, S.B.S., M.H., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE KENNETH LEUNG
THE HONOURABLE ALICE MAK MEI-KUEN, B.B.S., J.P.
DR THE HONOURABLE KWOK KA-KI
THE HONOURABLE KWOK WAI-KEUNG, J.P.
THE HONOURABLE DENNIS KWOK WING-HANG
THE HONOURABLE CHRISTOPHER CHEUNG WAH-FUNG, S.B.S., J.P.
DR THE HONOURABLE FERNANDO CHEUNG CHIU-HUNG
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5255
DR THE HONOURABLE HELENA WONG PIK-WAN
THE HONOURABLE IP KIN-YUEN
THE HONOURABLE ELIZABETH QUAT, B.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE MARTIN LIAO CHEUNG-KONG, G.B.S., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE POON SIU-PING, B.B.S., M.H.
DR THE HONOURABLE CHIANG LAI-WAN, S.B.S., J.P.
IR DR THE HONOURABLE LO WAI-KWOK, S.B.S., M.H., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE CHUNG KWOK-PAN
THE HONOURABLE ALVIN YEUNG
THE HONOURABLE ANDREW WAN SIU-KIN
THE HONOURABLE CHU HOI-DICK
THE HONOURABLE JIMMY NG WING-KA, B.B.S., J.P.
DR THE HONOURABLE JUNIUS HO KWAN-YIU, J.P.
THE HONOURABLE HO KAI-MING
THE HONOURABLE LAM CHEUK-TING
THE HONOURABLE HOLDEN CHOW HO-DING
THE HONOURABLE SHIU KA-FAI, J.P.
THE HONOURABLE SHIU KA-CHUN
THE HONOURABLE WILSON OR CHONG-SHING, M.H.
5256 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
THE HONOURABLE YUNG HOI-YAN, J.P.
DR THE HONOURABLE PIERRE CHAN
THE HONOURABLE CHAN CHUN-YING, J.P.
THE HONOURABLE HUI CHI-FUNG
THE HONOURABLE LUK CHUNG-HUNG, J.P.
THE HONOURABLE LAU KWOK-FAN, M.H.
THE HONOURABLE KENNETH LAU IP-KEUNG, B.B.S., M.H., J.P.
DR THE HONOURABLE CHENG CHUNG-TAI
THE HONOURABLE JEREMY TAM MAN-HO
THE HONOURABLE VINCENT CHENG WING-SHUN, M.H., J.P.
THE HONOURABLE TONY TSE WAI-CHUEN, B.B.S.
THE HONOURABLE CHAN HOI-YAN
MEMBERS ABSENT:
THE HONOURABLE PAUL TSE WAI-CHUN, J.P.
THE HONOURABLE TANYA CHAN
THE HONOURABLE CHEUNG KWOK-KWAN, J.P.
THE HONOURABLE KWONG CHUN-YU
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5257
PUBLIC OFFICERS ATTENDING:
THE HONOURABLE PAUL CHAN MO-PO, G.B.M., G.B.S., M.H., J.P. FINANCIAL SECRETARY
THE HONOURABLE WONG KAM-SING, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
DR THE HONOURABLE LAW CHI-KWONG, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE
THE HONOURABLE JOHN LEE KA-CHIU, S.B.S., P.D.S.M., J.P. SECRETARY FOR SECURITY
THE HONOURABLE FRANK CHAN FAN, J.P. SECRETARY FOR TRANSPORT AND HOUSING
THE HONOURABLE KEVIN YEUNG YUN-HUNG, J.P. SECRETARY FOR EDUCATION
CLERKS IN ATTENDANCE:
MR KENNETH CHEN WEI-ON, S.B.S., SECRETARY GENERAL
MISS ODELIA LEUNG HING-YEE, DEPUTY SECRETARY GENERAL
MS DORA WAI, ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL
5258 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Will the Clerk please ring the bell to summon Members to the Chamber.
(After the summoning bell had been rung, a number of Members entered the Chamber)
LAYING OF PAPERS ON THE TABLE OF THE COUNCIL
The following papers were laid on the table under Rule 21(2) of the Rules of Procedure:
Subsidiary Legislation Legal Notice No.
Employees Retraining Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 4) Notice 2020 ...... 29 of 2020
Prevention and Control of Disease (Requirements and Directions) (Business and Premises) Regulation ...... 31 of 2020
Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition on Group Gathering) Regulation ...... 32 of 2020
Prevention and Control of Disease (Requirements and Directions) (Business and Premises) (Amendment) Regulation 2020...... 33 of 2020
Road Tunnels (Government) Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 1) Notice 2020...... 34 of 2020
Road Tunnels (Government) (Amendment) Regulation 2020 ...... 35 of 2020
Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) (Amendment) Regulation 2020 ...... 36 of 2020
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5259
Tsing Ma Control Area (Tolls, Fees and Charges) (Amendment) Regulation 2020 ...... 37 of 2020
Tsing Ma Control Area (General) (Amendment) Regulation 2020 ...... 38 of 2020
Road Traffic (Construction and Maintenance of Vehicles) (Amendment) Regulation 2020 ...... 39 of 2020
Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2020 ...... 40 of 2020
Pharmacy and Poisons (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2020 ...... 41 of 2020
Inland Revenue Ordinance (Amendment of Section 50A) Notice 2020 ...... 42 of 2020
Inland Revenue Ordinance (Amendment of Schedule 17D) Notice 2020 ...... 43 of 2020
Other Papers
Hong Kong Rotary Club Students' Loan Fund Financial Statements for the year ended 31 August 2019 (including Report of the Director of Audit)
Sing Tao Charitable Foundation Students' Loan Fund Financial Statements for the year ended 31 August 2019 (including Report of the Director of Audit)
HKSAR Government Scholarship Fund Financial Statements for the year ended 31 August 2019 (including Report of the Director of Audit)
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Self-financing Post-secondary Education Fund Financial Statements for the year ended 31 August 2019 (including Report of the Director of Audit)
Quality Education Fund Financial Statements for the year ended 31 August 2019 (including Report of the Director of Audit)
Education Development Fund Financial Statements for the year ended 31 August 2019 (including Report of the Director of Audit)
Qualifications Framework Fund Financial Statements for the year ended 31 August 2019 (including Report of the Director of Audit)
AIDS Trust Fund 2018-19 Annual Report, Financial Statements and Report of the Director of Audit for the year ended 31 March 2019
Financial Reporting Council Annual Report 2019 (including Financial Statements and Report of the Director of Audit)
Insurance Authority Estimates of Income and Expenditure for 2020-21
Report of changes made to the approved Estimates of Expenditure during the third quarter of 2019-20 Public Finance Ordinance : Section 8
The Government Minute in response to the Report of the Public Accounts Committee No. 72A of December 2019
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WRITTEN ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
The Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund
1. MR POON SIU-PING (in Chinese): President, some trade unions have relayed that in recent months, quite a number of workers who have been owed wages have applied for ex gratia payments from the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund ("the Fund") but, after a protracted period of time, have not been issued such payments for meeting their imminent needs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of applications for ex gratia payments (i) received, (ii) processed and (iii) approved, by the Fund in each month since January 2019, and the respective numbers of employees involved in such applications;
(2) of (i) the average and (ii) the longest durations between the time when the Labour Department ("LD") received a request for assistance from an employee in respect of wage defaults and the time when all information needed for processing the employee's application for an ex gratia payment by the Fund was available, in the past three years; if such figures are unavailable, of the reasons for that;
(3) of (i) the average and (ii) the longest duration between the time when LD received a request for assistance from an employee in respect of wage defaults and the time when the Fund disbursed an ex gratia payment to the employee concerned, in the past three years; if such figures are unavailable, of the reasons for that;
(4) given that the number of applications to the Fund for ex gratia payments is expected to increase sharply in the coming few months amid Hong Kong's worsening economic situation, whether LD will deploy additional manpower to process such applications, and whether the Government will consider revamping the procedures for applying for and disbursement of ex gratia payments with a view to expediting the disbursement to applicants of those ex gratia payments related to undisputed payments on default; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
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(5) as the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund Board has indicated that in 2018-2019, it continued its review of the scope of protection of the Fund and the ceilings for ex gratia payments, of the progress and outcome of the review?
SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE (in Chinese): President, my reply to the Member's question is as follows:
(1) From January 2019 to March 2020, the number of applications received in each month by the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund ("the Fund") is set out at Annex 1. During the same period, the number of applications processed and the number of applications with ex gratia payment approved are set out at Annex 2. Applications are reckoned on a per-employee basis. Hence, the number of applications is the same as the number of employees involved.
(2) and (3)
Upon receipt of applications to the Fund from employees, the Labour Department ("LD") will kick off the procedures of handling such applications immediately, which include liaising with employers, provisional liquidators/liquidators, trustees of Mandatory Provident Fund ("MPF") schemes, the Legal Aid Department, and, where necessary, requesting the applicants to provide further information, etc., for the purpose of collecting the necessary information and documents for verifying the applications and making ex gratia payment. Ex gratia payment could only be granted to qualified applicants after LD has received all the relevant information and documents required for processing the applications. Yet whether the information and documents are adequate is often beyond the control of LD (for example, it takes a longer time for individual employers or liquidators to compile the employment records of employees, individual employees are unable to promptly furnish information to support their applications, etc.). As such, LD does not keep information on the durations between the time when LD receives a request for assistance from an employee in respect of wage defaults and the time when all information needed for processing the employee's application for an ex gratia payment by LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5263
the Fund is available or the time when the Fund effects an ex gratia payment to the employee concerned. Instead, LD keeps information on the time required to effect payment upon receipt of all information and documents required for processing the applications. From 2017 to 2019, the average time and the longest time required to effect payment upon receipt of all information and documents required for processing the applications by LD are set out at Annex 3.
(4) The number of applications to the Fund has been closely related to economic changes. LD will continue to monitor applications to the Fund. If necessary, LD will arrange internal deployment and increase manpower to handle the possible rise in the number of applications. Besides, LD will review the procedures of verification of applications from time to time with a view to issuing ex gratia payment as soon as practicable.
(5) Based on the information and data gathered, the Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund Board ("the Board") has been conducting a review of the scope of coverage of all the payment items under the Fund. In the process, the Board has to examine with prudence all the relevant information, including the possible impact of the abolition of the arrangement for "offsetting" severance payment/long service payment with MPF contributions on the financial position of the Fund for the purpose of thoroughly considering the matter. When the result of the review is available, the Government will consult the Labour Advisory Board and report to the Panel on Manpower of the Legislative Council.
Annex 1
Number of applications to the Fund received from January 2019 to March 2020
Month Number of applications received January 2019 303 February 2019 196 March 2019 539 April 2019 231 5264 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Month Number of applications received May 2019 171 June 2019 178 July 2019 151 August 2019 256 September 2019 146 October 2019 304 November 2019 375 December 2019 321 January 2020 324 February 2020 148 March 2020 166
Note:
Applications are reckoned on a per-employee basis. Hence, the number of applications is the same as the number of employees involved.
Annex 2
Numbers of applications to the Fund for ex gratia payment processed and approved from January 2019 to March 2020
Number of applications Number of applications Month processed* approved* January 2019 202 183 February 2019 100 73 March 2019 141 100 April 2019 357 326 May 2019 247 202 June 2019 152 131 July 2019 284 268 August 2019 321 298 September 2019 448 406 October 2019 303 293 November 2019 135 91 December 2019 175 153 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5265
Number of applications Number of applications Month processed* approved* January 2020 180 158 February 2020 120 108 March 2020 245 232
Notes:
* Including applications received in the same period or before.
Applications are reckoned on a per-employee basis. Hence, the number of applications is the same as the number of employees involved.
Annex 3
Time required to effect ex gratia payment from the Fund from 2017 to 2019
Time required to effect payment upon receipt of all information and documents required for 2017 2018 2019 processing the applications by LD Average time 2.2 weeks 2.1 weeks 2.2 weeks Longest time 10 weeks 7.7 weeks 6.1 weeks
Opening up facilities of the Fanling Golf Course
2. MS TANYA CHAN (in Chinese): President, the Fanling Golf Course ("FGC") is a sports and recreational facility developed by the Hong Kong Golf Club for use by its members on a piece of land leased from the Government under a private recreational lease ("PRL"). Under the relevant clause of PRL, FGC is currently required to open up its facilities for use by eligible outside bodies only for a maximum of three sessions of three hours each per week. In addition, the lessee of the land where FGC is located voluntarily opens up FGC's facilities for use by eligible outside bodies from Monday to Friday, as well as its night range for public use from 6 pm to 10 pm every day. However, some members of the public have pointed out that in recent months, the driving range has often been fully booked in no time, rendering them unable to book the relevant facilities on many occasions. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
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(1) whether it knows the utilization rate of FGC, as well as the number of days and number of hours for which the relevant facilities were available for booking and actually hired by non-members, in each month of the past two years, with a tabulated breakdown by the targets to which the facilities were opened up (i.e. eligible outside bodies and the public); if not, whether it will request the lessee concerned to provide such data;
(2) even though the Government has indicated that it will, when granting FGC a new PRL, add a clause requiring "the further opening up of facilities to outside bodies" (i.e. requiring the lessee to open up 30% of its total sports and recreational facility capacity to eligible outside bodies, and co-organize at least 240 hours of sports activities every month with sports bodies for participation by members of the public), FGC still occupies as vast as 140 hectares of land upon excluding 32 hectares to be used for housing purpose, whether the Government will, in the new PRL, require the lessee to open up more than 30% of the facilities to outside bodies and increase the number of opening hours ; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(3) whether it has gained an understanding from the lessee concerned as to why members of the public have been unable to book FGC's driving range on many occasions in recent months, and requested the lessee to examine (i) whether there have been cases of persons being improperly given the right to make priority bookings or failing to take up their booked sessions on multiple occasions, and (ii) whether appropriate follow-up actions have been taken in respect of such cases?
SECRETARY FOR HOME AFFAIRS (in Chinese): President, in 2011, the Executive Council ("ExCo") approved the modification on the policy of Private Recreational Leases ("PRL") pertaining to the requirement of opening up sports facilities to eligible outside bodies, i.e. adjusting from a maximum of 3 sessions of 3 hours per week to a minimum of 50 hours per month. The modified requirement for opening up facilities is applicable to the renewal of leases which expired in 2011 and 2012.
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The current lease of the Fanling Golf Course ("FGC"), which was granted in 1999 and will expire in August 2020, is not subject to the modification approved by ExCo in 2011. Nevertheless, the Hong Kong Golf Club ("HKGC") has voluntarily followed ExCo's modification and opened up its sports facilities to eligible outside bodies(1) for at least 50 hours per month. Details have been uploaded onto the website of the Home Affairs Bureau:
My reply to the three parts of the question is as follows:
(1) The Home Affairs Bureau requires PRL holders to submit quarterly reports for monitoring utilization of facilities on PRL sites. The reports contain quarterly data without monthly breakdown. Information on utilization of FGC's facilities is tabulated below:
Actual number of hours utilized Quarter Eligible outside bodies Non-members 2018 Q1 3 647 55 193 Q2 4 855 44 685 Q3 2 298 33 462 Q4 4 497 56 867 2019 Q1 4 738 61 750 Q2 6 525 47 259 Q3 4 438 48 842 Q4 4 292 62 088
(1) Eligible outside bodies include schools registered under the Education Ordinance, non-governmental organizations receiving recurrent subventions from the Social Welfare Department, uniformed groups, youth organizations, national sports associations and government departments. In accordance with the new PRL policy, the existing categories of eligible outside bodies have been expanded to include member organizations of the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China; sports organizations affiliated to national sports associations; district sports associations; the Hong Kong Schools Sports Federation; the New Territories Regional Sports Association; and sports organizations funded by government departments since 2019. 5268 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
According to the information provided by HKGC, around 120 000 golf rounds(2) were played annually in the past two years at FGC, with eligible outside bodies and non-members accounting for about 40% of the total utilization.
(2) Sports and recreational facilities of private sports clubs vary in type, quantity and area occupied. The extent to which such facilities are opened up is therefore calculated based on their total sports and recreational facility capacity, instead of the size of the land. Specifically, according to the new PRL policy, private sports clubs are required to further open up their sports and recreational facilities, including opening up at least 30% of the total sports capacity of such facilities to eligible outside bodies, and partner with sports organizations to organize sports programmes that are open for enrolment by members of the public with a minimum of 240 sports programme hours per month.
When applying for renewal upon expiry of the current lease of FGC, a new plan on the opening up of facilities has to be submitted. The new plan will be approved only if it complies with the relevant requirement under the new policy.
(3) The driving range open for use at FGC has 27 bays, which are available for booking on a first-come-first-served basis by members of the public from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm every day. In general, facilities at the driving range are able to meet the daily public demand. However, the demand for the driving range has increased at the initial stage of the COVID-19 epidemic due to closure of other golf courses and reduction in the number of golfers who played in the Mainland. Given the subsequent severe situation of the epidemic, all PRL sites (including FGC) have, as required by the Government, closed their sports and recreational facilities since 24 March this year until further notice.
(2) There are a maximum of four players in the same flight. Each individual playing on a course will be counted as one golf round. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5269
Resettlement arrangements for residents in the residential care homes for the elderly in the Dills Corner Garden
3. MR ANDREW WAN (in Chinese): President, to take forward the Kwu Tung North New Development Area project, the Government will clear, by two phases, the 15 private residential care homes for the elderly ("RCHEs") in Dills Corner Garden ("DCG"), and will construct on a nearby site a purpose-built multi-welfare services complex with seven contract RCHEs to rehouse the eligible residents affected by the clearance. According to the Government, as it is expected that the RCHEs concerned will not be commissioned until 2023, the Government will make transitional arrangements for the affected residents, and will establish an inter-departmental working group for maintaining close liaison with the operators of all RCHEs in DCG, in the hope that there will be "no time gap" between the clearance and resettlement. It has been reported that the first-phase clearance will commence in the second quarter of this year, affecting a total of around 140 residents in four RCHEs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the specific measures in place to achieve the aforesaid "no time gap" objective;
(2) of the latest progress of the transitional arrangements made for the residents affected by the first-phase clearance, including the number of transitional residential places and, among them, the respective numbers of EA1 and EA2 places under the Enhanced Bought Place Scheme; whether it has examined if such places meet the care needs of the residents concerned; given the rampant Coronavirus Disease 2019 epidemic at present, whether it will examine postponing the first-phase clearance to avoid the residents being exposed to greater infection risks caused by their relocation;
(3) when it will conduct registration for the residents affected by the two phases of clearance in order to confirm their eligibility for admission to the new contract RCHEs;
(4) of the number of meetings held by the aforesaid working group to date, and the date of the last meeting held; the plans of the working group on enhancing its coordination with the operators of the various RCHEs in DCG; and
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(5) whether it will examine awarding the contracts for operating the new RCHEs through restricted tendering under which only the operators of all RCHEs in DCG are invited to bid for the contracts, so as to maximize the number of affected residents who, upon moving into the new RCHEs, will continue to be taken care of by the existing RCHE staff with whom they are familiar?
SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE (in Chinese): President, in consultation with the Development Bureau, my reply to the Member's question is as follows:
The Dills Corner Garden ("DCG") will be cleared in two phases. The first phase of clearance affecting four residential care homes for the elderly ("RCHEs") will take place in end-June 2020. The second phase affecting the remaining RCHEs will tentatively be conducted in 2023. Having regard to the wish of some affected elderly residents to be accommodated in the vicinity of DCG, the Government commenced the construction of a new Multi-welfare Services Complex ("the Complex") in the neighbouring Area 29 in December 2019. The Complex, which is expected to commence operation before the second phase clearance in 2023, will comprise seven contract RCHEs. Five of these RCHEs providing around 1 250 places (including both subsidized and non-subsidized places) will be made available to elderly residents of existing RCHEs in DCG, which are sufficient to accommodate the total of around 900 existing residents.
The Social Welfare Department ("SWD") has arranged registration for all elderly residents of RCHEs affected by the first phase clearance on 17 March 2020. A total of 150 residents (including two residents of EA2 places under the Enhanced Bought Place Scheme ("EBPS")) were confirmed to be eligible for moving into the contract RCHEs after the commissioning of the Complex.
The Government understands that residents affected by first phase clearance generally wish to continue living in DCG during the transitional period (i.e. before the commissioning of the Complex). In this connection, the Government is converting Block 3, which is not affected by first phase clearance, to provide additional residential care places. Along with the remaining vacant places in DCG, over 150 residential care places (including those under EBPS) will be available which is sufficient to accommodate all elderly residents affected by first phase clearance. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5271
The Government will closely monitor the epidemic situation of COVID-19 and maintain close liaison with RCHE operators concerned with a view to preparing for first phase clearance in end-June 2020, including taking precautionary measures to protect the affected elderly residents.
An inter-departmental working group was set up by the Government in 2014 on the clearance of DCG. The working group convened a total of seven meetings with the operators concerned. At the 7th meeting held on 3 October 2019, the Government explained to the operators arrangements of the clearance and assistance to be provided to the affected residents. SWD staff have contacted residents affected by the first phase clearance to explain the relocation arrangements and Government's assistance multiple times. On 23 October 2019, SWD staff delivered notification letters in person to affected residents, who were subsequently provided with follow-up assistance by social workers to address their needs. On 17 March 2020, when conducting registration for the affected residents, SWD staff delivered notification letters in person and explained again the relocation arrangements. SWD has also set up an enquiry hotline since October 2019 for affected elderly residents and their families to make enquiries on clearance related matters.
Apart from the inter-departmental working group meetings, representatives of government departments have discussed multiple times with the operators on issues of their concern and the relocation arrangements for residents affected by the first phase clearance. On 22 January 2020, representatives of government departments attended a case conference with Legislative Council members to discuss the relocation arrangements and Government's assistance. On 6 March 2020, representatives of government departments met with the RCHE operators and Legislative Council members to follow up on the Government's assistance. The Government calls on all operators to work with the interests of elderly residents in mind, and secure the relocation arrangements for affected residents as soon as possible through joint efforts.
The seven contract RCHEs in the Complex are not intended for lease. In line with the established policies and with a view to ensuring the service quality of all contract RCHEs, the Government will invite service providers to bid for service contracts of the RCHEs concerned through open tender in accordance with the "fair and impartial" principle, so as to select the tenderers that can provide the best services for the elderly residents. All eligible private organizations and non-governmental organizations, including the existing DCG operators, can participate in the open tender.
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The Government will incorporate in the tender assessment specific criteria on the bidder's plan for handling and intake of elderly residents and staff of existing RCHEs in DCG, so as to ensure that appropriate arrangements will be made for the elderly residents and staff.
The work and manpower arrangements of the Labour Department
4. MR VINCENT CHENG (in Chinese): President, it has been reported that during the period from November last year to February this year, the Registry of Trade Unions of the Labour Department ("LD") received a total of 273 applications for registration of newly-formed trade unions, representing a huge year-on-year increase by 120 times. According to the relevant performance pledge, LD will complete the processing of such applications within four weeks upon receipt of all relevant information and documentation. Furthermore, some trade unions have pointed out that with the economy of Hong Kong being badly hit by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 epidemic, an upsurge of cases relating to unemployment, wage defaults and labour disputes is foreseeable in the coming few months. Regarding the work and manpower arrangements of LD, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of applications for trade union registration that LD (i) received and (ii) approved in each of the past two years and since January this year, together with a breakdown by the trade to which the trade unions belonged;
(2) of the number of applications for trade union registration currently being processed and, among such applications, the expected number of those the processing of which can be completed within the timeframe specified in the aforesaid performance pledge; the projected number of outstanding applications as at the end of this month; whether LD will deploy additional manpower to handle the backlog of applications; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(3) whether LD has plans to recruit additional manpower to handle the anticipated upsurge of cases relating to job seeking, wage defaults and labour disputes in the coming few months; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5273
SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE (in Chinese): President, my reply to the Member's question is as follows:
(1) The Registry of Trade Unions ("RTU") of the Labour Department ("LD") respectively received 16, 142 and 1 578 applications for registration of new trade unions in 2018, 2019 and January to March 2020, while 13, 25 and 88 new trade unions were respectively registered in the same period.
A breakdown of new trade unions registered by industry is provided below:
Number of new trade unions registered in the year Industry January to 2018 2019 March 2020 Professional, scientific and technical 4 3 10 activities Human health and social work activities 3 6 11 Financial and insurance activities 2 3 4 Public administration 1 3 5 Transportation, storage, postal and 1 2 9 courier services Education 1 1 5 Electricity and gas supply 1 - - Construction - 2 17 Administrative and support service - 2 8 activities Information and communications - 1 3 Manufacturing - 1 2 Real estate activities - 1 1 Import/Export, wholesale and retail - - 3 trades Art, entertainment and recreation - - 3 5274 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Number of new trade unions registered in the year Industry January to 2018 2019 March 2020 Work activities within domestic - - 2 households Accommodation and food service - - 1 activities Other service activities - - 4 Total 13 25 88
RTU does not keep a breakdown of applications for registration of new trade unions by industry.
(2) LD has arranged additional manpower including 11 Labour Officer Grade staff and 1 Clerical Grade staff through internal deployment to assist in handling the applications for registration of new trade unions and the related work. As at end-March 2020, 1 607 applications were under processing by RTU. Owing to differences between trade unions in their rules, objects, scale, proposed names, eligibility for becoming promoters and circumstances of the trades and/or occupations of members, and depending on the completeness of documents submitted, etc., the time required for processing each application for registration varies. Among the 1 607 applications under processing, RTU expects that about 60 more applications for registration could be completed by end-April and the remaining applications would be processed thereafter.
(3) LD has been closely monitoring the impact of the prevailing social and economic environment on labour relations, and will redeploy manpower and related resources as necessary to ensure delivery of effective and timely services for the public.
In light of the deteriorating employment situation, LD will implement a series of employment support measures. LD will raise the ceiling of on-the-job training ("OJT") allowance payable to LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5275
employers under the Employment Programme for the Elderly and Middle-aged, the Youth Employment and Training Programme and the Work Orientation and Placement Scheme in the second half of 2020, with a view to further encouraging employers to hire the elderly aged 60 or above, young people and persons with disabilities and provide them with OJT. With this enhancement, the maximum amount of allowance payable to employers engaging job seekers under these employment programmes will become $60,000 per employee. LD will arrange manpower through internal deployment, as and when needed, to handle the related additional work. Besides, LD plans to launch a pilot scheme in the second half of 2020 to encourage eligible elderly persons, young people and persons with disabilities to undergo and complete OJT under these employment programmes through the provision of a retention allowance, thereby stabilizing employment. Subject to the length of OJT period, the maximum amount of retention allowance that a fulltime employee may receive is $12,000. To take forward this three-year pilot measure, LD has been allocated three additional posts for three years starting from 2020-2021.
New transport infrastructure for Kowloon East
5. MR WU CHI-WAI (in Chinese): President, since 2009, the Government has been studying the construction of an Environmentally Friendly Linkage System ("EFLS") for Kowloon East. EFLS is an elevated monorail which will start and end respectively at the Kowloon Bay Station and the Kwun Tong Station of the MTR Kwun Tong Line, run through the Kai Tak Development Area ("KTDA"), and connect the Kai Tak Station of the Shatin to Central Link. Some members of the public have pointed out that as, in recent years, the Government has increased the development density of KTDA and the populations of the districts in the vicinity of Cha Kwo Ling and Yau Tong have increased continuously, it will be difficult for EFLS to meet the transport demand in Kowloon East. They also hold the view that given the high cost of EFLS, coupled with the Government's indication that quite a number of technical difficulties have been encountered in designing the alignment of EFLS, the Government should explore alternative options. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
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(1) of the respective current residential population and working population in (i) KTDA, (ii) Kowloon Bay Business Area, (iii) Kwun Tong Business Area, (iv) Cha Kwo Ling and (v) Yau Tong, as well as the relevant projected figures for the next five and 10 years;
(2) as the Government has indicated that it is conducting the second-stage detailed feasibility study for EFLS, of the progress and the preliminary conclusion of the study (including the latest cost estimates); whether it has explored alternative options, e.g. constructing a Kwun Tong south line which will be an underground rail connecting the Yau Tong Station with the Kai Tak Station; if so, of the details (including the relevant cost estimates); if not, the reasons for that;
(3) whether, in view of the development and population growth in recent years of districts such as Cha Kwo Ling and Yau Tong, it will study the extension of EFLS to those districts; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(4) as it takes time to implement EFLS (or its alternative option), whether the Government has formulated short and medium term measures to alleviate the traffic congestion problems in Kowloon East; if so, of the details; and
(5) as the Government anticipates that upon the commissioning of the Route 6, the traffic load on the existing key road links in Kowloon East will be greatly relieved, of the respective projected volume to capacity ratios of such key road links (i) after the commissioning of the Route 6 and (ii) after the completion of EFLS (or its alternative option), and how such figures compare with the existing figures?
SECRETARY FOR DEVELOPMENT (in Chinese): President, with the gradual development and transformation of Kowloon East (including the Kai Tak Development ("KTD")), the residential and working populations in the area are progressively increasing. We are fully aware of the public's concern about whether the developments may add burden to the traffic condition of the area. Indeed, relevant government departments have been striving hard to the timely LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5277 provisioning of comprehensive railway and road infrastructure facilities, as well as proper public transport services to cope with the traffic demands in the area, thus meeting the travelling needs of the public. Relevant details are elaborated in part (4) below.
Regarding the proposed Environmentally Friendly Linkage System ("EFLS") for Kowloon East, the Government has incorporated the planning intent and its indicative alignment on the Kai Tak Outline Zoning Plan. The technical and financial viabilities, etc., of EFLS are being explored and studied in-depth by the Civil Engineering and Development Department ("CEDD").
Based upon the findings of the preliminary feasibility study completed in 2014 and the first stage of the detailed feasibility study ("DFS") completed in 2017, CEDD is conducting the second stage of DFS to explore EFLS' network coverage, alignment, station locations, mode of operation, financial and cost effectiveness, etc. We will also examine the interaction between the proposed EFLS and the public transport services, as well as make reference to and explore the latest development and applicability of environmentally friendly transport technologies at home and abroad. In the course of conducting DFS, CEDD has encountered more-than-expected complicated challenges, thus requiring more time to review and explore feasible solutions, including studying on options other than the elevated mode. Besides, the long term financial viability and cost-effectiveness of EFLS are also one of the key considerations of DFS.
CEDD anticipates to complete DFS in this year that seeks to look for suitable, practicable and cost-effective EFLS scheme. Upon completion of the entire DFS, the Government will formulate the way forward for the EFLS project and report the findings and recommendations to the Legislative Council Members and relevant stakeholders in due course.
Our responses to various parts of the question raised by Mr WU, having taken into account the inputs of relevant bureau/departments, are as follows:
(1) The latest figures on current residential and working populations of KTD, the Kowloon Bay Business Area ("KBBA"), the Kwun Tong Business Area ("KTBA"), Cha Kwo Ling and Yau Tong, as well as those relevant figures in 2026 and 2031 are estimated as follows:
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Residential Population Working Population Area Year Year Year Year Current Current 2026 2031 2026 2031 KTD 53 000 128 000 134 000 25 600 72 300 119 000 KBBA - - - 79 400 87 300 105 300 KTBA - - - 180 400 206 100 215 000 Cha Kwo Ling 27 650 30 150 31 650 9 150 12 900 12 100 Yau Tong 62 650 76 500 90 350 14 400 15 700 13 950 Total 143 300 234 650 256 000 308 950 394 300 465 350
(2) and (3)
As stated in the preamble above, CEDD is currently conducting DFS for EFLS, with its study area encompassing such areas as KTD, KBBA, KTBA, Cha Kwo Ling and Yau Tong. In the course of study, CEDD finds that the construction of EFLS in Kowloon East, be it in elevated or underground mode, will encounter lots of technical complications and challenges, particularly for those parts of developed areas. Therefore, DFS has to take a longer time, and to explore and make reference to the latest development and applicability of other environmentally friendly transport technologies at home and abroad with a view to identifying a suitable, practicable and cost-effective EFLS scheme. CEDD anticipates to complete DFS within this year.
(4) The Government has planned a number of measures for addressing the transport needs of the Kowloon East. On the provision of inter-district roads, the Government is proactively taking forward the Route 6 projects, which will provide a link between Kowloon West and Tseung Kwan O, to help relieve the traffic burden along the major east-west road corridors in Kowloon (including the existing major road links in Kowloon East) and Tseung Kwan O. The Government will also leverage the development of the two Action Areas in Kowloon East (i.e. Kwun Tong Action Area ("KTAA") and Kowloon Bay Action Area ("KBAA")) to improve the local traffic condition. Relevant measures include a new through road extending from Kei Yip Lane in KTAA to divert traffic away from the Wai Yip Street/Hoi Yuen Road roundabout, which will be LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5279
converted into a signal controlled junction to rationalize the traffic flows. As for KBAA, it is recommended to widen Sheung Yee Road and modify the Hoi Bun Road/Cheung Yip Street junction to increase the traffic capacity.
The Energizing Kowloon East Office has completed two feasibility studies on improving the pedestrian environment in KTBA and KBBA, and formulated 22 traffic improvement schemes. Among those traffic improvement schemes proposed, 16 of them have been completed, such as provision of kerbside loading and unloading bays and enhancement of road junction layout, which are conducive to improve the road usage and junction capacity. The Government strives to complete the remaining improvement works as soon as possible.
In addition, the Transport Department ("TD") and franchised bus companies have all along been jointly studying the feasibility of rearranging the bus stops along Kwun Tong Road. From 2017 to 2019, TD and bus companies rearranged the bus stops of six bus routes which travel via Kwun Tong Road to alleviate traffic congestion arising from buses queueing for stops.
In the meantime, CEDD carries out in a progressive manner various road infrastructure works in KTD. Apart from the recently commissioned roads including Shing Kai Road and Kai Sun Road, the realignment and widening of the existing traffic route at Shing Cheong Road and Shing Fung Road to a dual two-lane road were completed substantially in end 2019. The construction works in regard of the Road D3 (Metro Park Section) for connecting among Shing Kai Road, the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal and the Hong Kong Children's Hospital commenced already. The concerned works are anticipated to complete by 2022. Upon completion of the said road works, the transport infrastructure of KTD will be further improved.
(5) The Route 6 comprises the Tseung Kwan O―Lam Tin Tunnel at its eastern section, Trunk Road T2 and the Cha Kwo Ling Tunnel in its middle section and the Central Kowloon Route at its western section. It will provide an east-west express link between Tseung Kwan O and West Kowloon to ease the traffic congestion problem in existing 5280 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
key east-west road corridors in Kowloon and Tseung Kwan O as well as support new development projects. The completion of Trunk Road T2 and Cha Kwo Ling Tunnel in 2026 will bring about the full commissioning of Route 6. By then, the traffic demand on the existing major road links in Kowloon East (including Tseung Kwan O Tunnel, Kwun Tong Bypass and Kwun Tong Road) will be greatly relieved. According to the traffic impact assessment completed in 2018, the projected volume to capacity (v/c) ratios of the relevant road links during peak hours after the commissioning of Trunk Road T2 and Cha Kwo Ling Tunnel will be improved as follows:
v/c Ratio during Peak Hours in 2026 With Trunk Road Without Trunk Road Link T2 and Cha Kwo Road T2 and Cha Ling Tunnel Kwo Ling Tunnel Completed Tseung Kwan O Tunnel 1.3 1.0 Kwun Tong Bypass (near 1.3 1.0 Sheung Yee Road) Kwun Tong Bypass (near 1.1 0.9 Hoi Bun Road)
With respect to EFLS, CEDD is conducting the second stage of DFS with a view to examining and establishing the suitable mode, technical feasibility and its implication to the major roads in the area.
Personal protective equipment
6. MR DENNIS KWOK (in Chinese): President, it has been reported that in a number of recent operations to transport patients confirmed to have been infected with the Coronavirus Disease 2019 or persons who might have been infected to hospitals and quarantine centres, despite the fact that healthcare personnel (including doctors, nurses and ambulancemen) faced a higher risk of infection than police officers, the former only wore blue isolation gowns which were of lower protection specifications while the latter wore "Tyvek" isolation gowns which were of higher protection specifications. Some members of the public have queried that such situation has reflected the Government's serious LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5281 mismatch of resources and reckless disregard for the safety of patients and healthcare personnel. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the current quantities of personal protective equipment ("PPE") of the various types of specifications stocked by the Police, with a breakdown by the unit which is in possession of the stock; the unit costs and total value of such equipment;
(2) whether it has formulated guidelines setting out, in respect of PPE of each type of specifications, the circumstances under which such PPE may be used by police officers; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(3) as some healthcare personnel have pointed out that the current stock of PPE in public hospitals is only sufficient for one-month consumption, whether the Government has any mechanism to re-allocate such PPE in the Police's possession to frontline healthcare personnel for use; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
SECRETARY FOR SECURITY (in Chinese): President, under section 10 of the Police Force Ordinance (Cap. 232) and section 10 of the Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance (Cap. 599), the Police have a duty to assist the Department of Health ("DH") in implementing anti-epidemic measures and fighting against the virus. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic, the Police have been working steadfastly, directly taking part in various anti-epidemic efforts, and actively supporting the work of other government departments in the concerted fight against the virus. The anti-epidemic work carried out by the Police includes:
(a) maintaining law and order at all entrances and exits of the designated quarantine centres, restricting in-and-out people flow and preventing people from fleeing the quarantine centres;
(b) manning border control points ("BCPs") to assist in the execution of quarantine orders and to ensure the smooth operation of BCPs;
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(c) conducting spot checks on persons under mandatory home quarantine. Where a person escapes or refuses to follow the instructions of DH personnel and poses threats to community health, the Police will intervene by taking law enforcement actions;
(d) assisting DH in the execution of quarantine orders which include evacuating residents and sending them to quarantine centres when necessary; and
(e) participating in the law enforcement actions under the Prevention and Control of Diseases (Requirements and Directions) (Business and Premises) Regulation (Cap. 599F) and the Prevention and Control of Disease (Prohibition on Group Gathering) Regulation (Cap. 599G), following up on reports made by members of the public and inspecting various designated premises.
Separately, the Police have set up a 200-strength "Police Anti-coronavirus Contingent" comprising serving and retired police volunteers to support the Government's anti-epidemic measures.
In consultation with the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau and the Food and Health Bureau, my reply to the various parts of the question is as follows:
(1) Since the epidemic outbreak, the Police have received masks and other personal protective equipment ("PPE") from the Government Logistics Department ("GLD") according to the Government's principles of distributing protective gears and having regard to actual needs. The Police also procure masks from the market and distributes them to its personnel for use. The Police review the consumption and stock of masks every week before applying to GLD for further supply. The Police will continue to review its operational needs carefully, and supplement the provision of PPE from GLD as appropriate. The Police will strictly comply with the Government's existing standards for PPE distribution, and provide PPE to its personnel in accordance with the "use where necessary" principle.
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Given the sharp increase in global demand for anti-epidemic items, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("HKSAR") Government faces keen competition in its procurement. To avoid undermining the bargaining power of GLD and other departments in the procurement of anti-epidemic items, the HKSAR Government considers it inappropriate at this stage to disclose specific information about the quantity of anti-epidemic items used by individual departments and their stock level.
(2) The Police attach great importance to the operational efficacy of officers on duty and the associated risks they may encounter, and has been taking corresponding measures to provide them with the most suitable protective equipment. The Police will take into account the guidelines and recommendations made by the Centre for Health Protection of DH and equip frontline officers with suitable PPE to ensure that they can perform duties safely and effectively, having regard to officers' operational needs, their work nature and the risk of infection.
Meanwhile, the Police have a set of guidelines for handling infectious diseases, which cover a host of formation-based and personal protective measures, as well as the correct procedures for using PPE.
(3) With the development of the epidemic, government departments' demand for protective items has significantly increased. Having taken into account recommendations from experts and the stock level, the Government has set priorities for the use of protective items. At present, for protective items procured by the Government, priority will be accorded to meeting the needs of frontline staff involved in quarantine work (including health care staff and port health staff of DH and frontline staff implementing quarantine orders) and the maintenance of essential public services.
As the epidemic progresses, since January this year, the Hospital Authority ("HA") has expedited the procurement procedures for protective equipment, and increased the stockpiling target from three months to six months. With the Government's coordination, some of the protective equipment ordered earlier by HA has arrived 5284 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
gradually. With the exception of N95 respirators, the current supply of various protective equipment is more stable than that at the initial stage of the epidemic. Based on the average consumption, the stock of various protective equipment is estimated to last for over two months. HA will continue to expedite procurement procedures to ensure that frontline health care staff have enough protective equipment when providing services.
Information security measures of the Government
7. MS YUNG HOI-YAN (in Chinese): President, on the 22nd of February this year, a newspaper reported the content of a report on the anti-epidemic work of Hong Kong, which had purportedly been prepared by the Chief Executive's Office and submitted to the Central Authorities. Given that this type of documents should be highly confidential in nature, some members of the public are worried that there are serious loopholes in the Government's information security measures. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of incidents, uncovered since January 2015 by the Government, of suspected violations of the relevant laws or codes on information security by some people that resulted in the leakage of information, and set out one by one in a table such incidents' causes (e.g. intrusion into its information systems by hackers, and negligence or deliberate divulgence by some people) and their impacts, as well as the follow-up measures taken by the Government and the effectiveness of such measures;
(2) of the government departments and post titles of the officers responsible for conducting investigations into the incidents mentioned in (1), the details of the investigation work and the follow-up actions, as well as the circumstances under which the investigation results will be made public; and
(3) whether it will, in the light of information leakage incidents, conduct a comprehensive review on the existing measures and mechanism on information security; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
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SECRETARY FOR INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY (in Chinese): President, the Government all along attaches great importance to information and cyber security. The Office of the Government Chief Information Officer ("OGCIO") together with the Security Bureau have formulated a set of comprehensive Government IT Security Policy and Guidelines ("Policy and Guidelines"), covering management framework, policies and technical measures for bureaux and departments ("B/Ds") to follow and use in order to properly protect information systems and prevent leakage of information to unauthorized persons. In doing so, OGCIO made reference to international best practices, such as the International Organization for Standardization ("ISO")/International Electrotechnical Commission ("IEC") 27001 standard. In addition, OGCIO regularly audits the compliance of B/Ds to ensure that their information systems and network facilities meet the security requirements.
Our consolidated reply to the questions is set out below:
Since January 2015, OGCIO has received a total of 19 information security incident reports that might involve leakage of information possessed by the Government. A breakdown of the incidents is as below:
Type of information security incidents 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Cyber attack compromising information 1 1 - 1 - - systems Abuse of information systems or - 2 1 2 1 - operational faults Loss or theft of mobile devices or 1 1 4 2 1 1 removable media Total: 2 4 5 5 2 1
In accordance with the prevailing guidelines, the data involved in the above incidents had been backed up and duly encrypted. The operation of the departments was not affected.
The Government has established a set of response mechanism and measures to deal with information security incidents and requires all departments to follow strictly. According to this requirement, when a security incident has occurred, the concerned department must report it to the Government Information Security Incident Response Office, submit an incident report and promptly 5286 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 conduct an investigation as well as rectify the problem. For those incidents involving personal data, we have also reported to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, notified all affected persons and provided them with the appropriate advice on information security. If criminal conduct may be involved, the relevant department must report such incidents to the Police for investigation. In addition, public officers must strictly follow the relevant regulations, including the Official Secrets Ordinance, the Security Regulations and the Civil Service Code.
OGCIO will review and update the prevailing Policy and Guidelines from time to time. In August 2019, OGCIO launched a new round of review and update which is expected to be completed within this year. The review will continue to make reference to the latest international standards and industry best practices, and examine and update the existing Policy and Guidelines in the light of latest developments in information and cyber security, so as to safeguard government information systems and data security more effectively.
Provision of cleansing, security services etc. for the Government
8. MR SHIU KA-CHUN (in Chinese): President, the Government has established a debarment mechanism and a demerit point system in respect of the government service contracts (excluding construction ones) that rely heavily on the engagement of non-skilled employees. Under the debarment mechanism, the tenders submitted by service contractors ("contractors") will not be considered for a period of five years from the date on which the contractors are convicted of having contravened a specified ordinance relating to employment rights and benefits. Under the demerit point system, contractors may be given demerit points if they have failed to sign a Standard Employment Contract ("SEC") with their employees or have breached the clauses in SEC in respect of wages, working hours and payment of wages by autopay. In addition, the Government may issue verbal warnings, written warnings and default notices to contractors who have breached the contracts, and may also withhold payment of monthly service charges or make deductions thereof. Regarding the provision of cleansing, security services etc. for the Government, will the Government inform this Council:
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(1) of the respective numbers of service contracts expiring in the coming three years which were awarded by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD"), and set out the following relevant information by (a) type of service (i.e. cleansing or security) involved in the contracts and (b) District Council ("DC") district: (i) names of contractors, (ii) service locations and details, (iii) contract values, (iv) number of non-skilled employees, (v) total amount of wages and (vi) expiry dates of the contracts;
(2) whether it knows, in respect of the non-skilled employees engaged by the cleansing and security service contractors of FEHD and LCSD respectively, their (i) monthly wage ranges, (ii) average working hours, (iii) average length of employment and (iv) age distribution, in each of the past three years (set out in a table);
(3) of the respective numbers of Workman II currently employed by FEHD and LCSD; among them, the respective (i) numbers, (ii) minimum pay points, (iii) maximum pay points and (iv) average weekly working hours of those who are required to carry out cleansing duties in public places, and whether they are entitled to the relevant travelling allowance and hardship allowance when they work under inclement weather;
(4) of the current number of refuse collection points ("RCPs") under FEHD, and among such RCPs, the respective numbers of those provided with (i) individual rest rooms, (ii) changing rooms, (iii) water dispensers and (iv) mobile refuse compactors, with a tabulated breakdown by DC district;
(5) in respect of the current contracts for the provision of (a) property management, (b) cleansing and (c) security services respectively at public rental housing estates, of the following details: (i) effective dates, (ii) expiry dates, (iii) names of contractors, (iv) contract values, as well as the (v) numbers, (vi) total amounts of wages, (vii) monthly wage ranges, (viii) average working hours and (ix) age distribution of the non-skilled employees (set out in a table);
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(6) of the following details of the punishments imposed by (a) FEHD and (b) LCSD on their cleansing service contractors in the past five years: (i) the respective numbers of verbal warnings, written warnings and default notices issued, (ii) the numbers of times for which deductions of the monthly service charges were made and the total amounts of money involved, and (iii) the numbers of times for which demerit points were awarded;
(7) of the respective numbers of cases for which (A) FEHD and (B) LCSD imposed punishments on their cleansing service contractors in each of the past five years for breaching (a) the clauses relating to the demerit point system and (b) other clauses in SEC, as well as the following details of such cases: (i) names of contractors, (ii) number of breaches, (iii) details of the breaches, (iv) the respective numbers of verbal warnings, written warnings and default notices issued, and (v) total amount of the monthly service charges deducted;
(8) of the current cumulative numbers of written warnings or default notices that the contractors of (i) FEHD and (ii) LCSD have received within a period from have breached those clauses in SEC which are unrelated to the demerit point system before deductions will be made to the monthly service charges paid to them and punishments will be imposed on them under the debarment mechanism;
(9) of the respective numbers of complaints received by (a) FEHD and (b) LCSD last year against their cleansing service contractors for having committed the following contraventions: (i) underpaying wages, (ii) defaulting on wage payments, (iii) failing to sign SEC, (iv) the number of working hours of the employees having exceeded the limits and (v) failing to make severance payments/long service payments; among each category of complaints, the numbers of those found substantiated, and the numbers of contractors punished as a result (with a breakdown by form of punishment); and
(10) whether the cleansing service contractors of (i) FEHD and (ii) LCSD are required under the service contracts to provide the non-skilled employees engaged by them with anti-epidemic items; if LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5289
so, whether it knows the quantities of each type of anti-epidemic items (including face masks, gloves and sanitizing items) given to each of such employees on average on each working day since the outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease 2019?
SECRETARY FOR FOOD AND HEALTH (in Chinese): President, having consulted the Home Affairs Bureau and the Transport and Housing Bureau, our reply to the various parts of the question raised by Mr SHIU Ka-chun is as follows:
(1) Information of the cleansing and security service contracts of government departments, including the names of contractors, service districts and details, values of the contracts and their expiry dates, have been uploaded to the website of the Government Logistics Department ("GLD")
The total number of outsourced service contracts of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD") which will expire in 2020-2021 to 2022-2023 financial years is 118. Information about the cleansing service contracts is set out at Annex 1, and information about the security guard service contracts is set out at Annex 2.
There are 76 outsourced cleansing and security services contracts for facilities and venues under the management of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD") which will expire in 2020 to 2022. Particulars of the relevant contracts can be found in GLD website mentioned above. According to the information provided by the outsourced contractors of LCSD, the estimated number of cleansing and security workers involved in the contracts which will expire in 2020 to 2022 are 6 280 and 3 687 respectively. Since LCSD is not the employer of the outsourced workers and does not require the contractors to provide details of their employees, LCSD does not have the details about the employment of outsourced workers such as information on the total amount of wages.
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(2) The information about the staff employed by cleansing and security guard service contractors of FEHD and LCSD are set out in List 1 and List 2 at Annex 3 respectively.
(3) As at 29 February 2020, FEHD employed 2 773 Workmen II. Among them, 2 000 Workmen II provided public cleansing services. At present, the minimum pay point of Workman II is Model Scale 1 Pay Scale Point 0 ($13,730 per month) and the maximum pay point is Model Scale 1 Pay Scale Point 8 ($16,175 per month). Their average working hours per week is about 45 hours. If Workmen II are required to work when a Black Rainstorm Warning Signal or a Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal No. 8 (or above) is in force, they are entitled to the Rainstorm Black Warning Allowance or Typhoon Allowance.
As at 29 February 2020, the total number of Workman II employed by LCSD was 108. They are required to provide general support services such as dispatching documents, providing pantry/reception services, delivering stores items, distributing and posting up publicity materials, moving/setting up furniture and facilities, and assisting in performing simple gardening work and cleansing duties in various offices and leisure and cultural venues. There is no Workman II post in LCSD that is only required to perform cleansing duties. Workmen II are remunerated on the Model Scale 1 Pay Scale Points 0 to 8 ($13,730 to $16,175 per month). Their conditioned hours of service are 45 hours net per week, exclusive of meal breaks. They may claim travel allowance and hardship allowance subject to meeting the payment criteria under relevant civil service rules and regulations. In addition, they may claim Rainstorm Black Warning Allowance and Typhoon Allowance for performing duties under specific weather conditions, subject to meeting the payment criteria of respective allowances.
(4) There are 161 permanent off-street refuse collection points ("RCPs") under FEHD, among which 143 are managed by FEHD's cleansing service contractors.
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Generally speaking, RCPs with roll call points are provided with changing facilities but not separate rest rooms. If changing facilities are not available in some RCPs due to space restriction, contractors are allowed to provide, where feasible, temporary changing and storage facilities in RCPs. As for FEHD's newly constructed RCPs, changing and storage facilities are provided. Moreover, FEHD would install filtration type water dispenser in RCPs for the use of employees of FEHD and contractors if the site is feasible to do so.
Under the service contracts signed between FEHD and its contractors, it is stipulated that contractors shall comply with all legislation in relation to the execution of the contracts, including the Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance (Cap. 509) and its subsidiary regulations. Therefore, employers have to ensure, as far as reasonably practicable, their employees' safety and health at work, which includes the provision of sufficient drinking water for employees.
Mobile refuse compactors are provided by FEHD in RCPs depending on operational needs and the site conditions.
The numbers of RCPs provided with changing facilities, drinking facilities and mobile refuse compactors managed by FEHD's cleaning service contractors with a breakdown by 18 districts are set out at Annex 4.
(5) Details of the contracts for the provision of property management, cleansing and security guard services at public housing estates under the management of the Hong Kong Housing Authority ("HA") are tabulated at Annex 5, Annex 6 and Annex 7 respectively.
(6) The number of verbal warnings, written warnings, default notices issued, cases of monthly service payments deduction, times of giving demerit points, as well as the amount of monthly service payments deducted in the past five financial years by FEHD to its cleansing service contractors are set out at Annex 8.
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(7) The number of cases in which FEHD imposed punishments on its cleansing service contractors in the past five financial years for breaching contractual obligations relating to the demerit point system are set out at Annex 9. There was no information in respect of FEHD imposing punishments on its cleansing service contractors in the past five financial years for breaching other clauses in the Standard Employment Contract ("SEC").
The numbers of non-compliance notices issued by LCSD to outsourced cleansing service contractors in the past five years are set out in Annex 10. The main reasons for issuing these types of non-compliance notices include contractors' failure to provide sufficient manpower or meet the required service standards as stipulated in the contract and outsourced workers' unsatisfactory attitudes or performance. LCSD only keeps record of the number of deduction of monthly service fee notices issued; the information on the total amount of deductions involved is not available. As the names of contractors in breach of contractual obligations and details of the breaches involve information on individual companies, LCSD is not at liberty to disclose such information.
(8) When FEHD issues a default notice to its service contractor, the monthly service payment will be deducted immediately. While the number of written warnings or default notices issued to a contractor will not affect the contractor's eligibility for tendering, it may affect the contractor's chances of success in bidding for Government contracts.
In case the service contractors of LCSD breach contractual obligations not related to the demerit point system (such as failure to provide sufficient manpower or meet the required service standards as stipulated in the contract, unsatisfactory attitudes or performance of outsourced workers, etc.), LCSD will issue non-compliance notices, such as deduction of monthly service fee notices, written warnings or default notices as appropriate to the contractors under the contract terms and conditions. The number of breaches of contractual obligations is not the sole criterion adopted by LCSD for issuance of non-compliance notices.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5293
Besides, under the "debarment mechanism" of the government procurement policy, if a contractor violates any specified ordinance relating to employment rights and benefits, including any specified offence under the Employment Ordinance, Employees' Compensation Ordinance, Immigration Ordinance, Criminal Procedure Ordinance, Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Ordinance, Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance and Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance, its tender will not be considered by the Government for a period of five years from the date of conviction, no matter the conviction is related to government or private contracts or not and regardless of the types of services covered by the contract.
Apart from the above mentioned penalties, if a contractor is in serious breach of contract terms and conditions or is convicted of violating any stipulations of the aforesaid ordinances, LCSD may consider terminating the contract immediately according to the contract terms and conditions and removing the contractor from LCSD's Supplier List.
(9) The number of complaints received by FEHD in 2019-2020 (as at 29 February 2020) against its cleansing service contractors about underpayment of wages, non-payment of wages, no signing of SEC, exceeding maximum working hours and failure to grant severance/long service payment, as well as details of these complaints are tabulated at Annex 11.
In 2019, LCSD received one complaint case about statutory holiday pay against a cleansing service contractor. After investigation, the case was confirmed as unsubstantiated by LCSD. LCSD has not received any other complaints against its cleansing service contractors for breaching the above mentioned requirements. Therefore, there is no case of defaulting cleansing service contractors led to being penalized or debarred from tendering.
(10) It is stipulated in FEHD's service contracts concerned that contractors must abide by all relevant legislations in performance of service contracts, including the Occupational Safety and Health 5294 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Ordinance (Cap. 509) and their subsidiary legislation. Contractors have the responsibility to ensure the occupational safety and health of their staff at work, including assessing the risks of employees working under various environments and taking appropriate precautionary measures, providing adequate and suitable personal protective clothing, equipment, safety training and suitable working arrangements, etc. In the light of the development of COVID-19 epidemic and the overall tight supply of face masks, the Government understands that outsourced cleansing service contractors have encountered difficulties in procuring face masks. To protect the health of frontline cleansing workers and maintain essential cleansing service, the Government has decided, as a contingency measure, to set aside the 700 000 additional face masks produced by the Correctional Services Department each month for distribution to frontline cleansing workers engaged under government outsourced contracts. FEHD does not maintain any statistics on the types and quantity of protective items distributed daily to non-skilled workers employed by contractors.
LCSD attaches great importance to the occupational safety and health arrangements for outsourced cleansing workers. It is stipulated in all cleansing service contracts that contractors should comply with the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance. The contract provisions also stipulate that contractors should provide their cleansing workers with adequate, effective and suitable personal protective equipment (such as surgical face masks, rubber gloves and other protective clothing) and safety training, and make appropriate work arrangements etc. to ensure their occupational safety and health. Since the quantity and types of personal protective equipment required for cleansing jobs vary according to the size of venues and the requirements and types of cleansing service, and the contractors are not required by LCSD to record the information on the quantity and types of personal protective equipment distributed to cleansing workers in detail, figures on the average quantity of each type of personal protective equipment received by each outsourced worker on each working day are not available.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5295
Annex 1
FEHD's outsourced cleansing services contracts that will expire in the coming three years
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Central Johnson 30/06/2020 Street Cleansing 73.27 338 and Cleaning Services for Sheung Western Services Wan, Sai Ying Pun, District Company Shek Tong Tsui and Limited Kennedy Town in Central and Western District Dussmann 30/06/2020 Management, 27.91 74 Service Hong Cleansing and Pest Kong Limited Control Services for Markets in Central and Western District Baguio Pest 31/03/2021 Mosquito, Rodent 38.06 90 Management and Other Pest Limited Control Services in Central and Western District Baguio 30/11/2021 Cleansing Services 6.36 11 Cleaning for Sheung Wan Services Municipal Services Company Building and Limited Smithfield Municipal Services Building in Central and Western District Subtotal 145.60 513 Eastern Integrity 31/03/2021 Mosquito, Rodent 27.93 63 District Service and Other Pest Limited Control Services in Eastern District 5296 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Bo Kit 30/04/2021 Cleansing Services 2.73 11 Cleaning for Chai Wan Service Municipal Services Company Building in Eastern District Johnson 31/05/2021 Street Cleansing 121.76 268 Cleaning Services in Eastern Services District (East) Company Limited Johnson 31/05/2021 Street Cleansing 100.36 212 Cleaning Services in Eastern Services District (West) Company Limited Lik Shun 30/09/2021 Waste Collection 44.82 6 Services Services in Eastern Limited District Yee Tai 31/10/2022 Cleansing Services 79.35 114 Cleaning for Markets and Company Cooked Food Market Limited in Eastern District Subtotal 376.95 674 Islands Johnson 30/06/2020 Street Cleansing 61.85 214 District Cleaning Services for Tung Services Chung, South Lantau, Company Mui Wo, Ngong Limited Ping, Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Port and Tai O in Islands District Johnson 31/03/2021 Street Cleansing 105.37 161 Cleaning Services for Specific Services Outlying Islands in Company Islands District Limited Subtotal 167.22 375 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5297
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Kowloon Integrity 30/06/2020 Management, 20.27 46 City Service Cleansing and Pest District Limited Control Services for Markets in Kowloon City District Creative Pest 31/03/2021 Mosquito, Rodent 28.35 65 Control and Other Pest Services Control Services in Limited Kowloon City District Man Shing 30/09/2021 Street Cleansing 143.07 294 Cleaning Services in Kowloon Service City District (North) Company Limited Man Shing 30/09/2021 Street Cleansing 137.71 281 Cleaning Services in Kowloon Service City District (South) Company Limited Kan Kee 31/10/2022 Waste Collection 48.53 7 Cleaning Services in Kowloon Services City District Company Limited Subtotal 377.93 693 Kwai Dussmann 30/04/2020 Cleansing Services 14.69 45 Tsing Service Hong for Markets, Cooked District Kong Limited Food Markets and Cooked Food Hawker Bazaar in Kwai Tsing District Law's 31/10/2020 Street Cleansing 148.93 295 Cleaning Services in Kwai Services Tsing District Limited 5298 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Baguio Pest 30/11/2022 Mosquito, Rodent 78.28 97 Management and Other Pest Limited Control Services in Kwai Tsing District Subtotal 241.90 437 Kwun Baguio Waste 30/06/2021 Waste Collection 79.84 8 Tong Management Services in Kwun District & Recycling Tong District (South) Limited Shiny Glory 30/06/2021 Waste Collection 80.65 8 Services Services in Kwun Limited Tong District (North) Lapco Service 31/10/2021 Street Cleansing 116.11 215 Limited Services in Kwun Tong District (North) Lapco Service 31/10/2021 Street Cleansing 105.79 202 Limited Services in Kwun Tong District (South) Johnson 30/09/2022 Mosquito, Rodent 63.26 85 Cleaning and Other Pest Services Control Services in Company Kwun Tong District Limited Subtotal 445.65 518 Yau Man Shing 31/08/2020 Street Cleansing 87.23 217 Tsim Cleaning Services in Mong Mong Service Kok District (East) District Company Limited Johnson 31/08/2020 Street Cleansing 89.94 215 Cleaning Services in Mong Services Kok District (West) Company Limited LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5299
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Li Hing 30/11/2020 Management, 14.55 32 Environmental Cleansing and Pest Services Co. Control Services for Limited Markets and Pest Control Services for the Former Mong Kok Market in Mong Kok District Integrity 31/03/2021 Mosquito, Rodent 14.47 30 Service and Other Pest Limited Control Services in Mong Kok District Lapco Service 31/05/2022 Waste Collection 52.98 4 Limited Services in Mong Kok District Hugo Services 30/09/2022 Cleansing Services 4.52 6 Company for Tai Kok Tsui Limited Municipal Services Building in Mong Kok District Law's 30/04/2020 Street Cleansing 54.97 136 Cleaning Services in Yau Tsim Services District (South) Limited Johnson 30/04/2020 Street Cleansing 60.75 155 Cleaning Services in Yau Tsim Services District (North) Company Limited Johnson 31/08/2020 Management, 11.32 27 Group Pest Cleansing and Pest Specialist Control Services for Limited Markets in Yau Tsim District Law's 31/03/2021 Mosquito, Rodent 18.52 40 Cleaning and Other Pest Services Control Services in Limited Yau Tsim District 5300 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Baguio 31/05/2021 Cleansing Services 3.16 6 Cleaning for Kwun Chung Services Municipal Services Company Building in Yau Tsim Limited District Subtotal 412.41 868 North Integrity 31/07/2020 Management, 26.97 75 District Service Cleansing and Pest Limited Control Services for Markets in North District Baguio 31/05/2021 Cleansing Services 4.36 17 Cleaning for Luen Wo Hui Services Municipal Services Company Building in North Limited District Lapco Service 30/09/2021 Street Cleansing 158.52 290 Limited Services for Sheung Shui in North District Lapco Service 30/09/2021 Street Cleansing 149.16 264 Limited Services for Fanling in North District Subtotal 339.01 646 Sai Kung Dussmann 30/04/2020 Cleansing Services 6.11 17 District Service Hong for Markets in Sai Kong Limited Kung District Lapco Service 30/06/2020 Street Cleansing 39.72 166 Limited Services for Tseung Kwan O in Sai Kung District Law's 31/08/2020 Street Cleansing 93.86 207 Cleaning Services for Sai Kung Services in Sai Kung District Limited Shiny Glory 30/04/2021 Waste Collection 51.57 5 Services Services in Sai Kung Limited District LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5301
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Lapco Service 30/11/2021 Cleansing Services 3.27 5 Limited for Sai Kung Tseung Kwan O Government Complex in Sai Kung District Subtotal 194.53 400 Sham Integrity 30/06/2020 Management, 22.49 59 Shui Po Service Cleansing and Pest District Limited Control Services for Markets in Sham Shui Po District Baguio Pest 31/03/2021 Mosquito, Rodent 27.33 60 Management and Other Pest Limited Control Services in Sham Shui Po District Man Shing 31/05/2021 Street Cleansing 119.25 269 Cleaning Services in Sham Service Shui Po District Company (East) Limited Man Shing 31/05/2021 Street Cleansing 118.58 275 Cleaning Services in Sham Service Shui Po District Company (West) Limited Johnson 31/01/2022 Cleansing Services 2.67 5 Cleaning for Pei Ho Street Services Municipal Services Company Building in Sham Limited Shui Po District Subtotal 290.32 668 Sha Tin Johnson 30/06/2020 Street Cleansing 52.79 235 District Cleaning Services in Sha Tin Services District (East) Company Limited 5302 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Johnson 30/06/2020 Street Cleansing 48.08 203 Cleaning Services in Sha Tin Services District (West) Company Limited Subtotal 100.87 438 Southern Dussmann 30/06/2020 Management, 10.80 45 District Service Hong Cleansing and Pest Kong Limited Control Services for Markets in Southern District Creative Pest 31/03/2021 Mosquito, Rodent 29.87 65 Control and Other Pest Services Control Services in Limited Southern District Baguio 31/05/2021 Cleansing Services 2.56 10 Cleaning for Aberdeen Services Municipal Services Company Building, Stanley Limited Environmental Hygiene Sub-office and Pest Control Office in Southern District Lapco Service 31/10/2021 Street Cleansing 149.23 269 Limited Services in Southern District Subtotal 192.46 389 Tai Po Dussmann 30/06/2020 Management, 8.81 37 District Service Hong Cleansing and Pest Kong Limited Control Services for Markets in Tai Po District Law's 31/10/2020 Street Cleansing 127.44 286 Cleaning Services in Tai Po Services District Limited LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5303
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Flourishing 28/02/2021 Vehicle Washing 2.48 4 Trading Services for Company Government Vehicles Limited at FEHD Tai Po Vehicle Depot Lapco Service 30/11/2021 Cleansing Services 2.95 5 Limited for Tai Po Complex in Tai Po District Creative Pest 30/11/2022 Mosquito, Rodent 68.94 82 Control and Other Pest Services Control Services in Limited Tai Po District Subtotal 210.62 414 Tsuen Man Shing 30/04/2021 Street Cleansing 146.70 307 Wan Cleaning Services in Tsuen District Service Wan District Company Limited Man Shing 31/05/2021 Waste Collection 64.74 7 Cleaning Services in Tsuen Service Wan District Company Limited Lapco Service 30/11/2022 Mosquito, Rodent 81.18 98 Limited and Other Pest Control Services in Tsuen Wan District Subtotal 292.62 412 Tuen Baguio Waste 31/10/2020 Waste Collection 72.65 9 Mun Management Services in Tuen District & Recycling Mun District Limited Johnson 30/11/2021 Street Cleansing 137.24 275 Cleaning Services in Tuen Services Mun District Company Limited Subtotal 209.89 284 5304 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Wan Lapco Service 31/08/2020 Management, 25.39 55 Chai Limited Cleansing and Pest District Control Services for Markets in Wan Chai District Shiny Glory 30/11/2021 Cleansing Services 4.21 15 Services for Lockhart Road Limited Municipal Services Building in Wan Chai District Lapco Service 30/06/2022 Waste Collection 53.99 7 Limited Services in Wan Chai District Subtotal 83.59 77 Wong Li Hing 31/10/2020 Management, 28.75 87 Tai Sin Environmental Cleansing and Pest District Services Co. Control Services for Limited Markets in Wong Tai Sin District Law's 30/04/2021 Waste Collection 81.00 13 Cleaning Services in Wong Tai Services Sin District Limited Baguio Pest 30/09/2022 Mosquito, Rodent 65.37 80 Management and Other Pest Limited Control Services in Wong Tai Sin District Subtotal 175.12 180 Yuen Law's 30/06/2020 Street Cleansing 95.21 223 Long Cleaning Services in Yuen District Services Long District (East) Limited Law's 30/06/2020 Street Cleansing 111.80 320 Cleaning Services in Yuen Services Long District (West) Limited LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5305
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Integrity 30/09/2020 Management, 16.48 43 Service Cleansing and Pest Limited Control Services for Markets and Cooked Food Markets in Yuen Long District Shiny Glory 28/02/2022 Waste Collection 118.80 13 Services Services in Yuen Limited Long District Subtotal 342.29 599 Cross- Johnson 30/04/2020 Mechanical Street 20.11 36 District Cleaning Washing Services in Services Kowloon District Company Limited Energy 30/06/2020 Animal Carcase 9.60 5 Service Collection Services Limited in Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Territories Districts Waylung 30/06/2020 Recyclable Food 9.45 4 Waste Waste Collection Services Services in Markets, Limited Cooked Food Centres, Cooked Food Hawker Bazaar and Shopping Centres in the Territory World 30/06/2020 Source-separated 20.88 0 Environmental Recyclable Food Services Waste Collection Limited Services for Stalls in Public Markets and Cooked Food Venues in the Territory 5306 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Baguio Waste 31/08/2020 Recyclables 26.86 11 Management Collection Services & Recycling in Hong Kong and Limited Islands, New Territories East and New Territories West Districts Shiny Glory 31/08/2020 Recyclables 6.49 3 Services Collection Services Limited in Kowloon District Integrity 31/12/2020 Cleansing Services 2.70 6 Service for Whitfield Depot, Limited Kwai Chung Depot and Tai Po Depot Baguio 31/12/2020 Cleansing Services 9.60 25 Cleaning for Po On Road Services Municipal Services Company Building in Sham Limited Shui Po District and Hung Hom Municipal Services Building in Kowloon City District ISS 28/02/2021 Portable Toilet 43.86 3 Environmental Service for Toilet Services (HK) Renovation and Limited Selected Locations in the Territory ISS 28/02/2021 Portable Toilet 45.13 62 Environmental Service in the Services (HK) Territory Limited Johnson 31/03/2021 Mosquito, Rodent 70.68 165 Cleaning and Other Pest Services Control Services in Company Wan Chai District Limited and Islands District LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5307
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Ever Gain 31/03/2021 Cleansing and 53.81 132 Engineering Horticultural Limited Maintenance Services for Public Cemeteries, Crematoria, Columbaria and Gardens of Remembrance in New Territories and Kowloon Ever Gain 31/03/2021 Roving Teams for 33.98 65 Engineering Inspection and Limited Undergrowth Cutting Services for Selected Cemeteries, Crematoria and Columbaria in the Territory Baguio Waste 30/04/2021 Waste Collection 82.48 9 Management Services in Islands & Recycling and Kwai Tsing Limited Districts Goodyear 31/05/2021 Cleansing and Waste 89.19 0 (Mak's) Removal Services for Services Special Sites/Areas, Company Ungazetted Beaches Limited and Coastal Areas in the Territory ISS 31/03/2022 Desludging and 44.84 8 Environmental Midnight Services (HK) Conservancy Limited Services in the Territory 5308 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Shiny Glory 31/03/2022 Waste Collection 72.60 0 Services Services by Mobile Limited Refuse Compactors/ Automatic Refuse Collection Systems for Selected Refuse Collection Points in Southern, Islands, Yau Tsim, Sham Shui Po, Kwai Tsing, Sai Kung and North Districts Yee Tai 31/08/2022 Cleansing Services 13.93 18 Cleaning for Hawker Bazaars Company in Kwun Tong and Limited Yau Tsim Districts Sparkle 30/09/2022 Mosquito, Rodent 20.39 30 Environmental and Other Pest Services Control Services in Limited Cemeteries and Crematoria (Hong Kong Section) and Cemeteries and Crematoria (Kowloon) Section Johnson 30/11/2022 Mosquito, Rodent 77.33 102 Cleaning and Other Pest Services Control Services in Company Cemeteries and Limited Crematoria (New Territories) Section and North District Subtotal 753.91 684 Total 5,352.89 9 269
Notes:
* Functional post in the signed contract.
FEHD does not maintain information of total salaries of outsourced staff. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5309
Annex 2
FEHD's outsourced security guard services contracts that will expire in the coming three years
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Central Sky Wise 30/09/2022 Security Guard 18.52 26 and Services Services for Sheung Western Management Wan Municipal District Limited Services Building and Smithfield Municipal Services Building in Central and Western District Eastern Alliance 31/05/2022 Security Guard 7.19 15 District Security Services for Chai Limited Wan Municipal Services Building in Eastern District Sky Wise 31/10/2022 Security Guard 5.82 11 Services Services for Management Municipal Services Limited Buildings in Eastern District Subtotal 13.01 26 Kowloon Central 31/08/2022 Security Guard 6.42 12 City Security Services for Hung District Services Hom Municipal Limited Services Building in Kowloon City District Yau Central 30/09/2022 Security Guard 6.48 12 Tsim Security Services for Tai Kok Mong Services Tsui Municipal District Limited Services Building in Mong Kok District 5310 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Guard Able 31/08/2022 Security Guard 6.40 11 Limited Services for Kwun Chung Municipal Services Building in Yau Tsim District Subtotal 12.88 23 North Alliance 15/07/2021 Security Guard 14.02 37 District Security Services for Shek Wu Limited Hui Municipal Services Building and Luen Wo Hui Municipal Services Building in North District Guard Able 31/01/2022 Security Guard 4.36 8 Limited Services for Man Kam To Food Control Office including Extensions A, B and C Subtotal 18.38 45 Sham Alliance 31/01/2022 Security Guard 6.68 11 Shui Po Security Services for Po On District Limited Road Municipal Services Building in Sham Shui Po District Southern Central 31/10/2022 Security Guard 4.68 5 District Security Services for Services Municipal Services Limited Buildings in Southern District Central 30/06/2020 Security Guard 1.43 6 Security Services for Markets Services and Hawker Bazaar Limited in Southern District Subtotal 6.11 11 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5311
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Tai Po Alliance 31/10/2021 Security Guard 14.13 30 District Security Services for Tai Po Limited Complex in Tai Po District Tsuen Alliance 31/07/2021 Security Guard 3.27 7 Wan Security Services for Yeung District Limited Uk Road Municipal Services Building in Tsuen Wan District Wan Wise Security 31/07/2021 Security Guard 2.96 7 Chai Limited Services for Lockhart District Road Municipal Services Building in Wan Chai District Cross- International 31/07/2020 Security Guard 2.58 17 District Security Services for Limited Whitfield Depot, Kwai Chung Depot, Yuen Long Depot and Tai Po Depot Sky Wise 31/07/2020 Security Guard 12.74 69 Services Services for Markets Management and Hawker Bazaars Limited in New Territories Districts Sunguard 30/11/2020 Security Guard 16.88 58 Security Services for Public Company Cemeteries, Limited Crematoria and Cremation Booking Office in New Territories 5312 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Contract Number Service District Contractor Expiry Date Value of Description/Location ($ million) Staff* Alliance 31/05/2021 Security Guard 7.90 18 Security Services for Markets Limited in Central/Western District and Eastern District Sky Wise 31/05/2021 Security Guard 12.25 23 Services Services for Markets Management in Wan Chai District Limited and Islands District Alliance 31/01/2022 Security Guard 19.26 35 Security Services for Markets Limited in Wong Tai Sin, Mong Kok and Kwun Tong Districts Alliance 31/03/2022 Security Guard 15.28 29 Security Services for Tat Mei Limited Road Depot, Nam Cheong Offices and Vehicle Depot, Quarry Bay Depot and Pei Ho Street Municipal Services Building Wise Security 31/05/2022 Security Guard 24.47 49 Limited Services for Venues in East Kowloon Region and West Kowloon Region Subtotal 111.36 298 Total 213.72 496
Notes:
* Functional post in the signed contract.
FEHD does not maintain information of total salaries of outsourced staff.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5313
Annex 3
List 1: Monthly salary ranges of the staff employed by FEHD's cleansing and security guard service contractors
2019-2020 Year 2017-2018 2018-2019 (As at 31 December 2019) Cleansing services $8,060 to $15,200 $8,556 to $15,200 $9,300 to $15,200 Security guard services $8,060 to $9,176 $8,556 to $9,424 $9,300 to $13,000
Note:
FEHD does not maintain information on the average working hours, length of employment and age distribution of the staff employed by its contractors.
List 2: Details of the service contracts outsourced by LCSD for cleansing and security
2017 2018 2019 Monthly salary of contractors' employees ($) - Cleansing 8,556 to 9,500 8,556 to 9,500 9,300 to 11,036 - Security 8,556 to 9,424 8,556 to 9,449 9,300 to 10,410 Maximum working hours per day of contractors' employees - Cleansing 8.5 to 11 8.5 to 11 8.5 to 11 - Security 8 to 11 8 to 11 8 to 11
Note:
Since LCSD is not the employer of the outsourced workers and does not require the contractors to provide details of their employees, LCSD does not have the details about the employment of outsourced workers such as information on their length of service and age distribution.
5314 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Annex 4
Facilities of RCPs managed by FEHD's cleansing contractors
Changing Drinking Mobile refuse District facilities facilities compactors Central and Western 11 11 5 Wan Chai 8 9 3 Eastern 11 11 4 Southern 5 5 0 Islands 2 2 1 Yau Tsim Mong 14 17 15 Sham Shui Po 10 10 5 Kowloon City 10 18 3 Wong Tai Sin 5 5 1 Kwun Tong 8 8 0 Kwai Tsing 6 6 0 Tsuen Wan 6 6 3 Tuen Mun 9 9 3 Yuen Long 8 9 6 Northern 3 3 2 Tai Po 2 5 4 Sha Tin 5 5 1 Sai Kung 4 5 2 Total 127 143 58
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5315
Annex 5
Property Services Contracts of Public Housing Estates under HA (as at 29 February 2020)
No. of Average non- Working skilled Current Hours(1) Contract workers Monthly Contract Contract S/N Name of Commencement Total Estate Name Expiry Date Sum
No. Contractor Date Wages (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) Cleaner Cleaner Security Guard Security Guard Security
1 Hung Fuk Estate Shui On 1/4/2015 31/3/2020 91.89 27 45 0.9 8.0 8 .0 Properties Management Limited 2 Lung Hang Estate, Modern 1/3/2015 31/3/2020 154.63 50 82 1.71 8.0 8.0 Sun Tin Wai Estate Living Property Management Ltd. 3 Chung On Estate, Easy Living 1/4/2015 31/3/2020 76.10 39 59 1.19 8.0 8.0 Kwong Yuen Estate, Consultant Pok Hong Estate, Ltd. Shek Mun Estate, Fung Shing Court, Kam Fung Court, Kwong Lam Court 4 Lei Tung Estate, Fung Creative 1/4/2015 31/3/2020 202.16 83 147 2.82 8.0 8.0 Wah Estate, Ma Hang Property Estate, Sai Wan Services Estate, Siu Sai Wan Consultants Estate, Tsui Wan Ltd. Estate, Wah Kwai Estate, Hoi Fu Court, Kai Tsui Court 5 On Tat Estate Nice 1/6/2015 30/6/2020 154.88 54 72 1.57 8.0 8.0 Property Management Ltd. 6 Yat Tung (I) & (II) Good Excel 1/7/2015 30/6/2020 178.81 81 141 2.69 9.0 8 .0 Estate, Kam Peng Property Estate, Lung Tin Consultants Estate, Ngan Wan Ltd. Estate, Peng Lai Court 5316 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of Average non- Working skilled Current Hours(1) Contract workers Monthly Contract Contract S/N Name of Commencement Total Estate Name Expiry Date Sum
No. Contractor Date Wages (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) Cleaner Cleaner Security Guard Security Guard Security
7 Tin Yiu (I) & (II) Modern 1/7/2015 30/6/2020 161.73 86 111 2.51 8.0 8 .0 Estate, Shui Pin Wai Living Estate Property Management Ltd. 8 Lower Wong Tai Sin Easy Living 1/7/2015 30/6/2020 112.47 55 100 1.91 8.0 8.0 (II) Estate Consultant Ltd. 9 Tin Chak Estate, Lung Nice 1/10/2015 30/9/2020 120.13 39 68 1.36 8.0 8.0 Yat Estate, Shan King Property Estate, Grandeur Management Terrace Ltd. 10 Long Ching Estate, Good Excel 1/12/2015 31/12/2020 73.82 15 38 0.66 8.5 8.0 Long Shin Estate Property Consultants Ltd. 11 So Uk Estate Kai Fu 1/12/2015 31/12/2020 125.25 51 84 1.72 8.0 8.0 Property Services Co. Ltd. 12 Shatin Pass Estate, Pioneer 1/1/2016 31/12/2020 85.67 27 57 1.12 7.0 8.0 Mei Tung Estate, Management Tung Wui Estate, Ltd. King Tai Court 13 Choi Fook Estate, Top One 1/1/2016 31/12/2020 111.63 51 72 1.60 8.0 8.0 Choi Tak Estate Ltd. 14 Fu Heng Estate, Fu Modern 1/1/2016 31/12/2020 126.48 44 103 1.95 8.0 8.0 Shin Estate, Po Heung Living Estate, Tai Yuen Property Estate, Wan Tau Tong Management Estate, Tak Nga Court, Ltd. Ting Nga Court, Yat Nga Court 15 Choi Wan (II) Estate, Easy Living 1/1/2016 31/12/2020 127.11 54 101 1.99 8.0 8 .0 Chuk Yuen (South) Consultant Estate Ltd. 16 Shek Lei (II) Estate Creative 1/1/2016 31/12/2020 131.41 55 91 1.87 8.0 8.0 Property Services Consultants Ltd. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5317
No. of Average non- Working skilled Current Hours(1) Contract workers Monthly Contract Contract S/N Name of Commencement Total Estate Name Expiry Date Sum
No. Contractor Date Wages (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) Cleaner Cleaner Security Guard Security Guard Security
17 Mei Lam Estate, Fung Easy Living 1/5/2016 31/3/2021 172.86 47 95 1.74 8.0 8.0 Wo Estate, Yan On Consultant Estate, May Shing Ltd. Court, Sui Wo Court, Yu Chui Court 18 Pak Tin Estate, Un Pioneer 1/5/2016 31/3/2021 282.25 82 137 2.67 8.0 8.0 Chau Estate, Fortune Management Estate Ltd. 19 Fu Tung Estate Creative 1/7/2016 30/6/2021 32.21 13 21 0.43 8.0 8.0 Property Services Consultants Ltd. 20 Ko Cheung/Yau Mei Top One 1/7/2016 30/6/2021 73.17 32 63 1.17 8.0 8.0 DMC Mgr Ltd. 21 Ming Tak Estate, Po Good Yield 1/10/2016 30/9/2021 107.27 44 70 1.45 8.5 8.0 Lam Estate, King Lam Property Estate, Tsui Lam Management Estate, Yee Ming Ltd. Estate, Shin Ming Estate, Hin Ming Court, Ho Ming Court, King Ming Court, Yan Ming Court, Yu Ming Court, Yuk Ming Court 22 Sau Mau Ping Estate Creative 1/10/2016 30/9/2021 171.17 84 108 2.45 8.0 8.0 Property Services Consultants Ltd. 23 Cheung Ching Estate, Easy Living 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 142.05 69 101 2.21 8.0 8 .0 Cheung Hang Estate Consultant Ltd. 24 Wah Ming Estate, Good Excel 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 88.52 29 56 1.11 8.5 8.0 Cheung Wah Estate, Property Ka Fuk Estate, Wah Consultants Sum Estate, Yung Ltd. Shing Court, Ka Shing Court, King Shing Court 5318 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of Average non- Working skilled Current Hours(1) Contract workers Monthly Contract Contract S/N Name of Commencement Total Estate Name Expiry Date Sum
No. Contractor Date Wages (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) Cleaner Cleaner Security Guard Security Guard Security
25 Fu Shan Estate, Tsz Pioneer 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 190.84 92 141 2.91 8.0 8.0 Hong Estate, Tsz Lok Management Estate, Tsz Man Ltd. Estate, Tsz On Court, King Hin Court 26 Cheung Fat Estate, Good Yield 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 162.30 67 123 2.41 8.0 8.0 Cheung Kwai Estate, Property Cheung On Estate, Management Cheung Shan Estate, Ltd. Cheung Wang Estate, Tsing Yi Estate, Nga Ning Court, Easeful Court 27 Kwong Fuk Estate, China 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 140.52 43 88 1.65 8.0 8.0 Tai Wo Estate, Chung Overseas Nga Court, Po Nga Property Court, Wang Fuk Services Ltd. Court 28 Hing Wah (I) Estate, Creative 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 107.45 28 42 0.89 8.0 8.0 Hong Tung Estate, Lin Property Tsui Estate, Tsui Lok Services Estate, Wah Ha Estate, Consultants Wan Tsui Estate Ltd. 29 Ma Tau Wai Estate, Pioneer 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 238.12 68 126 2.45 8.0 8.0 Tai Hang Tung Estate, Management Shek Kip Mei Estate Ltd. 30 Yan Tin Estate Nice 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 95.12 25 42 0.85 8.0 8.0 Property Management Ltd. 31 Shun Lee Estate, Shun Top One 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 151.04 49 76 1.55 8.0 8.0 On Estate Ltd. 32 Ying Tung Estate Good Excel 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 87.38 19 38 0.76 9.5 8.0 Property Consultants Ltd. 33 Hin Keng Estate, Hin Creative 1/1/2017 31/12/2021 111.95 47 81 1.61 8.0 8.0 Yiu Estate, Mei Tin Property Estate, Kam Tai Court Services Consultants Ltd. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5319
No. of Average non- Working skilled Current Hours(1) Contract workers Monthly Contract Contract S/N Name of Commencement Total Estate Name Expiry Date Sum
No. Contractor Date Wages (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) Cleaner Cleaner Security Guard Security Guard Security
34 Wang Tau Hom China 1/4/2017 31/3/2020 114.96 49 102 1.88 8.0 8.0 Estate, Choi Fai Estate Overseas Property Services Ltd. 35 Hau Tak Estate, Pioneer 1/4/2017 31/3/2020 145.57 68 105 2.18 8.0 8.0 Sheung Tak Estate, Management Chung Ming Court , Ltd. Kwong Ming Court, Po Ming Court, Tong Ming Court 36 Fu Tai Estate, Po Tin Easy Living 1/7/2017 30/6/2022 240.12 81 102 2.31 8.0 8.0 Estate Consultant Ltd. 37 Lei Muk Shue Estate Creative 1/10/2017 30/9/2020 119.76 52 85 1.67 8.0 8.0 Property Services Consultants Ltd. 38 Chai Wan Estate, Oi Sunbase 1/10/2017 30/9/2020 80.41 33 59 1.11 8.0 8.0 Tung Estate International Properties Management Ltd. 39 Lower Ngau Tau Kok Kai Fu 1/4/2018 31/3/2021 58.99 28 34 0.74 7.0 8.0 Estate Property Services Co. Ltd. 40 Ching Ho Estate, Creative 1/4/2018 31/3/2021 114.38 66 83 1.79 8.0 8.0 Cheung Lung Wai Property Estate Services Consultants Ltd. 41 Kai Ching Estate, Tak Good Excel 1/4/2018 31/3/2021 162.13 68 109 2.17 8.0 8.0 Long Estate Property Consultants Ltd. 42 Mun Tung Estate Sunbase 1/8/2018 30/6/2023 78.16 26 40 0.79 8.0 8.0 International Properties Management Ltd. 5320 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of Average non- Working skilled Current Hours(1) Contract workers Monthly Contract Contract S/N Name of Commencement Total Estate Name Expiry Date Sum
No. Contractor Date Wages (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) Cleaner Cleaner Security Guard Security Guard Security
43 Hoi Ying Estate, Lai Nice 1/8/2018 30/6/2023 81.49 18 36 0.67 8.0 8.0 Tsui Court Property Management Ltd. 44 Shek Mun Estate Easy Living 1/8/2018 30/6/2023 100.07 29 56 1.04 8.0 8.0 Consultant Ltd. 45 Hing Tin Estate, Po Creative 1/7/2018 30/6/2021 174.90 75 115 2.34 8.0 8.0 Tat Estate, Tak Tin Property Estate, Yau Tong Services Estate Consultants Ltd. 46 Choi Ha Estate, Choi Kai Fu 1/1/2019 31/12/2021 190.69 91 109 2.49 8.0 8.0 Ying Estate, Kwong Property Tin Estate, Upper Services Co. Ngau Tau Kok Estate Ltd. 47 Kwai Hing Estate, Good Excel 1/1/2019 31/12/2021 159.08 68 108 2.22 8.5 8.0 Kwai Luen Estate, Property Kwai Tsui Estate, Consultants Kwai Shing (East) Ltd. Estate, High Prosperity Terrace 48 Heng On Estate, Lee Modern 1/1/2019 31/12/2021 63.30 28 29 0.78 8.0 8.0 On Estate, Yiu On Living Estate, Kam Ying Property Court Management Ltd. 49 Tin Ching Estate, Tin Modern 1/4/2019 31/3/2022 145.59 64 98 2.05 9.0 8.0 Yat Estate Living Property Management Ltd. 50 Sau Mau Ping (South) Easy Living 1/4/2019 31/3/2022 176.28 64 130 2.41 8.0 8.0 Estate, Yau Lai Estate Consultant Ltd. 51 Chun Yeung Estate China 1/6/2019 31/3/2024 86.33 28 35 0.77 8.0 8.0 Overseas Property Services Ltd. 52 Po Shek Wu Estate, Kai Fu 1/5/2019 31/3/2024 86.76 16 39 0.73 8.0 8.0 Fai Ming Estate Property Services Co. Ltd. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5321
No. of Average non- Working skilled Current Hours(1) Contract workers Monthly Contract Contract S/N Name of Commencement Total Estate Name Expiry Date Sum
No. Contractor Date Wages (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) Cleaner Cleaner Security Guard Security Guard Security
53 Kai Tin Estate, On Tin Nice 1/11/2019 30/9/2022 329.73 106 166 4.50 7.0 8.0 Estate, Ping Tin Property Estate, Tsui Ping Management (North) Estate, Tsui Ltd. Ping (South) Estate, Wan Hon Estate, Ko Cheung/Yau Mei Domestic (Landlord Function), Cheung Wo Court, Lei On Court, Hong Tin Court, Hong Nga Court, Hong Ying Court 54 Kwai Fong Estate, Lai Modern 1/11/2019 30/9/2022 334.90 128 209 4.69 8.0 8 .0 Yiu Estate, Shek Lei Living (I) Estate, Shek Yam Property Estate Management Ltd. 55 Hing Tung Estate, Tin Sunbase 1/12/2019 30/11/2022 98.14 36 54 1.13 8.0 8.0 Wan Estate, Tung International Lam Court, Tung Hei Properties Court Management Ltd. 56 Chuk Yuen (North) Creative 1/12/2019 30/11/2022 131.76 29 68 1.76 7.0 8.0 Estate, Fung Tak Property Estate, Lower Wong Services Tai Sin (I) Estate, Consultants Tung Tau (II) Estate, Ltd. Upper Wong Tai Sin Estate 57 Cheung Sha Wan Nice 1/12/2019 30/11/2022 291.00 74 150 3.51 7.0 8.0 Estate, Homantin Property Estate, Hung Hom Management Estate, Lei Cheng Uk Ltd. Estate, Nam Cheong Estate, Sheung Lok Estate, Wing Cheong Estate, Hoi Fu Court, Chun Man Court, Yee Ching Court 58 Kin Sang Estate, Pioneer 1/12/2019 30/11/2022 180.60 48 77 2.13 7.0 8.0 Leung King Estate, Management Long Ping Estate, Tin Ltd. King Estate, Tin Tsz Estate, Tin Wah Estate 5322 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of Average non- Working skilled Current Hours(1) Contract workers Monthly Contract Contract S/N Name of Commencement Total Estate Name Expiry Date Sum
No. Contractor Date Wages (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) Cleaner Cleaner Security Guard Security Guard Security
59 Kin Ming Estate, Choi Easy Living 1/12/2019 30/11/2022 131.56 40 68 1.92 7.0 8.0 Ming Court Consultant Ltd. 60 Choi Yuen Estate, Tai Creative 1/1/2020 31/12/2022 136.51 32 87 2.09 7.0 8.0 Ping Estate, Tin Ping Property Estate, Choi Po Court, Services On Shing Court Consultants Ltd.
Notes:
(1) Maximum daily working hour for non-skilled workers
HA does not maintain information about the age profile of workers under the above contracts.
The monthly salary ranges of cleaners and security guards under the above contracts are $9,300 to $13,500 and $9,300 to $14,300 respectively.
Annex 6
Cleansing Service Contracts of Public Housing Estates under HA (as at 29 February 2020)
No. of Contract Contract
Contract non- (1) S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum Expiry Date skilled No. Name Contractor Date ($ (dd/mm/yyyy) workers Hours ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Total Wages Current Monthly
Cleaner Working Average 1 Model Ying Wah 1/3/2018 29/2/2020 2.37 7 0.07 8.0 Housing Cleaning Estate Service Limited 2 Shek Hong Yee 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 6.28 19 0.21 8.0 Yam Cleaning Co East Estate LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5323
No. of Contract Contract
Contract non- (1) S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum Expiry Date skilled No. Name Contractor Date ($ (dd/mm/yyyy) workers Hours ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Total Wages Current Monthly
Cleaner Working Average 3 Pak Tin Chun Wui 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 11.98 39 0.42 8.0 Estate Kee Company Limited 4 Butterfly Man Shun 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 12.44 36 0.42 8.0 Estate Hong Kong & Kln. Cleaning Company Limited 5 Wu King Hong Shing 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 8.63 24 0.27 8.0 Estate HK Clean Co 6 Ko Yee Hong Kong 1/5/2018 30/4/2020 5.73 19 0.20 8.0 Estate Commercial Cleaning Services Limited 7 Ping Hong Yee 1/5/2018 30/4/2020 11.40 37 0.42 8.0 Shek Cleaning Co Estate 8 Wo Lok Kai Fat 1 /5/2018 30/4/2020 5.88 20 0.21 8.0 Estate Cleaning Co 9 Sha Kok Yee Tai 1 /5/2018 30/4/2020 12.55 41 0.44 8.0 Estate Cleaning Co 10 Lai On Kai Fat 1 /5/2018 30/4/2020 5.45 16 0.18 8.0 Estate Cleaning Co 11 Wan Sun Lee 1/5/2018 30/4/2020 9.00 27 0.32 8.0 Tsui Cleansing Estate Company Limited 12 Kwai Yee Hop 1 /5/2018 30/4/2020 27.70 86 0.94 8.0 Chung Cleaning Co Estate 13 Shek Pai Hong Kong 1/6/2018 31/5/2020 15.69 47 0.54 8.0 Wan Commercial Estate Cleaning Services Limited 5324 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of Contract Contract
Contract non- (1) S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum Expiry Date skilled No. Name Contractor Date ($ (dd/mm/yyyy) workers Hours ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Total Wages Current Monthly
Cleaner Working Average 14 Lam Tin Hong Kong 18/6/2018 17/6/2020 8.32 23 0.27 8.0 Estate Commercial Cleaning Services Limited 15 Tin Yan Man Shun 1/8/2018 31/7/2020 12.13 33 0.38 8.0 Estate Hong Kong & Kln. Cleaning Company Limited 16 Lei Yue Sun Lee 1/10/2018 30/9/2020 8.95 28 0.31 8.0 Mun Cleansing Estate Company Limited 17 Nam Li Hing 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 7.18 21 0.25 8.0 Shan Environmental Estate Services Co. Limited 18 Yue Wan Li Hing 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 7.94 25 0.28 8.0 Estate Environmental Services Co. Limited 19 Choi Sun Lee 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 14.95 43 0.51 8.0 Hung Cleansing Estate Company Limited 20 Chak On Li Hing 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 4.51 14 0.15 8.0 Estate Environmental Services Co. Limited 21 Lok Fu Ying Wah 1/12/2018 30/11/2020 9.29 28 0.32 8.0 Estate Cleaning Service Limited 22 Hing Sunny 1/12/2018 30/11/2020 10.39 34 0.38 8.0 Wah (II) Cleansing Co Estate LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5325
No. of Contract Contract
Contract non- (1) S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum Expiry Date skilled No. Name Contractor Date ($ (dd/mm/yyyy) workers Hours ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Total Wages Current Monthly
Cleaner Working Average 23 Wah Lai Ying Wah 1/12/2018 30/11/2020 3.04 8 0.09 8.0 Estate Cleaning Service Limited 24 Housing Lok Kwan 1/12/2019 30/11/2020 1.24 5 0.07 8.0 for Social Service Senior Citizens of Tin Yuet Estate 25 Cheung Ying Wah 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 16.99 48 0.59 8.0 Hong Cleaning Estate Service Limited 26 Choi Creative 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 11.72 33 0.41 8.0 Wan (I) Property Estate Services Consultants Limited 27 Fuk Loi Ying Wah 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 8.11 26 0.29 8.0 Estate Cleaning Service Limited 28 Kwai Ying Wah 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 12.79 37 0.43 8.0 Shing Cleaning West Service Estate Limited 29 Lai King Ying Wah 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 11.66 34 0.41 8.0 Estate Cleaning Service Limited 30 Lok Wah Sun Lee 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 8.83 29 0.32 8.0 North Cleansing Estate Company Limited 31 Mei Ying Wah 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 2.35 8 0.07 8.0 Tung Cleaning Estate Service Limited 5326 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of Contract Contract
Contract non- (1) S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum Expiry Date skilled No. Name Contractor Date ($ (dd/mm/yyyy) workers Hours ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Total Wages Current Monthly
Cleaner Working Average 32 Sun Chui Creative 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 12.68 37 0.46 8.0 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 33 Tai Hing Sunny 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 13.73 43 0.46 8.0 Estate Cleansing Co 34 Tai Wo Sunny 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 14.90 49 0.51 8.0 Hau Cleansing Co Estate 35 Wo Che Yee Hop 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 17.13 49 0.59 8.0 Estate Cleaning Co 36 Shek Kip Yee Tai 1/3/2019 28/2/2021 15.64 47 0.54 8.0 Mei Cleaning Co Estate 37 Kai Yip Yee Tai 1/4/2019 31/3/2021 10.94 32 0.35 8.0 Estate Cleaning Co 38 Shui Lapco Service 11/4/2019 12/4/2021 30.96 91 1.07 8.0 Chuen O Limited Estate 39 On Tai Chun Wui 12/6/2019 11/6/2021 21.96 58 0.74 8.0 Estate Kee Company Limited 40 On Yam Hong Yee 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 12.46 34 0.41 8.0 Estate Cleaning Co 41 Ap Lei Hong Kong 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 13.67 36 0.45 8.0 Chau Commercial Estate Cleaning Services Limited 42 Lai Kok Sunny 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 10.10 26 0.32 8.0 Estate Cleansing Co 43 Tin Shui Sunny 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 9.24 22 0.29 8.0 (II) Cleansing Co Estate 44 Lei Muk Ying Wah 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 7.65 25 0.26 8.0 Shue (II) Cleaning Estate Service Limited LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5327
No. of Contract Contract
Contract non- (1) S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum Expiry Date skilled No. Name Contractor Date ($ (dd/mm/yyyy) workers Hours ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Total Wages Current Monthly
Cleaner Working Average 45 Hoi Lai Hong Kong 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 13.73 40 0.47 8.0 Estate Commercial Cleaning Services Limited 46 Oi Man Sunbase 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 19.28 41 0.58 8.0 Estate Environmental Hygiene Limited 47 Shek Hong Kong 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 14.75 42 0.50 8.0 Wai Kok Commercial Estate Cleaning Services Limited 48 Tsz Hong Kong 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 21.49 63 0.72 8.0 Ching Commercial Estate Cleaning Services Limited 49 Fu Yee Tai 1/12/2019 30/11/2021 15.58 44 0.48 8.0 Cheong Cleaning Co Estate 50 Hing Chun Wui 1/12/2019 30/11/2021 5.49 12 0.15 8.0 Man Kee Company Estate Limited 51 Tin Yuet Creative 1/12/2019 30/11/2021 9.67 23 0.28 8.0 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 52 Tin Shui Hong Kong 1/12/2019 30/11/2021 10.23 30 0.34 8.0 (I) Estate Commercial Cleaning Services Limited 53 On Ting Sun Lee 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 12.20 27 0.37 8.0 Estate Cleansing Company Limited 5328 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of Contract Contract
Contract non- (1) S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum Expiry Date skilled No. Name Contractor Date ($ (dd/mm/yyyy) workers Hours ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Total Wages Current Monthly
Cleaner Working Average 54 Sam Sun Lee 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 5.94 13 0.18 8.0 Shing Cleansing Estate Company Limited 55 Wah Fu Li Hing 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 13.54 29 0.44 8.0 (II) Environmental Estate Services Co. Limited 56 Yiu Sunny 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 18.19 41 0.59 8.0 Tung Cleansing Co Estate 57 Chun Yee Hop 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 7.87 20 0.24 8.0 Shek Cleaning Co Estate 58 Lek Talent Match 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 9.65 27 0.31 8.0 Yuen Limited Estate 59 Lok Wah Sun Lee 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 19.58 45 0.62 8.0 South Cleansing Estate Company Limited 60 Shun Tin Yee Tai 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 19.39 47 0.60 8.0 Estate Cleaning Co 61 Wah Fu Sunny 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 24.24 61 0.81 8.0 (I) Estate Cleansing Co 62 Yau Oi Sun Lee 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 23.57 51 0.74 8.0 Estate Cleansing Company Limited 63 Tin Heng Ying Wah 1/2/2020 31/1/2022 18.07 46 0.59 8.0 Estate Cleaning Service Limited
Notes:
(1) Including Part-time Workers
HA does not maintain information about the age profile of workers under the above contracts.
The monthly salary range of cleaners under the above contracts is $9,300 to $11,780.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5329
Annex 7
Security Service Contracts of Public Housing Estates under HA (as at 29 February 2020)
No. of
Contract Contract non- Contract S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum skilled Expiry Date workers No. Name Contractor Date ($ Hours (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Security Total Wages Current Monthly Guard Working Average 1 Sun Chui Creative 1/3/2018 29/2/2020 27.51 68 0.87 8 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 2 Sha Kok Creative 1/3/2018 29/2/2020 29.02 72 0.93 8 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 3 Chun Hong Kong 1/3/2017 28/2/2019 12.09 28 0.34 8 Shek Wah Kiu Estate (Overseas) Services Limited 4 Lek Guard City 1/3/2017 28/2/2019 22.55 56 0.68 8 Yuen Limited Estate 5 Wo Che Creative 1/3/2017 28/2/2019 30.00 71 0.85 8 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 6 Kai Yip Creative 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 17.77 41 0.53 8 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 7 Ko Yee Creative 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 11.25 24 0.31 8 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 5330 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of
Contract Contract non- Contract S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum skilled Expiry Date workers No. Name Contractor Date ($ Hours (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Security Total Wages Current Monthly Guard Working Average 8 Shun Tin Creative 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 24.98 59 0.76 8 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 9 Ping Creative 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 15.71 34 0.44 8 Shek Property Estate Services Consultants Limited 10 Oi Man Creative 1/4/2018 31/3/2020 21.93 50 0.64 8 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 11 Shui Hong Kong 11/4/2019 10/4/2021 42.53 94 1.21 8 Chuen O Guards Estate Limited 12 Tsz Dragon Guard 1/5/2018 30/4/2020 23.48 54 0.65 8 Ching Security Estate Limited 13 Shek Pai Hong Kong 1/5/2018 30/4/2020 23.30 50 0.66 8 Wan Guards Estate Limited 14 Wo Lok Onward 1/6/2018 31/5/2020 21.29 53 0.66 8 Estate Security Company Limited 15 Lok Wah Onward 1/6/2018 31/5/2020 18.60 45 0.56 8 (North) Security Estate Company Limited 16 Choi Hong Kong 1/6/2018 31/5/2020 24.01 55 0.68 8 Hung Guards Estate Limited LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5331
No. of
Contract Contract non- Contract S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum skilled Expiry Date workers No. Name Contractor Date ($ Hours (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Security Total Wages Current Monthly Guard Working Average 17 Lam Tin Nice Property 18/6/2018 17/6/2020 12.34 26 0.34 8 Estate Management Limited 18 Wah Fu Modern 1/7/2018 30/6/2020 25.98 60 0.77 8 (I) Estate Living Property Management Limited 19 Wah Fu Unimax 1/7/2018 30/6/2020 13.11 24 0.32 8 (II) Property Estate Consultancy Limited 20 Ap Lei Unimax 1/7/2018 30/6/2020 18.99 40 0.53 8 Chau Property Estate Consultancy Limited 21 Shek Kip Nice Property 1/8/2018 31/7/2020 21.94 45 0.60 8 Mei Management Estate Limited 22 Tin Shui Creative 1/8/2018 31/7/2020 32.64 71 0.93 8 (I) & (II) Property Estate Services Consultants Limited 23 Tin Heng Creative 1/8/2018 31/7/2020 27.02 56 0.71 8 Estate Property Services Consultants Limited 24 Lai Kok Hong Kong 1/8/2019 31/7/2021 15.78 39 0.47 8 Estate Wah Kiu (Overseas) Services Limited 25 Lai On Hong Kong 1/8/2019 31/7/2021 11.03 25 0.30 8 Estate Wah Kiu (Overseas) Services Limited 5332 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of
Contract Contract non- Contract S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum skilled Expiry Date workers No. Name Contractor Date ($ Hours (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Security Total Wages Current Monthly Guard Working Average 26 Lei Yue Nice Property 1/10/2018 30/9/2020 18.03 42 0.54 8 Mun Management Estate Limited 27 Yau Oi Guard City 1/10/2018 30/9/2020 32.94 80 0.99 8 Estate Limited 28 Lei Muk Onward 1/10/2018 30/9/2020 17.59 42 0.50 8 Shue (II) Security Estate Company Limited 29 Kwai Unimax 1/10/2018 30/9/2020 43.90 101 1.25 8 Chung Property Estate Consultancy Limited 30 On Ting Unimax 1/10/2018 30/9/2020 19.82 47 0.58 8 Estate Property Consultancy Limited 31 Tai Wo Creative 1/10/2019 30/9/2021 40.19 90 1.23 8 Hau Property Estate Services Consultants Limited 32 On Tai Nice Property 1/10/2019 30/9/2021 36.74 77 1.06 8 Estate Management Limited 33 Yue Wan Hong Kong 1/10/2019 30/9/2021 15.40 30 0.40 8 Estate Guards Limited 34 Lok Wah Tonwell 1/10/2019 30/9/2021 32.34 58 0.90 8 (South) Security Estate Limited 35 Kwai Unimax 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 20.16 44 0.54 8 Shing Property (West) Consultancy Estate Limited LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5333
No. of
Contract Contract non- Contract S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum skilled Expiry Date workers No. Name Contractor Date ($ Hours (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Security Total Wages Current Monthly Guard Working Average 36 Chak On Unimax 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 9.86 19 0.24 8 Estate Property Consultancy Limited 37 Pak Tin Nice Property 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 24.65 59 0.76 8 Estate Management Limited 38 Mei Unimax 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 7.20 12 0.15 8 Tung Property Estate Consultancy Limited 39 Nam Tonwell 1/11/2018 31/10/2020 13.78 29 0.37 8 Shan Security Estate Limited 40 Hoi Lai Unimax 1/11/2019 31/10/2021 29.87 64 0.85 8 Estate Property Consultancy Limited 41 Fu Hong Nin 1/12/2019 30/11/2021 24.76 48 0.62 8 Cheong Security Estate Company Limited 42 Tin Yuet Guard City 1/12/2018 30/11/2020 14.43 31 0.39 8 Estate Limited 43 Wah Lai Onward 1/12/2018 30/11/2020 7.87 13 0.16 8 Estate Security Company Limited 44 Shek Nice Property 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 26.81 66 0.83 8 Wai Kok Management Estate Limited 45 Lai King Hong Kong 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 16.61 38 0.47 8 Estate Guards Limited 46 Sam Guard City 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 9.52 22 0.27 8 Shing Limited Estate 5334 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
No. of
Contract Contract non- Contract S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum skilled Expiry Date workers No. Name Contractor Date ($ Hours (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Security Total Wages Current Monthly Guard Working Average 47 Wu King Hong Kong 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 14.56 32 0.39 8 Estate Guards Limited 48 Tai Hing Unimax 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 22.87 54 0.68 8 Estate Property Consultancy Limited 49 Butterfly Onward 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 19.82 43 0.52 8 Estate Security Company Limited 50 Shek Onward 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 11.09 20 0.24 8 Yam Security East Company Estate Limited 51 Yiu Tung Unimax 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 23.31 53 0.69 8 Estate Property Consultancy Limited 52 Hing Unimax 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 15.23 29 0.38 8 Wah (II) Property Estate Consultancy Limited 53 Lok Fu Nice Property 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 22.11 55 0.70 8 Estate Management Limited 54 Choi Unimax 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 25.53 62 0.78 8 Wan (I) Property Estate Consultancy Limited 55 On Yam Guard City 1/1/2019 31/12/2020 17.27 37 0.47 8 Estate Limited 56 Wan Hong Kong 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 19.11 37 0.52 8 Tsui Guards Estate Limited LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5335
No. of
Contract Contract non- Contract S/N Estate Name of Commencement Sum skilled Expiry Date workers No. Name Contractor Date ($ Hours (dd/mm/yyyy) ($ million) ($
(dd/mm/yyyy) million) Security Total Wages Current Monthly Guard Working Average 57 Cheung Tonwell 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 33.20 61 0.90 8 Hong Security Estate Limited 58 Fuk Loi Guard City 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 17.87 35 0.47 8 Estate Limited 59 Model Unimax 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 6.21 7 0.10 8 Housing Property Estate Consultancy Limited 60 Hing Creative 1/1/2020 31/12/2021 10.01 19 0.24 8 Man Property Estate Services Consultants Limited 61 Tin Yan Guard City 1/2/2020 31/1/2022 27.30 49 0.69 8 Estate Limited
Notes:
HA does not maintain information about the age profile of workers under the above contracts.
The monthly salary range of security guards under the above contracts is $9,300 to $12,000.
Annex 8
Follow-up actions taken against cleansing service contractors by FEHD
2019-2020 2015-2016 2016-2017 2017-2018 2018-2019 (as at 29.2.2020) Number of verbal 2 116 2 547 2 206 3 119 2 380 warnings issued Number of written 118 852 119 128 64 warnings issued Number of default 1 228 763 1 187 1 864 1 254 notices issued and cases of monthly service payments deduction 5336 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
2019-2020 2015-2016 2016-2017 2017-2018 2018-2019 (as at 29.2.2020) Number of times of 0 1 0 1 1 giving demerit points Amount of monthly 271.8 389.8 246.6 498.8 284.7 service payments deducted (ten-thousand dollars)
Annex 9
Cases in which FEHD imposed punishments on its cleansing service contractors for breaching contractual obligations relating to the demerit point system
(v) Total (iv) amount of (i) (ii) (iii) Number of monthly Year Names of Number of Details of the default service contractors breaches breaches notices payments issued deducted (HK$) 2016-2017 Goodyear 1 Exceeding 1 default 7,379 (Mak's) maximum notice Services working hours Company Limited 2018-2019 Lapco Service 1 Underpayment of 1 default 8,045 Limited wages notice 2019-2020 Man Shing 1 Failure in using 1 default 8,045 (as at Cleaning autopay for notice 29 February Service payment of 2020) Company wages Limited
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5337
Annex 10
Number of non-compliance notices issued by LCSD to outsourced cleansing service contractors
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 1. Deduction of monthly service fees 665 1 163 1 634 2 051 2 249 2. Verbal warnings 289 320 78 102 26 3. Written warnings 366 584 537 615 514 4. Default notices 11 15 15 27 19 5. Recorded demerit points 0 0 0 0 0
Annex 11
Complaints received by FEHD in 2019-2020 regarding the following categories (as at 29 February 2020)
Number of Number of Number of default substantiated complaints notices cases issued (i) Underpayment of wages 4 0 0 (ii) Non-payment of wages 0 0 0 (iii) No signing of SEC 0 0 0 (iv) Exceeding maximum working hours 0 0 0 (v) Failure to grant severance/long service 0 0 0 payment
Live poultry trade
9. MR STEVEN HO (in Chinese): President, under the existing policy, the Government will not issue new licences for fresh provision shops with permission for selling live poultry nor grant new tenancies for live poultry stalls in public markets, and the existing licences/tenancies may be succeeded only by the immediate family members of the licensees/tenants. As a result, the numbers of these two types of live poultry retailers will only be dwindling. Furthermore, the Government will not issue new chicken farm licences, and quite a number of chicken farms affected by development projects have no choice but to cease operation as no suitable relocation sites can be identified. The above situations have left the live poultry trade of Hong Kong hardly any room for sustainable 5338 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 development, and caused inconvenience to those members of the public who want to buy live chickens. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers of (i) licences for fresh provision shops with permission for selling live poultry and (ii) live poultry stalls in public markets, in each of the past three years, with a tabulated breakdown by District Council district; the existing measures in place to assist these two types of retailers who are affected by redevelopment projects or market closures in relocating to other places for continued operation, and the number of successful relocation cases in the past three years under the assistance from such measures;
(2) whether the Government will (i) consider increasing the numbers of the two types of live poultry retailers, and (ii) examine the distribution of such retailers in various districts, so as to ensure that members of the public can purchase live poultry conveniently;
(3) given that the Government plans to relax the restrictions on the relocation of chicken farms under the Public Health (Animals and Birds) (Licensing of Livestock Keeping) Regulation (Cap. 139 sub. leg. L), so as to facilitate the relocation of chicken farms affected by government land development projects for continued operation, of the progress and timetable of the relevant legislative amendment exercise;
(4) as it is learnt that there are quite a number of development projects at present which have affected/will affect the existing chicken farms, of the existing measures in place to assist in the relocation of such farms, and the number of successful relocation cases in the past three years under the assistance from such measures; and
(5) of the measures in place to help maintain reasonable numbers of chicken farms and live poultry retailers, and whether it will formulate a policy for maintaining the sustainable development of the live poultry trade?
SECRETARY FOR FOOD AND HEALTH (in Chinese): President, my reply to the various parts of the question is as follows: LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5339
(1) and (2)
The Government launched the Voluntary Surrender Scheme and the Buyout Scheme in 2004-2005 and 2008 respectively for the live poultry trade to reduce the numbers of poultry farms and live poultry stalls in Hong Kong and to minimize human infection of Avian Influenza ("AI") through live poultry. As a result, the number of local poultry farms dropped from 192 in 2004 to 29 at present, while that of live poultry retailers dropped from over 800 to 128. To keep the risk of AI under control, the Government has since contained the size of the live poultry trade at the current level. The numbers of (i) licences for fresh provision shops with permission for selling live poultry and (ii) live poultry stalls in public markets in each of the past three years, broken down by District Council district, are at the Annex.
The consultancy study subsequently commissioned by the Government on the way forward of the live poultry trade in Hong Kong was completed in mid-2017. Taking into account the study's recommendation and the views collected during the public consultation conducted afterwards, the Government agreed to the broad direction of the recommendation, i.e. to maintain the status quo of continuing the sale of live poultry at retail level. We have no plan to increase the number of live poultry retail outlets for the time being.
To control and prevent AI, relocation of existing fresh provision shops selling live poultry is generally not permissible. And according to the current public market tenancy conditions, tenants are generally only allowed to operate live chicken retail business at the stalls leased to them. However, if the fresh provision shops have to be relocated for continued operation due to reasons of force majeure (e.g. relocation of business premises necessitated by demolition) which are to the satisfaction of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department ("FEHD"), FEHD will consider the cases on individual merits. In addition, as for existing market stall tenants (including live poultry market stall tenants) who are affected by the redevelopment plans or closure of FEHD's public markets, FEHD will provide assistance as appropriate, such as arranging them to bid for other public market stalls to continue their 5340 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
business and providing relocation allowance etc. In the past three years, a total of six fresh provision shops were issued licences to continue selling live poultry after relocation, and four live poultry market stalls were relocated to other public markets for continued operation due to consolidation of the public markets in which they were originally located.
(3) and (4)
Under the existing provisions of the Public Health (Animals and Birds) (Licensing of Livestock Keeping) Regulation (Cap. 139L), it is difficult for existing chicken farms to find any other premises in the Livestock Waste Control Areas which can satisfy the relevant conditions for relocation. To further minimize AI risk, we have amended the Regulation to relax the existing statutory requirements for premises used for keeping chickens, so as to facilitate the enhancement of biosecurity at chicken farms and the relocation of chicken farms affected by Government development projects to other suitable sites for continued operation. The Amendment Regulation, which was gazetted on 13 March 2020 and tabled at the Legislative Council for scrutiny on 18 March 2020, is expected to come into force on 1 July this year.
In the past three years, no chicken farms were required to be relocated due to being affected by government development projects.(1) Chicken farmers who need assistance in relocating their farms could apply to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department ("AFCD") for low-interest loans under the Kadoorie Agricultural Aid Loan Fund and the J. E. Joseph Trust Fund as development and working capital. AFCD will also provide appropriate support to cater for the needs of individual farmers.
(5) As mentioned above, taking into account the consultancy study's recommendation and the views collected during the public consultation conducted afterwards, the Government agreed to the broad direction of the study's recommendation, i.e. to maintain the
(1) According to the existing information of the Development Bureau, there are two chicken farms fell within the later phase of the Yuen Long South Development (i.e. the second and the remaining phases). The relevant timetable for relocation will be confirmed during the detailed study of the said development project. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5341
status quo. We believe that the above arrangements for chicken farm relocation and live poultry retail outlets have already struck a proper balance between containing AI risk and maintaining a stable supply of live poultry in Hong Kong.
The Government has been supporting the sustainable development of the livestock industry without prejudice to public health and AI control. In this connection, the Government set up a Sustainable Agricultural Development Fund ("SADF") of $500 million in 2016 to provide financial support for the modernization and sustainable development of local agriculture. Livestock farmers may also make use of and benefit from SADF for strengthening their farm biosecurity, enhancing value-added or mitigating the possible nuisance that the farms may cause to the environment. In 2019, AFCD approved about $15 million from SADF to local universities for applied technology projects on improving poultry health and production in Hong Kong. In addition, the Farm Improvement Scheme set up under SADF provides direct grants to farmers for acquisition of small farming equipment and materials to help them modernize their farming equipment and facilities, thereby enhancing their productivity and operating efficiency as well as farm biosecurity.
Annex
The numbers of (i) licences for fresh provision shops with permission for selling live poultry and (ii) live poultry stalls in public markets in each of the past three years (as at year end), broken down by District Council district
Fresh provision shops with Live poultry stalls District/Year permission for selling live poultry in public markets 2017 2018 2019 2017 2018 2019 Central and Western 2 2 2 7 7 7 Wan Chai 3 3 2 7 7 7 Eastern 2 2 2 6 6 6 Southern 0 0 0 1 1 1 Islands 1 1 1 0 0 0 5342 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Fresh provision shops with Live poultry stalls District/Year permission for selling live poultry in public markets 2017 2018 2019 2017 2018 2019 Yau Tsim Mong 9 9 9 6 6 6 Sham Shui Po 2 2 2 11 11 11 Kowloon City 1 1 1 5 5 5 Wong Tai Sin 3 3 3 4 4 4 Kwun Tong 4 4 4 4 4 4 Kwai Tsing 1 1 1 2 2 2 Tsuen Wan 0 0 0 9 9 9 Tuen Mun 1 1 1 4 4 4 Yuen Long 4 4 4 5 5 5 North 0 0 0 5 5 5 Tai Po 2 2 2 5 5 5 Sha Tin 7 7 7 4 4 4 Sai Kung 3 3 3 0 0 0 Total 45 45 44 85 85 85
Issues relating to illegal parking
10. MR JAMES TO (in Chinese): President, it has been reported that the situation of illegal parking has become more serious across the territory in recent months, and the shortage of parking spaces has aggravated the problem of illegal parking. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the numbers of vehicles (i) newly registered and (ii) deregistered last year, with a tabulated breakdown by class of vehicles;
(2) of (i) the respective numbers of publicly and privately operated public parking spaces across the territory last year, and (ii) the respective estimated additional numbers of these two types of parking spaces this year, with a tabulated breakdown by District Council ("DC") district and class of vehicles;
(3) of the number of parking spaces in Hong Kong and the ratio of such number to the number of vehicles at present; whether it has considered amending the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines to raise the number of parking spaces needed to be LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5343
provided for various types of facilities; if so, of the details; if not, whether it will consider taking measures to reduce the number of vehicles;
(4) as the Government indicated in May last year that it had commissioned a consultancy study to take forward pilot projects of automated parking systems ("APSs") at six suitable sites and an APS could increase the number of parking spaces by 30% to a double, of the progress of the study and whether it will identify more car parks for installation of APSs;
(5) of the number of fixed penalty notices ("FPNs") issued in each of the past 12 months by the Police by invoking the Fixed Penalty (Traffic Contraventions) Ordinance (Cap. 237) against various types of parking contraventions, with a tabulated breakdown by (i) police region and (ii) type of contravention;
(6) whether there is a big difference when the number of FPNs issued by various police regions in respect of vehicles parked illegally in the past 12 months is compared with the relevant number in the preceding 12 months; if so, of the reasons for that;
(7) of the current number of illegal parking black spots in Hong Kong, with a tabulated breakdown by DC district; and
(8) as I have learnt that in locations where schools, tutorial schools and interest class studios stand in great numbers (e.g. Beech Street in Tai Kok Tsui, To Fuk Road and Rutland Quadrant in Kowloon Tong, Un Chau Street in Sham Shui Po, and Hing Wah Street and Castle Peak Road in Cheung Sha Wan), the problem of illegal stopping and waiting of private cars is serious during the hours of going to and finishing classes each day, and there are also a large number of goods vehicles and tourist coaches parked illegally at night, in respect of the illegal parking/stopping and waiting of vehicles in the aforesaid locations, (i) the number of patrol operations conducted and the average number of such vehicles found during each operation, and (ii) the number of FPNs issued, by the Police in each of the past six months; apart from stepping up patrol operations, of 5344 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
the Police's other measures to step up efforts in combating the problem of illegal parking/stopping and waiting of vehicles in the aforesaid locations?
SECRETARY FOR TRANSPORT AND HOUSING (in Chinese): President, after consultation with the Hong Kong Police Force ("the Police") and Transport Department ("TD"), my reply to the various parts of Mr James TO's question is as follows.
(1) The numbers of vehicles first registered and deregistered in 2019 with a breakdown by class of vehicles are tabulated at Annex 1.
(2) As at February 2020, the numbers of public parking spaces provided by the Government and parking spaces provided at privately-operated car parks available for public use across the territory are tabulated at Annex 2 and Annex 3 respectively. Since the number in the provision of new parking spaces hinges on a host of factors, including the views of stakeholders as well as the progress of seeking funding approval for and the actual implementation of the works projects, etc., TD does not have a specific projection on the number of parking spaces to be provided in 2020.
(3) As at December 2019, the number of private cars (including van-type light goods vehicles that can be accommodated within private car parking spaces) was 624 990 and the number of parking spaces available for private cars was 683 736. The parking space to private car ratio was 1.09.
In response to public aspirations, TD is reviewing the standards on parking spaces and loading/unloading bays for commercial vehicles as well as the standards on parking spaces for private cars stipulated in the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines ("HKPSG") with a view to updating the relevant requirements, thereby increasing the number of parking spaces in future housing developments. We anticipate that after consulting relevant stakeholders, the revised guidelines will be promulgated within 2020. Prior to that, TD will continue to require developers to provide parking spaces at the higher end of the current parking standards under HKPSG for new developments as far as practicable.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5345
(4) TD is taking forward six pilot projects on automated parking systems ("APSs") so as to acquire and consolidate experience in building, operating and managing different types of APSs and the associated financial arrangements. This will pave the way for wider application of APSs in government and privately-operated public car parks in future.
TD has so far identified four sites for launching the APS pilot projects, having regard to such criteria as parking demand, geographical environment, planning restrictions, impact on local traffic, etc. The identified sites include a short-term tenancy ("STT") site on Hoi Shing Road, Tsuen Wan; a public open space site at the junction of Yen Chow Street and Tung Chau Street in Sham Shui Po; and two proposed sites for government buildings on Chung Kong Road in Sheung Wan and Sheung Mau Street in Chai Wan. For the above mentioned STT site in Tsuen Wan, TD has already secured support from the Tsuen Wan District Council, and it is expected that tenders could be invited in mid-2020. As regards the pilot project in Sham Shui Po, TD is currently assessing the technical feasibility after securing support from the Sham Shui Po District Council. For the APS pilot projects in Sheung Wan and Chai Wan, TD will consult relevant District Councils in due course.
(5) The numbers of fixed penalty notices ("FPNs") issued by the Police under the Fixed Penalty (Traffic Contraventions) Ordinance, with breakdowns by police regions and offences, between February 2019 and January 2020 are tabulated at Annex 4.
(6) Since June 2019, Hong Kong has seen widespread vandalism committed by violent protesters across the territory. The Police have been discharging their duties with commitment and devotion with a view to restoring social order as soon as possible, and safeguarding the lives and property of the public.
On enforcement action against illegal parking, the Police issued a total of about 1.4 million FPNs against illegal parking in 2019. Given the Police's limited manpower, the traffic enforcement figures for the second half of 2019 indeed showed a decease as compared to the corresponding period of 2018. Nevertheless, with less tension 5346 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
in the recent social atmosphere, all police districts in the territory have re-deployed their manpower to step up traffic enforcement operations and, as a result, traffic enforcement figures from December 2019 onwards have started to rebound.
(7) At present, the Police have no definition of what constitutes a "black spot" of illegal parking. Hence, no information on the number of illegal parking "black spots" in different districts could be provided. The Police will step up law enforcement at road sections where severe traffic congestion occurs. Drivers causing serious traffic obstructions and posing road safety hazards will be issued FPNs without prior warning, or even will have their illegally parked vehicles towed away by the Police.
(8) The Police have neither maintained figures on the number of patrol operations conducted, the number of illegally parked vehicles found in each operation, nor the number of FPNs issued for specific road sections, and therefore no such information is available.
Road safety is one of the operational priorities of the Police. Changing the irresponsible behaviour of road users that causes traffic obstructions is also among the Police's traffic enforcement priorities. All along, the Police pay much attention to the problem of illegal parking and seek to change such undesirable behaviour through publicity and education, and combat illegal parking through patrols and law enforcement. For drivers who commit traffic offences by causing traffic obstructions, the Police will issue warnings or summons, or even tow away the vehicles concerned.
Regarding the illegal parking situation at the road sections mentioned in the question, the Police have reminded their relevant police districts to heighten their attention and step up law enforcement against illegal parking therein. Should there be serious illegal parking on individual road sections causing obstruction to traffic, members of the public may report such cases to the Police for prompt handling.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5347
Annex 1
Numbers of Vehicles First Registered and Deregistered Broken down by Class of Vehicles in 2019
Class of Vehicles First Registered Deregistered Private cars 38 309 27 996 Goods vehicles 8 991 10 900 Buses 826 617 Light buses 750 653 Taxis 1 118 1 113 Motor cycles 6 329 2 009 Motor tricycles 139 4 Special purpose vehicles 146 104 Total 56 608 43 396
Annex 2
Numbers of Public Parking Spaces Provided by the Government Broken down by Districts in Hong Kong (as at February 2020)
Private Goods Coaches/ Motor District Total* cars# vehicles Buses cycles Central & Western 2 263 292 15 871 3 441 Wan Chai 1 762 22 26 772 2 582 Eastern 1 256 66 73 773 2 168 Southern 1 430 64 140 500 2 134 Yau Tsim Mong 2 327 369 157 1 352 4 205 Sham Shui Po 2 318 386 14 795 3 513 Kowloon City 2 432 136 106 893 3 567 Wong Tai Sin 1 121 142 44 514 1 821 Kwun Tong 1 799 118 46 828 2 791 Tsuen Wan 1 505 51 36 628 2 220 Tuen Mun 1 571 328 51 820 2 770 Yuen Long 1 774 440 110 568 2 892 North 1 714 427 29 400 2 570 5348 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Private Goods Coaches/ Motor District Total* cars# vehicles Buses cycles Tai Po 1 847 331 82 235 2 495 Sai Kung 2 158 331 168 442 3 099 Sha Tin 2 349 287 58 516 3 210 Kwai Tsing 1 363 361 30 701 2 455 Islands 1 381 72 74 173 1 700 Total 32 370 4 223 1 259 11 781 49 633
Notes:
# Private car parking spaces can be used by private cars, taxis as well as van-type light goods vehicles, light goods vehicles and light buses with such sizes that can be accommodated within such parking spaces.
* The figures exclude the parking spaces reserved by development projects for self-use and about 300 parking spaces reserved for special public services (such as refuse collection or post offices' vehicles).
Annex 3
Numbers of Public Parking Spaces Provided at Privately-operated Car Parks Broken down by Districts in Hong Kong (as at February 2020)
Private Goods Coaches/ Motor District Total* cars# vehicles Buses cycles Central & Western 8 037 254 25 112 8 428 Wan Chai 9 649 70 2 60 9 781 Eastern 11 407 508 140 420 12 475 Southern 6 796 520 178 145 7 639 Yau Tsim Mong 14 413 1 704 56 266 16 439 Sham Shui Po 8 121 1 450 65 110 9 746 Kowloon City 6 991 637 74 19 7 721 Wong Tai Sin 5 296 161 75 137 5 669 Kwun Tong 13 724 969 11 396 15 100 Tsuen Wan 9 858 742 365 147 11 112 Tuen Mun 8 778 1 186 70 38 10 072 Yuen Long 8 899 447 7 49 9 402 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5349
Private Goods Coaches/ Motor District Total* cars# vehicles Buses cycles North 4 802 569 0 33 5 404 Tai Po 5 489 249 21 40 5 799 Sai Kung 10 868 314 43 425 11 650 Sha Tin 16 094 1 058 48 238 17 438 Kwai Tsing 10 036 7 219 341 153 17 749 Islands 6 340 204 188 125 6 857 Total 165 598 18 261 1 709 2 913 188 481
Notes:
# Private car parking spaces can be used by private cars, taxis as well as van-type light goods vehicles, light goods vehicles and light buses with such sizes that can be accommodated within such parking spaces.
* The figures exclude the parking spaces reserved by development projects for self-use and about 300 parking spaces reserved for special public services (such as refuse collection or post offices' vehicles).
Annex 4
Number of FPNs Issued by the Police under the Fixed Penalty (Traffic Contraventions) Ordinance between February 2019 and January 2020
Table 1: Breakdown by Police Regions Police Region Hong New New Year Month Kowloon Kowloon Kong Territories Territories Total East West Island South North 2019 Feb 30 408 27 972 38 713 34 098 28 163 159 354 Mar 34 024 30 790 48 130 37 244 29 919 180 107 Apr 28 292 29 998 43 686 32 514 29 200 163 690 May 30 571 29 865 45 558 34 060 31 701 171 755 Jun 20 329 19 727 24 028 24 093 23 203 111 380 Jul 21 431 15 645 19 864 29 742 19 976 106 658 Aug 16 436 11 197 12 874 14 986 6 367 61 860 Sep 17 165 11 209 14 096 10 559 7 437 60 466 5350 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Police Region Hong New New Year Month Kowloon Kowloon Kong Territories Territories Total East West Island South North Oct 17 389 11 526 11 901 12 117 10 862 63 795 Nov 15 866 12 623 12 133 12 096 10 712 63 430 Dec 20 816 17 323 22 224 16 694 21 064 98 121 2020# Jan 25 851 23 151 26 583 23 203 27 035 125 823
Note:
# Provisional figures
Table 2: Breakdown by Contraventions Contravention 2019 2020# Code No* Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan 1 45 460 51 849 47 826 51 545 31 609 29 508 14 047 14 563 17 847 16 003 30 714 44 313 2 10 16 13 9 9 7 6 1 5 4 4 17 3 278 226 198 225 181 168 78 122 126 186 253 358 4 89 334 101 537 91 003 95 145 62 725 60 559 38 797 37 800 37 462 39 596 56 149 66 819 5 7 792 8 290 7 903 7 966 5 738 5 278 3 065 3 313 3 824 3 616 4 410 5 677 6 5 1 11 7 3 6 1 0 4 3 3 1 7 27 31 40 59 33 27 16 16 8 7 24 33 8 1 690 2 208 1 880 2 205 1 714 1 433 876 958 824 916 1 360 1 435 9 26 36 29 33 14 13 6 3 6 2 0 8 10 305 140 260 91 59 127 87 69 197 26 57 338 11 1 4 9 2 6 1 1 1 0 0 1 3 12 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 13 181 143 96 102 85 34 12 46 10 17 113 219 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 16 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 17 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 18 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 21 14 243 15 626 14 421 14 365 9 204 9 497 4 868 3 574 3 482 3 054 5 032 6 602 Total 159 354 180 107 163 690 171 755 111 380 106 658 61 860 60 466 63 795 63 430 98 121 125 823
Notes:
# Provisional figures
* Details of Contravention Code No.
1: Parked in a manner likely to cause an unnecessary obstruction of a road or danger to other persons using the road. 2: Stopped within the limits of a zebra crossing. 3: Stopped in a zebra controlled area. 4: Parked other than in an authorized parking place. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5351
5: Parked on a pavement, pedestrian way, central reservation, verge, hard shoulder or traffic island. 6: Parked so as to obstruct vehicular access to or from premises adjacent to the carriage-way. 7: Parked so as to obstruct access to a fire hydrant from the carriage-way. 8: Parked in a parking place in contravention of a traffic sign or road marking. 9: Unnecessarily parked in more than one space, or unnecessarily projecting over any line delineating a parking space. 10: Parked in a parking place where parking is suspended or cancelled by the Commissioner for Transport. 11: Parked in a parking place where parking is suspended by the Commissioner of Police. 12: Parked in a temporary parking place contrary to a traffic sign. 13: Parked in contravention of no parking traffic sign or road marking. 14: Parked in a parking space in respect of which there is a coin operated parking meter without as soon as possible after parking inserting an appropriate coin in the meter. 15: Parked in a parking space in respect of which there is a card operated parking meter without as soon as possible after parking using a parking card or where applicable an approved card for the payment of the parking fee. 16: Parked in a pay and display parking space without as soon as possible after parking displaying a display ticket on the inside of the windscreen so that the ticket shows the payment of the parking fee, the relevant parking space, the date on and the time until which payment is made. 17: Parked in a pay and display parking space beyond the time indicated on the display ticket as the time until which payment is made or when the display ticket does not indicate payment for the use of that parking space or for that date. 18: Parked in more than one parking space in respect of which there is a coin operated parking meter without inserting an appropriate coin in each meter. 19: Parked in more than one parking space in respect of which there is a card operated parking meter without inserting a parking card or where applicable an approved card in each meter. 20: Parked in more than one pay and display parking space without displaying the appropriate number of display tickets. 21: Parked in a parking space in respect of which there is a parking meter when the meter does not indicate that payment has been made.
Child care services
11. MR HOLDEN CHOW (in Chinese): President, according to the research findings published by the Hong Kong Society for the Protection of Children in 2016, the enrolment rate of full-day child care services for children aged below three in Hong Kong was only 13%, while the relevant rate for the member countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development was 35.2% on average. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has plans to establish more child care centres ("CCCs"); if so, of the additional number in the coming five years;
(2) whether it has set a target on the enrolment rate of child care services; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(3) of the number of CCCs in Hong Kong and the number of service places provided by them in each of the past five years;
5352 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
(4) whether it has assessed if there will be a shortage of qualified child care workers in the coming five years; if it has assessed and the outcome is in the affirmative, of the details, and whether it will introduce programmes for training such workers; and
(5) given that the unemployment rates of various sectors (e.g. the retail and catering sectors) have been on the rise recently, whether the Government has plans to offer training courses on child care work for the unemployed, so as to attract new blood to the sector after the present epidemic has subsided?
SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE (in Chinese): President, my reply to the Member's question is as follows:
(1) To further enhance day child care services, the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") plans to provide in phases about 400 long full-day child care service places in aided standalone child care centres ("CCCs") for children aged below three in North District, Kwun Tong, Sha Tin, Kwai Tsing and Yuen Long. Three hundred and thirty-seven CCC service places in the first phase are expected to be available in 2020-2021, including 56 in Wah Ming Estate in Fanling, 88 in Shun Lee Estate in Kwun Tong, 105 in Shek Mun Estate in Sha Tin, and 88 in Tin Shui Estate in Yuen Long. The implementation timetable of the remaining 63 service places has to be confirmed.
(2) The Government will make reference to the final report of the Consultancy Study on the Long-term Development of Child Care Services and formulate an appropriate population-based planning ratio for child care centre places. The Government has included the planning ratio in the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines with a view to reserving suitable premises in housing development projects for CCC operations so as to better meet the service demands in the community in new developments.
(3) The number of CCCs and that of service places in Hong Kong in the past five financial years are set out at Annex.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5353
(4) In accordance with the requirements of the Child Care Services Ordinance (Cap. 243) and the Child Care Services Regulations (Cap. 243A), CCCs providing service to children aged below three must employ registered child care workers ("CCWs") and child care supervisors with certificates of a training course approved by the Director of Social Welfare or the equivalent qualification to take care of children. At present, there are about 2 000 newly registered CCWs every year. SWD will continue to keep in view the manpower situation and encourage tertiary institutions/organizations to launch relevant courses or to increase the capacity, so as to meet the service need.
(5) In general, the Employees Retraining Board ("ERB") will consult its "Industry Consultative Networks" to ascertain the employment opportunities of a particular industry or occupation and the need for developing new training courses. ERB currently provides eight courses related to child care work (covering such aspects as infant and child care, children with special education needs, early childhood fitness exercise) for eligible persons aged 15 or above (including the unemployed). Trainees who have completed relevant placement-tied courses may receive training allowance and follow-up placement services for three to six months.
Annex
Number of CCCs and service places in Hong Kong
Year Number of CCCs Number of service places 2015-2016 532 29 478 2016-2017 544 30 673 2017-2018 555 32 991 2018-2019 556 35 480 2019-2020 (as at December 2019) 557 34 383
5354 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Long-term measures to tackle epidemics
12. MR CHAN CHUN-YING (in Chinese): President, by now, Coronavirus Disease 2019 has broken out in more than 110 countries/regions around the world, with the cumulative number of confirmed cases exceeding 100 000. There are comments that in an era of globalization, with contacts among people of different places becoming increasingly frequent, and problems relating to health, the environment, biochemical safety, cross-species transmission of viruses, etc. becoming more and more changeable and unpredictable, the Government should formulate long-term measures to tackle epidemics. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it will draw up a contingency plan under which, in the event of a large-scale outbreak of an infectious disease in Hong Kong, government officers in each policy bureau may be split up to continue working at different locations, so as to reduce the risk of mass infection; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(2) given that the Government has set up a certain number of temporary quarantine centres in tackling the current epidemic, but the sites selected for some of these centres have been queried by the residents nearby as being too close to residential areas, whether the Government will identify locations far away from residential areas (e.g. outlying islands) for setting up permanent quarantine centres; if so, of the timetable; if not, the reasons for that; and
(3) as it has been reported that places such as Mainland China, South Korea, Taiwan and France have criminalized acts of spreading rumours, and given that earlier on Hong Kong has seen cases of people scrambling for food and daily necessities which were caused by rumours, what measures the Government will take to curb the spread of various kinds of rumours amid an epidemic outbreak?
SECRETARY FOR FOOD AND HEALTH (in Chinese): President, the coronavirus disease-2019 ("COVID-19") is still severe in some overseas countries and regions. To safeguard the health of the public and protect Hong Kong's health care system, currently the focus of the Government's prevention and control work is to prevent the virus from being imported into Hong Kong from LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5355 other places and to slow down the spreading of cases in the community. In this regard, the Government has put in place and will continue to implement a series of stringent border control and social distancing measures. The Government will review the feasibility of the relevant measures from time to time and make timely adjustments, having regard to the latest situation of the outbreak.
In consultation with the Civil Service Bureau and Security Bureau, my reply to the various parts of the question raised by Mr CHAN Chun-ying is as follows:
(1) The Government attaches great importance to the occupational safety and health ("OSH") of its employees. Having regard to their specific operational needs and circumstances as well as OSH risks, bureaux/departments would formulate effective safety management systems and measures. For example, in the event of an infectious disease outbreak, the Government would implement targeted infection control measures to reduce social contact, the risk of infection and spread of the virus so as to protect the staff. These measures include, where possible, introducing flexible working hours to reduce staff using public transport during peak hours; adopting a roster system to reduce the number of staff working in an office at any one time; adjusting the frequency, duration and mode of meetings; arranging staff to work at different office premises, etc.
(2) In the long run, we believe there is a need to set up in Hong Kong permanent quarantine facilities to cope with outbreaks that may occur in the future. After the COVID-19 outbreak has subsided, we will assess the situation in a holistic manner and consider Hong Kong's long-term quarantine needs for making preparations.
(3) Hong Kong residents enjoy the freedom of speech and communication, but these freedoms are not absolute. While there is currently no specified criminal offence in Hong Kong targeting the deliberate dissemination of false information, the Internet is not an unreal virtual world without any legislative regulation. Should any speech made involves illegal acts, regardless of whether such acts occur on the Internet or not, as long as they involve criminal offences, they would be regulated by the relevant legislation.
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However, as messages can be disseminated rapidly on the Internet, especially via the social media and communications software, unique challenges are presented to the law enforcement agencies. Furthermore, the proposal to introduce specific legislation targeting deliberate dissemination of rumours would involve many complicated and controversial issues, such as protection of human rights; how to define certain speech as rumours; how to define a rumour's impact on society and ascertain its degree of impact; how to prove that the person who made the relevant speech did so deliberately with the intent to disrupt public order with false information; and whether the introduction of a specified criminal offence would be the most effective measure for tackling the issue, etc. These questions must be considered and thoroughly discussed by the community.
In response to the malicious act of spreading rumours during the fight against the outbreak leading to panic buying of goods such as rice and toilet paper in the market, the Government timely issued a press release to clarify and condemn the rumour mongers. The current outbreak prevention and control measures implemented by the Government do not target freight services. The Government has made clarifications and shared information about food and goods supply on numerous occasions through government websites as well as other media channels, and have reminded members of the public not to easily believe in the rumours. The Government has also been maintaining close liaison with suppliers and the trade and encouraged them to come forth to explain the supply situation so as to dispel the public's worries. In fighting the virus, the Government appeals to members of the public to stand united, pay close attention to information released by the Government, be vigilant against rumours and not to easily believe in them.
Road safety involving roadside trees
13. MR CHAN HAK-KAN (in Chinese): President, it is learnt that there have been, from time to time, incidents of vehicles damaged (e.g. cracking of the windowpanes of franchised buses) or traffic accidents, resultant from vehicles LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5357 hitting roadside trees, the trunks and branches of these trees that overhung the roads or their wilted branches that fell onto the roads. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number of complaints received by the authorities in each of the past five years about roadside trees posing hazards to road safety, and the details of the follow-up actions;
(2) of the number of traffic accidents caused by vehicles hitting roadside trees or their trunks and branches that overhung the roads, and the resultant casualties, in each of the past five years;
(3) of the mechanism currently put in place to prevent roadside trees from posing hazards to road safety; the respective numbers of roadside trees that were pruned and removed by the authorities in the past three years;
(4) whether the authorities will designate a single government department to take up the task of managing roadside trees; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(5) how the authorities currently determine the species of the trees to be planted alongside the roads;
(6) whether, in the light of a serious traffic accident that occurred on Fanling Highway in December last year and involved a bus hitting a tree, the authorities have reviewed the road safety measures of the location concerned so as to avoid the occurrence of similar incidents; if so, of the details;
(7) as the front left compartment on the upper deck of a bus is the first to bear the brunt when the bus hits the trunks and branches of roadside trees, whether the authorities have discussed with bus companies the adoption of improvement measures to enhance the protection for passenger safety; if so, of the details;
(8) given that there is a shortage of local workers in the greening industry, of the authorities' new measures to attract new blood to the industry with a view to improving tree management work; and
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(9) given that the arboriculture and horticulture industry is not regarded as a separate trade in the construction industry, and that a registration system for arboriculture and horticulture practitioners has not been set up at present, of the improvement measures put in place by the authorities to ensure the quality of tree management work?
SECRETARY FOR DEVELOPMENT (in Chinese): President, the Government is committed to the proper management of tree assets to ensure healthy tree growth and with public safety as the prime consideration.
In respect of the nine-part question raised by Mr CHAN Hak-kan, our reply, upon consultation with relevant departments, is as follows:
(1) In the past five years, as regards complaints about roadside trees affecting road safety, government departments received 1 937 cases in 2015, 3 840 cases in 2016, 4 672 cases in 2017, 7 513 cases in 2018 and 3 187 cases in 2019. Upon receipt of complaints, relevant departments would take immediate follow-up actions having regard to the health, structural and growth conditions of the trees. These actions include assessing the tree risks and implementing appropriate risk mitigation measures, such as pruning, removing wilted branches, controlling pests and diseases; cordoning off dangerous trees; and removing hazardous trees that pose an imminent threat to the life and property of road users.
(2) Based on the records of the departments concerned, the numbers of traffic accidents and resultant casualties involving "vehicle crashing into trees" from 2015 to 2019 are tabulated below. These traffic accidents mainly involved driver contributory factors, including "driving inattentively" and "loss of vehicle control".
Number of Casualties Year traffic accidents Fatal Serious injury Minor injury 2015 45 1 16 53 2016 53 1 12 63 2017 45 1 11 56 2018 49 1 11 58 2019 38 6 10 76
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(3) Government departments regularly send their teams to inspect trees along public roads and on expressways (including roadside vegetation) under their purview, and record whatever damages to road facilities and potential hazards. In case there are overgrown branches obstructing traffic flow, blocking sightline, blocking traffic lights or signs, or posing potential impact on vehicles, etc., the departments will immediately arrange branch pruning or tree removal as soon as practicable to keep road users safe. In addition, government departments also undertake annual inspections and risk assessments on trees under their purview, so as to carry out the necessary tree maintenance works in due course, including controlling pests and diseases, pruning and removing branches or the whole trees that pose threat to public safety.
Since pruning and removal of roadside trees are part of departments' overall tree management work, no breakdown of such work is available.
(4) As there are numerous roadside trees in Hong Kong and their geographical distribution is wide, designating a single government department to take up the task of managing all roadside trees is not the most effective way in resource deployment. The Government adopts an "integrated approach" in conserving and managing our tree assets, under which departments responsible for maintaining the government facilities or land allocated to them are responsible for taking care of the trees thereon in accordance with the requirements and guidelines promulgated by the Development Bureau. This approach allows departments to carry out appropriate routine tree maintenance having regard to the specific characteristics and locations of the trees.
(5) As regards the selection of roadside tree species, departments will follow the principles of "Right Tree, Right Place" and vegetation diversity advocated by the Development Bureau, consider the site conditions and constraints (such as planting space, microclimate, underground and aboveground utilities, traffic and pedestrian flow, sightline impact, etc.), landscape design, planting purposes and functions, ecological issues, as well as the characteristics and maintenance requirements of different tree species, and make reference to the Street Tree Selection Guide issued by the Development Bureau. 5360 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
(6) After the relevant accident, the Transport Department ("TD") has reviewed the design of the road section concerned, namely, Fanling Highway Sheung Shui bound near Tsung Pak Long. The road section concerned is a dual three-lane expressway with posted speed limit of 100 km/hr. Hard shoulders and barriers are provided on both sides of the road, and their design complies with the road safety standards.
(7) Following the serious bus accident last December, TD took further follow-up actions to enhance bus safety with all franchised bus operators. As requested by TD, the franchised bus operators have expedited the installation of advanced driver assistance systems (including collision avoidance and lane keeping alert systems) on their buses, with a view to having the devices installed on all franchised buses operating the airport routes and/or via expressways by Q4 2020.
In addition, TD has explored with major bus manufacturers and franchised bus operators the need, feasibility and implications on enhancing the bus structure (especially the upper deck) so as to provide additional protection for upper-deck passengers. In light of Hong Kong's special circumstances, the major bus manufacturers have embarked on impact analysis by computer simulation to further assess the strength and integrity of the existing structure of franchised buses, and explore structural enhancement measures accordingly. TD will continue to closely follow up with major bus manufacturers on possible improvement measures related to bus structure and other vehicle technology.
(8) The Financial Secretary announced in the 2019-2020 Budget the setting up of a $200 million Urban Forestry Support Fund ("the Fund") to encourage youngsters to join the arboriculture and horticulture industry, uplift the professional standards of the practitioners, and strengthen public education and promotion on proper tree care. Upon funding approval by the Legislative Council, the Fund will support the Development Bureau in rolling out various new initiatives, including introduction of the Study Sponsorship Scheme and the Trainee Programme, hosting International Urban Forestry Conferences, as well as holding many more education and promotion activities in collaboration with local LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5361
groups. Among these new initiatives, the Study Sponsorship Scheme and the Trainee Programme will help address the issue of manpower shortage within the arboriculture and horticulture industry.
(9) As announced in the Policy Address Supplement on 16 October 2019, the Development Bureau will introduce a registration scheme for tree management personnel, with a view to enhancing the quality of the tree management personnel, the professional standards of the industry and the practices of tree management work.
In the interim, in 2019, the Development Bureau updated the "Guidelines for Tree Risk Assessment and Management Arrangement", increased the audit percentage of risk assessment reports, and set up a dedicated Inspection Squad which aims to adopt a systematic approach to randomly check and audit the tree inspection reports completed by the tree management departments, and proactively inspect trees in areas of high pedestrian and vehicular traffic flow to ensure that departments adhere to the Guidelines. Besides, before the onset of the typhoon and rain season every year, the Development Bureau reminds private property owners and property management personnel to undertake risk assessment on the trees within their property and implement appropriate mitigation measures in a timely manner. We also organize tree management workshops for private property management personnel from time to time to strengthen their awareness on proper tree care.
Joint response exercises of the Hong Kong Police Force
14. MS CLAUDIA MO (in Chinese): President, Chi Ma Wan Correctional Institution and the adjacent Chi Sun Correctional Institution ceased operation in 2010. I have learnt that the Hong Kong Police Force ("HKPF") and the Correctional Services Department ("CSD") parked a number of their vehicles in the vicinity of the aforesaid correctional institutions on the 5th of last month. In reply to my enquiry, HKPF confirmed that it had conducted a joint response exercise together with CSD at the aforesaid location on that day. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
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(1) of the following information on the aforesaid two correctional institutions since they ceased operation in 2010:
(a) the government department(s) responsible for the management of them, and the amount of expenditure and manpower involved each year;
(b) whether they have been on loan to government departments or public and private organizations; if so, set out, by date in a table, the following information: (i) the name of the government department or public and private organization, (ii) the reason for the loan, and (iii) the number of persons using the premises;
(c) whether they have been used for law enforcement purposes (such as detention of arrestees); if so, set out, by date in a table, the following information: (i) the name of the law enforcement agency, (ii) the purpose of use, and (iii) the number of persons involved; and
(d) whether they have been used to store the vehicles, ammunition or accoutrements of HKPF;
(2) of the details of the aforesaid joint response exercise, including (i) the purpose and (ii) the respective numbers of officers deployed by various government departments to participate in the exercise; and
(3) of the respective numbers of joint response exercises that HKPF coordinated and joined in each of the past five years, and set out the following information by date: (i) the location, (ii) the purpose, and (iii) the respective numbers of officers deployed by various government departments to participate in the exercise?
SECRETARY FOR SECURITY (in Chinese): President, law and order is the bedrock of Hong Kong's prosperity and stability. Our disciplined services have been discharging their duties, striving for excellence, maintaining the law and order, upholding justice and serving the members of the public. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5363
My reply to Ms Claudia MO's question is as follows:
(1) and (2)
On 5 March, the Hong Kong Police Force ("Police") and the Correctional Services Department ("CSD") conducted a joint exercise at Chi Ma Wan Correctional Institution ("CMWCI") and Chi Sun Correctional Institution ("CSCI"). The joint exercise is a regular training, aiming to enhance the readiness and capabilities of Police and CSD in handling emergency situations.
Section 10 of the Police Force Ordinance (Cap. 232) stipulates that the duties of the police force include taking lawful measures for preserving the public peace, preventing and detecting crimes and offences, as well as preventing injury to life and property, etc. To strengthen police officers' abilities in responding to highly volatile situations, Police will regularly arrange trainings at different locations and conduct joint exercises to test and strengthen the responsiveness and coordination capabilities of different departments, as well as accessing the effectiveness of relevant contingency plans.
CMWCI and CSCI ceased operation in 2010. CSD uses the two vacant institutions for internal scenario-based training, tactical exercises and contingency training, etc. The management of the two correctional institutions is part of the routine management work of Tong Fuk Correctional Institution, and CSD does not maintain a breakdown of the relevant manpower and expenditure.
In the past five years (2015 to 2019), CMWCI and CSCI had been on loan by CSD to other disciplined services (Police and the Customs and Excise Department) on 24 occasions for operational and training purposes, details of which are at Annex. CSD does not keep a record of the number of participating personnel in other disciplined services in those occasions.
Apart from the above mentioned purposes, the two institutions have not been used for other purposes or as warehouses for storing supplies.
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(3) In the past five years (2015 to 2019), Police conducted a total of 402 counter-terrorism and major incident contingency exercises, most of which were joint exercises with the participation of other government departments and public organizations. These large-scale joint exercises usually include handling of major incidents, intelligence gathering and analysis, as well as simulation of serial terrorist attacks. These exercises aim to test the responsiveness and contingency plans of participating government departments and organizations, enhancing their coordination and responsiveness in light of the experience gained, as well as heightening public vigilance through relevant education and publicity efforts.
Police do not maintain the breakdown requested in the question other than the number of exercises.
Annex
Number of occasions that CMWCI and CSCI were on loan to other disciplined services in the past five years
Year CMWCI CSCI 2015 5 0 2016 2 0 2017 0 10 2018 0 3 2019 1 3
Adjournment of court hearings
15. MR DENNIS KWOK (in Chinese): President, in response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (commonly known as "the Wuhan pneumonia") epidemic, the Judiciary has adjourned all hearings originally scheduled to be held in courts (including tribunals) from 29 January to 22 March 2020, and the various court registries and offices handled only urgent and essential hearings/matters during the said period. The Judiciary subsequently announced LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5365 that it would, starting from 2 March, pave the way for the orderly resumption of proceedings for all levels of courts and re-opening of court registries/offices within March. In other words, courts at all levels and their offices have not been in normal and full operation for as long as two months. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
(1) (i) the criteria adopted by the Judiciary for determining that the aforesaid court closure arrangements should be made, and (ii) whether the Judiciary took into consideration that the prolonged closure of courts would prejudice members of the public's right of access to justice by means of judicial proceedings; if the Judiciary did, whether the Judiciary has reviewed if such decisions struck a balance between fighting against the epidemic and upholding justice; if the Judiciary has not, of the reasons for that;
(2) the number of cases affected by the court closures, with a breakdown by the courts involved and type of cases (i.e. (i) civil cases, (ii) criminal cases, and (iii) others);
Court (i) (ii) (iii) Total Court of Final Appeal Court of Appeal of the High Court Court of First Instance of the High Court District Court Magistrates' Courts Labour Tribunal (not applicable) Lands Tribunal (not applicable) Competition Tribunal (not applicable) Coroner's Court (not applicable) Obscene Articles Tribunal (not applicable) Small Claims Tribunal (not applicable)
(3) whether the Judiciary will take measures to expeditiously re-schedule the hearings which have been adjourned as a result of the court closures; if the Judiciary will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
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(4) whether the Judiciary has, in response to the outbreak of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in 2003, formulated a contingency plan in respect of court operation and hearings during an infectious disease outbreak; if the Judiciary has, of the details, and whether the Judiciary has implemented such a plan in tackling the current epidemic; if the Judiciary has no such contingency plan, of the reasons for that; and
(5) whether the Judiciary has plans to expedite the implementation of information technology application projects, with a view to enabling the electronic transmission of documents among the parties to the proceedings and the conduct of hearings by telephone or video link, so as to reduce the impacts of court closures necessitated by infectious disease outbreaks in future; if the Judiciary does, of the timetable and details; if not, the reasons for that?
CHIEF SECRETARY FOR ADMINISTRATION (in Chinese): President, based on the information provided by the Judiciary, the Government's consolidated reply to the five parts of the question is appended as follows:
In view of public health considerations under the COVID-19 pandemic, the Judiciary has generally adjourned court proceedings from 29 January 2020 ("General Adjourned Period" or "GAP"). During GAP, urgent and essential hearings continue to be heard and the Judiciary has been doing its best to handle urgent and essential court business under such constraints. GAP has now been extended until 3 May 2020, and will be subject to review having regard to the prevailing public health situation. The Judiciary stresses that the health and safety of the public, including those of court users, Judges and Judicial Officers ("JJOs") and the Judiciary's staff, remain the paramount considerations in the handling of court operations.
The Judiciary has stated that the general adjournment and its duration are unprecedented amid an unprecedented public health challenge for the whole community. The decision to impose and extend GAP, as well as the determination of the scope of urgent and essential business that is to be dealt with during GAP, was made by the Chief Justice, as the head of the Judiciary, after striking a careful balance between public health considerations and the public interest involved in the due administration of justice, while taking into account LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5367 any logistical and legal considerations. The Judiciary is constantly reviewing the latest situation and devising appropriate plans to mitigate the impact on court business owing to GAP. While access to justice is important, the Judiciary must also take into account the paramount considerations of protecting the health and safety of the public in tackling this unprecedented phenomenon of COVID-19 pandemic.
The Judiciary's Efforts in Mitigating the Impact of GAP
The Judiciary is keenly aware that GAP has affected court users and stakeholders to varying extent and has been taking proactive steps to mitigate its impact. More specifically, it has been taking a multi-pronged approach in addressing and alleviating the impact on court business owing to GAP. The Judiciary' efforts in this regard are summarized below:
(a) the Judiciary has made special arrangements for all urgent and essential court hearings and business to be handled promptly during the period. In addition, the Judiciary recognizes that the longer the general adjournment has become, the more matters may become urgent and essential. As such, the Judiciary has been constantly reviewing the scope of urgent and essential business which should be handled during GAP and refining its scope on a regular basis. As a result, physical hearings on urgent and essential business, including fresh remand cases, urgent bail hearings and judicial review hearings and urgent appeals, are heard at all levels of courts during GAP. In addition, despite the general closure of court registries and offices, enhanced measures have constantly been introduced to handle the filing of additional types of documents and other matters in support of the expanded scope of urgent and essential business. In fact, the scope of urgent and essential court business and the list of enhanced measures have been adjusted 11 times since 29 January 2020;
(b) proactive case management is done by all JJOs of cases assigned to them, so that clear and prompt directions will be given to the parties as necessary. This will also enable those cases which will be ready for hearing upon the expiry of GAP to be re-fixed as early as practicable;
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(c) where appropriate, JJOs will consider or invite the parties to consider disposing the cases on paper as far as possible, in particular for civil cases, e.g. interlocutory matters. Paper disposal is an existing and well-accepted means of processing cases without the need for oral hearing;
(d) the Judiciary has been proactively taking incremental steps to explore the use of alternative modes of hearing submissions by video-conferencing facilities ("VCF") and telephone. Further details on the use of information technology ("IT") to handle court business are set out in paragraphs 6 to 10 below;
(e) the Judiciary has re-assured all stakeholders and parties that there will be sufficient lead time for notification and preparation, regardless of whether the cases will proceed as scheduled after GAP or be re-fixed; and
(f) additional temporary JJOs will continue to be engaged as appropriate and more effective listing arrangements will be introduced where practicable to enhance the judicial capacity in dealing with the increased volume of judicial work culminated during GAP.
The Judiciary will continue to closely monitor the public health situation and take proactive steps to prepare for the eventual resumption of court proceedings in an orderly, staggered and progressive manner as appropriate taking into account all relevant considerations. At the same time, the Judiciary will continue to take appropriate public health and crowd control measures to help ensure the safety of court users, JJOs and staff of the Judiciary.
Use of Information Technology
During GAP where physical attendance at the court premises and contacts in person should be minimized and gathering of crowds should be avoided, the Judiciary is actively pursuing the greater use of IT to support and facilitate the conduct of court business during GAP in the context of its long-term strategy. At the same time, the Judiciary has been in communication with relevant stakeholders as to how the greater use of IT could facilitate and support the conduct of court business. The major developments are summarized below.
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First, the Judiciary takes a positive and proactive approach in the use of IT in support of the court operations but it is important to stress that any measure must be in accordance with the law. The Judiciary recognizes the need and urgency of providing the legislative backing for initiatives such as the intended introduction of e-filing and transaction, including e-payment, for court proceedings. In this regard, under the Information Technology Strategy Plan, the Judiciary has been proactively developing by phases an integrated court case management system ("iCMS") across all levels of courts to enable an electronic mode for handling court-related documents and payments. The Court Proceedings (Electronic Technology) Bill, which seeks to provide the necessary legal basis, was introduced into the Legislative Council on 8 January 2020. Subject to the enactment of the Bill and some further subsidiary legislation, iCMS will first be implemented at the District Court ("DC") and part of the Magistrates' Courts ("MCs"). The Judiciary looks forward to the passage of the Bill and bringing all these work to fruition as soon as practicable.
Pending the provision of the necessary legislative backing, the Judiciary has been taking steps to explore and introduce certain administrative measures within the confines of its IT security policy and practices to enable the handling of certain documents by electronic means. These include:
(a) special email accounts have been created to enable parties to lodge certain documents to the court electronically to facilitate paper disposal; and
(b) the scope of an existing electronic submission platform in DC has been expanded for implementation in other courts. This platform was extended to the High Court ("HC") and the Family Court from 1 April 2020 to enable the electronic submission of documents including but not limited to those relating to hearings, e.g. list of authorities and hearing bundles. The platform was further extended to the Lands Tribunal from 15 April 2020.
As stated in paragraph 4(d) above, the Judiciary has also been proactively taking incremental steps to use alternative modes of hearing submissions in civil cases by VCF by phases. The Judiciary issued on 2 April 2020 a Guidance Note for Remote Hearings for Civil Business in the High Court (Phase 1: Video-Conferencing Facilities) which sets out the practice for remote hearings by VCF in civil cases in the Court of Appeal and the Court of First Instance of HC 5370 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 during GAP. Two cases using VCF were tried out in the week of 6 April and the experience was satisfactory. The Judiciary notes that feedback from practitioners on the use of VCF for remote hearings is generally positive. A few more cases using VCF have also been listed at HC in the coming few weeks. In the next phase, the Judiciary is actively considering the expansion of the use of VCF for remote hearings in some other civil courts. The Judiciary is also examining the possibility of using phone hearings for simple interlocutory hearings. The Judiciary will announce the details when ready.
Apart from the consideration of compliance with the law, it is important that any application of IT must be secure and the integrity of the specific aspects of the court operation involving the use of IT cannot be jeopardized or compromised. The Judiciary will continue to adopt a pragmatic approach. The Judiciary will also continue to maintain a close dialogue with the legal profession and other stakeholders on matters relating to the use of IT for court business during GAP and in the longer run.
Social Distancing
The Judiciary has been adopting a "space-out" approach to ensure smooth people flow and avoid over-crowdedness in court premises including courtrooms and registry areas. This is reflected in the refined scope of business to be handled, including registry business (as revised from time to time), the manner in which cases are listed for hearing, the number of courts that are opened for hearing, the manner in which court proceedings are spaced out, the number of and manner in which MCs are opened for business, and the preventive and crowd control measures implemented. Some examples of preventive and crowd control measures include the setting of capacity limits for each courtroom, court lobby and registry areas, as well as the implementation of a queuing and admission ticketing system as appropriate. These measures will continue to apply during and beyond GAP as necessary.
Impact on Caseload
The Judiciary has not kept precise statistics on cases and proceedings affected (including those adjourned), those took place and those disposed of through other means such as paper disposal or settlement, etc. since the general adjournment on 29 January 2020. However, within the reduced capacity of the courts because of the need for social distancing, the courts have been handling as LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5371 much court business as efficiently and safely as possible during GAP by various means as described above. The Judiciary has also been redeploying or engaging temporary registry staff to help clear the backlog of cases filed with the registries as expeditiously as possible.
Innovation and Technology Fund
16. MR JIMMY NG (in Chinese): President, the aim for the Government to establish the Innovation and Technology Fund ("ITF") is to encourage and assist Hong Kong enterprises in upgrading their technological level and introducing more innovative ideas to their businesses. However, the success rates of applications for a number of funding schemes set up under ITF have all along been on the low side. For example, in the three financial years from 2016-2017 to 2018-2019, the respective success rates of applications for the Innovation and Technology Support Programme, Enterprise Support Scheme, Technology Start-up Support Scheme for Universities, Guangdong-Hong Kong Technology Cooperation Funding Scheme, and Midstream Research Programme for Universities were 40%, 33%, 39%, 12% and 14% only. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it has examined the reasons why the success rates of applications for the various funding schemes under ITF have all along been on the low side; if so, of the outcome; of the measures put in place to assist the rejected applicants in understanding the essential elements for a successful application;
(2) whether it has collected the applicants' views on the various funding schemes; if so, of the details and whether it has implemented improvement measures in the light of the views so collected; if improvement measures have been put in place, of the details; if it has not collected any views, the reasons for that;
(3) whether it has taken the initiative to review if the criteria for vetting and approval of the applications for the various funding schemes are too stringent and suitably relaxed such criteria, with a view to raising the success rates of applications; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
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(4) whether the Government will, in the coming year, recruit additional manpower to step up ITF's work, including (i) assisting applicants in submitting applications, and (ii) stepping up the publicity on the various funding schemes' contents and application requirements; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
SECRETARY FOR INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY (in Chinese): President, through the Innovation and Technology Fund ("ITF"), the Government has been funding projects that contribute to the technology upgrading of the manufacturing and services industries and promote innovation and technology ("I&T"). At present, ITF has 16 funding schemes which cover different scopes, including supporting research and development ("R&D"), facilitating technology adoption, nurturing technology talent, supporting technology start-ups, and fostering an I&T culture.
The reply to the various parts of the question is as follows:
(1) and (3)
The Innovation and Technology Commission ("ITC") has been closely monitoring the implementation of the various funding schemes under ITF and reviewing their effectiveness and modus operandi from time to time.
The "Innovation and Technology Support Programme" ("ITSP"), "Enterprise Support Scheme", "Midstream Research Programme for Universities" and "Guangdong-Hong Kong Technology Cooperation Funding Scheme" are four of the funding schemes under ITF which fund the conduct of R&D projects. In 2018-2019, the success rates of the four schemes ranged from around 16% to 47%.
Generally, the success rate of the research funding schemes under ITF has been higher than that of many other similar research funding schemes of elsewhere. For example, the success rate of research funding of the European Research Council was around 13% in 2019, while that of the National Institutes of Health of the United States was 10.3%-34.8% in 2018 and that of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment of New Zealand was around 17% in 2019.
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To ensure the proper use of public funds, we have established fair and reasonable assessment criteria for the funding schemes and conducted assessment in accordance with the relevant criteria. Various factors, including the project's I&T component, the viability of the project's technical proposal, whether the project coordinator and his/her research team possess the technical ability to implement the project, whether the project estimated expenditure is reasonable, the chance of commercialization of the project outcomes or the plan for conducting downstream research, whether the technologies to be developed in the project dovetail with relevant government policies or bring benefits to the community at large, as well as the intellectual property arrangements of the project, are considered in the assessment of R&D projects. Only projects that meet the criteria on all the above areas will be funded.
As for the assessment process, each application will be preliminarily screened and assessed according to the relevant assessment criteria by the relevant teams of ITC based on its technology area. Where necessary, ITC will arrange external local and/or overseas experts in the relevant technology fields to assess individual applications. As the secretariat of ITF, ITC will collate the relevant information and comments, and pass all applications to the assessment panel for assessment. The assessment panel is divided into various subgroups by the different technology areas. Comprising representatives from the academia, industry and relevant government departments, the assessment panel will decide whether to recommend funding support for an application and if yes, the funding amount for the final approval by the Commissioner for Innovation and Technology.
As for the "Technology Start-up Support Scheme for Universities", applicant enterprises are required to submit applications to their universities. Applications reviewed and recommended by the selection committees of the universities will be submitted to ITC for assessment and approval. In the past few years, the number of applications recommended by the universities' selection committees accounted for about 39% of the total number of applications received by the universities.
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To facilitate the submission of applications under various schemes, ITC has uploaded samples of completed application forms on the ITF website
Apart from the R&D funding schemes, ITF also has other funding schemes for supporting technology adoption, talent training, etc., which have relatively high success rates. For example, the "Technology Voucher Programme" ("TVP"), which funds enterprises to use technological services or solutions to enhance competitiveness and upgrade or transform their business processes, has a success rate of 91% to date. The success rate of training grant applications under the "Reindustrialisation and Technology Training Programme" ("RTTP"), which funds staff of local enterprises to receive advanced technology training, reaches 99%. As for the "Researcher Programme" and "Postdoctoral Hub", which provide funding support for eligible enterprises or organizations to recruit R&D talent, the success rates are 99% and 100% respectively.
(2) ITC from time to time enhances various funding schemes taking into account the views of stakeholders. For example, we launched the "Partnership Research Programme" ("PRP") in January 2019, which consolidates the former "University-Industry Collaboration Programme" and the collaborative stream of ITSP to fund local R&D Centres, universities and other designated local public research institutes to conduct collaborative projects with private enterprises. The consolidated PRP adopts more flexible arrangements than before to encourage more collaborative R&D projects.
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In addition, the Government has enhanced TVP thrice since its launch. Apart from turning TVP into a regular funding programme under ITF, we have relaxed the eligibility criteria to cover all non-listed enterprises regardless of their scale and years of operation (including enterprises registered in Hong Kong under the Business Registration Ordinance and companies incorporated and registered in Hong Kong under the Companies Ordinance but exempted from business registration) and statutory bodies established in Hong Kong. Such enterprises/organizations would be eligible to apply if they are not receiving recurrent subventions from the Government. Also, we have raised the Government's funding ratio in each approved project from two thirds to three quarters, increased the funding ceiling for each applicant enterprise/organization by two times from $200,000 in the beginning to $600,000, and doubled the maximum number of approved projects per applicant from three to six. On the other hand, we will merge the "Researcher Programme" and "Postdoctoral Hub" from July 2020 to increase the flexibility for eligible enterprises/organizations in recruiting R&D personnel. In addition, with a view to easing the cash flow commitment of small and medium enterprises ("SMEs") and start-ups in commencing projects, we have launched the arrangements for disbursing partial funding in advance for approved projects under TVP, ESS, RTTP and "Patent Application Grant".
(4) To assist applicants in submitting applications, we provide comprehensive information, such as the application guidelines for the various schemes, samples of completed application forms and information on approved ITF projects, on the ITF website for public reference. In order to provide the public with a more convenient channel to enquire about the ITF funding schemes, ITC set up a one-stop hotline in mid-2018 (Tel: 3655 5678). The hotline currently processes an average of around 150 telephone enquiries each month.
On the other hand, the Government has, since October 2019, consolidated the services of various SME support organizations, including the "Support and Consultation Centre for SMEs" ("SUCCESS") under the Trade and Industry Department, the "SME Centre" of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, the "SME 5376 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
One" of the Hong Kong Productivity Council, and the "TecONE" of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation, and launched the "four-in-one" integrated services to provide enterprises with comprehensive information of various government funding schemes (including ITF funding schemes) as well as consultation services, etc.
Moreover, officers of ITC would arrange meetings with individual applicant organizations/enterprises on a need basis to assist them in submitting applications. We will also continue to enhance the online application system of ITF to facilitate the submission of applications by organizations/enterprises. As for publicity, we will continue to promote the various funding schemes through such means as briefing sessions, leaflets/booklets/videos, etc. The relevant work will continue to be handled by the existing manpower and resources of ITC.
Implementation of a new patent system
17. MR KENNETH LEUNG (in Chinese): President, the Patents (Amendment) Ordinance 2016 and the Patents (General) (Amendment) Rules 2019 came into operation on 19 December 2019 to provide the necessary legal and procedural framework for a new patent system. The new patent system mainly introduces an original grant patent system, and original grant patent applications are subject to substantive examination by the Patents Registry for determining the patentability of the underlying inventions. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) given that the Patents Registry charges a fee of $4,000 for substantive examination in relation to an original patent application, whether such level of fee complies with the "user pays" principle; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(2) whether it has assessed the direct and indirect economic benefits that the implementation of the new patent system may bring to Hong Kong;
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(3) as it has been reported that during the initial stage of the implementation of the new patent system, the National Intellectual Property Administration will provide the Hong Kong Intellectual Property Department with technical support and talent training (including the provision of technical advice on writing the description of the technology of an invention and the claims in the patent specifications, as well as conducting searches), of the duration of the arrangements for the provision of the said support and training and the fees charged; the criteria adopted by the Intellectual Property Department for selecting the patent office responsible for providing the Department with the relevant support and training, as well as the jurisdictions whose patent offices have been considered by the Department; and
(4) whether it has set up Patent Prosecution Highway or bilateral arrangements with the patent offices in other jurisdictions to expedite the examination of patent applications; if so, of the details; if not, whether there are any plans for that?
SECRETARY FOR COMMERCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (in Chinese): President, Hong Kong launched the new patent system on 19 December 2019. This mainly involves the introduction of an original grant patent ("OGP") system which provides an applicant with the option of direct filing of standard patent application with the Patents Registry in Hong Kong, as an alternative to the pre-existing "re-registration" route (which requires the filing of a corresponding application with a designated patent office outside Hong Kong in the first place).
Our reply to the various parts of the question is as follows:
(1) The fee charged by the Patents Registry for substantive examination of an OGP application is a statutory fee item, which was set pursuant to the requirement under section 149(6) of the Patents Ordinance and the Government's established principles of "user pays" and overall full-cost recovery.
(2) Implementation of the new patent system can help enhance the local patent system and bring it on par with the standard of mainstream patent systems of the international community. Under the OGP 5378 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
system, an applicant may seek standard patent protection in Hong Kong directly, without having to file an application with any of the designated patent offices outside Hong Kong in the first place as required under the "re-registration" route. It may therefore help applicants save cost. Implementation of the new patent system can help researchers seek protection for their R&D outcomes, thereby bringing a positive impact on the development of innovation and technology as well as scientific research in Hong Kong, and foster the development of Hong Kong as an intellectual property trading hub in the long term.
(3) In developing its OGP system, Hong Kong will need to build up in a gradual and orderly manner its indigenous capacity for conducting substantive examination, which cannot be achieved overnight. At the early stage of implementing the OGP system, the China National Intellectual Property Administration ("CNIPA") would provide the Patents Registry with the necessary technical support, professional advice and personnel training for establishing Hong Kong's indigenous capacity for conducting substantive exanimation. Such support would be provided free of charge.
CNIPA would also provide technical advice to the Patents Registry on the substantive examination of each OGP application (but whether approval should be granted to individual applications remains a matter entirely subject to determination by the Registrar of Patents in accordance with Hong Kong law). CNIPA will charge the Patents Registry a fee for the service rendered. Such fee has been included in the statutory fee charged by the Patents Registry for each application.
It is in view of CNIPA's profound professional knowledge and experience in patent examination that we seek its technical assistance for our implementation of the OGP system at the initial stage. CNIPA is one of the top five patent offices in the world. It is the patent examination office which has received the largest number of patent applications worldwide since 2011. CNIPA is also one of the International Searching Authorities and the International Preliminary Examining Authorities designated under the Patent Cooperation Treaty. In recent years, about 60% of the standard LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5379
patents granted in Hong Kong via the "re-registration" route were based on the patents granted by CNIPA. Moreover, CNIPA possesses the essential examination capabilities and language proficiency to assist the Patents Registry in conducting examination for applications filed in Chinese or English.
(4) It is our current priority to gain more indigenous experience and knowledge in conducting substantive examination, so that Hong Kong's OGP system can build up the recognition for its capacity to conduct examination in line with international standards and deliver sound output in terms of both quantity and quality. This is essential to equip Hong Kong with sufficient strength to initiate discussions with other patent offices (including CNIPA) in exploring the possibility of pursuing cooperation agreements on a reciprocal basis, so as to facilitate OGP applicants in seeking corresponding patent protection in other economies. Such facilitation may be achieved by, say, establishment of mechanisms which allow the applicants to request one patent office to expedite the examination of their patent applications, on the basis that another patent office has already allowed the corresponding patent claims.
Assisting children from grass-roots families in undertaking e-learning
18. MR CHARLES PETER MOK (in Chinese): President, in the last school year, the Government launched an assistance programme known as "Provision of Subsidy to Needy Primary and Secondary Students for Purchasing Mobile Computer Devices to Facilitate the Practice of e-Learning" ("the assistance programme") under the Community Care Fund, to subsidize students to purchase mobile computer devices. One of the conditions for applying for the assistance programme is that students are "studying in schools and classes implementing e-learning and adopting ‘Bring Your Own Device' (‘BYOD')". However, only about 26% of secondary schools, 22% of primary schools and 18% of special schools had implemented or were formulating measures relating to BYOD in the 2017-2018 school year. Based on such figures, it is estimated that the majority of students have been unable to receive subsidies through the assistance programme. On the other hand, in view of the severe situation of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 epidemic, the Education Bureau ("EDB") has earlier extended for several times the class suspension arrangements at schools and 5380 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 recommended that schools should provide students with learning materials through school websites, e-learning platforms, etc. during the period of class suspension, so that students can continue their studies at home. It is learnt that as some grass-roots families cannot afford to purchase computers for their children who are students or pay for Internet access charges, and that they have not received the required technical support, the students concerned are unable to learn at home through e-learning platforms. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the number and percentage of public schools which implemented the BYOD policy in the past three years, together with a tabulated breakdown by type of schools (i.e. secondary school and primary school) and finance type of schools (i.e. government, aided, caput, Direct Subsidy Scheme, and special schools);
(2) of the respective numbers of students whose applications were received and approved under the assistance programme so far, and the percentage of the number of students whose applications were approved in the total number of students eligible for application, together with a tabulated breakdown by type of schools and finance type of schools (as shown in (1));
(3) whether it knows the respective numbers of grass-roots families which encountered difficulties last year in purchasing computers for their children who were students, paying for Internet access charges, and seeking relevant technical support; given that the majority of students of public schools have been unable to benefit from the assistance programme, how EDB assists them in learning through e-learning platforms;
(4) whether it knows the number of cases in the past three months in which students from grass-roots families were unable to learn at home through e-learning platforms during the period of class suspension, and the relevant details; of the new measures to assist them in undertaking e-learning at home;
(5) whether it will conduct a review of the assistance programme, including studying the following issues: extending the coverage to schools which have not implemented the BYOD policy, setting a LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5381
target rate of subsidy and a timetable, and assigning the coordination work to EDB, with a view to benefitting all students from grass-roots families as soon as possible;
(6) given that the Hong Kong Jockey Club has recently launched, in collaboration with two non-governmental organizations, the "Bandwidth Support for E-learning at Home Scheme" to provide grass-roots primary and secondary students (particularly those who live in subdivided units, old buildings and remote areas and thus do not have access to high-speed Internet services) with free mobile data bandwidth for four months, so that they can undertake e-learning at home during the period of class suspension, whether the Government will consider launching a similar scheme on its own in future to be run on a regular basis, with a view to providing support for students from grass-roots families in a systemic manner; and
(7) whether it will study the establishment of regional e-learning resource centres in various public libraries and study rooms and the acquisition of the relevant equipment (including WiFi and printers), so that students from grass-roots families can undertake e-learning at such centres?
SECRETARY FOR EDUCATION (in Chinese): President, the Government has been promoting information technology in education for over 20 years, providing schools with basic infrastructure and support. Schools have been implementing e-learning to varying degrees according to their contexts. Teachers are adept at utilizing the diversified teaching and learning resources available online to support students to learn. The Education Bureau launched the Fourth Strategy on Information Technology in Education ("ITE4") in the 2015-2016 school year. One of the key measures of ITE4 is to establish Wi-Fi campus by phases for all public sector schools in the territory to facilitate e-learning in class. BYOD refers to students bringing their own mobile computer devices to school for learning on the advice of their schools. It is one of the initiatives for promoting e-learning but not an essential component of e-learning. To cope with the change in teaching mode and achieve the aim of enhancing e-learning effectiveness, schools planning to implement BYOD should give careful consideration to a number of questions, such as scale of implementation involving 5382 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 whole-school or individual levels and subjects, the need of owning a computer device by every student, models and operating system requirements of the device, suitability of full implementation of e-learning inside and outside classroom for young students, potential negative health impact, parents' and students' awareness of the stakes involved, precautionary measures against abuse and problem of Internet addiction. These issues call for careful planning and close communication with parents for forging a consensus. Under school-based management, schools should decide whether it is necessary for them to implement BYOD according to their specific contexts, including pedagogical design, learning characteristics and needs of students, parents' views and other supporting measures (such as enhancing students' information literacy, etc.). By optimizing the use of various grants from the Education Bureau, some schools have acquired mobile computer devices for students' use in schools so that e-learning in class is possible without adopting BYOD. Some schools have implemented BYOD to enable more personalized learning. Through the Community Care Fund, the Education Bureau has been providing subsidy to needy primary and secondary students from schools implementing BYOD to purchase mobile computer devices since the 2018-2019 school year. The application for this school year has originally closed. In view of the fact that many schools have attempted to continue with teaching via electronic platforms amid the COVID-19 outbreak, the Education Bureau will handle new applications submitted by schools for their needy students flexibly. Apart from keeping school premises open, schools are actively supporting students to learn at home during class suspension by various means, such as lending mobile computer devices to students and helping them apply for relevant assistances.
Our reply to Mr Charles Peter MOK's question is as follows:
(1) As mentioned above, schools may decide whether to implement BYOD and to which levels of study and subjects will BYOD be implemented based on their contexts. The Education Bureau does not maintain formal statistics on the number of schools implementing BYOD and the percentage of these schools in the total number of schools. The percentages of "schools (that) had implemented or were formulating measures relating to BYOD" quoted in the question are from the findings of the questionnaire survey on information technology in education conducted in the 2017-2018 school year targeting mainly public sector schools which had completed the enhancement works of their Wi-Fi campuses. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5383
Taking part in the survey is voluntary. The percentage of school respondents in the total number of public sector schools varied in the past few years, not reflecting the full picture and the changes between school years.
(2) Public sector schools (including government, aided, caput and Direct Subsidy Scheme ("DSS") schools) that implement the BYOD policy can participate in the assistance programme to purchase appropriate mobile computer devices and accessories for eligible students(1) according to their needs. After completing the procurement procedures, schools will submit a report to the Education Bureau for determining the funding required. About 190 primary and secondary schools participated in the assistance programme in the 2018-2019 school year. The number of student beneficiaries is set out below:
Number of Student Beneficiaries in the 2018-2019 School Year Type of Schools Government Aided Schools Total Schools Primary schools 18 5 512 5 530 Secondary schools 191 7 665 7 856 Special schools Not applicable 470 470 Total 209 13 647 13 856
Note:
Aided schools also include local schools under DSS and caput schools.
In the 2019-2020 school year, so far there are about 270 primary and secondary schools participating in the assistance programme. The number of student beneficiaries will only be known after schools complete the procurement procedures and submit a report to the Education Bureau.
(1) Eligible students refer to those students receiving the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance from the Social Welfare Department or full grant/half grant of the School Textbook Assistance Scheme from the Student Finance Office of the Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency. 5384 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
e-Learning is a form of learning and teaching. Schools can decide whether adopting BYOD or not according to their contexts. As a matter of fact, some of the schools implementing BYOD have not participated in the assistance programme because they have offered school-based support to students having regard to their financial needs.
(3) and (4)
The Government has all along attached importance to the learning needs of students, and has implemented various measures to support the e-learning of students from grass-roots families. Apart from the CCF assistant programme stated above that subsidizes students to purchase mobile computer devices, other measures include the disbursement of subsidy for Internet access charges to eligible families by the Student Finance Office of the Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency and the Social Welfare Department, providing support for students from grass-roots families to subscribe to basic Internet plans provided by operators of fixed or mobile telecommunications services. The rate of the subsidy is adjusted regularly with reference to prevailing market prices of Internet access services.
e-Learning is only one of the many diversified modes of learning. During the period of class suspension, primary and secondary schools can make use of different modes of learning, such as e-learning to help students continue their learning in an appropriate and systematic manner. As far as we know, for students who are unable to undertake Internet learning due to the lack of the necessary equipment (such as computers), schools have been actively providing support, for example by lending them the necessary equipment for use. Homework assignments and worksheets are printed and mailed to students or collected by parents in schools according to their actual needs. All these measures can facilitate students to achieve the goal of "suspending classes but not suspending learning" at home.
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(5) and (6)
Ever evolving and diversified in nature, e-learning is an open and flexible mode of learning. There is no so-called best practice or standard which schools should follow. Since schools are at different stages of e-learning, they may participate in the assistance programme after taking into account their own policy, timetable and resources for implementing BYOD. As regards the implementation of the CCF assistance programme, the Education Bureau is closely monitoring its effectiveness, with a view to drawing up measures to provide continuous support on e-learning to needy students. During its implementation, we will continue to flexibly process schools' applications so as to meet the needs of students.
The Education Bureau has been providing various types of support for students from needy families, such as textbooks, extra-curricular activities and exchange activities and continuous adjustments to the mode and strength of support are being made. This also applies to e-learning. The Education Bureau will continue to maintain communication with schools and will conduct timely review and make corresponding adjustments to the support that students need.
(7) The Leisure and Cultural Services Department currently provides over 1 900 computer workstations for public use in 70 static libraries. Connected to the Internet and printing facilities, these computer workstations allow the general public, including students, to browse the libraries' multimedia and digitized resources, e-books, online databases and other online resources for seeking of information, leisure reading and self-study, as well as facilitate students to conduct e-learning. In addition, a total of 30 libraries are equipped with Computer Information Centre/Area, providing commonly used computer application software, printing and document scanning services, etc. Moreover, free Hong Kong Government Wi-Fi service ("Wi-Fi.HK") is available at all static public libraries (including their Students' Study Rooms).
The aforementioned measures aside, the Government subsidizes about 171 study rooms and youth service centres operated by non-profit-making organizations to provide free Wi-Fi service, and 5386 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
endeavours to enhance the service level of "Wi-Fi.HK". The average connection speed of "Wi-Fi.HK" hotspots at the aforesaid facilities exceeds 20 Mbps, which is sufficient to meet general e-learning needs. Relevant government departments conduct regular reviews of the connection speed and usage of Wi-Fi service at government venues. If necessary, adjustments will be made to the bandwidth and number of hotspots at the venues to ensure the quality of Wi-Fi service.
Supply and demand for and training of land surveyors
19. MR TONY TSE (in Chinese): President, some members of the land surveying sector have pointed out that as there is growing popularity of the application of land spatial data and an increasing demand for more accurate land surveying data for work such as monitoring ground settlement, they expect the demand for land surveyors will increase. Nevertheless, the numbers of training programme places and in-service training places for land surveyors have not increased correspondingly. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it carried out any assessment in the past five years on the manpower supply and demand for as well as the training of land surveyors; if so, of the outcome; if not, whether it will carry out such an assessment;
(2) of the numbers of land surveying degree programmes offered by the various local tertiary institutions and the total number of places of such programmes, in each of the past five years; whether it knows if the various institutions have plans to offer more programmes of this type or more such places in the coming three years; and
(3) of the respective numbers of land surveying graduate trainee vacancies offered by the relevant government departments and the respective numbers of such trainees employed by them, in each of the past five years; whether such departments have plans to increase the numbers of vacancies for this type of trainees in the coming three years?
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SECRETARY FOR DEVELOPMENT (in Chinese): President, land surveyors are equipped with the professional knowledge of surveying, mapping, and maintaining and analysing land spatial data. Both the Government (mainly the Survey and Mapping Office ("SMO") of the Lands Department ("LandsD")) and private institutions employ land surveyors, whose major responsibilities include collecting and processing surveying data, and producing survey record plans for land and works through the use of surveying technology to support the work related to town planning, land development, housing development, and construction projects.
Having consulted the Education Bureau, our reply to the various parts of the question raised by Mr TSE is as follows:
(1) SMO of LandsD has been conducting assessment on the manpower demand and supply of the land surveyors within the Government, having regard to the technological development in land surveying, requirements of land surveying work, development of spatial data policies and the number of graduates from the relevant disciplines. SMO also maintains communication with practitioners in the field regarding the development of the entire profession.
In recent years, the Government is keen to promote the use of common spatial data, which will be conducive to spurring social innovation, enhancing data-driven decision-making process and improving the quality of life for the community. We are speeding up our work in this area, starting with the roll-out of a Common Spatial Data Infrastructure portal with at least 240 datasets in phases, first within the Government by end 2021 and then to the public by end 2022. Four quick win projects, including Map Application Programming Interface, Geotagging Tool, Address Data Infrastructure, and District-based Spatial Information Dashboard will also be launched by end 2020 for public use. Starting from this year, a high-quality three-dimensional ("3D") map showing topographical and exterior features of terrain, buildings and infrastructures will be gradually opened up in phases, and its coverage is expected to extend across the territory by end 2023. We will also publish 3D pedestrian network data covering various locations over the territory and a 3D digital map showing the internal layout for 1 250 buildings. The Development Bureau is currently 5388 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
seeking funding approval of $300 million from the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council to implement the above spatial data-related initiatives. Upon the official commencement of the above mentioned projects, we will be able to explore with the practitioners and the academic sector the development opportunities and the manpower requirements of the industry in more concrete terms.
(2) According to information provided by the Education Bureau, the number of land surveying programmes accredited by the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors ("HKIS") and other related programmes (including programmes related to urban informatics) offered by local post-secondary institutions, and the actual number of student intakes from the 2015-2016 to 2019-2020 academic years are set out in the table below:
Actual number of student Academic year Number of programmes intakes 2015-2016 5 166 2016-2017 5 163 2017-2018 5 127 2018-2019 5 139 2019-2020 5 166 (provisional figure)
Note:
The above post-secondary programmes include sub-degree, bachelor's degree (including first-year first-degree and senior year undergraduate) and taught postgraduate programmes.
To this day, the Government has not been notified of any plans from the institutions to adjust the number of intakes for their current programmes. In addition, we are aware that The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the University of Hong Kong will each launch a new master programme on urban informatics in the 2020-2021 academic year, exact number of student intake for each programme to be confirmed.
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SMO of LandsD will keep under review the manpower situation of land surveyors within the Government and maintain communication with the practitioners and the academic sector regarding the development of the entire industry, so as to convey their views on land surveying and related programmes provided by local post-secondary institutions to the University Grants Committee as appropriate.
(3) LandsD has been hiring university graduates who are graduating or were graduated from the relevant disciplines in the current year or previous years to be Land Surveying Graduates ("LSGs") under the Graduate Training Scheme. These LSGs are provided with two years of practical training to enable them to meet the basic requirement of training period under the Assessment of Professional Competence of the Land Surveying Division of HKIS. The details of the recruitment of LSGs in the past five years are as follows:
Quota for Actual number of Year of recruitment recruitment of LSGs LSGs recruited 2015 11 11 2016 11 11 2017 11 11 2018 14 14 2019 14 14
LandsD plans to further increase the quota of LSG to at least 25 in 2020, with a view to relieving the impact of the epidemic on the employment of graduates and coping with the training needs of the industry. We will keep under review the number of LSG positions having regard to the development of land surveying and spatial data policies, the number of graduates from related disciplines and their employment situation, and the departmental resources.
Steering Committee on Innovation and Technology
20. MS ELIZABETH QUAT (in Chinese): President, the Chief Executive announced in the 2017 Policy Address the setting up of a Steering Committee on Innovation and Technology ("Steering Committee") to be chaired by her personally to examine and steer measures under the eight areas of innovation and technology as well as the smart city projects. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
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(1) as the Government indicated in November 2017 that "[t]he Steering Committee is a high-level, inter-departmental Government internal committee with membership comprising the majority of the Government Secretaries as well as the relevant department heads", of the current membership of the Steering Committee;
(2) of the number of meetings held by the Steering Committee since its establishment and set out, in a table by meeting date, the agenda items, attendance list, outcome and follow-up actions of each meeting;
(3) as it is learnt that the Singapore established the National Research Foundation ("NRF") as early as in 2006 which sets the direction for research and development ("R&D") for the nation by formulating an overarching strategy in every five years, and NRF has launched a number of funding schemes that align with its strategy and has provided guidelines to the funding bodies under the various government ministries on the ways to allocate funds, whether the Steering Committee will commence work in this regard; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(4) as a think tank has suggested that the Steering Committee should, upon making reference to the practice of Singapore and the United Kingdom, establish an overarching department responsible for steering R&D, so as to more effectively coordinate and optimize the use of R&D funding by the various Government departments, whether the Steering Committee will consider the suggestion; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that, and how the Government takes forward the relevant work?
SECRETARY FOR INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY (in Chinese): President, our reply to the question raised by Ms Elizabeth QUAT is as follows:
(1) and (2)
The Steering Committee on Innovation and Technology ("Steering Committee") chaired by the Chief Executive was established in December 2017, with an aim to take forward the development of LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5391
innovation and technology ("I&T") in Hong Kong, to steer collaboration and participation across bureaux and departments with effect from the most senior level and ensure that the resources requirement will be met in a timely manner.
Members of the Steering Committee include 2 Secretaries of Departments, 10 Directors of Bureaux and 6 Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Departments. The membership is at Annex 1. Since its establishment, the Steering Committee has convened a total of seven meetings, with discussion items including:
(i) Smart City Blueprint for Hong Kong ("Blueprint"); (ii) Technology Talent Admission Scheme; (iii) Open Data Policy; (iv) Faster Payment System developed by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority; (v) development of biomedical technology; (vi) launch of 5G wireless network; (vii) Hospital Authority's Big Data Analytics Platform; (viii) pro-innovation government procurement policy; (ix) "iAM Smart" one-stop personalized digital service platform; (x) Common Spatial Data Infrastructure; (xi) popular science education; and (xii) the government's Electronic Recordkeeping System.
The policies and measures mentioned above have all been launched or had their implementation timetable announced. Apart from the two regular agenda items, namely reviewing the progress in I&T in eight major areas and the Blueprint, the Steering Committee also provides policy steer and monitors progress of implementing individual I&T initiatives and measures.
(3) and (4)
We are aware of a recent research report which recommended establishing an overarching research and development (R&D) department to coordinate and enhance the use of R&D funds from various government departments.
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At present, various government funding schemes have different policy objectives and background. Their different characteristics, objectives, funding criteria, and application time can cater for different applicants. For example, generally speaking, a significant share (over 80%) of the Innovation and Technology Fund is used to fund enterprise-led projects, which, apart from research projects, include other non-research projects such as recruiting researchers, fostering technology adoption, and promoting technology culture. Only a small portion subsidizes research projects initiated by universities. The funding considerations for these two categories of projects are not the same and it may not be appropriate for them to be administered by a single department. In fact, university researchers are used to applying for funding from different departments. That said, in response to the relevant recommendations from the Task Force on Review of Research Policy and Funding, a common researcher identity, namely the Open Research Contributor ID, has been adopted for the grants applications to the Research Grants Council, and an inter-departmental liaison group comprising agencies administering research funding schemes has been established within the Government. The liaison group has regular exchanges on research directions, research policies, and funding matters so as to strengthen and improve coordination between different funding departments.
Annex 1
Steering Committee on Innovation and Technology Membership List
Chairperson Chief Executive
Members Chief Secretary for Administration Financial Secretary Secretary for the Environment Secretary for Innovation and Technology Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Secretary for Labour and Welfare Secretary for Security Secretary for Transport and Housing LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5393
Secretary for Food and Health Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Secretary for Development Secretary for Education Head of Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office Permanent Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury (Treasury) Permanent Secretary for Innovation and Technology Government Chief Information Officer Commissioner for Innovation and Technology Commissioner for Efficiency
Secretary Principal Assistant Secretary for Innovation and Technology (4), Innovation and Technology Bureau
Using Chinese medicine to prevent and treat the Coronavirus Disease 2019
21. MR CHAN HAN-PAN (in Chinese): President, in 2003, there was an outbreak of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ("SARS") epidemic in Hong Kong. At that time, the Hospital Authority ("HA") set up a Chinese Medicine Expert Panel on SARS Exploratory Treatment, whose members comprised local and Mainland experts in Chinese medicine. The Panel gave advice on the use of Chinese medicine in treating SARS patients and formulated protocols of prophylaxis Chinese medicine for use by HA for its frontline staff. Regarding the use of Chinese medicine in preventing and treating the Coronavirus Disease 2019 ("COVID-19"), will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it will set up a Chinese medicine expert panel on COVID-19 exploratory treatment to study the feasibility of using Chinese medicine and adopting an integrated Western medicine/Chinese medicine approach in preventing and treating the disease; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that;
(2) whether it will invite Chinese medicine practitioners to join the anti-epidemic front line, so as to relieve the work pressure currently borne by healthcare personnel of the public healthcare system; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that; and
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(3) whether it will send Chinese medicine practitioners to the various quarantine facilities to help quarantined persons strengthen their bodies by Chinese medicine treatment under the Chinese medicine approach of "curing the illness while it is still obscure", in the hope that those quarantined persons who have been infected will not develop the disease or, should they develop the disease, their conditions will be mitigated; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that?
SECRETARY FOR FOOD AND HEALTH (in Chinese): President, in consultation with the Department of Health ("DH") and the Hospital Authority ("HA"), my consolidated reply to the three parts of the question is as follows.
The Government raised the response level under the Preparedness and Response Plan for Novel Infectious Disease of Public Health Significance to the Emergency Level on 25 January 2020. A "containment" strategy and a series of specific measures have been adopted to achieve "early identification, early isolation and early treatment of the infected", with a view to effectively preventing the spreading of the disease in Hong Kong through isolation, quarantine and sanitization. These measures have been proven effective in curbing local transmission since the outbreak began and Hong Kong, at present, can still continue the "containment" strategy for epidemic control.
As part of the health care system in Hong Kong, Chinese medicine ("CM"), in partnership with other health care professions, would jointly participate in the work on the prevention and control of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 ("COVID-19"). In this regard, DH has been in liaison with Chinese medicine practitioners ("CMPs"), CMP associations, the Schools of CM of three local universities and CM clinics operated by non-governmental organizations ("NGOs"). Over the past three months or so, DH issued letters local CMPs on multiple occasions in light of the latest situation to provide the latter with updates on the epidemic, including how suspected cases are defined and to be handled as proposed by the Centre for Health Protection ("CHP"). To enhance the CMPs' understanding and participation in the disease prevention and control work, the CHP organized forums on COVID-19 on 16 January 2020 and 20 January 2020 and invited CMPs to attend. To further encourage the involvement of CMPs in the prevention and control of COVID-19, CHP has also published and regularly updated the "Prevention of COVID-19―Infection Control Measures for Chinese Medicine Clinics (Interim)" for the reference of CMPs.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5395
HA has been closely monitoring the development of the COVID-19 epidemic. In order to explore ways to involve CMPs in the disease prevention and control work, HA invited CM experts from the Schools of CM of three local universities to set up a CM expert group in early February. Together with the CM Chiefs of Services of the Chinese Medicine Clinics cum Training and Research Centres ("CM Clinics") (known as the Chinese Medicine Centres for Training and Research before 1 March this year), which are operating on a tripartite collaboration model in the 18 districts, they have collected information and literature on COVID-19 published by Mainland experts for multiple rounds of discussion and given advice on CMPs' involvement. The expert group has formulated relevant prevention protocols with the use of CM and provided the same to the CM Clinics for clinical reference. HA has also encouraged the 18 CM Clinics to provide corresponding services for the public in response to the development of the epidemic, with a view to further leveraging on the strengths of CM in combating the epidemic.
To enhance the role of the CM sector in our anti-epidemic efforts, particularly in relation to prevention and rehabilitation treatment, and to raise the capability of CMPs in areas such as clinical work, disease prevention/control and infection control, the HKSAR Government has included "Novel Coronavirus Epidemic Related Projects" in the Chinese Medicine Development Fund ("CMDF") as a priority area open for application from 27 February 2020 for the sector to undertake related training, research and promotion projects. Through this initiative, we hope to raise the capability of CMPs in the areas of clinical work, prevention and control of epidemic and infectious disease, infection control, etc., facilitate relevant researches, as well as provide resources to the sector to encourage it to promote to the public through different channels correct information on disease prevention using CM. Moreover, CMDF also launched the "CM Clinic Improvement Funding Scheme" on 9 March 2020 to subsidize the CM sector to improve facilities in CM clinics. Those project relating to enhancement of infection control facilities will be given priority consideration to safeguard the health of staff and patients of CM clinics and to provide quality CM services to the public. Details of these projects are available on CMDF's website
We are aware that the CM sector would like to enhance the involvement and role of CMPs in the anti-epidemic work. Since the beginning of the outbreak, HA has taken an open attitude in combating COVID-19. In early 5396 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
February, HA proactively contacted Mainland and local CM experts and set up the expert group to formulate preventive protocols within a short period of time. With full support and facilitation of the Food and Health Bureau and in consultation with the experts, HA is planning to offer rehabilitation programme in some of the 18 CM Clinics for discharged COVID-19 patients on a trial basis, and is actively discussing the details with stakeholders with a view to launching the programme as soon as possible in April. We hope the sector could encourage relevant CM organizations and CMPs to proactively support and participate in the programme, thereby enabling CMPs to assume a more active role in the treatment phase of our anti-epidemic work. We are pleased to learn that some NGOs have made similar arrangements for providing services for discharged COVID-19 patients. The CM sector is encouraged to join the fight against the disease by drawing from the experience of these NGOs and providing appropriate CM services.
We appreciate that CMPs wish to participate in the frontline treatment of COVID-19 patients. The existing quarantine facilities are mainly used for the quarantine of asymptomatic close contacts of confirmed cases. Persons under quarantine in quarantine centres are under 24-hour medical surveillance by health care staff of DH. Those found with relevant symptoms will be sent to hospital immediately to ensure prompt and proper isolation treatment for prevention of spreading of the virus.
Under the Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance (Cap. 599), all confirmed patients should be sent to public hospitals with infection control and isolation facilities for isolation and provided with treatments according to established clinical procedures. In light of the rapidly changing development of the epidemic, HA's Task Force on Clinical Management on Infection has formulated treatment plans and relevant hospitals are working closely with HA on contingency work. Engaging CMPs in inpatient treatment at this stage will require not only detailed discussions and coordination among CMPs and Western medical practitioners, but also an understanding of the interactions between CM and Western medicine and the safety of their integrated use. Given the various existing constraints, treatment plans for isolated patients are still formulated mainly by the task force using Western medicine. Therefore, we are of the view that it is not the right time to change the current treatment plans and arrangements.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5397
We will continue to explore the possibility of enhancing CMPs' involvement in anti-epidemic work in respect of inpatient care and clinical treatment. For example, they can be actively mobilized to provide appropriate services for discharged COVID-19 patients and implement complementary preventive measures so that CM can be better utilized in the control and prevention of diseases. The establishment of the CM Hospital will also significantly enhance the role of CM in inpatient treatments and give full play to the strengths of CM.
The MTR Corporation Limited's businesses outside Hong Kong
22. MRS REGINA IP (in Chinese): President, according to the Audited Results for the year ended 31 December 2019 published by the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL"), MTRCL's revenues in 2019 from "Mainland of China and international railway, property rental and management subsidiaries" and "Hong Kong transport operations" were $21,085 million and $19,938 million respectively, and MTRCL's expenses on both for the same period were $19,760 million and $14,029 million respectively. There are views that MTRCL has placed too much emphasis on developing businesses outside Hong Kong at the expense of local railway business, giving rise to numerous problems. For example, on train operations, there have been frequent train delays, signalling system failures, and even serious incidents of train derailment and collision, and on the implementation of new railway projects, there have been problems of works quality, construction delays and significant cost overruns, etc. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows the details of each of the businesses/projects currently engaged by MTRCL outside Hong Kong, including the contract periods and financial information such as investment amounts, as well as the anticipated and actual profits and losses; and
(2) in order not to divert the attention of the MTRCL management team from the local transport and other related businesses, whether the Government will demand MTRCL to reduce its business expansion outside Hong Kong so as to focus on local railway development and services; if not, of the reasons for that?
5398 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
SECRETARY FOR TRANSPORT AND HOUSING (in Chinese): President, public transport services are closely connected with the livelihood of the people of Hong Kong, delivering 12 million passengers trips daily, representing close to 90% of daily commutes. It is the Government's policy to adopt railway as the backbone of public transport, while coordinating other public transport services, with a view to providing the public with a diverse means of transportation. Under such policy, the railway services operated by the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL") serve millions of passengers every day.
As the sole operator of our local railway, MTRCL is tasked with great responsibilities. Hong Kong has been the home base of MTRCL for over 40 years, and the development of local railway businesses has been the core business of the Corporation. It is MTRCL's established policy that when developing any business in the Mainland or overseas, the Corporation must keep its primary focus on local businesses.
MTRCL follows the principle of "on-the-ground management" in the management of Mainland and overseas businesses, through means such as establishing subsidiaries or setting up joint ventures with other companies. These subsidiaries or joint venture companies will then search for and employ suitable local talents who will be responsible for the construction or operation of railways by working with a small number of staff deployed from Hong Kong. Hence, on expenses, MTRCL is mainly responsible for the investment in projects in relevant places.
My reply to the two parts of Mrs Regina IP's question is as follows:
(1) MTRCL is involved in the construction and operation of railway projects in three Mainland cities, namely Beijing, Shenzhen and Hangzhou. The Corporation also constructs and operates the Macao Light Rapid Transit. As regards its overseas businesses, the Corporation operates railway services in London in the United Kingdom, Stockholm in Sweden, and Melbourne in Australia, and is involved in the construction and operation of a railway project in Sydney, Australia. The details of these projects are set out in the Annex.
To strengthen management, MTRCL has set risk management indictors for its Mainland and overseas investments. The total investment in Mainland projects shall not exceed 15% of the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5399
Corporation's shareholders' funds (including all equity investment and shareholders' loans). As regards overseas investment, the total investment shall not exceed 5% of the shareholders' funds (including all equity investment and shareholders' loans).
The total equity attributable to the shareholders of MTRCL in 2019 is around HK$187 billion, while the Mainland and overseas investments are below the 15% and 5% limit of the shareholders' fund respectively. MTRCL will review from time to time the appropriateness of these indicators, with a view to maintaining a steady growth of the Corporation's local and Mainland/overseas businesses.
MTRCL released its 2019 Annual Report on 9 April 2020. The profit generated from MTRCL's Mainland and overseas businesses in 2019 is $525 million.(1) The details of MTRCL's financial position can be referred to its Annual Report (page 201).
(2) The Government appreciates the public concern over the operating strategy of MTRCL. The Government, as the majority shareholder of the Corporation, has been taking up the responsibility and requesting MTRCL to continue to review its governance structure and operation, and maintain the quality of local railway services and new construction projects. Without undermining the performance of local railway services and construction projects, the Government stays positive in seeing the Corporation, as an international brand, continues to develop its non-local business in a prudent manner. At the same time, the Government will continue to remind MTRCL to maintain its primary focus on local railway businesses. The performance of its local railway services and construction projects should not be affected by the development of non-local businesses. The management of the Corporation all along adheres to this principle.
(1) Taking into account corresponding depreciation, amortization, interests, tax and other expenses, and including share of profit or loss from associates and joint venture, net after-tax profits from Mainland of China & International Businesses was $525 million in 2019. 5400 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
In fact, in its development of Mainland and overseas businesses, a majority of MTRCL's non-local staff are recruited on-the-ground, and not deployed from headquarters in Hong Kong. As at end of 2019, MTRCL employs over 17 000 staff in Hong Kong, with fewer than 200 of them dedicated for railway businesses outside Hong Kong. Meanwhile, MTRCL continues to invest annually billions of dollars in maintaining and renewing railway assets, and improving station facilities. All these reflect MTRCL's Hong Kong-based approach in railway development.
MTRCL has also pointed out that it would carefully analyse every potential investment project before confirming the Corporation's participation. This includes reviews on the risk and return, local laws, market competition, manpower required from Hong Kong and the local community, etc. Apart from internal assessments, the Corporation also engages external consultants for advice where necessary, with a view to ensuring that the resource allocation is pursued on the principle of striking a balance between risks and reasonable commercial returns, and not affecting the Corporation's local businesses.
Annex
Overview of Current Mainland and Overseas Railway Business provided by MTRCL
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) Mainland Railway Business Beijing Metro The railway connects the About September 2009 Line 4 southern and northern parts RMB 700 million to September of Beijing. It is 28.2 km in 2039 length and has 24 stations. The Beijing MTR Corporation Limited LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5401
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) ("Beijing MTR") is responsible for the project's electrical and mechanical systems and rolling stock, as well as the daily operation and maintenance. Beijing Metro Being an extension of the Not applicable(2) December 2010 Daxing Line Beijing Metro Line 4, the to December Daxing Line is 21.8 km in 2020 length and has 11 stations. Beijing MTR is responsible for the daily operation and maintenance of the line under a ten-year franchise, renewable for another 10 years until the expiry of the franchise of the Beijing Metro Line 4. Beijing Metro The railway connects the About December 2015 Line 14 southern and eastern parts of RMB 2.5 billion# to December Beijing. It is 47.3 km in 2045 length and has 37 stations. Beijing MTR is responsible for the project's electrical and mechanical systems and rolling stock, as well as the daily operation and maintenance. Beijing Metro The railway connects three About The franchise Line 16 major districts in the RMB 2.5 billion# period of first western part of Beijing. It phase project is 49.8 km in length and has will last until 29 stations. Beijing MTR the full opening, 5402 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) is responsible for the whilst the project's electrical and franchise for the mechanical systems and whole line will rolling stock, as well as the commence upon daily operation and full opening for maintenance. a period of 30 years. The first phase of the project was commissioned on 31 December 2016. The second phase is planned to be commissioned by end of 2020. The commissioning of the whole line is estimated to be after 2021. Beijing Metro The railway connects the About The 20-year Line 17 eastern part of Beijing. It RMB 500,000 franchise will is 49.7 km in length and has take effect after 21 stations. Beijing MTR the first phase is responsible for operation of the project is and maintenance. During commissioned. the franchise period, Beijing The MTR will lease the rolling commissioning stock, with lease payments of the first LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5403
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) to be paid in two phase is instalments after the estimated to be opening of each phase. end of 2021. The date of the whole line commissioning awaits confirmation of the Beijing Municipal Government. Shenzhen The railway connects the About June 2011 to Metro southern and northern parts HK$ 2.6 billion June 2041 Longhua Line of Shenzhen. It is 20.5 km (Line 4) in length and has 15 stations. According to the concession agreement, the MTR Corporation (Shenzhen) Limited is responsible for the investment and construction of Longhua Line Phase 2, and the operation, maintenance and asset renewal of Phases 1 and 2 of the Line. Hangzhou The railway connects the About November 2012 Metro Line 1 southern and northern parts RMB 2.2 billion to November of Hangzhou. It is 48 km 2037 in length and has 31 stations. The Hangzhou MTR Corporation Limited ("Hangzhou MTR") is 5404 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) responsible for the project's electrical and mechanical systems and rolling stock, as well as daily operation and maintenance. Hangzhou The Extension is 5.6 km in Not applicable(3) End on the Metro Line 1 length and has 3 stations. same day of the Extension Hangzhou MTR is expiry of the responsible for the daily franchise of the operation and maintenance Hangzhou of the Extension. Metro Line 1 Hangzhou It is 51.5 km in length and About The initial Metro Line 5 has 38 stations, of which the RMB 2.6 billion section was initial section is 17.8 km commissioned and has 12 stations. The in June 2019, joint venture company, of and the which MTR owns 60% of franchise period the shares, is responsible for will last for 25 rolling stock, mechanical years after the and electrical systems commissioning (including signaling and of the whole other systems), renovation, line. and operations, maintenance and upgrading for 25 years after the Line is fully commissioned. Macao Railway Business Macao Light It is 9.3 km in length and About A 80-month Rapid Transit has 11 stations. MTR MOP 400 million contract Taipa Line Railway Operations approved on (Macau) is responsible for 11 April 2018 daily operation and maintenance services. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5405
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) Overseas Railway Businesses TfL The railway connects the About May 2015 to Rail/Elizabeth eastern and western parts of GBP 1 million May 2023 Line, United London. It is 118 km in Kingdom length and has 41 stations. The MTR Corporation (Crossrail) Limited is responsible for the operation, maintenance and management of 32 stations. South The railway connects the About August 2017 to Western city of London and GBP 20 million August 2024 Railway, south-western cities of United England. It is 998 km in Kingdom length and has 203 stations. The First MTR South Western Trains Limited, of which MTR owns 30% share, is responsible for the operation, maintenance and management of 186 stations. Stockholm The railway covers various About November 2009 Metro districts in Stockholm. It SEK 70 million to November is 108 km in length and has 2023 100 stations. MTR Stockholm AB is responsible for the operation of train services and maintenance of rolling stock. 5406 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) MTR An intercity service which About The railway Express, connects Stockholm and SEK 500 million service initially Sweden Gothenburg. It is 457 km commenced in in length and has 6 stations. March 2015, The MTR Express AB and the service provides train services with has been self-purchased trains. provided in accordance with the complete train schedule since August of the same year. Extension of operating licence will be needed for this service. Stockholm The railway connects About December 2016 commuter rail Sweden's capital city with SEK 800 million# to December (Stockholms surrounding county areas. 2026 pendeltåg) It is 247 km in length and has 54 stations. The MTR Pendeltågen AB is responsible for the operation of train services, as well as the maintenance of 50 stations and rolling stock. Melbourne's The railway connected the About November 2009 Metropolitan urban and suburban districts AUD 60 million to November Rail Service of Melbourne. It is 2024 409 km in length and has 222 stations. The Metro Trains Melbourne Pty. Ltd is responsible for the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5407
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) operation of stations and train services, as well as the maintenance of railway infrastructure, equipment, systems and rolling stock. Sydney Metro The railway connects About May 2019 to North West Chatswood and Rouse Hill AUD 100 million May 2034 Line at the northwest Sydney. It is 36 km in length and has 13 stations. The Northwest Rapid Transit ("NRT") Consortium, of which the MTRCL is a shareholder, is responsible for the Operations, Trains and Systems Public-Private Partnership contract of the project. The Trains and Systems Joint-Venture, of which MTRCL is a shareholder, under NRT Consortium is responsible for the project's electrical and mechanical systems as well as rolling stock. The Metro Train Sydney Pty Ltd., of which MTRCL is also a shareholder, will be responsible for the operation of train services, as well as the maintenance of railway infrastructure, equipment, systems and rolling stock. 5408 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Investment by MTR(1) Scale and Project Franchise Project Name (as at Information Period 31 December 2019) Sydney Metro Being an extension of About 10 years after City and Sydney Metro Northwest AUS 60 million# service Southwest Line, it is 30 km in length, commencement Line and runs through the commercial districts of the city centre. By 2024, the Metro City and Southwest Line will be combined with Sydney Metro Northwest Line as a single line. MTR will invest in the project, take the lead in the project works and railway operations, be responsible for the railway infrastructure, equipment as well as the maintenance of rolling stock.
Notes:
(1) Amount of investment till 31 December 2019, which includes equity investment and shareholders' loan but not any commitment of bank guarantee, parent company guarantee nor performance bond under concession agreement.
(2) The line is owned and built by the Beijing Municipal Government. Beijing MTR is only responsible for its daily operational expenses.
(3) Hangzhou Metro Line 1 Extension is built and owned by Hangzhou Metro Group Company Limited. Hangzhou MTR is only responsible for its daily operational expenses.
# This is a committed investment amount. Capital will be contributed as appropriate in accordance with the progress of the project or works.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5409
GOVERNMENT BILL
Second Reading of Government Bill
Resumption of Second Reading Debate on Government Bill
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Government Bill.
This Council resumes the Second Reading debate on the Appropriation Bill 2020 ("the Bill").
This meeting is the second Budget meeting. In the relevant circular to all Members, the Clerk to the Legislative Council has reminded Members that only Members may speak in the Second Reading debate to be held today and tomorrow, and the debate will continue next Wednesday (i.e. 29 April) when the third Budget meeting, at which only public officers will respond to Members' views, will be held. If the motion for Second Reading is passed, this Council will forthwith go into committee of the whole Council to consider the Bill.
Today's debate will end at about 7:00 pm; tomorrow's debate will start at 9:00 am.
I remind Members that the actual speaking order of Members is decided in accordance with the order in which they have pressed the "Request to Speak" button. As such, Members who wish to speak today will please press the "Request to Speak" button as early as possible.
Under the Rules of Procedure, each Member may speak for up to 15 minutes.
APPROPRIATION BILL 2020
Resumption of debate on Second Reading which was moved on 26 February 2020
MR CHAN CHUN-YING (in Cantonese): President, with regard to this year's Budget, I am going to discuss from four perspectives.
5410 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
The first perspective is about the internal factors and external shocks facing Hong Kong. Hong Kong's economy has been suffering from the double blow of internal and external challenges since 2019, and has recorded the first negative growth in 10 years. On the external front, the global economic downturn and trade tensions between China and the United States continued to depress Hong Kong's external demand, with export of goods and services falling sharply. However, unlike previous economic downturns, Hong Kong is also plagued by the internal factor of disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments. The social unrest that lasted for six months has further damaged the economy of Hong Kong.
This year, while the old uncertainties are still clouding over the global economy, new uncertainties have arisen. In the midst of the China-United States trade tensions, the next round of trade negotiations should be more difficult. It is expected that this will disturb the global economy from time to time and curb the external demand of Hong Kong. Since the beginning of this year, the sudden outbreak of the novel coronavirus has taken a tsunami-like hit on Hong Kong's economy. There has been a notable drop in the number of visitors to Hong Kong and a decline in the number of people going out. The retail, catering, hotel, transport and other related industries have been operating in severe adversity. The epidemic in Europe and the United States has intensified since March, dealing a heavy blow to their economic and financial conditions. The consequential effect will spread further to the rest of the world, making it difficult for Hong Kong to remain unaffected.
Recently, street violence has subsided but not yet fully stopped. At present, Hong Kong's society is deeply divided with the business environment severely affected. These are not easy to recover. Worse still, Hong Kong's internal deep-rooted conflicts are unlikely to be resolved in the short term, making it difficult for the Government to govern effectively and many policies cannot be implemented effectively. Hong Kong's economy may still be under a difficult situation of facing both internal factors and external shocks for an extended period, and recovery will be very difficult.
For the second perspective, I would like to highlight the need for timely introduction of large-scale counter-cyclical relief measures. In the previous economic downturns, unemployment rate might rise sharply within six months. Now that the unemployment rate in Hong Kong has already risen from 2.8% in June last year to 4.2% in March this year, the alarm of unemployment has been LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5411 sounded and is likely to aggravate swiftly within a short time. The SAR Government must step up its fiscal stimulus actions as quickly as possible to safeguarded people's livelihood and employment.
In the face of the current economic winter and the challenge posed by the potential social unrest, the Financial Secretary has boldly and fearlessly introduced this Budget to "support enterprises, safeguard jobs, stimulate the economy, relieve people's burden". This is worth supporting. Four rounds of relief measures costing a total of $68 billion were introduced last year, and counter-cyclical relief measures of an even larger scale involving $120 billion was introduced this year. The forecast budget deficit was an all-time high of $139.1 billion back then. However, if the $19.5 billion recovered from the issuance of green bonds and the $22 billion returned by the Housing Reserve Fund are also included, the actual deficit would be close to $180 billion. This shows the determination of this Budget to ease the pressure of the economic downturn.
President, however, when facing the changes in the epidemic situation, Singapore has responded with much stronger effort. In late March, it has further provided an additional budget of $260 billion and introduced two rounds of relief measures to help enterprises, labour and families tide over the difficulties. The additional sum is equivalent to 11% of Singapore's Gross Domestic Product ("GDP"), with its forecast budget deficit reaching $216.6 billion. When the effects of the epidemic become more serious, Singapore introduced the third round of economic support measures amounting to HK$27.4 billion in early April to provide subsidies to enterprises, so that all local employees can receive 75% of their wages in April. What is more, it called on employers to continue to pay wages, not to put their employees on no-pay leave or not to lay off employees. It seems that no one dares to take this global economic tsunami too lightly. On the other hand, in the United States, a US$2 trillion stimulus package, which is described as the largest ever in its modern history, was launched in late March. The package also includes cash payout in the hope of minimizing the damages to the economy.
The SAR Government launched two rounds of Anti-epidemic Fund in February and this month, totalling $167.5 billion, to support industries and members of the public affected by the epidemic and the Government's anti-epidemic measures. If the $120 billion relief measures of the Budget is also included, the various relief measures implemented so far amounted to nearly $290 billion, which is equivalent to more than 10% of Hong Kong's GDP last 5412 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 year. The Financial Secretary frankly admitted that the deficit would rise to $280 billion and might reach as high as $300 billion, which is a new record high. In my opinion, this is the kind of record that no one wants to break too often.
With regard to the counter-cyclical measures in the Budget, such as reducing salaries tax and profits tax, paying one-month's rent for public rental housing tenants and increasing various social assistance payments, they are nothing new. The most noteworthy measure is the direct cash handout of $10,000 to all Hong Kong citizens, but how people are going to pocket this sum of money has aroused grave concern.
Hong Kong had handed out "candies" twice before, i.e. handing out $6,000 in 2011 and handing out $4,000 by the Community Care Fund in 2018. As a modern smart city, Hong Kong should be able to make instant cash payments throughout the year. The Government should make good use of the existing database to hand out cash, with priority given to Comprehensive Social Security Assistance recipients and elderly people. I wish to say a few more words on this issue. Initially, the relevant departments used privacy as a shield to substantiate the difficulty in handing out cash. When there is a better way to address this issue, the relevant departments then voiced another difficulty last week, i.e. the capacity of the system. If money is first handed out to the two categories of people mentioned above, and then members of the public are encouraged to collect the money via electronic means, such as Faster Payment System, the majority of the payment process can be speeded up and members of the public can thus expeditiously pocket this sum of "contingency money". Therefore, President, the design of the cash handout process is very important. The Government should draw on past experience, listen more to professional opinions, abandon the bureaucracy-led approach adopted by government departments, stop making up excuses for delayed actions and avoid making low-level mistakes again.
On the third perspective, I want to say that we should plan ahead to support the economy of Hong Kong to move forward. While relief measures are important, we should not forget to move forward in the midst of difficult times. The epidemic has far-reaching implications on the global economy, and the resilience of Hong Kong is now subject to a severe test. The society of Hong Kong is seemingly well-off with a very solid foundation, but if timely assistance is not provided during crisis, the financial ability of the general public and the middle class may thus be weakened, thereby weakening our strength in coping with economic fluctuations in the future. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5413
The Financial Secretary is right to stress that Hong Kong's core competitiveness has not changed, and the process of accelerating transformation and upgrading of the Mainland economy has helped in attracting foreign investment and opening up markets, thereby bringing more opportunities of participation for the local industrial and commercial sectors. In addition, Hong Kong is committed to becoming an international financial centre and a major business services hub in the region. In the future, Hong Kong is expected to gain tremendous development potential under the Belt and Road Initiative, the internationalization of Renminbi, the development of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the connectivity of financial markets between the Mainland and Hong Kong. However, in order to maintain the long-term sustainable development of Hong Kong's economy, the above support alone does not seem sufficient, especially under the current situation. Many people in the business sector are worried that there is no new locomotives in the industrial sector to drive the recovery of the economy of Hong Kong.
In fact, the Budget itself has actively sought to find a way out of the economic quagmire, such as shoring up the funding size of enterprises, encouraging innovation and introducing measures from the perspective of re-industrialization, and at the same time continuing to take forward innovation and technology infrastructure projects so as to continue to develop the innovation and technology industry. I absolutely agree with this direction, especially because the epidemic has changed the future business practices in Hong Kong. Various industries are using, to a greater extent, technology to cope with the future, such as mobile office, video conferencing and online exhibitions. Furthermore, the present global outbreak of infectious diseases has once again made the public face up to the importance of public health. The use of science and technology to combat the epidemic may be a new business opportunity for Hong Kong in the future. Recent scientific research technologies in Hong Kong, such as the new multi-level bacteria-killing coating materials, the mobile body temperature detection robot, new face shields produced by using 3D-printing technology, etc., may open up new avenues for Hong Kong.
President, as regards the financial-related measures which I am most concerned about, while there were 24 paragraphs on such measures in last year's Budget, the relevant paragraphs have been reduced by nearly half in this year's Budget and the coverage is much narrower. Notwithstanding that, the measures are more specific and the areas of support include the securities market, green finance, retail bonds, public annuities, fixed-rate mortgages and wealth management. The relevant measures include waiving stamp duty on stock 5414 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 transfers by ETF market makers; issuing green bonds, iBond and silver bonds; lowering the threshold for annuities and establishing systems to attract private equity funds to develop in Hong Kong. There is no doubt that policy can bring new opportunities to the wealth management business in the financial sector, but according to the Global Financial Centres Index recently published by the Z/Yen Partners, a business think-tank of the United Kingdom, in collaboration with the China Development Institute in Shenzhen, the ranking of the world's top 10 financial centres has changed dramatically. New York and London continued to occupy the world's number one and number two positions, with Tokyo rising from the sixth place to the third place. Shanghai surpassed Hong Kong for the first time and rose from the fifth place to the fourth place, Singapore dropped to the fifth place and Hong Kong also dropped to the sixth place in the world for the first time, dropping three places. Hong Kong has fallen from the top three places and dropped to the sixth place. Regardless of the reasons, the fall warrants our vigilance and attention. Improvements and upgrading must be made, especially in respect of infrastructure and the level of financial development, so that Hong Kong can regain the top three position.
As for the last perspective, I would like to talk about how the Government should proactively take the initiative to control Hong Kong's fiscal discipline. President, as many people understand it, Article 107 of the Basic Law states that, "The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall follow the principle of keeping the expenditure within the limits of revenues in drawing up its budget, and strive to achieve a fiscal balance, avoid deficits and keep the budget commensurate with the growth rate of its gross domestic product". This provision is conceptual rather than specific, and does not prohibit counter-cyclical fiscal deficits so long as they can be offset against by fiscal surpluses during the cycle. Therefore, the use of fiscal surpluses to rescue the economy and people's livelihood should not arouse much controversy. Singapore's recent stimulus package, drawing on national reserves for the first time, is a case in point. Under extraordinary circumstances, it is acceptable for the SAR Government to have a huge fiscal deficit arising from its proactive fiscal policy. After all, the purpose of having fiscal reserves is to prepare for the rainy days, but the bottom line is that gradual adjustments should be made in the medium term so that fiscal balance can be achieved again when the economy gradually recovers. Furthermore, most of the relief measures introduced in the past year are not part of the Government's recurrent expenditure items and members of the public should understand that some special arrangements cannot recur incessantly for many years. Therefore, such expenditure items may not be counted as long-term and sustainable financial commitment for the time being. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5415
After a few rounds of relief measures, fiscal reserves have been reduced to only about $800 billion and some people began to worry that continued budget deficit will affect the rating of Hong Kong. Recently, Fitch downgraded Hong Kong's credit rating but considered that the outlook was stable. In fact, Hong Kong has scored high in the macro-assessment model of the international rating agencies in the past. Fiscal reserves are just one of many quantitative parameters, and Hong Kong has all along maintained a solid economic base in other areas, including the Government's low debt, sizeable net positive international investment position, long-term current account surplus, robust and reliable linked exchange rate system and relatively high per capita income. Although these parameters are facing challenges, it is expected that fiscal deficit alone will not seriously affect Hong Kong's overall credit rating.
As fiscal deficit should definitely not become the norm, the Government should immediately begin to review the structure of public revenue and the sustainability of different relief measures. At present, about 70% of government revenue comes from profits tax, land premium, stamp duty and salaries tax, of which revenue relating to real estate is extremely volatile. It is necessary to open up new sources of income in the future, and reduce some one-off relief measures to ensure the continuity of public services after the economy has stabilized.
The Financial Secretary also revealed that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development was studying the possible impact of the global adoption of low tax rule on Hong Kong. As a matter of fact, the Inland Revenue Ordinance has not been thoroughly reviewed for 44 years since 1976, and some of the provisions are outdated. In order to meet the international tax challenges, I hope that the Financial Secretary will expeditiously review the Inland Revenue Ordinance and policies, and carry out the necessary reform so as to maintain the attractiveness of Hong Kong's tax system as well as its business environment and competitiveness.
President, in the face of the hardly hit industries and dire distress among the people, the relatively costly counter-cyclical measures in the Budget are definitely worthy of support. As a matter of fact, the amount is not particularly conspicuous when compared to the Anti-epidemic Fund. Therefore, it is hoped that upon the approval of the appropriation, the Financial Secretary can lead the financial team, with the help of other Policy Bureaux, to expeditiously implement 5416 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 all policy initiatives so that members of the public can benefit as early as possible. Considering that the negative impact of the epidemic has exceeded the expectation at the time the Budget was formulated, the Government has further introduced two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund. I hope that the Government will continue to monitor the progress and pace of recovery of Hong Kong's economy, and launch the necessary relief and stimulus packages in a timely and decisive manner so that Hong Kong can successfully tide over the difficulties.
President, I so submit.
MR ALVIN YEUNG (in Cantonese): President, in this gigantic Chamber, only a few public officers are present. After the massive government shake-up over the past two days, apart from the Financial Secretary, the survivors also include another Secretary called John LEE, who is the only Secretary present at the meeting today. A reporter asked whether the relevant public officers replaced implied that they should be held accountable for the chaotic situation in Hong Kong over the past year. All I know is that those who have been replaced have yet to apologize to the people of Hong Kong, whereas the person who should genuinely apologize to the people of Hong Kong and be held accountable for what happened in the past year is still sitting here today. I am referring to John LEE.
President, today, we are considering the Appropriations Bill 2020 ("the Bill"), and this is the express power vested by Article 73(2) of the Basic Law. However, at the meeting of the Finance Committee ("FC") held last Friday to consider the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund ("AEF"), certain institutions that do not have any express power vested by the Basic Law warned FC members that whoever voted against AEF would have to "pay the bill". If members objecting the $130 billion AEF are required to "pay the bill", then how many bills a Member would have to pay if he objects the Budget involving more than $600 billion? Will Members who press the "No" button be accused by certain institutions of breaching their oaths and liable for the offence of misconduct in public office?
President, let us deduce using the same logic. Many Members had proposed amendments to the previous budgets in an attempt to reduce unreasonable and inappropriate expenditures. Our purpose of proposing LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5417 amendments is surely to oppose the original motion. If we are consequently required to "pay the bill", will those Members who vote against the amendments be required to "settle the bill"? In an even more extreme case, will the President who approved the amendments proposed by Members be suspected of breaching the oath and liable for the offence of misconduct in public office? Even if he will not, but will he be suspected of abetting and aiding? Fortunately, the President needs not be too worried as Article 50 of the Basic Law has expressly stated that "… the Legislative Council refuses to pass a budget or any other important bill introduced by the government, and if consensus still cannot be reached after consultations, the Chief Executive may dissolve the Legislative Council." The merits of an express provision is that it leaves no room for speculation and obviates the need for certain people to distort, for their master, the meaning of "the Legislative Council refuses to pass a budget … `introduced by the government" in a sorrowful and miserable manner. The meaning of this provision is that the Legislative Council has express veto power over the Budget, that is to say, the "No" button in front of me is not solely used for decoration, nor is it a rubber-stamp. How we vote and how the President approves amendments are internal matters of this Council …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Alvin YEUNG, I think you have digressed. Please return to the subject of the debate.
MR ALVIN YEUNG (in Cantonese): President, I am explaining whether we should vote against the motion. Can this be regarded as a digression?
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Please return to the subject of the debate.
MR ALVIN YEUNG (in Cantonese): If even my explanation of why we are going to vote against the motion is regarded as a digression, I really wonder if Members can only speak in support of the Second Reading of the Bill in order to adhere to the ambit stated by you. Frankly speaking, how we vote is an internal matter of this Council and no institution or individual is in any position to give orders and make irresponsible remarks. Now I am going to focus my speech on certain expenditure items of this year's Budget.
5418 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
The first thing I would like to talk about is surely the expenditure of the Police Force. How much Hong Kong people have to pay to maintain this excellent disciplinary force which serves with "honour, duty and loyalty" and strictly enforces the law in the coming financial year? $25.8 billion. Is the money worth spending? Based on what has happened in Hong Kong in the past year, I believe Hong Kong people should have an answer. However, it was only until last night that I realized that the Hong Kong Police Force was not a reckless spendthrift for it also knows how to make money. Last night, the Police arrested a number of unrelated people and youngsters in Yuen Long and accused them of breaching the group gathering ban. Each of them was fined $2,000. Hence, a lot of money was credited to the public coffers last night. The Police Force is good at both spending money and making money. Looking around the world, this kind of law enforcement agency can only be found in places ruled by the military governments.
Another question that Hong Kong people may ask is: Is it worth allocating $25.8 billion to the Police Force? The establishment of the Police Force, including directorate officers, will increase to 38 481 posts next year. What kind of concept is this? If we divide $25.8 billion by the number of staff, it gives a per capita expenditure of $670,000 per year. I believe that in the eyes of those in power, it is certainly worthwhile to safeguard national security by assuming full governance with a per capita spending of $670,000. This is because in some places, it probably costs far more to maintain a "fifty cent factory". And yet, this is the legislature of Hong Kong and the question that we have to ask on behalf of Hong Kong people is: Why should we allocate funding for the Police Force to expand armaments and increase manpower when we cannot keep the police powers in check? What is the purpose of recruiting 2 500 additional staff and purchasing water cannon vehicles costing $130 million? The purpose is to deal with the people of Hong Kong. This does not matter. Even if Hong Kong people consider it inappropriate to approve the funding amounting to over $20 billion, and even if our amendments to reduce the estimated expenditure of the Police Force to zero can be passed, the Police Force can still get as many accoutrements as they want; police officers can still bluff and bluster outdoors on 21st and 31st of each month; police officers can still dine together at night after work, first quarrel and then engage in a fight. Why? This has something to do with the allocation warrants that I am going to talk about.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5419
The Public Finance Ordinance allows the controlling officers of different departments to transfer estimates of expenditure from Department A to Department B by signing allocation warrants, without having to notify the Legislative Council of the amount of expenditure incurred each time or the number of transfers made each year. Mr Jeremy TAM and I had raised written questions to the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau on the allocation warrant, but the Bureau had not replied. When we called to follow up, the Bureau replied that it was awaiting a reply from the Security Bureau. However, when the same written question was raised to the Security Bureau earlier on, its reply was likewise awaiting an advice from the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau. Why should the Security Bureau be consulted in relation to the discussion of the Budget?
After waiting for a long time, the Security Bureau finally replied. Last year, the Police Force received a total funding of $230 million from 22 departments by way of allocation warrants. At the special FC meeting, government officials made a very special remark that other departments had invited the Police Force to spend $230 million for them. This is a very interesting logic and it reminds me of the words said by debtors, who refused to repay the debts, to their creditors: Since they relied on the their strength to borrow the debts, in what capacity could the creditors demand repayment?
President, allocation warrant enables various departments greater flexibility in their estimates of expenditure, it is also a financial trick to bypass the monitoring by the Legislative Council. Given the public's trust and rating of the Government at present, I believe Hong Kong people hope that there will be sufficient transparency to keep track of the whereabouts of public money, even if the spending is just $1. In the long run, should allocation warrant issued under the Public Finance Ordinance, a tool for playing the financial trick, also fall within the scope of monitoring by this Council? I consider it necessary because this Council can then duly perform its functions as specified in Article 73 of the Basic Law.
Next, I would like to discuss the disbursement of $10,000 to every member of the public. When the Financial Secretary delivered the Budget in February and announced the cash payout of $10,000, I believe many members of the public were very happy and even shouted for joy. However, just like fireworks display, it lasted less than 30 seconds and many Hong Kong people soon became sensible again. They all had the same question in mind: If they might not be able to 5420 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 receive the money next year, what was the point of being so happy? Why would people say that? When the Government is so generous and spent so extravagantly for the benefit of the people, how come Hong Kong people are still discontented? What else do they want? Of course, first of all, people have learnt a hard lesson in the previous payout of $4,000. Furthermore, queries have been raised, mainly by pro-democracy Members and joined by some royalist Members, as to whether the Financial Secretary should take out the $70-odd billion involved in the payout of $10,000 from this year's Budget and present the cash payout scheme directly to FC for independent scrutiny, such that the funding can be expeditiously considered, approved and disbursed to the people of Hong Kong. Unfortunately, it seems that the Financial Secretary and the entire SAR Government have turned a deaf ear to this suggestion and showed no interest to follow up.
Our question is: The disbursement of $10,000 is meant to help Hong Kong people and it would be best if assistance is provided as soon as possible, so why did he not take the easy and expedient way but choose to deal with the matter only when the Budget is submitted? This is absolutely mind-boggling.
As a matter of fact, once the money paid by taxpayers to the Government become public money, it should never belong to the Government. The Government is obliged to spend the money on Hong Kong people in different ways. This time, the payout is in the form of cash rebate and people can use the money as they wish. While many Hong Kong people will use this sum of money to tide over the difficulties, some will choose to use the money to sustain the operation of shops sharing the same concept. This is much better than keeping the money in the public coffers as sooner or later, it will be poured into the sea.
President, there is another question at a deeper level. Even if the SAR Government regards the $10,000 as some sort of "redemption coupon" to apologize to or compensate Hong Kong people for its maladministration over the past year, this "redemption coupon" would have expired by then and thus cannot regain the trust of Hong Kong people. Hong Kong people's confidence in the governance of the SAR Government has reached rock bottom and can hardly be restored. Although Secretary John LEE is the only government official present at the meeting, his representativeness is beyond question. As regards Secretary LEE's support ratings, I trust that everyone has his own answer. At a time when the epidemic is rampant, the Government's return of wealth to the people is LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5421 supposedly better than not handing out money, but it would be even better if the SAR Government gives more thoughts to solving its internal problems. In the face of criticisms about interference of internal affairs, do any government officials, especially the Chief Executive, have the courage to raise objections? In the face of the out-of-control Police Force that abuse power, do civil servants working in the East and West Wings of the Central Government Offices have a slight sense of shame and feel ashamed to associate with them? Is it that members of the accountability team will be promoted by pursuing personality cult? These are the deep-rooted questions that we need to ask.
President, while the Budget has provided an opportunity for Members to discuss the issue of public finance and just now Mr CHAN Chun-ying has put in lots of efforts to discuss some deep-rooted issues, including how to make use of public finance, we must not forget a more important point, that is, the money actually belongs to all the people of Hong Kong and thus whether the money has been properly spent is equally important. What is more, in the face of the ever-changing international environment and the gradual downgrading of Hong Kong's credit ratings by major credit rating agencies, the SAR Government has maintained the stance that "I have done nothing wrong, those agencies misunderstood and wronged me". Is this the correct attitude? Should the relevant credit ratings be upgraded again one day, we can foresee that all government officials will stand together to sing, celebrate and embrace one another. They accept praises with gratitude but act indifferently when there are criticisms or the credit rating is being downgraded, is this the kind of attitude that a responsible government should adopt?
President, please allow me to conclude my speech with the dialogue from a television commercial of 2012. The commercial depicts a group of young people learning martial arts from an old master. While they are practising, one of the students asked, "Master, is the Basic Law usable?" Today, April 2020, this is probably the same question hanging over many Hong Kong people. As Members of the Legislative Council, colleagues in this Chamber certainly think that the Basic Law is still usable, including Article 50, which specifies the power of Members to refuse to pass a budget. The power to veto the budget is definitely usable by us, and it is certainly our power to veto the budget by uprightly pressing the "No" button.
President, on behalf of the Civic Party, I oppose the Appropriation Bill 2020. I so submit.
5422 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
PROF JOSEPH LEE (in Cantonese): President, it can be said that the delivery of the Budget this year is made in the midst of raging storm.
When the Budget was announced at the beginning of this year, much concern of the public might be placed on the $10,000 cash payout for all residents. As Mr Alvin YEUNG has said―I am not sure if he feels happy about the cash payout―members of the public think that they will eventually be given a cash payout to slightly ease their predicament. However, with the development of the epidemic, it seems that nobody is talking about the Budget. In fact, we wondered whether a meeting could be held today. Of course, a meeting can be held and there is no reason why a meeting cannot be held. If a meeting cannot be held, it will be a big deal when somebody wants to settle accounts with us in the future. The problem is that it has been about three months since the epidemic, can the Budget address the economic, livelihood, health care and social problems caused by the epidemic? Let us take a look at the current situation today.
Although the Government will disburse $10,000 to all residents, we will wait and see whether the money can be successfully disbursed and how many people can be benefited. However, during the epidemic in the past three months, in addition to some shop operators and individuals who have received subsidies under the Anti-epidemic Fund, the health care systems, including the public and private health care systems, have been hit hard, resulting in a big gap. Regrettably, the Budget has not specifically addressed this issue, which is really disappointing.
Simply put, the Budget this year highlights some hardware issues. In respect of public health care services, there are inadequate isolation beds, second-line wards and quarantine centres, as well as a shortage of manpower and protective equipment, how then can the battle be fought? I hope this epidemic of the century will not recur but the current situation is really worrying. Should the Budget be reviewed at this stage and can additional resources be provided? I will discuss this in detail later.
Can the Budget address the deep-seated problems in the nursing and health care sectors? This is something that deserves our attention. The Budget proposes to enhance health care services, including allocating large sums of money for hospital development projects and teaching facilities. President, these are actually not new measures. As the Secretary should be aware, the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5423 authorities have promised long ago to provide the above facilities. The inclusion of these facilities in the Budget will not be conducive to the situation I just mentioned.
The Budget mentions the need to retain health care talent, which is of course a good thing and everyone is happy. In the past 10 years, the Association of Hong Kong Nursing Staff ("AHKNS") and I had put forward many different proposals and had proposed to a few chief executives the means to retain health care talent. Three proposals have eventually been introduced; I will not discuss the part about doctors and I will only focus on the part about nurses.
The Policy Address mentions the provision of additional allowance for specialist nurses; we certainly welcome this initiative. In the past decade, AHKNS, members of the industry and I have pointed out that the specialist services provided by specialist nurses are conductive to improving the quality of patient care. Hence, the work of specialist nurses should be highly valued. We are working with the Nursing Council to implement another certification system and we also propose to introduce special allowance or reward for nurses. This is also mentioned in the Budget but the Hospital Authority ("HA") made a sudden change, stating that the allowance for nurses is a fixed allowance. We have suggested whether the allowance should be calculated on the basis of the salaries of nurses and whether there should be an additional increment point. As this is not mentioned in the Budget, people doubt whether the Government has been calculating. The Government will only provide a fixed allowance, say $ 2,000, and there will not be any increase even if there is inflation. Certainly, nobody wants a deflationary environment. How should these situations be handled? Can nursing talent really be retained? I am not sure.
In terms of manpower, quantity and quality are equally important. There is now a shortage of nursing talent and quality cannot be guaranteed, what should be done when there is a loss of experienced nurses? A colleague recently told me that he planned to emigrate, meaning wastage of experience. Under such circumstances, should we consider providing 16.5% allowance as in the past? The provision of additional allowances may ease the mind of nurses to continue their work in HA. Furthermore, in the past, omitted points were set, but no solution has been devised in the past decade. In fact, the industry hopes that the Government will re-introduce these measures so that nurses can feel at ease to do their jobs, fight the epidemic and serve the public.
5424 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Regarding promotion opportunities, as there are few promotion opportunities for nurses, HA recommends introducing an additional rank but not increasing posts for promotion. Simply put, a rank is added between the ranks of registered nurse and head nurse. Consequently, nurses cannot be promoted after working 10 years as they will only be at a higher rank but that is a fake rank and their wages will only increase slightly. Can this practice, which takes advantage of nurses, retain talent? It will actually fail to retain talent. Why have we proposed to create posts and increase manpower? The main reason is to retain the management experience and clinical supervision experience of nurses, which is very important.
In fact, nurses are dissatisfied in this epidemic situation, why? While HA is under-equipped, the Chief Executive has allowed people from foreign places to enter Hong Kong, spreading the virus across the borders and consequently greatly increased the pressure on the health care system. Though nurses are dissatisfied, the Government has still not tried to retain them; leading to a loss of experience. The Financial Secretary has actually proposed an old measure, without responding to or addressing the issues. Although funding is provided under the Anti-epidemic Fund, the chaotic administration of HA has not clearly defined high-risk and non-high-risk work, and has not stated under what circumstances will allowances be provided. Some colleagues queried why they are not entitled to allowances since there are high-risk patients in their wards. Can the Anti-epidemic Fund or the Budget deal with the problems and make clarifications? Although the Government has allocated funds, it seems that the relevant work is not very effective and the morale of nurses is low.
AHKNS published a survey report on Sunday. About 75% of the respondents pointed out that the personal protective equipment provided by HA was inadequate and 90% of them considered that the clinical infection guidelines issued by HA failed to offer adequate protection. The respondents were thus very worried. In addition, 90% of the respondents considered that there were problems with the protection and ventilation measures in second-line wards. How should these problems be handled? Are patients safe? Are frontline health care personnel safe? As for morale, assuming that 10 points is the highest score and 0 the lowest, the score is lower than 5 points. The morale of health care personnel is very low but their pressure is extremely high, up to 8 points. Has the Budget taken into account the gap in fighting the epidemic? What should the authorities do?
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5425
President, the Secretary is not present. She often mentions the dual-track system but she has neglected the private sector this time. Can patients be diverted to private hospitals? Since the non-emergency outpatient and specialist outpatient services of HA are now suspended, can patients be diverted to private hospitals so that their treatment will not be interrupted or they will not be deprived of care? Why did the authorities not make good use of the funds and spend the funds on patients? I am not asking the Government to help private hospitals; I just wonder if private hospitals can share the burden and offer a helping hand in providing the relevant services.
In fact, private service providers, such as occupational therapists, physiotherapists, optometrists and nutritionists, can play a gatekeeping role to enhance the work on epidemic prevention. Although a quarantine order is imposed, patients who require treatment may still need to go to hospitals. Given inadequate protective equipment or insufficient workload, some health care personnel need not go to work, but the Budget has not mentioned how to help patients in the long run and how the public and private sectors can become more effective. More ridiculous still, the Financial Secretary has allocated about $600 million in respect of primary health care. I have made relevant proposals in the past 10 years and I certainly welcome the present proposal. At this stage, one of the functions of District Health Centres ("DHCs") is to provide preventive primary health care services. After all, prevention is better than cure. Under the current epidemic situation, DHCs can at least teach members of the public how to prevent the epidemic or how to pay attention to personal hygiene. However, the authorities asked some DHCs to cease operation and when DHCs opened again later, the authorities asked members of the public not to gather. Some suggested using instant messaging software Zoom, but is that really effective? Actually, it is not effective. Should the authorities review the situation? I think the authorities should allocate funds, but should the organizations that have received funds strengthen their roles in protecting the health of the public?
I would like to specially talk about mental health problems. A recent survey indicated that 98% of Hong Kong people were feeling tense because of the epidemic. What can the authorities do to deal with the mental stress of the public? Many respondents may have symptoms of anxiety disorder, but the Budget has not proposed measures to protect the mental health of Hong Kong people. After the "anti-extradition to China" movement and the subsequent epidemic, many mental health problems have yet to be solved. To our regret, 5426 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 the Budget has not catered for the needs in this respect. The waiting time for patients is very long. At present, while there is an increasing demand for mental health services for adolescents and children, the additional manpower is only some 100, which lags far behind the demand for services. This is very disappointing. We have actually discussed for a long time whenever it is necessary to provide "one school, one psychiatric nurse" to strengthen community psychiatric services. Is there an increase in the number of community nurses and case managers? The authorities must promote mental health of Hong Kong people and carry out appropriate prevention but the authorities have failed to do so. The proposals put forward by the Financial Secretary in the Budget have failed to solve deep-seated problems, including hardware, software and manpower problems, and have also failed to safeguard the mental health of Hong Kong people.
In addition, I would like to talk about services for the elderly. It seems that the number of elderly people is increasing. At present, more than 10 000 elderly people are waiting for Community Care Service Vouchers. As the Budget only proposes to provide an additional 1 000 vouchers, how long do the elderly have to wait? They probably have to wait for a year. The Government must promote "ageing in place"―Chief Secretary Matthew CHEUNG is not present, we endorse his proposed "ageing in place" measures―elderly people have not been provided with the required home care services after a long wait. How can the elderly have peace of mind? Some people are currently delivering meals to the elderly and carrying out various kinds of work during the epidemic. We appreciate their efforts and glad that they have done so. What can the elderly do while they are waiting for services? As some social welfare organizations have reflected to us, even if the Government provides them with sufficient resources, they do not have sufficient manpower and may not be able to guarantee the quality of community care services. The authorities have not taken into account the issue of manpower in support, including nurses, allied health professions and social workers, and support has not been provided to facilitate basic operations.
In addition, many healthy elderly people can walk around, play chess in the park or go to the restaurant. Elderly Health Centres allow elderly people to do exercises to promote health, receive health assessments and get health information from nurses to slow down the degradation process. This is beneficial to the elderly but the waiting time is really too long. The average waiting time is 23 months. I made recommendations to the Department of LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5427
Health many years ago and the authorities said that they had increased resources. However, the Budget has not specifically increased funding in this regard. President, the authorities not only need to build a centre, but also deploy manpower to provide services; yet they have failed in the task. The Budget mentions the provision of $75 million to provide soft meals for the elderly. My first response was "not bad, the elderly will have soft meals". How come only soft meals are provided? Whether an elderly person needs to have soft meals should be carefully assessed by a speech therapist. We call it a "water swallowing test", i.e. whether an elderly person has swallowing difficulty and whether he will be choked when drinking; otherwise, he may have pneumonia, not "Wuhan pneumonia" but another kind of pneumonia. Nonetheless, the authorities have failed in this respect. A speech therapist told us that there is currently only one speech therapist in the community to take care of 1 000 elderly people. The $75 million funding in the Budget will only be used to provide specific soft meals, which cannot solve the problem of why some elderly people should have soft meals. The authorities have not dealt with these problems, what should we do?
I would also like to talk about audiology services. In the past few years, the World Health Organization pointed out that about one third of elderly people aged over 65 have hearing problems. With the exception of a few Members, I think Members present are still under 65. According to the available data from the latest survey, about 76% of elderly people had hearing problems in 2015 but no survey on the hearing problems of the elderly in Hong Kong has been conducted after 2015. The number of elderly people has significantly increased but the authorities have not paid attention to this area of work. According to a survey conducted by speech therapists in Hong Kong in 2016, a hearing therapist had to take care of 37 000 elderly people. This situation was only slightly better than that in Africa. When elderly people suffer from hearing impairment, their social skills will deteriorate, but the work done by the authorities is unsatisfactory. Finally, I would like to talk about pharmacists. It is desirable to have pharmacists providing services in the community but the relevant scheme has stopped after implementing for only a decade. Thank you, President.
MS STARRY LEE (in Cantonese): President, Hong Kong's economy, after being dealt double blows by social riots and the novel coronavirus pneumonia, has collapsed. Hundreds of industries have been severely affected and people are living in difficult circumstances. During this difficult period, the Financial 5428 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Secretary needs to address the public's pressing needs and adopt public financial measures to boost the weak economy, so as to safeguard jobs and stabilize society. Against this background, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong ("DAB") believes that this Budget has responded to public opinion and has provided assistance to the community to fight the epidemic and support the needy, so as to tide over the difficulties together.
First of all, the Government has unprecedentedly launched a series of generous relief measures, such as disbursing $10,000 to permanent residents aged 18 or above and introducing a number of measures to support enterprises and safeguard jobs. The Budget has also responded to various appeals and suggestions made by DAB. Apart from providing $10,000 anti-epidemic allowance, other measures include reducing salaries tax and profits tax and waiving rates; providing an extra one month Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA") payment, Old Age Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance, Disability Allowance and Work Incentive Transport Subsidy; paying one month's rent for public rental housing tenants and paying the examination fees for school candidates sitting for the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination. In respect of supporting enterprises, the Government provides Special 100% Loan Guarantee to enterprises and waives business registration fees, electricity, water and sewage charges payable by non-domestic households for four months, as well as reduces rental for tenants of government properties for six months. Since all these measures will help enterprises and the public tide over this difficult period, DAB supports the Budget.
President, although the direction of the Budget and various rounds of relief measures is correct, it does not mean that the proposals are perfect as there is still much room for improvement. The reality is that riots and the epidemic have hit our economy even harder, many people are in great distress and they urgently need the Government's emergency assistance. Even though the Government has launched a few rounds of relief measures, our office still receives calls from the grass roots each day, saying that they are unemployed and may likely be unable to feed their family. They pointed out that the government measures have come too slow and there are omissions, failing to provide direct assistance to them. Therefore, I once again urge and implore the SAR Government, the Chief Executive, Secretaries of Departments and Directors of Bureaux to continue to listen humbly to the voices of the public. Even though a few rounds of relief measures have been introduced, they should not be complacent and should not be bound by administrative rules to stop helping people who are really in need.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5429
President, due to time constraints, I would like to focus on three points. First, I think the Financial Secretary's approach to disburse cash fails to address people's pressing needs. While it is commendable that the Budget has responded to social demands and announced the disbursement of $10,000, an equally important issue is when the people will receive this sum of life-saving money. A lot of people will rely on the money for food or to meet emergency needs. However, according to the Government, it is expected that registration will begin in June and the money will be disbursed in July. For a large number of people who have been hit hard by the epidemic, life is already very difficult and the progress of disbursing cash is far too slow.
Therefore, we have repeatedly urged the Government to disburse cash as soon as possible and the procedures should be simplified. For example, the Government can consider using the existing mechanism for subsidy payment to speed up the cash payout process. Specifically, we have repeatedly pointed out that the Social Welfare Department has information on the accounts of people who receive Old Age Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance, Disability Allowance or grants for CSSA students, etc. The Department has also the information of the beneficiaries under the Caring and Sharing Scheme. Since the Government already has the information of the accounts of so many people, it should instantly disburse $10,000 to them once the Budget is passed. These people do not need to apply and the privacy issue in question should be properly addressed in advance. This practice has two advantages. First, more than 1 million grass-roots people who are most in need of help will receive the money at the soonest possible time; second, resources can be pooled to expedite the processing of applications by people whose accounts information are unavailable to the Government. It can be said that this approach will kill two birds with one stone. I put forward the relevant proposal to Secretary Dr LAW Chi-kwong at a special meeting of the Finance Committee, but he disagreed and rejected my proposal. I hope the Financial Secretary will respond to my proposal later.
Second, in the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund of the Government, the application criteria of the Employment Support Scheme ("ESS") are too unrealistic, giving rise to loopholes. The most important requirement of ESS is that the applicant must have a Mandatory Provident Fund ("MPF") account. Please do not forget that there are many wage earners aged 65 or above who are not covered by MPF, among them are those who engage in cleaning, security and transportation industries. This situation is rather common. In addition, although self-employed people have MPF accounts, they have not made 5430 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 contributions for a long time as their incomes have been greatly reduced due to social violence and the epidemic in the past year. Many of those who are not eligible for ESS are grass-roots people who desperately need government assistance. Hence, I implore the Financial Secretary to relax the restrictions of ESS. Now that the $130 billion relief fund has been approved, I urge the Financial Secretary to relax the rules of ESS so that the most needy people can be benefited.
Third, the SAR Government should set up an unemployment assistance fund. The Anti-epidemic Fund launched previously has the objectives of "supporting enterprises and safeguarding jobs". We consider that the direction is correct. However, the Government cannot, after introducing the Anti-epidemic Fund and delivering the Budget, ignore the need to help the unemployed. Some people are facing the problems of unemployment or underemployment. As reflected by the figures released by the Government yesterday, the unemployment rate has risen to 4.2% between January and March this year, an increase of 0.5 percentage point, which is a record high in nine years. The number of unemployed persons has increased by more than 20 000 and the underemployment rate has also surged by 0.6 percentage point to 2.1%, which is a record high in 10 years. The consumption and tourism-related industries are hardest hit and the related unemployment rate soared to 6.8%, the highest after the 2009 financial tsunami. In fact, we all understand that the unemployment problem has not yet peaked. I reiterate that I often receive calls from the grass roots when I work in my office. They are really living from hand to mouth but they may not be eligible for CSSA. So, they urgently need the Government's unemployment financial assistance so as to overcome the difficulties.
President, the Budget proposes a number of relief measures but our proposal on immediate assistance to the unemployed has not been accepted. The Government must understand that owing to the violent incidents last year and the novel coronavirus epidemic this year, our economy has been hit hard and members of the public are in dire straits. In order to help households affected by unemployment due to the epidemic, DAB and many social organizations have taken the initiative to do some work. Earlier, Legislative Council Members of DAB donated $3 million and we continued to raise funds. A total of over $4 million was raised, and we introduced a cash support caring scheme. Shortly after the introduction of the scheme, the quotas have been fully taken up within one month and we received a total of 1 417 applications. We have expeditiously processed the applications, and each household will be given some $2,000 to LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5431
$5,000. The first batch of eligible applications is 695 and cash was disbursed to these households on the 7th of this month. As for the second batch of applications, we also started disbursing cash to the households concerned since last Friday.
I reiterate again that there are many caring people in the community but our strength is, after all, limited. Hence, I urge the Government to make special arrangements for special circumstances, taking into consideration the plight of those who are unemployed, half-unemployed or those who are leading a difficult life. I ask the Government to directly set up an unemployment assistance fund and simplify the administrative and approval procedures, so that assistance payments can be made within a short time. We suggest that such payment should at least be made for three months, with a monthly payment of not less than $6,000. The Government should also strengthen the support for employees who are unemployed, suspended from duty without pay or underemployed, so that wage earners can survive the epidemic. Providing emergency relief is like fighting a fire; now that members of the public are facing adversity, the SAR Government cannot still adhere to rigid rules. It must break the conventions, follow good advice, and be responsible and accountable.
President, the Budget also breaks the conventions by disbursing $10,000 to Hong Kong residents aged 18 and above. From the perspective of providing short-term relief, members of the public find the initiative acceptable. However, as this Budget is delivered after the double blow dealt by the disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments and the novel coronavirus pneumonia epidemic, members of the public expect the Budget to, apart from providing immediate assistance via financial means, be forward-looking and inspiring in respect of revitalizing the economy and rebuilding Hong Kong, especially at a time when the sudden outbreak of the epidemic has caused an unprecedented global shock.
During an interview, Joseph YAM, the former Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, described the current economic crisis as having three shocks. The first shock is supply shock, i.e. the epidemic has exacerbated the breaking of supply chains; the second shock is demand shock, i.e. the epidemic has changed consumer sentiments; the third shock is economic structure shock, i.e. the contacts among people have been greatly reduced under the epidemic, leading to a dwindling of the traditional human-to-human consumption model and the surging of the online economy. The novel coronavirus pneumonia epidemic 5432 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 has dealt a major blow to the global economy and triggered turmoil in the financial and capital markets, as evident by the fact that the United States stock market has experienced four melt-ups within three months.
On the other hand, as many countries have strictly restricted the flow of people and transportation, the declining global trade has been hit even harder. According to the latest forecast of the United Nations Conference of Trade and Development, the epidemic will reduce global foreign direct investment by 5% to 15% in 2020. The epidemic has brought different challenges and opportunities for different industries. With low consumer sentiments, the catering, retail, accommodation, tourism, transportation, cultural and entertainment industries have naturally suffered a substantial decrease in business turnovers. Owing to the restricted flow of people and goods, the manufacturing, real estate and construction industries are uncertain when work and production can be resumed. However, for technology companies engaging in online office, education, health care and fresh products logistics, they have actually become a new force with new business opportunities.
Under the epidemic, many eatery operators have focused on online takeaway services to survive. I wonder if the Financial Secretary has predicted in a forward-looking manner whether this situation will accelerate the decline of physical shops in the future. As many enterprises often arrange employees to work from home, will this affect the future demand for offices? As we now tend to use the Zoom software for communication, will this affect the development of the hotel or aviation industry in the future?
President, in the post-epidemic period when challenges and opportunities co-exist and the economic order needs to be reset, whether Hong Kong can grasp the new situation, get out of the predicament and rejuvenate again after the epidemic hinges on the leadership of the Government, and the Financial Secretary has unshirkable responsibilities. We cannot stick to the free economy and continue to rely on natural recovery for economic revival. We cannot go along this path anymore, so I urge the Financial Secretary to make early preparation, have an open mind and be prepared to lead Hong Kong to revive its economy after the epidemic.
President, our economy has already suffered serious setbacks before the outbreak of the epidemic. Violent radicals have, in the name of opposition to the proposed legislative amendments, caused "mutual destruction" in Hong Kong. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5433
Today, the rampant novel coronavirus epidemic has caused further setbacks to our dying economy. In fact, the disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments serve as a mirror, fully exposing to all people the various deep-seated conflicts in Hong Kong, including the industrial structure being highly homogenous and hollowed out, property prices going far beyond people's affordability, stagnant salaries and incomes, reduced opportunities for upward social mobility, widening wealth gap and class solidification, etc. Although we knew long ago the existence of such problems, the disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments have, like a mirror, enabled us to see these problems more clearly. If we still do not solve these problems and allow people's grievances to build up, when the conflicts relating to the economy and people's livelihood become increasingly serious, the crisis triggered will really get out of control.
President, the Budget has not touched upon how to resolve deep-seated conflicts and the SAR Government does not have the determination and commitment to propose substantial changes or reforms to deal with deep-seated conflicts and challenges. For example, the Financial Secretary proposed in the Budget to disburse $10,000 to respond to public opinions. This is not a new measure as the Government also gave a cash handout of $6,000 in 2011. Just now, I talked about the technical problem and proposed that the Government should first disburse the cash to the elderly who have accounts with the Government, but the Government has not accepted the proposal. I hope the Financial Secretary can seriously consider accepting this proposal.
I remember when the Financial Secretary served as a Legislative Council Member representing the accounting profession in 2011, he proposed setting up a tax team to study the use of tax measures to complement the Government's economic and industrial policies, so as to enhance Hong Kong's competitiveness as an international financial, business and trade centre; solve the problem of a wealth gap and eliminate social and economic inequality. The Financial Secretary made this proposal more than nine years ago but the Tax Policy Unit was only established in 2017. In fact, the Financial Secretary has the capacity to take corresponding measures on the proposal made at that time and I hope the Financial Secretary can put that into practice.
President, in less than a year, Hong Kong has experienced social unrest caused by the disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments, violent storming and the novel coronavirus pandemic. The 5434 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 deep-seated social conflicts that have been hidden for many years have been fully exposed in the course of riots that lasted for months. This has intensified opposition and dissension in society, shaken the prestige of governance, undermined the rule of law, and exposed various shortcomings and deficiencies of the Government's governance and institutions. When violence has slightly eased, the novel coronavirus epidemic emerged and even affected the whole world. The epidemic has not only triggered a serious public health crisis but also hit our economy hard. As a result, many industries have languished, thus, the public expects the Government to take the lead in revitalizing our economy and rebuild Hong Kong after the epidemic.
President, against this background, Hong Kong needs to undergo a major operation to promote social reform and fundamentally resolve deep-seated conflicts that have existed for an extended period of time (The buzzer sounded) …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Ms Starry LEE, please stop speaking.
MS STARRY LEE (in Cantonese): … so that Hong Kong will become a fairer and more impartial society.
MS CLAUDIA MO (in Cantonese): President, after listening to Ms Starry LEE speaking rhythmically and presumptuously, I really cannot help laughing. On the one hand, she mentioned the success in striving for certain actions, and on the other hand, she spoke as if the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong ("DAB") was the ruling party. Although the collaboration between the executive authorities and the legislature has always been blatant, we have luckily attained success in the "anti-extradition to China" movement for the time being. It is absolutely true that once public grievances are aroused, they can hardly be allayed.
Similarly, I find it ludicrous that only a few public officers attend the meeting today. Are the officers pondering over any possible changes to their postings? Will they be fired or transferred to other posts? Even if someone is fired, I think it is not a big deal, for he is only a scapegoat to mislead the people into thinking that the Government is clearing things up. The public can then be slightly pacified. A public officer is transferred to another post because he is not LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5435 loyal enough, his patriotism is not staunch enough and he has fallen short of Beijing's expectation to demonstrate a sense of gravitas. Despite these failures, the public officer is nonetheless very loyal and so he can stay in the Government. However, please note that the several public officers with the lowest popularity rating have remained steadfast in their positions. Thus, the saying of the so-called "musical chair" or clearing things up simply does not hold water.
First of all, let me remind the Financial Secretary of the criticism made by "Long Hair" of the stock market that the Government led by him is economically illiterate. I request the Financial Secretary to make a good reflection.
Today, we hold a debate on the Budget in this Chamber. Upon hearing the word "debate", I cannot help laughing again. What kind of "debate" is it? Beijing has now indicated that it exercises overall jurisdiction over Hong Kong. As early as in June 2014, Beijing issued a white paper on its policy towards Hong Kong, stating its overall jurisdiction over Hong Kong. The Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("LOCPG") now declares that it will issue directions to Hong Kong any time. Has the Budget been blessed, endorsed and approved by LOCPG? Has LOCPG reminded the Financial Secretary to make certain amendments? Have amendments been made accordingly? Why do we have to conduct a debate? Is there anything worth debating? Anyway, whatever these royalist bootlickers say is true.
If the order is to sap Radio Television Hong Kong ("RTHK"), the royalist bootlickers will say, "Yes, boss, we understand"; if the order is to fatten up the Police Force, the royalist bootlickers will say, "Yes, boss, we understand and will surely agree to it". The decision to sap one department and fatten up another is entirely made by the boss; all the royalist bootlickers have to do is to press the button. Calling these people "rubber stamps" is just being polite; for all they know is to press the "Yes" button all the time. They dare not press the "No" button or the "Abstain" button, for they are worried that they will be punished. They are very afraid of upsetting the big boss. To fatten up the Police Force, it requires as much as $25.8 billion; isn't that outrageous? Some may say the amount is not colossal as funding sought by the Government often amounts to hundreds of millions. Buddy, the expenditure of the Police Force has increased by one fourth (i.e. 25%); may I ask which government department or which person can get a 25% pay rise in one go? What is going on? The responsible officer, alleged to be an "economic illiterate", knew that there might be a problem, and so he thought of a way to hedge his bet. How? By rebating 5436 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
$10,000 to every Hong Kong citizen. Do not say that the Government is giving a cash handout because the money actually belongs to the people. Rebating $10,000 is an additional initiative, but the Financial Secretary has arbitrarily incorporated this initiative into the Budget. That is not desirable, is it? The Financial Secretary gave people something nice as a compensation to allay their grievances. This is certainly an approach to "burn together". He then said that Hong Kong people should not "burn together" and the yellow economic circle was undesirable as it would distort the market. These comments are nothing but bullshit. The public officer responsible for economic and business affairs totally fails to understand that in a genuine free economy, consumers make their own decisions. He fails to understand this basic principle, and conversely accuses us of interfering with the operation of the market, putting up a fight and "burning together". He is so good at reversing black and white and calling a stag a horse.
Mr CHAN Chun-ying said that the credit rating and economic ranking of Hong Kong had fallen; that was bad. However, he has not mentioned that one of our edges which gain international investors' confidence in Hong Kong is the free flow of information in Hong Kong, commonly known as press freedom. Have Members read the report published by Reporters Without Borders yesterday? The ranking of Hong Kong in respect of press freedom has dropped seven places to 80th within a year, which is lower than many places the names of which we find it hard to pronounce in Chinese. What is the ranking of Mainland China? It is ranked 177th, which is the fourth last.
Hong Kong is in fact part of China, but why is it still separately graded in a number of rankings? That is because under the "one country, two systems" principle, Hong Kong has a special status, but that is no longer the case. At present, how can Hong Kong people have any say in financial affairs or the Budget? Whatever LOCPG says, it will be done. If it wants to sap a department or fatten up another, it will be done. Some people disagree. Isn't the Legislative Council monitoring, criticizing and questioning the Government right now? Such a remark is senseless and very hypocritical. The royalist bootlickers have sufficient votes and they will vote in favour of the Budget in any case. They will keep babbling, pretending to criticize the Government. They will make one criticism after many commendations, saying that the Government can do better and that there is "room for improvement". They are terribly pretentious; technically they just put on a show. Our fiscal reserves will drop to $800 billion, but the proposed reclamation works of the East Lantau artificial islands, which may incur $1,000 billion, will proceed. What is wrong with the Government? How can they live up to the expectations of Hong Kong people? LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5437
The democrats, particularly Members focusing on welfare issues, have all along shown more sincere concern about matters affecting people's livelihood than the royalist bootlickers. Yesterday, Carrie LAM asked what Hong Kong would become if the Legislative Council was dominated by the democrats? This is what I will tell her, "Hong Kong will definitely become a better place, whether in terms of people's livelihood or democratic development."
MR WONG TING-KWONG (in Cantonese): President, while the disturbances caused by the rampant black violence earlier on have not ceased, Hong Kong is hit by novel coronavirus, thus suffering from dual blows. Chief Executive Carrie LAM and Financial Secretary Paul CHAN have used a lot of public money to successively introduce two rounds of relief measures under the Anti-epidemic Fund and in this year's Budget to "support enterprises, safeguard jobs, and relieve people's burden", so as to help the public overcome the current difficulties. One of the measures is the $80 billion Employment Support Scheme ("ESS") which supports employers in paying half of their employees' wages subject to a cap of $9,000 per employee for half a year.
Owing to the epidemic, the employment rate, attendance rate or business operation hours of many companies and industries have been greatly reduced or changed. Employees have been asked to take overtime compensation leave, other compensation leave, no-pay leave or even stop work temporarily, thus greatly reducing their income. My concern is that under ESS in the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund, wage subsidies will be calculated on the basis of the wage of an employee in any one of the months from January to March. Will this approach be apparently insufficient in providing subsidies? As the income of many employees is calculated on the basis of basic salary plus commission, given that their commission has reduced drastically since the onset of the epidemic, if the above method is adopted in calculating the wage subsidy, the assistance provided will similarly be insufficient. As every detail of ESS will affect the effectiveness of the policy, I think the Policy Bureau should pay close attention. The authorities will use $70 billion to disburse $10,000 to each of the 7 million Hong Kong people aged 18 or above. This initiative, together with other relief measures, will cost $290-odd billion, amounting to 10% of our Gross Domestic Product. The Financial Secretary estimated that with the introduction of the costly relief measures and the reduction in government revenue due to unfavourable economic factors, the budget deficit this year will 5438 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 reach an unprecedented record high of $300 billion. The fiscal reserves of the Government will reduce from the current level of about $1,100 billion to around $800 billion to $900 billion, which is equivalent to 14 or 15 months of government expenditure.
Undoubtedly, given the huge reserves of the SAR Government and the fact that all sectors of Hong Kong are now in dire straits, the deployment of a large amount of money to help members of the public and the industrial and business sector to ride out the hard times is definitely commendable and worth supporting. However, besides urging the Government to implement various support measures as soon as possible, we also ask it to consider an issue of grave concern, i.e. how to boost economic recovery of Hong Kong after the subsidence of the epidemic, so that the SAR Government will not suffer from long-term, persistent and huge budget deficits. Since the reunification of Hong Kong in 1997, the SAR Government has all along complied with the requirement stipulated in Article 107 of the Basic Law of striving to achieve a fiscal balance and avoid deficits in drawing up the Budget. Apart from this financial year, the other time that the SAR Government had relatively large budget deficits was in 2003 when SARS hit Hong Kong. It had budget deficits for two consecutive financial years. Though SARS dealt a severe blow to Hong Kong, when the epidemic was over, the Central Government introduced two preferential measures, i.e. the Individual Visit Scheme and the Mainland/Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement ("CEPA"), which enabled Hong Kong to have a V-shaped economic rebound. The SAR Government could then get out from the budget deficit predicament.
Nevertheless, even after the novel coronavirus epidemic is over, does Hong Kong have the conditions for a rapid economic rebound? In the second half of last year, disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments have led to a series of incidents in which people attack others, hurl things, commit robbery and arson. Violent charges occur every day and countless brutal actions committed by rioters have caused social instability in Hong Kong. These incidents have completely destroyed Hong Kong's international reputation as a safe and free metropolitan city upholding the rule of law. Consequently, many Chinese and overseas visitors have stopped visiting Hong Kong. How can a city which fails to guarantee personal safety attract visitors to come and spend money? How can a city which cannot protect private property and property rights attract investment and business? Thus, a precondition for promoting economic recovery in Hong Kong after the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5439 subsidence of the epidemic is to completely stop violence and curb disorder, so that Hong Kong can restore law and order. To stop violence and curb disorder completely, the SAR Government must provide the Police Force and the Judiciary with sufficient resources to stop rioters from committing violent acts and sanction the wrongdoers. Meanwhile, the SAR Government has to expeditiously fulfil its constitutional responsibility of legislating for the implementation of Article 23 of the Basic Law to plug the legal loopholes of national security.
Furthermore, I think we have to pay attention to what is happening in the international arena. Some European countries and the United States have started to attack and smear China through their media, alleging that the epidemic originated in Wuhan, China and describing how the virus spread to countries all over the world. These countries question whether China has withheld the facts and criticize the World Health Organization for siding with China. The purpose is to generate contempt of China in the international world. In fact, since the establishment of the new China, such malicious moves to isolate China have been employed for a long time, affecting the whole world and some people in Hong Kong who are dissatisfied with China.
At present, it is clear from the remarks made publicly by some major Western countries that once the epidemic has subsided, they will again launch comprehensive attacks on China on political, economic, social and cultural fronts. Thus, it can be expected that trade disputes will not cease. Technological, financial and economic blockades will be imposed one after another. Since Hong Kong is the most international city on the Mainland, it will be the best pawn to be used by Britain and the United States against China. Thus, the situation will be very challenging.
Last year, riots in society which lasted for six months have inevitably affected the confidence and willingness of international investors to invest in Hong Kong. Thus, if black violence reappears, even if Hong Kong wins the battle against the novel coronavirus epidemic, Hong Kong will still be rendered powerless by the rioters. When Hong Kong has lost all its competitiveness, may I ask how much more reserves do we have for squandering under such a poor environment? How many good days can we still give to our next generation? These are the questions which young people who have participated in the black violence should seriously consider.
5440 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
I would like to quote a few lines from the famous Drifter's Song of "God of Songs" Sam HUI, to advise young people not to be incited by the shameless politicians to commit all sorts of violence and to awaken some members of the public. The lines go, "An ignorant frog in a well. Hoping to find fame and fortune. Conceited and short-sighted. Never expect the deluxe home to fall into ruin". Those who participate in violent acts have sacrificed their own future and wreaked havoc in Hong Kong; what can they get in return?
President, as far as the economy is concerned, the blow dealt by the novel coronavirus epidemic to the global and Hong Kong economy is more serious than that of the financial tsunami in 2008. The International Monetary Fund has estimated that the whole world will experience economic recession this year. At present, a wide range of economic activities in Hong Kong have been seriously disrupted and the economic environment is bleak. Currently, the unemployment rate has risen to 4.2% which is the highest in the past nine years. When will the epidemic be completely over? It is still an uncertainty.
As pointed out by the Government, in the face of the serious challenges at present, the SAR Government should prevent widespread unemployment; otherwise the further weakening of demand will lead to a downward spiral of the economy and the employment situation. I expect the Hong Kong Trade Development Council to perform a better role in promoting the development of various economic sectors, particularly the convention and exhibition industry. The Council should step up its efforts in promotion, publicity and liaison to develop the industry in the local and international markets. The convention and exhibition industry will stimulate other industries such as tourism, retail and catering and bring huge benefits to the Hong Kong economy. From a global perspective, the convention and exhibition industry will also promote the development of local industries, such as import and export, trading and logistics. Since the epidemic is currently affecting the whole world, the demands in some of our major export markets have reduced. The external trading environment has become very poor. In the first two months of this year, export business of Hong Kong commodities have dropped by 12% in terms of the price of goods. I believe the performance in the commodities export industry will remain in the doldrums in the short term.
In fact, as the global economy has entered an ice age, many overseas countries have cancelled or suspended their orders, shipment of goods has been delayed and overseas buyers have demanded compensation. I must stress that LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5441
Hong Kong, with its well-developed tertiary industries, should utilize its edge in the convention and exhibition industry to revive our economy. This will be a very effective means.
To achieve this objective, all enterprises, be they large, medium, small or micro in scale, need capital chains for survival and development. Thus, the Financial Secretary has responded to our request in the Budget this year. The Government will introduce the Special 100% Loan Guarantee under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme. I expect that the SAR Government will further strengthen its support for enterprises as and when the need arises. The Government should implement corresponding policies, and banks and the financial services industry should also work together in this regard.
Furthermore, after the epidemic has subsided, economic activities will resume and there will be more interactions between people, including business negotiations, delivery of materials, movement of goods, tourism, overseas studies, international conferences, etc. In countries where the health care systems are not well developed or relatively backward, proper viral testing may not be conducted and the virus may easily be imported into Hong Kong again. Thus, we must guard against the recurrence of the epidemic.
President, Hong Kong has suffered blows dealt by the black violence and the global economic recession one after the other. I think the Government should make vigorous efforts to fight violence and refuse to "burn together". If we lay a solid foundation for development and strive to perform our own duties, we will surely make a breakthrough in overcoming darkness. Thank you, President.
MR LEUNG YIU-CHUNG (in Cantonese): President, in respect of policies on people's livelihood, the Budget released by the Financial Secretary this year can be described as "putting old wine in an old bottle" without any new ideas. Certainly, it would be unjustifiable to say that the Budget is totally useless, because some members of the public are indeed eagerly looking forward to receiving the life-saving $10,000. This is particularly true as the Government announced several days ago that the latest unemployment rate has reached a high level of 4.2%; and the situation was expected to worsen in summer with the unemployment rate possibly reaching 6%, a record high in 10 years. Therefore, $10,000 is truly "timely rain" for the unemployed. Though it is a drizzle, it is still better than none. 5442 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
President, under the epidemic, different businesses and trades are all in the abyss of suffering. Recently, many workers have come to me for assistance, seeking my advice on how to deal with or face the problems of unemployment, underemployment and being forced to take no-pay leave. Besides, many friends from the micro, small and medium enterprises ("MSMEs") have sought our help in requesting property owners for rental reduction, or else they have no money to pay rent and have to wind up their business. When they learnt about that the Anti-epidemic Fund, they thought the Government was going to rescue them; yet many of them eventually failed to get the subsidy. At the end of the day, the Government simply said that they might apply for Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA") if they have no money.
President, at present, all business languishes. If the Government continues to launch its policies with an almsgiving mentality, then no matter how many Anti-epidemic Fund will be launched, the present predicament cannot be solved, the current economy cannot be boosted and even the Government's objective of supporting employment cannot be achieved. How can employment be supported when enterprises have closed down and no jobs are available? Hence, we hold that the Government should set up an unemployment financial assistance scheme as soon as possible, so as to directly subsidize workers who are unemployed, underemployed or are forced to take no-pay leave, and to provide help to elders aged 65 or above who cannot benefit from the Anti-epidemic Fund because they have not contributed to the Mandatory Provident Fund. Meanwhile, the Government has to allocate more resources to help MSMEs resume business. Certainly, the Government very often uses "fiscal prudence" as an excuse; but is it true that the Government does not have the means to solve the aforementioned problems? In last year's Budget, the Government insisted to save for rainy days by setting aside some reserves. With a reserve of more than $1,000 billion, how should the Government use the money? At present, the requirement should be loose rather than stringent. What is the purpose of having a fiscal reserve of more than $1,000 billion if the Government is still unwilling to spend more public money to support its people in distress?
President, when delivering this year's Budget, the Financial Secretary has been saying that we might have deficits in the Government's accounts for the next five years. Strangely, if the Government predicts deficits in the coming years, why does it still staunchly support the Lantau Tomorrow reclamation project? The Financial Secretary even said the Government was confident that it could afford the $600 billion project to be launched in the future. Where comes the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5443 confidence? According to past record, huge cost overruns have already become a common phenomenon in government infrastructure projects, from the Hong Kong Section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link to the recent Mass Transit Railway Shatin to Central Link project. Why do Hong Kong people still have to pay for these "white elephant" projects of the Government?
Past budgets told us that relief measures could hardly solve problems. Nevertheless, the situation is a bit different this year. The Financial Secretary says that he will use a lot of resources to solve the problems, among which $126.9 billion (i.e. 16.4% of the total expenditures) will be allocated to provide one-off relief measures. This marks a record high in four years, and such a practice is indeed rare. However, on the other hand, I fail to see any mention of long-term policies in various aspects. The new fiscal philosophy of the Financial Secretary is actually nothing but just "old wine in a new bottle". There is an obvious lack of long-term planning in respect of welfare policies or labour policies. As always, the Government only provides one-off allowances, subsidies, grants, etc. to patch things up. Actually, the Government should have saved the economy in a bold and decisive manner since the outbreak of the epidemic in January. But, regrettably, in the prolonged absence of long-term economic planning, the Government has only resorted to depending on the Mainland's support for Hong Kong's bubble economy. Eventually, an epidemic has caused the disastrous collapse of the Hong Kong economy, particularly the service industry that relies mainly on Mainland customers.
Today, a cash handout for all citizens is definitely better than none. However, we cannot persistently disburse cash. Based on the Government's fiscal philosophy, it does not want to increase recurrent public expenditure and spend money to implement long-term livelihood policies. This actually means that no commitment is made to take care of the grass roots. For instance, we have been asking the Government to reform the Working Family Allowance and CSSA schemes by abolishing the "bad son statement", so that elders aged above 60 can apply for CSSA separately. Despite our long-standing request, what is the progress of reform made by the Government? There is no progress at all. When will the Government be willing to make reforms? When can low-income families have a safe and stable life? As we observed from this year's Budget, it can be said that the Government has no commitment to undertake the work in this regard.
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I still recall that when the Financial Secretary delivered the Budget speech in the Legislative Council, he mentioned that he wanted to worked together to put aside differences, make room for resolving conflicts, and drive Hong Kong forward. However, it is indeed laughable to hear the Financial Secretary say "resolve differences". This is because many details are hidden in this Budget, which will not only intensify social dissension, but also create social conflicts. The Budget per se is a well-planned political script. On the face of it, the Government is rather generous; yet it has bundled the policy of cash handout of $10,000 for all citizens with the increase in expenditure for police equipment, so as to force us into passing this unjust Budget. Such a practice is indeed very awful and ugly, as if a bandit kidnaps a citizen and forces us to pay ransom. If this is not political manoeuvring, what else will it be?
All along, the prime concern of members of the public is that after a 25% increase in allocation, the expenditure of the Hong Kong Police Force in the coming year will mark the record high of $25.7 billion. Furthermore, there will be an increase of 2 543 posts in its establishment. Undoubtedly, by expanding the Police Force's equipment, ultimately the suppression of Hongkongers' freedom of protest and voices in striving for democracy will intensify. How will the $25.7 billion for purchasing police equipment be spent? Actually, there is an item called "Specialist supplies and equipment", under which an estimate amounting to $600 million will be used for purchasing tear gas rounds and new weapons such as stun guns, as well as six new armoured personnel carriers and one new water cannon vehicle.
As a matter of fact, police brutality has already raged across the territory before the epidemic. Last night was the 21st of the month, and we saw police officers coming out to do violence again. All members of the public, old and young with different professions, could not be spared. The Commissioner of Police once said in this Council that he totally disagreed that the Police was enforcing the law in an impartial manner. What on earth does this mean? He also admitted that the Police were enforcing the law in a selective and targeted manner rather than in a fair and just manner. Certainly, selective enforcement of the law is not all that bad. If the Police enforce the law selectively against the triads, then it is a good thing. But this is not the case now. At present, the Police often abuse powers, make indiscriminate arrests and assault young people, yet they turn a blind eye to acts of power abuse. Can this attitude still be regarded as impartial? Under such circumstances, should we support the expansion of police equipment?
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When attending a radio programme on 27 February, the Financial Secretary admitted that Members from different political parties have divergent views on bundling the provision for the Police Force with the $10,000 cash handout for all citizens. He then said that the Security Bureau and the Police Force could explain the usage of these fundings at the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council, and Members could also propose amendments. Actually, such a remark is rather ridiculous. All Hong Kong people will question whether the Legislative Council, being controlled by the royalists and manipulated by the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("LOCPG") and the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council ("HKMAO") behind the scene, is still capable of performing its functions. How could we fail to see that recently, Members were told that they could not cast negative votes? As such, how could we possibly force the Police Force to be more transparent and accountable in respect of its expenditure?
President, it becomes more and more apparent to us that the SAR Government―especially the Chief Executive―is actually just a puppet. Also, many government officials are more ready to be toadies and yes-men, and they even go down on their knees of their own accords. The Chinese Government's agents (including LOCPG and HKMAO) gave augmented and unauthorized interpretation to the Basic Law, distorting and trampling the most important core values of Hong Kong, i.e. "one country, two systems" and "a high degree of autonomy". Since reunification, these values have all along been the most important pillars of our society; they are now distorted and trampled, yet public officials and the Government have remained silent, meaning that they have totally given up their jurisdiction. Under such circumstances, how can we and why should we still allocate funding to this Government for its continued operation? Hence, I think I cannot support this Budget.
President, I so submit.
MR LEUNG CHE-CHEUNG (in Cantonese): The Budget debate today is held under the impact of last year's black violence and the current novel coronavirus epidemic. The economic situation of Hong Kong is very serious, with unemployment rate surging drastically. Given the volatile economy and unstable popular sentiments, the Budget proposes to disburse $10,000 to each permanent resident aged 18 or above to meet contingency needs. As this initiative can consolidate public confidence, the Legislative Council should 5446 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 expeditiously approve the allocation of the contingency money to address people's pressing needs. Regrettably, the opposition camp raises objection for reasons of the estimated expenditure of the Police Force and political factors. Consequently, the disbursing of $10,000 might be delayed indefinitely owing to their opposition. Let me advise the opposition camp not to act against the wish of the people; they should join us to support the passage of the Budget so that $10,000 can be disbursed to all members of the public as soon as possible.
President, today I would like to talk about issues related to elderly welfare. To begin with, allow me to review the elderly cash benefits provided by the Government in recent years. The Old Age Living Allowance ("OALA") was introduced in around 2012 with payment doubled that of "fruit grant". Also, the assets and income limits concerned are more lenient than those for elderly Comprehensive Social Security Assistance. The purpose is obviously to subsidize elders' living expenses so that they will not be so desperate as to go without food for being poor. As the ageing problem is aggravating in Hong Kong, the Government introduced the Higher OALA in recent years. The annual total expenditure on OALA has surged rapidly from $15.3 billion in 2017-2018 to $27 billion last year. However, there is still no apparent improvement in the problem of elderly poverty.
As announced by the Poverty Alleviation Committee, there were 340 000 poor elders in 2017, meaning that elderly poverty was still at a high rate of over 30%. The Government once explained that OALA was just one of the pillars recommended by the World Health Organization. The implementation of the Mandatory Provident Fund ("MPF") Scheme in Hong Kong can also provide an additional protection to complement with OALA, so as to ensure a stable income for elders after retirement. Nevertheless, the case is very special in Hong Kong. Although some 75% of employees have MPF accounts, the contribution rate is merely 5% due to exorbitant handling fees, and coupled with the pending offsetting issue, MPF simply fails to perform the function of retirement protection and has become a "chicken rib". Under such circumstances, Hong Kong still has to cope with the problem of ageing population. I am thus convinced that the problem of elderly poverty will become increasingly serious and public grievances will also be exacerbated. Therefore, it is time for the Government to think about how to make changes on the basis of the existing measures of retirement benefit.
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In my opinion, changes must embrace elements on three fronts and they must be fair and just. At present, under the means test mechanism of OALA, elders with some savings cannot pass the threshold. Although they may apply for the non-means-tested "fruit grant", they can only receive the grant when they reach 70 years old owing to the age restriction. Besides, the amount of "fruit grant" is less than that of OALA by half. This will undoubtedly classify elders into different groupings, creating unfairness. If reforms are made, I think the primary consideration is to treat everyone fairly under the cash benefit system
The second element is to bring the efficacy of MPF into full play. As such, members of the public will have the confidence to rely on the MPF benefits, derived either from investment or from savings, for a comfortable life in their twilight years. In February this year, the Hong Kong Investment Funds Association released a survey report on retirement. It was found that only some 10% of the respondents considered MPF benefits sufficient to support their retirement lives. As for the tax deductible voluntary contribution scheme launched by the Government last year, as many as 70% of the respondents indicated that they have heard of the scheme, but merely 16% of the respondents have actually made contributions. This survey reflects a very sad truth. Despite the fact that the MPF System has been implemented for 20 years with a net asset value amounting to as high as $969.5 billion, and a coverage rate of nearly 85% of the working population involving almost up to 3 million employees and self-employed persons; and at the same time has provided jobs for 35 000 industry players, such a giant industry has made a huge fuss to put on a show and in return, it turns out to be just a "chicken rib".
The saddest thing is that MPF does not guarantee profits. Recently, the whole world is affected by the novel coronavirus epidemic, such that the stock market has become volatile, affecting MPF performance. In March, MPF recorded an average loss of 7%, making the cumulative loss of the first three months to over 10%. In my view, although the original intent of the MPF System is good, improvement must be made in respect of its design and operation. Updates are required in every area, ranging from management fees of MPF schemes to flexibility of choices for participating employees, so that wage earners will have confidence in the MPF System and are willing to make additional contributions from their savings to prepare for their retirement. Only in this way can the function of retirement protection be given the full play.
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The third element is the role of the Government. Actually, the existing MPF schemes only involve employers and employees, while the Government has no role to play. Why can't the Government be involved in such an important retirement protection scheme? How can wage earners have the confidence? I consider the Government's function and role rather important, because its participation can undertake some risks for members of the public; furthermore, housewives, self-employed persons, the relatively older persons and persons with disabilities can be incorporated into the system, thereby genuinely catering for the retirement protection needs of all people.
President, universal retirement protection does not only involve cash benefits. In fact, when elderly persons reach a certain age, they will somehow have some physical problems and need to be taken care of. In particular, people who has just undergone an operation or who has just recovered from a serious illness require more personal care. Therefore, it is equally important to provide personal medical and care services, as well as cash benefits.
There are views that since elderly persons need to be taken care of, they may as well be admitted to residential care homes to receive round-the-clock nursing care. Actually an overwhelming majority of elderly persons do not like to live in elderly homes. Many surveys conducted previously indicated that over 80% of the elderly would like to stay home and age in their own community even if their physical conditions deteriorate. The Government's policy objective of "ageing in place as the core, institutional care as back-up" is correct, and also meets the expectation of elderly persons. Given that the Government and the elderly think alike, how come our community care services have always been neither fish nor fowl, and have been plagued with the problems of short supply and very long waiting time?
Moreover, we always hear that the elderly are forced to take care of the elderly. Some old couples are mutually independent, even to the extent of sticking together till death. The nursing industry has always been short of manpower. As health care workers have to conduct home visits to provide community care services and service to each elderly person is at least provided on a one-to-one basis, intensive labour is involved. Under the circumstances of long-term manpower shortage, the waiting time for community care services can be as long as a year.
Home care services are mostly provided by government subvented organizations. Elderly persons are thus required to pass the Government's Standardized Care Need Assessment Mechanism in order to apply for services. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5449
Some elderly carers who have meagre savings or who are unwilling to open independent bank accounts cannot receive home care services. Ultimately they would rather rely on their spouses to solve the problems until they cannot hang on any longer.
Hence, the authorities should consider whether the present arrangement of relying mainly on non-governmental organizations for providing care services can cope with Hong Kong's increasingly serious problem of population ageing. Other overseas countries, such as Japan and Germany, have already introduced the mode of marketization for long-term care services to expand the service capacity and ensure a better service quality due to competition. In addition, with the Government's participation via the insurance scheme model, the whole care service industry can attain sustainable development, thereby achieving a tripartite victory amongst the Government, the elderly and the care service industry. Should the Government make some reference to the overseas practice?
In the second part, I would like to talk about the "silver age card", strongly advocated by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong to provide cost of living concessions for retired citizens aged 60 to 64. Last year, we were the first to propose and advocate this idea. Currently, elderly policy is set at 65 years old or above. In the long run, we hope the "silver age card" can pave the way for the well-being of the elderly. Our design is that the "silver age card" will include shopping discounts for daily necessities, health care vouchers, medical records, social services and useful information.
For instance, a decade ago, if elders in Singapore press their elderly travel cards on the traffic light pole, the pedestrian crossing signal will be extended automatically. Persons with disabilities may also enjoy the same arrangement. We learnt that similar trials had been conducted in certain areas in Hong Kong several years ago, yet the matter was eventually dropped. We are glad that the Chief Executive accepted the "silver age card" concept this January; not the whole package but only the $2 concessionary fare. Although the function of the card deviates a little from our design, this is at least the first step forward. We expect that the Government will implement the "silver age card" scheme shortly, and then gradually enhance the informative function of the card, so as to prepare for Hong Kong's ageing society.
With these remarks, I support the Budget. Thank you.
5450 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): I now suspend the meeting until 2:00 pm.
12:58 pm
Meeting suspended.
2:00 pm
Council then resumed.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Ms YUNG Hoi-yan, please speak.
MS YUNG HOI-YAN (in Cantonese): President, when the Budget was delivered this year, Hong Kong was experiencing violence arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments. Before Hong Kong can fully recover from the weakened economy, it is hard bit by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. Hong Kong society at large has almost come to a standstill, and the market is sluggish and bleak. Businesses and shops have closed down one after another, giving rise to a wave of closures; unemployment rate continues to soar and people are in dire straits; businesses are struggling to survive; coupled with the fact that the local economic outlook is clouded by the complex and volatile external environment, we can all feel that Hong Kong has plunged into an economic trough. Therefore, it is right for the Government to adopt the direction of "supporting enterprises, safeguarding jobs, stimulating the economy and relieving people's burden" in this year's Budget. Notwithstanding that, our gravest concern is whether the relief measures introduced by the Government are in place and can really serve the purpose of providing timely relief.
Hong Kong's economy has suffered a heavy blow from the epidemic, and has taken a sharp turn for the worse over the past few months. Various sectors have entered a very severe ice age. Similarly, the unemployment situation has also deteriorated. On Monday, the Census and Statistics Department announced that the unemployment rate between January and March this year was 4.2%, the highest in nine years, with the number of unemployed persons approaching 30 000. The underemployment rate has also risen to 2.1%, the highest in nearly a decade, in which the unemployment rate of the consumption- and LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5451 tourism-related sectors have increased to nearly 7%, the highest since the financial tsunami in 2009. As reflected by the findings of a survey conducted by a trade union, more than 60% of the respondents are now unemployed or are forced to take no-pay leave and their income has dropped. Among those who have reported that they are unemployed, 40% come from the construction industry, followed by the tourism and catering industries. Some academics pointed out that the unemployment rate in Hong Kong has not yet reached its peak. As the Government has been very slow in introducing measures, it is expected that the unemployment rate to be announced next month will climb further to 5%.
Since August last year, the Government has launched four rounds of relief measures and two rounds of Anti-epidemic Fund totalling $167.5 billion to support various industries, members of the public and organizations affected by the epidemic. A major initiative in the Budget is the handout of $10,000 to all Hong Kong permanent residents aged over 18. While everyone is looking forward to getting $10,000, no one knows when the money can be pocketed. As advised by the Government at a meeting of the Finance Committee, the data collected by the Government nine years ago for the cash handout could not be reused. In that case, we are very concerned about how members of the public can pocket the money at the earliest possible time. We have asked the Government why technology was not utilized, and we have also asked the Financial Secretary whether the present approach of handing out cash, incurring an administrative cost of more than $1 billion, was the fastest. Therefore, I really want to ask the Government again: What is the fastest way of handing out cash? Has the Government considered using innovation and technologies to minimize the cost incurred for the entire operation and application process, thereby enabling members of the public to genuinely benefit from the timely relief? If the only breadwinner of a family of several members is unemployed and the family can only get the $10,000 in September, October, November or December, I trust that by then, many families will be starved to death. I truly hope that the Government will take bold action and, just as it has said time and again for many years, make use of technologies to remove barriers and involve various Policy Bureaux in effectively and timely disburse the "life-saving money".
Today, the Chief Executive made some new announcements. As "new official is always full of initiatives", I hope that technologies will be used to speed up the application process. In fact, we have been discussing for more than two months, starting from February till now, which is late April. Frankly speaking, I 5452 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 believe Members would agree that this Budget will be passed. If the Financial Secretary is present at the meeting, I will ask him the probability of this Budget getting passed. I guess his answer is more than 99%. If this is the case, he has no reason to insist that the application process will only start in early July, meaning that we have to wait three more months. Should application only be received after the relevant funding has been approved? Should information only be collected after the relevant funding has been approved? Since I had studied computer, I think we can make use of big data and technologies to facilitate the handing out of cash as soon as possible. The concern of the Government is that data might be extracted or data in the database might be stolen, but this happens from time to time. Can we address this problem by blockchain technology? Young people have many new ideas, will the Government invite them to share views so that members of the public can benefit in a faster, cheaper and better way at the earliest possible time?
President, the environment of this year is very special. For many years, the estimates of Hong Kong is not merely reflected in the budget, as other relief measures will also be taken into consideration, including the Anti-epidemic Fund set up by the Government earlier on. After the Government announced the details of the first round of the Anti-epidemic Fund, many industries indicated that they could not be benefited. Industries that were hard hit have been ignored and left out. This is precisely a matter of technology mentioned by me just now, a failure to make use of the big data. While the banking industry has all along applied the "know-your-customer" principle, does the Government "know your people"? Does the Government know what the urgent concerns of the people are? Does it know which industry is operating in the red?
A lot has been said by members of the public, but has the Government listened? Some industries may not be shouting loud enough, but we cannot pretend to be deaf and blind. Given that the epidemic has dragged on since last year, can the Government expeditiously consider how technology can be used to keep people's data in a more comprehensive and sensible manner, so as to gain an understanding of people's needs?
Referring to the first round of relief measures mentioned by me just now, the Government has left out sectors relating to music, dance, school buses, nanny vans, cross-border transport, aviation, beauty and hairdressing, pedicure, massage, cooked food centres, karaoke and the legal profession. All of them failed to receive any benefit. These sectors subsequently spoke out and expressed views, and eventually some could benefit from the second round of LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5453 measures. However, after the first two rounds of relief measures, there are still some omissions, thus we request the launching of the third round of relief measures. Is it that the Government will only be willing to introduce measures after repeated requests by the industries concerned? Some of them have suspended operation for more than six months, and some have already closed down. As a matter of fact, the Government should have included all the sectors that might be or had been affected when it launched the first round of relief measures. Why has the Government failed to do so? The reason is that the Government does not have big data or database. As the Government cannot get hold of the information concerning the personal accounts of members of the public, it simply does not know what jobs people are doing.
I have met with some instructors who teach piano, trumpet and paintings. According to them, the Government did not know what jobs they were doing. Although they have fixed monthly income, the amount is not high enough to be taxable. As they are not required to pay tax, they are invisible in the eyes of the Hong Kong Government. Not every Hong Kong citizen has a Mandatory Provident Fund ("MPF") account and needs to make contribution, but does it mean that people not making MPF contributions or not applying for any licences have not contributed to Hong Kong? Therefore, the Government must step up its efforts in this regard. It should make use of innovation and technologies to get a good grasp of the needs of Hong Kong people and make it easier for people to voice their needs.
I had put forward a number of proposals to the Financial Secretary before February, hoping that the Government would, in respect of transport cost, encourage the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL"), public buses and public transport operators to reduce fares by 20%, so as to showcase the joint efforts of various sectors in fighting the epidemic and tiding over the difficult times. I have also encouraged and urged the landlords to reduce rent or suspend the rental payment of their tenants. I hope that the Government will provide tax relief as an incentive to materialize my wish. Also, I hope that the Government will consider extending the deadline for salaries tax payment so that people can address their urgent needs first. I am very pleased that the Government has adopted some of my proposals, including reducing MTRCL fares by 20% and extending the deadline for tax payments. However, after two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund, there is still plenty of room for improvement. The Government should continue to plug the gaps, including casual workers and part-time workers who do not have MPF accounts, cultural and arts tutors, fitness trainers, elderly employees aged over 65, unemployed persons, outsourced 5454 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 service staff of subvented organizations, employment agencies placing foreign domestic helpers, Chinese medicine practitioners, dentists, licensees of food business, food court tenants of shopping malls, etc. They all need assistance from the Government when the third round of the Anti-epidemic Fund is launched.
Although people who have already bought their own homes do benefit from the current low interest rate environment and enjoy relatively low interest for repayment of property loans, many people are facing a very heavy mortgage burden amid the current economic difficulties. In view of this, different measures have been introduced by banks, such as payment of interest only and extension of loan tenor for private buildings, with a view to alleviating the difficulties faced by members of the public. However, no corresponding concessionary arrangement has been made for Home Ownership Scheme ("HOS") flats and public rental housing units. I hope that the Government will encourage the banking sector to support HOS owners who need to repay mortgage loans, and provide them with appropriate assistance.
President, I have spent a lot of time discussing the economic problems that we are facing, but in fact children are also subject to immense pressure under the epidemic. While children surely cannot benefit from the cash handout of $10,000, some, but not all of them, have received several thousand dollars of subsidies. When children cannot go to school and have to learn at home via Zoom every day, the persons who are most toilsome are not the children but their parents. Why are parents most toilsome? Because they not only have to monitor their children's learning via Zoom, but also have to take up the roles as teachers, tutors and probably instructors of extra-curricular activities. As a result, parents are suffering from unprecedented pressure. Many parents are emotionally unstable with pressure overwhelming to the verge of a breakdown. Although parents can now spend more time with their children, frictions have also increased. I hope that the Government can step up counselling and publicity in this respect so that parents can have ways to alleviate their pressure while taking care of their children at home.
President, I have proposed to the Financial Secretary that a childcare allowance of $20,000 should be provided to every woman who has just given birth. In the face of the epidemic this year, I believe all pregnant women and women who are going to give birth in these few months would consider themselves as warriors. Given the tense atmosphere in hospitals, women who have just given births may not be visited by their family members. Worse still, LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5455 these women may have to leave the hospital by themselves, exerting immense pressure on them. Although this year's Budget has not included the $20,000 childcare allowance proposed by me, I hope that the Financial Secretary will consider providing assistance to families with new-born babies next year or in the future so as to alleviate their pressure.
President, in the face of the current epidemic, I believe we should take a break and spend some time to think how Hong Kong should move forward. The violent clashes that occurred last year were still vivid in our mind. These illegal activities have made Hong Kong unstable and unsafe, and have in turn made people lose their confidence in Hong Kong. We do not want to see the recurrence of such confrontation and violence as they may push Hong Kong into a state of everlasting perdition. I hope that the Government will provide more support to Hong Kong so that we can regain confidence and positive energy, thus the community, parents and families can stay positive.
President, with these remarks, I support the Appropriation Bill 2020.
MR KENNETH LEUNG (in Cantonese): President, I will analyse this year's Budget from a macro and public finance perspective.
As we all know, the Government announced the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund ("AEF") in early April, which involves a total of $137.5 billion. Coupled with the first round of AEF involving $30 billion and the relief measures in the Budget costing a total of about $120 billion, the various relief measures add up to a total of $287.5 billion. If these three sums of substantial expenditures on support measures are spent in 2020-2021, and I also believe a very large portion of the amount will be disbursed within this year to meet contingency needs, the deficit of this year's Budget will increase significantly from $139.1 billion as previously claimed by the Financial Secretary to $276.6 billion. In other words, the percentage in Gross Domestic Product ("GDP") will increase from 4.8% to 9.5%, thereby bringing the fiscal reserves down to about 14 to 15 months of public expenditure. This is, of course, a relatively optimistic estimate because we do not know if the Financial Secretary has overestimated revenue projection, which includes revenue from land premium, profits tax, salaries tax and stamp duty, in his Budget. If these revenues have been overestimated, the overall deficit should be even higher.
5456 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
As pointed out by the Financial Secretary, given that the global epidemic may subside after another year or so, Hong Kong's economy can hardly rebound rapidly in a few months after the epidemic, just as what had happened after the outbreak of SARS. Unlike SARS, the current epidemic has spread around the world, coupled with the trade war between China and the United States and other geopolitical factors, it is unlikely that our economy, even if it recovers, will have a V-shaped rebound. By then, the recovery may be very slow, and economic growth of this year may be even worse than the -1.5% projected in the Budget. In view of the unstable revenue from tax and land sales, if full payment is made this year for the two rounds of AEF and the relief measures, the deficit may reach over $300 billion.
With regard to Hong Kong's overall economic situation, the value of retail sales dropped by 44% in February, which is the largest decline in history. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate just released was 4.2% between January and March, whereas underemployment rate has risen from 1.5% to 2.1%. However, President, given that unemployment rate is an economic indicator that lags behind the real situation, I believe the employment situation will be even more severe in the days to come, and Secretary Dr LAW should know roughly in his mind the unemployment rate in the next quarter.
I think the Financial Secretary should publicly explain to us what his long-term public finance principle is. The first factor is, have we set any minimum level or requirement for fiscal reserves? If we have, what is it? If not, why not? After the reunification, all former Financial Secretaries have different interpretations about the fiscal reserves. In 1998, the then Financial Secretary, that is, former Chief Executive Donald TSANG, pointed out that fiscal reserves should be roughly equivalent to 18 months of government expenditure. In 2002, the then Financial Secretary Antony LEUNG said that it would be sufficient to keep 12 months of government expenditure. In 2010, the then Financial Secretary John TSANG said that it would be better to keep as much fiscal reserves as possible. As regards the incumbent Financial Secretary Paul CHAN, has he made any special reference to fiscal reserves in his new fiscal philosophy? He has made little mention of it.
Apart from fiscal reserves, we should also pay attention to the current fiscal deficit, including the base of the deficit and the comparison between deficit and GDP, or what is known as Gross National Product in other countries. According to the average value of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ("OECD"), ignoring the few years affected by the financial LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5457 tsunami, the share of fiscal deficit in GDP for countries with relatively stable development in OECD over the past decade or so was about 5% or slightly more than 5%, but it must be less than 6%. As I have just mentioned, those three sums of expenditure, namely the first and second rounds of AEF as well as the relief measures proposed in the Budget, have already accounted for 9.5% of GDP. President, this is the figure of this year only and has yet to take into account the situation of next year.
Another important long-term fiscal indicator that must be taken into consideration is the growth rates of government recurrent expenditure and GDP. As we all know, it will not be sustainable if the growth rate of recurrent expenditure always exceeds that of GDP. Since the reunification, recurrent expenditure has increased from $149.4 billion in 1997-1998 to $442.4 billion in 2019-2020, soaring 196% in 22 years, while GDP at money of the day has increased significantly by 109%, that is, 109% versus 196%. According to a recent projection, the growth rates of government recurrent expenditure in three years, namely, 2019-2020, 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 will be 9.8%, 10% and 8.6% respectively, which will far exceed the nominal GDP growth rates of 1.2%, -1.5% and 5% respectively. And, of course, these are probably relatively optimistic projections. Will the growth rate of GDP eventually catch up with that of recurrent expenditure, or will the growth rate of recurrent expenditure slow down to a level on a par with that of GDP? I do not know, but I hope that the Financial Secretary will pay attention to this point because Article 107 of the Basic Law provides that "The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall follow the principle of keeping expenditure within the limits of revenues in drawing up its budget, and strive to achieve a fiscal balance". I am not saying that it is necessary to achieve a fiscal balance every year, but in the medium to long term, I do not wish to see this principle being violated in a 5- or 10-year projection.
However, it can be seen from the projections of the Financial Secretary that from 2021-2022 to 2024-2025, there will be deficit budgets for four consecutive years, with deficits ranging from $7.4 billion to $17 billion. These figures were provided by the Financial Secretary to Members when the Budget was delivered in February. The question is many members of the public may still look forward to receiving support from the Government next year after the cash handout of $10,000 this year, so will the Government hand out $10,000 or even $20,000 again by then? We do not know. However, deficits ranging from $7.4 billion to $17 billion for the next four years are indeed very conservative estimates.
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Unfortunately, the global economy has been hard hit as the epidemic swept across the world. The World Trade Organization predicts that global trade will shrink at a much faster rate than during the financial crisis in 2008, whereas the International Monetary Fund also projects the global growth forecast of this year to be -3%. Furthermore, today I learnt that the Central Government of the Mainland will no longer pursue a GDP growth rate of 6%, but no one knows whether the target is set at zero or a negative rate. Therefore, if projections are to be made for the next four years, I wonder if the deficit estimates will reach as high as hundreds of billions of dollars.
In 2018, I heard another financial concept. The Financial Secretary said that in order to break the golden rule of capping public expenditure at 20% of GDP, it was important to increase investment and catch up on all fronts. Honestly speaking, if fiscal balance is achieved, no one would oppose an increase in expenditure in areas such as education and health care. The problem is that the Government has relied too heavily on land premium, stamp duty, profits tax and salaries tax as its major sources of income. While the Financial Secretary can certainly vow to break the golden rule of capping public expenditure at 20% of GDP, which was probably adopted during the era of Antony LEUNG, it is important to increase other sources of revenue so as to address the blind spot of focusing only on individual recurrent expenditure item rather than overall government spending. The problem lies in that the tax base of Hong Kong is too narrow and government revenue may go up and down as a result of economic fluctuations, which is also an undeniable fact. Therefore, given the heavy reliance of the SAR Government on three forms of taxation and land premium as its major source of revenue, and the need to break the golden rule of capping public expenditure at 20% of GDP, where does the money of the Government come from?
Let us look at a document that has already been forgotten, i.e. a report published by the Working Group on Long-Term Fiscal Planning ("the Working Group") in 2014. In this report prepared by a panel of experts, it was pointed out that as the population of Hong Kong was ageing and labour force would peak in 2018, even if the expenditures on education, social welfare and health remained at the level of 2014 between 2014 and 2041-2042, the 5.3% projected trend growth rate of government expenditure was still higher than the 4.4% projected trend growth of nominal GDP. The projection of 4.4% in 2014 was very optimistic. Let us wait and see if the growth rate will actually turn out to LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5459 be 4.4% in the next three years. President, it will certainly not. Based on the projections made in the report of the Working Group, we will have structural deficit in 2029-2030.
Given the rough environment in the midst of the trade war and the ongoing epidemic at present, Fitch, a credit rating agency, has recently downgraded the credit rating of Hong Kong from AA to AA-, and predicted that Hong Kong's real GDP would fall. Under this circumstance, I urge the Government to adhere to the fiscal principle set out in Article 107 of the Basic Law and ensure that the growth in public expenditure will commensurate with the long-term affordability. Also, it is hoped that the Government will conduct a comprehensive assessment of the sustainability of public finances on a regular basis, update its long-term fiscal projection and enhance the transparency of the management of public finances, such as setting out all future public works projects that are costly, including the Lantau Tomorrow project. I remember that last week, the Financial Secretary said that as the Lantau Tomorrow project would generate income in the future, we could thus borrow loans. The problem is that if the credit rating agencies further downgrade the credit rating of Hong Kong, the cost of borrowing will be even higher. Therefore, the last thing we wish to see is the Government living on credit. What is more, Article 107 of the Basic Law also prohibits us from launching gigantic projects by living on credit for a long period of time. I hope that the SAR Government will carefully consider where we can obtain income in the long run.
President, I so submit.
MR FRANKIE YICK (in Cantonese): President, though the number of confirmed novel coronavirus cases in recent days was only in single digit and no confirmed cases were recorded two days ago, indicating that the epidemic has temporarily subsided, the business environment is still very poor and the people are still in dire straits. Thus, the Liberal Party will support all relief measures.
Since the China-United States trade disputes started in the second half of 2018, followed by the incessant social disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments starting from June last year, the economy of Hong Kong has been hard hit. In the beginning of this year, the outbreak of the novel coronavirus epidemic has further weakened the already fragile Hong Kong economy. Having suffered three blows, the economy has slipped rapidly. The 5460 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 transport and logistics, tourism, retail and catering industries bear the brunt, to be followed by other trades and industries. To prevent the spread of the epidemic, classes have been suspended, borders closed, people work from home and group gatherings are prohibited, etc., bringing almost all economic activities to a standstill. Although the Government has tried to include as many affected trades and industries as possible in its relief measures, many others are still left out.
Take the transport sector with which I am familiar as an example. During the epidemic, the Transport Department has either cancelled or postponed driving tests. As a result, the drastic drop in the number of students taking driving lessons has greatly affected the livelihood of driving instructors. As driving instructors are generally self-employed persons, they cannot benefit from the Employment Support Scheme ("ESS") recently announced by the Government to provide wage subsidies for employees. As for Kaito, though it is a means of water transport carrier just like licensed ferry operators, Kaito operators cannot enjoy the benefit given to licensed ferry operators in the new round of the Anti-epidemic Fund, that is reimbursement of the actual regular repair and maintenance costs.
During the epidemic, some cross-border truck drivers have taken risks to deliver daily necessities for Hong Kong people every day. Since the epidemic has spread all over the world and the manufacturing industries in the Mainland cannot resume full production, the global supply chains of goods have broken, resulting in a significant reduction of the freight throughput. In addition, health checks at the borders have lengthened the time for immigration clearance. These factors have caused a reduction in the income of cross-border truck drivers. In fact, many large commercial vehicles have to stand idle because of the epidemic. If public officers only go to Kwai Tsing for a site visit, they will understand how serious the situation is. Yet, this situation has been neglected in the relief measures announced last week. In addition, for the automobile services industry, including automobile maintenance and rental services, the income has dropped significantly due to the epidemic, and some sectors have no income at all; yet payment of some fixed expenditures are still required. In the case of driving instructors and truck owners, although their vehicles stand idle, they have to carry out regular maintenance, pay parking fees and insurance fees etc. for these income-generating tools. Certainly, they also have to pay vehicle mortgage.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5461
Although the Government may find it difficult to formulate a flawless initiative, excluding employees aged 65 or above who are not making Mandatory Provident Fund ("MPF") contributions from ESS is a big loophole, which must be rectified by the Government. In fact, due to population ageing, employees of both land transport and sea transport (including various types of ferry services) industries are becoming older, and the situation of green minibus drivers is most serious. According to Government figures, the average age of green minibus drivers is 71, while that of vessel operators is 68. If these employees, who are "fruit grant" recipients, do not continue to work in their current positions, I believe many operators of green minibuses and vessels cannot continue with their business. Take green minibus as an example. The number of passengers for green minibuses has dropped by 50%, as in the case of franchised buses and the Mass Transit Railway. Basically, operation cannot sustain. If the Government's ESS does not include these drivers aged 65 or above who are not making MPF contributions, green minibus companies will certainly close down. This will go against the Government's original intention of supporting enterprises and safeguarding jobs and it will also cause inconvenience to the commuting public.
According to the Government, the funding incurred in two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund and the relief measures in the Budget would be equivalent to 10% of our Gross Domestic Product, causing our fiscal reserves to drop from some $1,100 billion to some $800 billion. Under the current extremely gloomy economic situation, the relief measures introduced by the Government will still be a drop in the ocean to members of the public and thus cannot fully satisfy everyone. Since the Government still has reserves equivalent to 14 to 15 months of public expenditure, I think it should introduce further measures to fill the gaps as and when the need arises.
Relief measures costing a total of $122 billion are introduced in the Budget. Apart from continuing to provide tax concessions, subsidies for water and electricity charges and waiver of government charges, a more eye-catching measure is to disburse $10,000 to every Hong Kong permanent resident aged 18 or above. The Liberal Party understands that under the epidemic, some people are underemployed, others suffer wage cuts or are even compelled to stop work, getting no income. Although $10,000 is not a big sum, it can at least benefit many people and assist them in buying anti-epidemic items and other daily necessities.
5462 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Since the beginning of 2018 when the China-United States trade war began, the container throughput of Hong Kong has dropped for 24 months in a row, leaving the transport sector in dire straits. Another calamity is the outbreak of novel coronavirus pneumonia early this year. As the virus has spread all over the world, various countries have implemented anti-epidemic measures such as stay-at-home orders and closure of boundary control points, thereby affecting the air, land and sea transport services and breaking the global supply chains. Though some production lines on the Mainland have resumed production recently, as the epidemic in many European countries and the United States is still rampant, many overseas orders have been cancelled or delivery of goods has been delayed over the past few weeks, directly affecting the transport and logistics industries in Hong Kong. I believe the effects will surface in the second quarter of this year. Recently, we noticed that some enterprises in the sector have already closed down.
The ESS introduced by the Government can only provide some assistance to enterprises of the logistics industry. Rent is an essential item of expenditure, particularly for storage facilities operators. Thus, in the press conference held last week, these business owners urged their landlords to reduce rent. We are now liaising with some of the landlords to convey the requests, but we are not sure if our efforts will be fruitful. The trading and logistics industries contribute to more than 20% of Hong Kong's GDP and employ as many as 700 000 people, representing almost 20% of the total workforce in Hong Kong. If the situation does not improve, the Government has to consider introducing a third round of relief measures to protect business owners and workers of the logistics industry; otherwise, I am afraid the unemployment rate will soar at the next stage.
Freight volumes of the logistics industry in Hong Kong have fallen due to a number of reasons. Apart from the China-United States trade war, another reason is the keen competition from our neighbouring ports. The governments of Guangzhou and Shenzhen have used money power to provide financial incentives for cargo vessels to berth at their ports. On the contrary, the Hong Kong Government never provides any such subsidies. All it has done is to provide a 50% reduction in port facility and light dues starting from October last year. The amount is insignificant. Worse still, at the beginning of this year, the Government decided to reintroduce the requirement that cargo vessels plying around Mirs Bay should have pilotage service. This requirement has greatly increased the costs of cargo vessels, thus some cargo vessel companies try to avoid berthing at Port of Yantian and Kwai Chung Port.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5463
Recently, Shenzhen has introduced an initiative of providing a 50% reduction of pilotage dues on the Mainland in response to the imposition of additional pilotage dues at Mirs Bay. In order to strengthen the competitiveness of the ports in Hong Kong, I hope the Government will consider not only extending the period of reduction in port facility and light dues, but also following Shenzhen's practice of subsidizing half of the pilotage dues for ocean-going vessels plying around Mirs Bay. During this period of economic downturn, I think the Government should provide more support to strengthen the competitiveness of the industry so that it can get ready for future development.
It is mentioned in the Budget that the Government will introduce a pilot subsidy scheme this year with an injection of $345 million to encourage the logistics industry to enhance operational efficiency and productivity through technology application in storage and packaging management. The Liberal Party supports this initiative in principle.
In fact, Mainland and overseas enterprises in the logistics industry have become automated. Yet the logistics industry in Hong Kong, comprising mainly of micro, small and medium enterprises ("SMEs"), is still operating in the traditional labour-intensive mode. As the population of Hong Kong ages, our labour force will be reduced; it is hence inevitable to promote efficiency and productivity with technology.
According to the logistics industry, the authorities have plans to provide each logistics enterprise with a subsidy of $1 million for implementing up to four projects, i.e. only $250,000 for each project, which is not really enough. Furthermore, as the scheme only covers technology application in storage and packaging management, it lacks attraction. Thus, I hope the Government will enhance communication with the industry and consider increasing the amount of subsidies and widening the scope of the scheme.
Though air freight takes up less than 2% of the total freight throughput in Hong Kong, the total freight value accounts for over 40%. It is thus evident that the air cargo industry plays an important role in the logistics sector in Hong Kong. In recent years, rapid development in online shopping has greatly increased the demand for air cargo services. In order to dovetail with the development of online shopping and promote growth of the air cargo industry in Hong Kong, the Liberal Party hopes that the three-runway system at the airport will be completed as scheduled, and supports the Airport Authority Hong Kong to 5464 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 expand the express air cargo terminal, develop a premium logistics centre, enhance the capacity of the airport in handling high-value air cargo, and even redevelop the Air Mail Centre at the Hong Kong International Airport.
In respect of sea transport, in order to develop Hong Kong into a shipping centre providing high-end services, the Liberal Party supports the Government to amend the relevant legislation to provide tax concessions for the ship leasing business and the marine insurance industry. The Government introduced the relevant bills on 18 December last year and 18 March this year respectively, but unfortunately, since the House Committee of the Legislative Council has failed to elect its Chairman, the bills cannot be scrutinized. As there are slightly two more months to go before the end of this legislative session, I still hope that the bills can be scrutinized and passed in time.
The novel coronavirus epidemic has dealt a severe blow to SMEs in that many enterprises suffer from cash-flow problems. Although the income of enterprises has reduced, they still have to pay loan instalments to banks and meet other operational expenses. The Financial Secretary has enhanced the 80% loan guarantee products, launched 90% loan guarantee products and introduced loan guarantee products with 100% guarantee, so as to boost the support for enterprises. The original intent of these schemes is good, but the final decision lies with the banks. Even though the Government will provide loan guarantees, banks still adopt an extremely cautious attitude. Even if banks are willing to discuss with enterprises, they will very often impose additional requirements and some even ask business owners to take out an additional insurance policy to protect the interests of banks.
Under the current economic climate, I hope the Government will continue to urge lending institutions to relax their requirements for approving loans and make the assessment based on the repayment ability of enterprises at the end of 2019 instead of on the present repayment ability of enterprises when they are in predicament. Meanwhile, the lending institutions should also expedite their approval process so that SMEs can be provided with the liquidity within a short time to tide over the difficult times.
Furthermore, in order to alleviate the cash flow problem of enterprises, many banks have introduced loans and measures of allowing borrowers to repay the interest but not the principal. However, in the transport sector which I represent, many loans of commercial vehicles are provided by smaller banks or LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5465 credit institutions which are unwilling to introduce such measures. I hope that the Government will further discuss with these banks and credit institutions and urge them to introduce measures to help vehicle owners in need.
Regarding the arrangement for phasing out about 40 000 Euro IV diesel commercial vehicles, I am glad that the Government has increased the financial support for vehicle owners in response to the difficult economic situation. However, owing to the sudden outbreak of the epidemic, some vehicle owners would like to postpone their plans of vehicle replacement. In order not to affect owners who need to replace their vehicles, the Government should consider extending the deadline of vehicle replacement. In this way, owners who need to replace their vehicles will not be hindered, the supply chain of the entire automobile services industry will not be affected, and no extra financial burden will be imposed on vehicle owners who are in financial distress.
President, the persistent social unrest arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments to the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance since June last year and the outbreak of the novel coronavirus epidemic have affected the transport industry in different degrees. Although there are gaps in the several rounds of relief measures introduced in the past, the initiatives have benefited the industry to a certain extent. The Liberal Party understands that subsidies can only stop the bleeding for a short while, and all relief measures can only serve as stopgaps. The most practical approach is that all members of the public should fight the virus together in the hope that the epidemic will be over soon and the economy will recover. The Government should also discuss with various trades and industries as soon as possible (The buzzer sounded) … to formulate plans to stimulate the economy …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Frankie YICK, please stop speaking.
MR CHAN CHI-CHUEN (in Cantonese): Last Friday afternoon, the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("LOCPG") issued a press release entitled "Allegation of Central Authorities' intervention with Hong Kong's internal affairs is a deliberate misinterpretation of the Basic Law". This should have no direct relevance to our discussion of the Budget, except the following comments in the press release: "some opposition Members told the media that they would not exclude the 5466 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 possibility of vetoing the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund. As commented by the public, the malicious act of opposition Members to put their own political interests above the personal safety, livelihood and welfare of Hong Kong people has become intolerable." At that time, I was not thinking about whether I would vote for or against the Anti-epidemic Fund ("AEF"), but whether I should veto the Budget, the scrutiny of which has started this week.
This is the eighth year that I am involved in the scrutiny of the Budget, and I had voted against the budget for the past seven years. I had strong reasons for my act; even in those days before the amendment of the Rules of Procedure when many people accused us of filibustering and putting the Government on the brink of a financial cliff, I was also not afraid. However, I was surprised that after I voted against the motion on the $130 billion Fund in the Finance Committee, LOCPG issued a press release to threaten us. LOCPG issued a press release for a provision of $130 billion, yet the Budget under discussion today that involves a funding of $627.2 billion. I will not only announce to the media, but also stand in this Chamber to tell everyone righteously and openly that I will once again vote against this year's Budget.
When Mr Alvin YEUNG spoke earlier, he read out Article 50 of the Basic Law which provides that if the Legislative Council refuses to pass a budget introduced by the Government, and if consensus still cannot be reached after consultations, the Chief Executive may dissolve the Legislative Council. According to Alvin YEUNG, since the Basic Law stipulates that the Chief Executive may dissolve the Legislative Council if it fails to pass a budget, it implies that Members have the right to vote against a budget.
We have three buttons before us; the "Yes" button, the "No" button and the "Abstain" button. On the day when the meeting of the Finance Committee was held, a Member asked Secretary for Justice Teresa CHENG whether Members had the right to vote against AEF. She said that Members had the right to vote for or against the proposal or abstain from voting. She would not directly say that Members had the right to vote against the proposal, and we have no doubt about it. However, things are no longer what they used to be. I consider myself to be conversant with the Basic Law, and I carry with me this copy, which I bought for almost $100, every day. Today, I dare not say I understand the meaning of the Basic Law because the power of interpreting the Basic Law lies not in us, but in the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council ("HKMAO") and LOCPG. Article 73(2) of the Basic Law stipulates that "The LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5467
Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall exercise the following powers and functions: … (2) To examine and approve budgets introduced by the government".
President, I am really a bit afraid because the Basic Law truly stipulates that Members of the Legislative Council shall exercise the power and function of "approving" budgets; it does not say that Members can veto budgets. The word "approve" is used in the English version of the Basic Law. In the past when people are on good terms with one another, Members could filibuster, vote against or vote in favour of the budget. I will vote against the Budget later, will HKMAO and LOCPG say that I have contravened Article 73(2) of the Basic Law since the provision stipulates that Members shall "approve" budgets? Since the power of interpreting the Basic Law rests with them, they can interpret it in any way they like; but I will nonetheless vote against the Budget.
I have appealed to some pro-democracy Members to vote against the Budget because they may not be as decisive and resolute as I am. In their view, since this Budget will rebate $10,000 to all citizens, there is no point for "Slow Beat", who has been striving for the rebate for so many years, to oppose the Budget since he has got what he wants. Some Members might initially have this doubt. They thought that no matter how bad the Budget was, it contained some measures which could benefit some members of the public. However, for those Members who initially thought that they would not oppose the Budget even though they did not support it, they have now changed their mind. They have asked the public whether they should vote for the Budget, vote against it or abstain from voting, given that the Budget contains the measure to rebate $10,000. The result is that within the protesting camp, a large majority (more than 90%) think that the Budget should be voted against. Some of them even said that their view remained unchanged even if it meant not getting $10,000. Thus, there is no doubt whatsoever and no one can threaten us anymore.
Referring to the record of debates on the Vote on Account resolution in the Legislative Council over the years, not many Members spoke in the past and not all the democrats voted against such a resolution. However, we unanimously opposed the Vote on Account resolution this year. Certainly, James Henry LAU, former Director of Bureau who introduced the Vote on Account resolution, had departed and could not wait to see the passage of the Budget.
5468 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
President, I oppose the Budget for a number of reasons. First, as I pointed out on the very first day, this is a budget which expands the supplies and manpower of the military force. The proposed funding for the Police Force hits a record high, representing a one-fourth increase compared with last year. Under the present circumstances, why should the Government inject so much money into the Police Force to expand its supplies and manpower? I have asked the Commissioner for Police at a special meeting of the Finance Committee whether the Police could recruit some 2 000 people and whether there were sufficient training places at the Hong Kong Police College. He did not respond to these questions at all. Certainly, we will discuss matters concerning the Police Force in more detail at the Committee stage.
The second reason for my opposition is the rebate of $10,000. The Government should not consider disbursing money as a panacea. Hong Kong people endorse a cash handout for providing timely help or meeting urgent needs, but why should there be such a long delay to disburse money?
Starting from day one, pro-establishment Members … I remember that Mr CHAN Hak-kan―only he and I are staying in this Chamber―once asked the Government not to bundle the proposed funding for the $10,000 rebate with the Budget. If the Government took out that provision from the Budget and adopted the approach similar to passing AEF in the Finance Committee, the funding could be approved earlier and $10,000 could be disbursed at an earlier date.
What is meant by addressing the community's pressing needs? When we scrutinized AEF and failed to grant approval on Friday night, the Government criticized us as if we were criminals. Even if the proposal was passed on Saturday morning with a delay of only half a day, the Government presented the picture in a way as if the delay in approving AEF for one day would result in shop closures and even people jumping to their deaths. If the situation is so urgent and important, why does the Government wait till July or August to disburse $10,000 to Hong Kong people? The Government still fails to offer an explanation to this day.
Pro-establishment Members are also dissatisfied. However, Paul CHAN said that even if the Legislative Council passed the Budget in May or June, application forms would be distributed in July and the money would be disbursed in August. That was the quickest arrangement. Upon hearing Paul CHAN's words, pro-establishment Members made no further comments. The Budget LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5469 provides a rebate or a cash handout to the public because the Communist Party of China and the Hong Kong communist regime have made one mistake after another over the past period of time. In fact, Hong Kong people have to foot the bill.
I think this is a Budget that expands the military force to suppress the public. The Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong does not have its own army, but it has a large number of police officers to execute the political missions for the Hong Kong communist regime. The budget deficit this year amounts to $130 billion which certainly has not included the funding incurred in the two rounds of AEF. While the Administration has not significantly increased the recurrent expenditures in social welfare, health care and education, it has greatly increased the expenditures of the Police Force and even considerably enlarged the establishment of the Police Force by more than 2 000 people.
Since the beginning of the "anti-extradition to China" movement in June last year, the crimes committed by the Hong Kong Police are too numerous to list. They unreasonably suppressed the peaceful demonstrators on 21 June, allowed rural-triad white-clad people to attack innocent civilians on 21 July, indiscriminately attacked members of the public at the Prince Edward Station on 31 August, wrongfully shot and injured students in October and November, and even tried to invade The Chinese University of Hong Kong and besieged The Hong Kong Polytechnic University in November which resulted in a humanitarian disaster. During the epidemic, the Police have abused their powers by exploiting the group gathering ban and business operation ban to institute arbitrary prosecution and harass the people. They have created more problems and greater confusion when we are fighting the epidemic.
From the figures provided at a special meeting of the Finance Committee, we learnt that the Hong Kong Police Force has increasing difficulties in staff recruitment. There are big differences between the number of job applicants and the number of people expected to be recruited and the number of people actually recruited. Under the present circumstances, can the Police recruit as many as 2 000-odd staff? I asked Financial Secretary Paul CHAN the other day, "Have you written this cheque arbitrarily? The Commissioner of Police asked you for soldiers, you gave him soldiers; he asked you for guns; you gave him guns. Will you give him whatever he wants?" Six armoured personnel carriers cost $75 million and that is not all. If we examine the figures in the Budget carefully, we will find the expenditures alarming. The proposed expenditure for 5470 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 the Police to procure some plants has doubled. I will read out the relevant figures. The proposed expenditure for "Minor plant, vehicles and equipment" last year was $140 million; and it is $290 million this year.
What is "minor plant"? They are lethal weapons for oppressing Hong Kong protesters and suppressing Hong Kong people. Does the Government want us to give this cheque for the Police to beat Hong Kong people up? Hong Kong people will not hit Hong Kong people. We will certainly not support the funding.
Another point I would like to make is the arrangement of disbursing cash which is actually a rebate to all people. No other country will disburse money in such an undesirable way. Many overseas countries have introduced benevolent measures due to the epidemic, but none of them will bundle such measures with their budgets. Take Donald TRUMP and the government of the United States, which pro-establishment Members dislike most, as an example. What is the practice of the United States Government? In mid-March, an announcement was made on the cash handout for all people, the motion was then passed in the Parliament and by now, the people have already got the money. After Donald TRUMP signed the cheque, the money was disbursed to the people. When was our Budget announced? It was announced on 26 February.
President, the Budget was announced on 26 February, and the people can only receive $10,000 half a year later the soonest. Nowhere in the world is like that. Is it very difficult to disburse money? The process requires neither screening nor assessment. Any permanent resident aged 18 or above is entitled to receive $10,000. Is it very difficult to sign this cheque? How difficult is it to send out a few millions of letters? During the election time, suppose there are 10-odd candidates in each district, the Registration and Electoral Office will send out countless electoral notifications within a few weeks. At one time, the Government says that processing the applications takes time and at the other time, it says that negotiations with the banks are required. In fact, the Government can even utilize the Register of Electors to send out the cheques. This will kill two birds with one stone as people are encouraged to register as electors. The registered electors will be the first get the cash while non-electors will have to wait. This approach will at least allow people in need to get money faster.
Ms Starry LEE asked if $10,000 could first be disbursed to recipients of Comprehensive Social Security Assistance and Old Age Living Allowance when the Government made the payments next month. The Government said that it LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5471 could not do so, would not consider the suggestion and refused to respond. Why did the Government not take out the funding for the $10,000 cash handout from the Budget and submit it to a special meeting of the Finance Committee for approval? There are two reasons. First, the Government is not sincere in helping Hong Kong people. Carrie LAM, who likes to brag and boast, should have asked the Finance Committee to approve the funding first, so that all members of the public can benefit immediately, but she had not done so. Another reason for the usual tactic of bundling the funding with the Budget is that if Members delay in passing the Budget by one or two weeks, the Government will attack us, saying that the pan-democratic Members are inconsiderate as they even obstruct the rebate of $10,000 to all people. By then, LOCPG and HKMAO may issue some strong-worded statements in concert with the Government.
All in all, I oppose the Budget. (The buzzer sounded)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr CHAN Chi-chuen, please stop speaking.
MR WILSON OR (in Cantonese): President, it has been a disaster-ridden year for Hong Kong. First we have the man-made disaster of black violence, followed by the natural disaster of novel coronavirus pneumonia. Our economy has been hit hard and various trades and industries have entered a harsh winter. Many enterprises are on the verge of closure, putting up desperate fights. The grass-roots wage earners living from hand to mouth are either unemployed or have their incomes substantially reduced. Colleagues and I are equally concerned about when the epidemic will end, when government support will be in place and when Hong Kong can regain vitality.
President, the Budget this year contains many relief measures, some of which can really help some Hong Kong people, especially disbursing $10,000 to each person, paying one month's rent for public rental housing tenants, reducing salaries tax, waiving rates, providing various allowances and providing one extra month of payment, etc. I hope these relief measures can be expeditiously and adequately implemented to meet the public's urgent needs. Therefore, President, I support the passage of the Appropriation Bill 2020 without delay. Though the Budget and the two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund ("AEF") will provide financial assistance to various industries, there are still some omissions. We 5472 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 have, through various means, continuously reflected to the Government the voices of the industries and the concerns of the public. While the Government has heard some of these views, it is still unwilling to consider and accept certain views.
As requested by many members of the public, I would like to make a few points on the Budget. Earlier, the cooked food centres under the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department could not benefit from the first round of AEF. The Government later accepted the advice and made adjustments in the second round of AEF, which is commendable. Moreover, frontline cleaning, security and property management staff can also benefit under the second round of AEF. Members of the industry also want me to tell the Government that they can really benefit from these measures and their financial difficulties can be alleviated. Yet, I would like to remind the Government, as these frontline workers are making hard-earned money, they hope that the Government can be considerate and grant allowances as soon as possible. Many kaifongs also asked me when they could get the benefits, given that the Finance Committee has approved the relevant funding. Once the Budget is approved, I hope government officials, including the two Secretaries who are now present, will share the same thoughts and concerns of the people by providing them with allowances expeditiously to ride over the difficulties.
I would also like to take this opportunity to clearly point out to the Government a few problems concerning the Budget. The first problem is related to the transport industry and vehicle owners. President, I believe many people strongly think that the transport industry is hard hit. Given that the international oil prices have been on the low side for a long time, many people query why local oil prices are "quick to rise and slow to drop". Over the past two days, I have been thinking of this problem and my conclusion is that the Government has not controlled the oil prices, which is inappropriate. I believe that solely relying on monitoring by the Competition Commission is like taking things as they come. Consequently, this will exert a heavier pressure on the transport industry, as well as on the owners and drivers of commercial vehicles.
I hope that the government departments concerned will show concern about this problem, and do real work by taking corresponding actions instead of taking things as they come. I hope that the Government will handle special cases with special methods and actively regulate oil prices. Owners of commercial vehicles hope that the car parks under the Hong Kong Housing Authority, Link REIT or private organizations will introduce measures to alleviate their burdens. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5473
President, the second problem of the Budget is that it has not touched upon unemployment assistance. Just now, I saw Secretary Dr LAW present in the Chamber and I hope he will listen carefully to our debate. Some frontline grass-roots wage earners were unemployed before the introduction of the Employment Support Scheme by the Government. The latest unemployment rate has risen to 4.2%, which is a record high in nine years and the number of unemployed people has surged from 134 000 as announced last month to 162 000.
According to my personal assessment, although the epidemic situation has subsided, the unemployment problem will exist. Frankly speaking, though the Government says that it will help the unemployed, these people can only receive assistance after the asset limits of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA") have been relaxed. I feel regrettable and disappointed, and I also think that this arrangement is inappropriate. In these two days, many kaifongs raised the following points to us: first, according to Chinese tradition, they are actually reluctant to receive CSSA; second, the administrative procedures are cumbersome; third, there will be a labelling effect. Owing to various reasons, they think that the best way to resolve the dilemma within a short time is to set up an "adversity unemployment assistance fund". I hope the Secretary will consider this proposal. I understand that the Secretary may have a lot of questions and distresses, thinking that there are areas that will not work, but I still hope that he can offer help. Although the epidemic has subsided, many workers and frontline personnel have been unemployed. For a public housing household of four members, the couple have limited incomes and the family has to live hand to mouth. However, they may not meet the requirement for rent reduction. We are not criticizing for the sake of criticizing or opposing for the sake of opposing; I hope the Secretary will consider providing an allowance of not less than $6,000 a month for a period of three months, i.e. adversity unemployment assistance payment.
We also hope that the Secretary will help in reminding government colleagues to disburse $10,000. Many Members have said that the $10,000 has still not been disbursed despite the long wait. Honestly, I am really dissatisfied because last time the disbursement of $4,000 was in utter chaos. The kaifongs are happy that the Government is going to disburse $10,000 this time, but they query how the money will be disbursed and when the money will be disbursed. I hope the Secretary will tell the Financial Secretary that the procedure for giving out the timely lifesaver must be simplified and the money must be disbursed expeditiously, so that the public do not have to wait anxiously. The Government 5474 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 had failed in disbursing $4,000 and I hope it will be able to win applause in disbursing $10,000 this time; otherwise, the situation will be really bad!
I hope the authorities can make good use of the existing mechanism. At present, about 1 million people can directly receive $10,000 through their existing accounts. Will the Government consider this approach? Will it require these 1 million people to fill out application forms again? This is a public concern. If the Government is willing to accept our views, I think it can use a system to share the fruit of economic success, without having to consider whether the requirements of the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance are met. I believe this is the appropriate approach.
President, I would also like to talk about the housing issues that I am most concerned about. The Budget does not contain special housing policies and measures but I think the main theme of the Budget is to relieve the hardship of the public and tide over difficulties together. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to tell the Government the plight of home mortgagors and tenants, hoping that the Government will consider launching the Anti-epidemic Fund 3.0 or making other special arrangements to plug gaps, so that these people will not be forgotten.
President, I believe you also understand that because of the epidemic, many grass-roots people, especially wage earners, are unemployed or on no-pay leave, fearing of being laid off anytime. Although the Budget proposes to pay one month's rent for tenants living in public rental units of the Hong Kong Housing Authority and the Hong Kong Housing Society, frankly speaking, I think this measure is not enough because the epidemic and natural disaster were not expected at the time the Budget was drafted. Therefore, I hope the Government will consider making more efforts. Under the rent adjustment mechanism, I believe many tenants are aware that rent increase will likely be implemented in September. However, as the data has lagged behind, they cannot reflect the distress of the public, especially tenants living in public rental units. Apart from paying rents for tenants, I also hope that the Government will freeze the existing rents and pay an additional one month's rent for tenants, so as to relieve the hardship of the grass roots. I hope the efforts made will not be futile.
President, many people have, after much hard work and living frugally, finally managed to buy their own homes. If they cannot afford to buy private flats, they will buy flats sold under the Home Ownership Scheme, the Green LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5475
Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme or the Tenants Purchase Scheme. Earlier, the Bank of China took the lead to launch the "principal repayment holiday" arrangement to reduce the mortgage payment pressure on some property owners. This is a good measure as many private property owners admit that they are under stress. This arrangement can provide timely relief, but owners of subsidized housing, i.e. flats sold under the Home Ownership Scheme, the Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme or the Tenants Purchase Scheme will not be benefited. Some people think that these owners may not actually have the need for "principal repayment holiday", but let me tell the Government, these owners also live frugally before they can barely afford to buy their own flats. If the "principal repayment holiday" arrangement can help these owners, I think this is a very important measure. According to my rough estimate, about 70 000 mortgagors will be involved.
I would like to share an actual example with the Government. I have contacts with a family of four in Tsz Wan Shan. The husband is a driver in the transport industry and the wife is a beauty practitioner. Owing to the epidemic or social movements, the family now relies on the husband's salary to meet the household expenses. If the family can also benefit from the "principal repayment holiday" measure, about $8,000 can be saved a month, which will be a great help.
President, in the face of the current economic downturn, I hope the Government will make preparations in various aspects and should not take one step at a time as this is totally undesirable. I also hope that the Government will keep in view of the current situation, especially the situation in the private market. The Financial Secretary predicted earlier that the economic conditions would deteriorate in the coming year, but his analysis was that property prices would not slump as they did during the SARS outbreak. I also hope that the Government will pay close attention to the overall market situation, including the situation of the private market.
Finally, I would like to remind the Government of two points. First, I hope the Government will not slacken its efforts in closely monitoring the current situation of the private market. Second, I hope the Government will make more effort in respect of land supply and strive to solve the problem of land shortage because land shortage will seriously affect the supply of private housing and the average waiting time for public housing will soon exceed six years. I think the Government really needs to make greater efforts in various policy areas.
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President, I hope this speech will reflect the thoughts of the general public and kaifongs. I will support the Appropriation Bill 2020 and hope the public will benefit from the relief measures as soon as possible. I also hope that these measures will be put in place without delay to alleviate the imminent hardships of the public.
President, I so submit.
MR WU CHI-WAI (in Cantonese): The Financial Secretary talks about the latest international political and economic landscape, the China-United States trade conflicts and anti-epidemic efforts in the introduction and concluding remarks of the Budget. Obviously, with the global spread of Wuhan pneumonia, various countries are reflecting on global economic integration and examining the pros and cons of putting all basic work in a world factory. As reflected from the trend and sentiment of desinicization, Hong Kong will face greater economic challenges than other countries after the epidemic. Has the Financial Secretary responded properly and prepared for this situation that will very likely occur? It seems that I cannot see from the Budget that he is well prepared for the latest international situation.
So, during our discussion on the Budget, we cannot avoid mentioning that the current international situation has caused conflicts among Hong Kong, China and the international community. There is a saying that the protesters and people in Hong Kong want to cause "mutual destruction" economically, but just think, how can Hong Kong people's protest against the Government's unjust actions and dissatisfaction with the Fugitive Offenders and Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2019 cause "mutual destruction" economically. Since the SAR Government has not responded to the aspirations of the people, the international community is considering whether "Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong" and "a high degree of autonomy" will still be maintained in Hong Kong and whether the freedoms and core values granted by the Basic Law will still be enjoyed in Hong Kong.
The idea of "mutual destruction" has often been brought up, but who has the ability and right to effect "mutual destruction"? The Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("LOCPG") has blatantly interfered in the internal affairs of Hong Kong, reflecting to the international community that the implementation of "one country, two systems" in Hong Kong has been distorted and deformed. LOCPG, LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5477 the Carrie LAM Government and the Financial Secretary have intentionally or unintentionally mentioned the disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments in the past six months, but the SAR Government has not reflected on its deeds, and has not faced up to the query of the international community about its competence in implementing "one country, two systems" effectively. The international community is also concerned about whether Hong Kong can continue to uphold and safeguard the core values that our society should have and whether the officials of the SAR Government will undermine the entitled protection of Hong Kong people in respect of human rights and the rule of law. Therefore, the crux of the problem is whether the SAR Government can effectively respond to public opinion, instead of being self-opinionated. Whether "mutual destruction" will effect depends on the SAR Government because only the SAR Government and the Communist Party of China can cause foreign powers to impose sanctions on Hong Kong.
When DENG Xiaoping gave a speech at the United Nations General Assembly in 1974, he said, "if one day China should … turn into a superpower, if she too should play the tyrant to the world, and everywhere subject others to her bullying, aggression and exploitation, the people of the world should identify her as social-imperialism, expose it, oppose it and work together with the Chinese people to overthrow it."1 DENG Xiaoping also said that since the country needed time for development, the strategy to be adopted was to hide its capabilities and bide its time, and when the capabilities, economic conditions and the governance system of the entire society could meet the needs of modern society, China would then become a country where people led a prosperous life. However, as money now comes too easily in China, President XI Jinping wants to realize national regeneration, the dream of a big nation.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr WU Chi-wai, please return to the subject of this debate.
MR WU CHI-WAI (in Cantonese): President, I would like to say that Hong Kong is now caught in the arm-wrestling between China and the United States, and the international community. In the past, Hong Kong has been good at winning advantages from both sides, and under the protection of "one country,
1
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr WU Chi-wai, I remind you again that you have digressed from the subject. The subject of this debate is the Appropriation Bill 2020, please return to the current subject.
MR WU CHI-WAI (in Cantonese): President, I have returned to the debate. I have been talking about the most fundamental issue in the Budget which is related to the future of our economy. As the SAR Government and government officials have chosen to incline towards one side and give up Hong Kong's long-standing role of winning advantages from both sides, they are the real culprits who made Hong Kong face "mutual destruction".
Apart from the international situation, the Government has repeatedly said in recent years that Hong Kong has national security issues. If the major officials of a city often talk about national security issues and raise it to a higher plane, investors will become worried. When people are making a living in a city, but they always have to face national security issues, will this have impacts on investors? As the situation is unpredictable, investment decisions will definitely be affected. The question is: Are these national security issues real or fake? Just think, there is a Mainland garrison in Hong Kong …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr WU Chi-wai, I warn you for the last time, if you continue to digress from the subject, I will ask you to stop speaking.
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MR WU CHI-WAI (in Cantonese): The Budget clearly touches upon international relations.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): This Council is now considering the Appropriation Bill 2020, please return to the subject of this debate.
MR WU CHI-WAI (in Cantonese): When there is a Mainland garrison in Hong Kong, how can we have national security issues? I would like to say that we must go back to the fundamentals if we want to resolve political issues.
President, as you keep saying that I have digressed from the subject when I talk about the international situation and the internal affairs of our society, I would like to talk about the nature of the Budget. Allocation is the biggest problem with the Budget. The Government mentions in the Budget that many people have asked the Government to disburse $10,000 to each person, but I do not understand why money should be disbursed to Hong Kong people living overseas. Hong Kong minors under the age of 18 can only receive textbook assistance of a few thousand dollars. For those who are not eligible for textbook assistance, they will receive no benefits. Obviously, in the face of an economic downturn and the epidemic, households with young children are facing greater difficulties. Why are these households not being taken care of? Why are they treated differently? If there are difficulties in disbursement, in the case of textbook assistance, the allowances can be paid to the accounts of parents who will then spend the money on their children. Why can't the Government do so?
The same happens to the Anti-epidemic Fund ("AEF"). The Government often says that there will be a long delay if a different approach is adopted. During the relevant discussion, I have pointed out that AEF is a part of the Budget. As employees such as taxi drivers, coaches, tourist guides and tour escorts, can apply for AEF in their individual capacity, why can't unemployed persons apply for government assistance in their capacity as the unemployed under an honest system? Obviously, the problem of unfairness will arise under this approach. We have spent a lot of resources to take care of the entire society, but when bias has occurred during the resource allocation process, the problem of uneven distribution rather than scarcity will arise time and again. I think this is an area in the Budget which I find unacceptable. Furthermore, when the 5480 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Government had a huge surplus in the past, it always spent the money on "white elephant" projects such as the Lantau Tomorrow project, and it even expanded the establishment of the Police Force, purchased armaments and weapons, etc. As a result, there are obvious dissenting voices in society. Many people's impression of the Budget is that the Government is calculating and mean when disbursing money to the people but spends extravagantly on "white elephant" projects and on procuring additional weapons for the Police Force and expanding its establishment. Today, we are facing police violence and governance issues. According to the latest public opinion poll, nearly 50% of Hong Kong people gave zero marks to these two departments. However, the Budget has not responded to this governance situation but tries to distort the problem by disbursing money and accusing the opposition camp of "mutual destruction", thinking that people can change their views about the Government's governance. I think this is only a wishful thinking of the SAR Government. Though the Government has a lot of resources, it has not distributed them fairly and it is not willing to address squarely the strong dissatisfaction of the public with the Government. How then can it win over the support of the people?
Hence, the Democratic Party will vote against the Budget. We raise objection not because we do not want the Government to disburse money but because we hope that it will disburse more money to Hong Kong people. We hope the Government will distribute money to all people, instead of being selective in disbursing money. When disbursing money, we hope that the Government will not only look after the selected industries but also take care of various industries and trades. We hope that it will take care of the unemployed and understand their difficulties and the fact that they are in greater distress than other people during the epidemic. These are the things that the Government should have the ability and the resources to accomplish, but the Budget and AEF that was recently approved have given no thoughts as to how to help the people who are most in need of help. We raise opposition from this perspective, trying to tell the SAR Government that the Budget is inadequate as it fails to assist every member of the community in overcoming difficulties and dealing with the plight arising from the epidemic and the economic downturn.
Lastly, my advice to the Financial Secretary is that he should understand that Hong Kong people would like the Government to make good use of resources (The buzzer sounded) … so that everyone can get a share …
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PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr WU Chi-wai, please stop speaking immediately.
MR TOMMY CHEUNG (in Cantonese): President, the Liberal Party and I are very grateful that the Government has taken on board our 11 recommendations in its Budget. The Budget and the two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund are like oases in the desert to different trades, especially the catering sector.
Right now, we suffer unprecedented blows, first the riots last year, followed by the coronavirus outbreak. While the catering and retailing sectors, as well as small and medium enterprises, have been struggling for survival over the past year, the Government once again extended the 14-day group gathering ban yesterday. I cannot but ask the Government whether it will give additional support to the trade, given that the ban was extended for another 14 days and financial relief has yet to be provided to the trade? Catering employees do live from hand to mouth. Yesterday, I pointed out that most of the public officials involved in this policy did not seem to know economics. Today, the Financial Secretary is not present. For the two Directors of Bureaux who are here with us now, I do not think they dare to say that they know economics, right? I am not sure whether they were involved in this policy but I have to clarify that I did not mean to allege the Financial Secretary of being ignorant about economics.
As I said yesterday, our Gross Domestic Product ("GDP") has dropped by $30 billion over the past month as a result of the 28-day operation restrictions previously imposed by the Government on eateries and bars. Now, the 14-day extension of the group gathering ban is likely to cause a further slump in GDP. I am therefore deeply disappointed with the Government's decision to extend the ban for 14 days, and I hope that the Financial Secretary will take part in this policy to help the Government strike a balance between disease prevention and economic development with his economic wisdom, so that economic factors will be taken into account in the introduction of similar measures. To be honest, we do not want to have unceasing relief measures because that suggests a poor business climate. Instead, we wish to see a quick end of the epidemic and no more violent protests. It would be most desirable if the economy can resume normal.
The past few months were a nightmare to the catering sector. In view of the second wave of outbreak triggered by the return of countless overseas students in mid-March, the Government has introduced measures such as the 5482 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 group gathering ban to enhance social distancing. However, the number of diners has nosedived in as early as February and early March after the emergence the "hotpot family" and the "Lan Kwai Fong group". The advice of many self-claimed experts was another catalyst. Later on, the Government has enhanced its social distancing measures and required eateries to reduce their seats by half and set their tables 1.5 m apart. As for bars, since the sale of liquor is prohibited, they are actually forced to close. In case a restaurant has one of its diners confirmed with coronavirus, it will have to close for 14 days. Even if closure is not mandatory, the restaurant concerned will stop operation voluntarily.
All the measures mentioned above are killing the catering sector. A decline in diners and sales, however, does not come in parallel with a significant reduction in rents and wages. All eateries are now struggling for survival. Some employees are so nice that they offer to take no-pay leave to ease the financial difficulties of their employers in this tough time. Unfortunately, even so, some eateries still cannot manage to survive. The owners were forced to close down their business to cut loss. Decades of savings, sweat and toil went down the drain in the blink of an eye, pushing the unemployment rate in the catering industry to a record high.
After the Budget delivery in late February, the Government has, in consideration of the impacts of the group gathering ban on different industries, launched the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund involving $130 billion to support the economy. The Fund is actually a lifesaver for many eateries and has safeguarded a large number of jobs. However, a lot of eatery owners, though catching their breath for the moment, are pessimistic about the outlook for the next three months because the group gathering ban can be extended time and again for 14 days―there was a 14-day extension yesterday―and the number of tourists is unlikely to increase in the near future after the 42-day lockdown around the globe. The trade can only wish that the $10,000 cash handout for all residents in July would boost local consumption. In the past, I often encouraged local residents to stay and spend in Hong Kong, but now, I do not have to make this appeal because they can hardly leave Hong Kong amid the lockdown of other countries. In view of this, I would like to reiterate that the Liberal Party and I greatly welcome the Government's acceptance of our suggestion to disburse $10,000. The cash handout can at least give the trade a ray of hope that they can make some money, given that there will be a cash flow of some $70 billion in the market by 1 July. By then, the Government should introduce additional measures to encourage local consumption, so that we can boost the economy together. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5483
Going back to this Budget, I am particularly grateful that the Government introduced the "100% Loan Guarantee", an initiative that I have fought for years. The "100% Loan Guarantee" was first proposed by the Liberal Party and I during the SARS outbreak in 2003. Our proposal was accepted by the Government at that time. Following the riots in 2019, I suggested the Financial Secretary to reintroduce this initiative but he only substituted the "80% Loan Guarantee" with the "90% Loan Guarantee". Noting the record-high unemployment rate and the closure of over 1 000 eateries amid the current epidemic, I am well aware that the catering industry is in grave peril. That is why I kept lobbying for the reintroduction of the "100% Loan Guarantee" and proposed to increase the maximum loan amount from $1 million in 2003 to $2 million. On the part of the Government, it also knew that the trade could not survive without its support. What was more, the unemployment rate in Hong Kong reached a record high in the past few months. In order to safeguard jobs, the Government has eventually introduced the "100% Loan Guarantee" and increased the maximum loan amount to $4 million, which is a double of my proposed amount. In addition, the Government has enhanced the initiative by allowing an optional principal moratorium for the first 12 months and requiring the loans to be used for rent or wage payment. Here, I would like to thank the Government on behalf of the trade. I am even more grateful that the Financial Secretary has taken my advice to cover listed companies so as to facilitate their borrowing. Given the tiny size of some listed companies in the catering industry, I have been urging the Government to extend the ambit of the "100% Loan Guarantee" to listed companies since late February after the Budget announcement at a number of relevant Panel meetings and at the special meetings of the Finance Committee.
The "100% Loan Guarantee" has been opened for application since 20 April. Companies in need are advised to ask their familiar banks for details, but most important of all, they should not over borrow as repayment of loans is required. On the other hand, banks should not be too rigid and should not ask lenders for overly complicated documents. They should speed up loan approval as requested by The Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation Limited so as to increase the cash flow of the trade and prevent business closure.
Besides, I have to commend the Government for offering rental concessions to tenants occupying government premises on a short-term basis, and even better, it has increased the concessions to 75% till the end of September. I wish other landlords would follow the lead of the Government. As I often say, 5484 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 rents and wages each represent 30% of the business turnovers of catering businesses. Rent cuts are hence crucial to business survival. I implore all landlords and developers to follow suit and offer at least 50% of rental concessions in the period between April and June as I have suggested for a long time. In particular, as the catering industry is now hard hit by the group gathering ban, landlords must consider cutting rents between April and June and inform tenants as soon as possible of their decision to cut rent so as to facilitate business operation of their tenants.
I have met with various landlords since February and many of them are so kind that they do not insist on enforcing the original lease terms in this critical period. Most of these landlords have already exercised discretion to offer rent cuts in February and March, and I must highly commend those who have granted a 70% rental concession since last September. Although I understand that "every business has its own problem", I have never expected some landlords to be so mean that they question why eatery owners cannot use the profits they earned in the past years for rent payment. I instead ask those landlords why they have to make such a nasty comment. Eatery owners, who have paid rents for decades, are not asking their landlords for subsidies; all they ask is merely a rent waiver for several months or a 50% rent cut during this difficult time. If the landlords refuse to lower the rent, almost all shops will eventually close down; by then, a rent reduction will result in a "lose-lose" situation. The last thing I want to see is that the tenants are now forced to quit because the landlords refuse to lower the rent, but later the landlords are forced to lower the rent in order to keeps the shops occupied. To put it simply, this behaviour is exactly the same as the advocacy of the opposition camp, i.e. "mutual destruction", which is neither kind nor just. Therefore, I strongly appeal to the landlords again to show their sincerity in supporting the trade and members of the public to ride out the hard times. They should also seriously consider offering a rent cut of at least 5% to help the trade tide over the period from April to June. They may later negotiate the rent levels with their tenants according to the prevailing situation.
Also, I greatly appreciate that the Government was willing to listen to me and offered additional fee and rent reduction to cruise lines and tenants for six months. At present, the Cruise Terminal does not have any business or customer at all. One of my friends in the trade is operating a Chinese restaurant at the Cruise Terminal. According to him, his restaurant will not be able to survive the epidemic without the support of Government's rent reduction.
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It is certainly good for the Government to take the lead in rent reduction, but I wish to put forward one more suggestion which I believe will be welcomed by the catering and retail industries, i.e. to grant rates concession to non-domestic properties, with the concession ceiling for each property being increased from $5,000 to an amount between $30,000 and $50,000, or to take the bold move to waive the rates for the second quarter (i.e. from April to June) directly without setting a ceiling. Can the Government please consider these suggestions? The justification is simple. As I said just now, many non-domestic tenants, such as eateries, retail shops and mahjong parlours, are affected by the group gathering ban so that their business is expected to sour in the period between April and June. Even if there are still some transactions, the business will be slow because many countries will still be locked down even if the epidemic is under control. It is believed that no tourists will visit Hong Kong before June. The economy can hardly be back to normal within three months. Therefore, the Government should offer as many fee concessions as possible to demonstrate its wholehearted support to the trade to tide over the rough times. I implore the Government to consider my suggestions.
The trade has reflected many of their views to me over the past two months, and I hope the Government will review some of its measures. First of all, I have to criticize … the Secretary for the Environment just happens to be here. He is completely out of touch with the real world. Secretary, please do not complain that I have stabbed you in the back. If you are not present, I may look bad to tell on you like this. The Budget has proposed to provide a subsidy to each of the eligible non-domestic household accounts for four extra months to cover 75% of their monthly billed electricity charges, subject to a monthly cap of $5,000 per account. President, this subsidy has already been provided for four months and will go for another four months. In other words, it will last for a total of eight months, offering $5,000 per month. The Secretary has, however, excluded High Load Factor Riders from this subsidy scheme without pointing this out in the first place. Now, none of the High Load Factor Riders can receive this subsidy. In fact, over the years, I have urged the Government to help ease the burden of business owners in meeting their daily operating expenses such as water, electricity and gas charges. Regarding water charge, sewage charge and trade effluent surcharge, I am grateful for the Government's concessions. As for electricity bills, the Government has also provided a subsidy, just that the High Load Factor Riders are excluded. I do not think it is fair to the High Load Factor Riders and I hope that the Secretary will review this practice tonight so that my criticism will not give him nightmares. Why can't the Bureau be more flexible? 5486 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
There are some other measures that I hope the Government will consider as well. They include: subsidizing gas charge as many eateries cook on open fire; extending the reduction of trade effluent surcharge to two years; and waiving water charge payable by non-domestic households. As regards sewage charge, I hope the Government will extend the waiver to the end of this year upon its expiry. Besides, noting that the Government has waived the issuance and renewal fees of food business related licences and liquor licences in the first round of relief measures announced in last August, I suggest extending these waivers for one year to the end of 2021 to address the poor business environment. I hope the Government will expeditiously consider my suggestions and introduce the aforesaid subsidy and concessionary measures in a timely manner to help the trade minimize their operating costs.
I would like to tell the Financial Secretary that the catering sector has all along been cooperative in epidemic prevention. Starting from late January, catering workers residing in the Mainland have been asked to stop working. In case any of them must go to work, they are not allowed to return to the Mainland. Hygiene measures, such as temperature checks, provision of alcohol-based handrub and wearing of face masks, have been in place among eateries before the announcement of government measures. I also took the initiative to seek sponsorship from Towngas and solicited volunteers to spray disinfectant in some eateries after learning about the effectiveness of nano-photocatalyst in disinfection. We have so far sanitized more than 1 000 eateries while Towngas has provided 6 000 bottles of disinfectant to us for distribution to our trade members. The small number of prosecutions among eateries after the introduction of the group gathering ban has proved that most of the eateries are highly disciplined. I call on the trade to maintain the measures mentioned above even if the group gathering ban is lifted.
It is my hope that the Government will be more decisive and far-sighted. The Financial Secretary should also introduce additional economic stimuli so that we can earn back the $300 billion for the Government as soon as possible (The buzzer sounded) …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Tommy CHEUNG, please stop speaking.
MR TOMMY CHEUNG (in Cantonese): … thank you, President.
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MR TONY TSE (in Cantonese): President, Hong Kong has suffered the triple blows of the China-United States trade conflicts, a series of social movements and unlawful violent incidents, as well as the recent COVID-19 epidemic. The consequent economic recession and hikes in unemployment rate have greatly affected all industries and people from all strata.
In the 2020-2021 Budget ("the Budget") announced in February this year, the Financial Secretary introduced relief measures amounting to $120 billion to ease the difficulties of the people and enterprises. However, after the Budget announcement, which has only been about two months by now, the spread of the epidemic and its impacts have been more speedy, extensive and profound than many people could have imagined.
Hong Kong, the Mainland, as well as Europe and America, the major economic powers affected by the epidemic, have implemented stringent anti-epidemic measures one after another. As a result, most of the economic activities are suspended, leading to an unceasing tide of wage cut, layoff and business closure. The impacts of the epidemic will definitely be more damaging than the 1998 Asian financial crisis and the 2008 financial tsunami, or even the global economic depression in the 1930s.
The Government has therefore launched two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund and implemented various relief measures involving a total of $167.5 billion. Owing to the implementation of such measures, the recent special work arrangements, and the restraints resulted from the anti-epidemic measures and group gathering ban, the estimated income and expenditure items in this year's Budget and the original policy plans of government departments will likely be affected in the sense that they will be implemented in a slow and sluggish manner. I hope that everyone in the Government will work with one heart to catch up with the progress when the epidemic eases. The Financial Secretary should also redeploy resources and promote the effective use of technology by all government departments, so as to implement the measures, old and new, in a wise way to maintain or even increase the efficiency of the Government.
Speaking of efficiency, the Legislative Council has less than six months to go in its current term, and the actual time available for meeting is less than three months. I call on Members of different sectors and parties to make use of their constitutional power properly in the best interests of the people and do more real work for the public in the remaining term. They should stop stirring up unnecessary political arguments; stop opposing for the sake of opposing or filibustering for the sake of filibustering. 5488 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
President, let me go back to the Appropriation Bill 2020, the Second Reading of which is resumed today. In late February, I criticized that the Budget was waiting for luck to come in respect of reviving the economy. Given that the epidemic has declined recently, it is time for the Government and the entire community to seriously consider how to reboot our economy soon after the epidemic so that Hong Kong can regain its economic impetus expeditiously. In my view, the prime priority is to save all existing enterprises, jobs and talents. It is more important to keep them "alive" than perform the cardiopulmonary resuscitation after they are "dead", thinking that they can come back to life by then.
Before the introduction of the group gathering ban, I had visited close to 100 enterprises in my trade to provide them with face masks and listen in person to their difficulties and demands amid the epidemic. Many trade members told me that what they wanted most was not government grants but work projects that allowed them to stand on their own feet. They also hoped that the Government would help address their imminent risk of capital chain rupture. I think Secretary WONG Kam-sing should understand what they mean.
In the first round of the Anti-epidemic Fund and the Budget, the Government offered a subsidy of $20,000 to $50,000 to each eligible consultancy firm. To most firms in the trade, this subsidy is just better than none. After that, I wrote more than 10 letters to different Directors of Bureaux, Secretaries of Departments and the Chief Executive. I also joined the representatives of the four associations in the Architectural, Surveying, Planning and Landscape ("ASPL") sector to meet with the Chief Executive and government officials of the Development Bureau and other departments.
In the "Anti-epidemic Fund 2.0" launched subsequently, the Government has responded to many of our requests. For example, the Government has committed more than $80 billion in the Employment Support Scheme to provide the first-ever wage subsidies to private enterprises. It has also increased the loan cap of small and medium enterprises ("SMEs") and relaxed their loan terms. Meanwhile, the Government has asked Policy Bureaux and government departments to pay for their architectural, works and consultancy contracts in a more expeditious and frequent manner, so as to ease the cash flow pressure of the trade.
As I pointed out at the meeting of the Finance Committee, the aforesaid measures are far from perfect, and the implementation details of some measures are quite out of touch with the reality. For example, upon the completion of LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5489 certain types of consultancy projects, construction companies may experience natural wastage because some of their contract staff may have their employment contracts expired and some of their employees may be poached by other companies, including the Government. When the staff size reduces in these situations, will the companies concerned be considered as having laid off their staff and hence become ineligible for the wage subsidies or be fined? The Secretary should look into this matter. In fact, the wage subsidy scheme has failed to help the self-employed and freelancers. Also, as employers cannot receive any wage subsidies for their employees aged above 65, this scheme is, in a way, encouraging enterprises to first axe these senior employees.
Anti-epidemic support should be provided quickly rather than slowly. Although I will not oppose the entire appropriation simply because I am not happy with one or two relief schemes, I think the Government should, without prejudicing the underlying principles, refine the implementation of the scheme by being lenient rather than stringent, taking into account the characteristics of different professional services (including those of the ASPL sector) so as to safeguard jobs and professions.
While the Financial Secretary comes from the accountancy sector, Secretary WONG Kam-sing is an architect. I therefore believe that Secretary WONG can well understand our demands in this regard. I also hope that the Financial Secretary will provide the necessary funding support.
Regarding job creation, I advocate that the principles of "swift", "split" and "swell" should be adopted to speed up the award of architectural and consultancy projects. "Swift" means launching new projects quickly and expeditiously before the end of the epidemic to avoid losing the economic stimulating effect. "Split" means dividing a contract into as many parts as possible and avoiding bundling in tendering, thereby enabling more parties to share the pie and benefiting SMEs which are most hard hit by the epidemic. "Swell" means launching more works projects, including those under the existing public toilet refurbishment programme, modification works for public play spaces and promenade extension and beautification projects. Can the Government expand the scope of these projects? This is my suggestion to the Financial Secretary.
I have reflected to the Financial Secretary repeatedly that the Government should further reform its public procurement and tendering system by, first, lowering the weighing of the "lowest bid wins" factor in tender evaluation and, 5490 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 second, breaking oligopoly and trying not to award all government contracts to a few multinational corporations. The Government should somehow introduce the "local first" element to support the development of local professions and SMEs.
According to a recent study of a think tank, various overseas jurisdictions have introduced public procurement policies aiming specifically at supporting local SMEs. For instance, the United Kingdom requires at least one third of its public procurement contracts to be awarded to SMEs while South Korea has gone even further to require that 50% of such contracts be awarded to SMEs. Why can't Hong Kong do the same? I suggest the Government stipulating that at least 30% of its construction works and consultancy contracts should be awarded to local SMEs through tender.
President, during the Budget consultation, I had already suggested the Government subsidizing transport fares with public funds. It should slash all public transport fares in Hong Kong by 50% and maintain this fare reduction for a considerable period of time, so as to encourage local people to take public transport and attract overseas visitors. The Financial Secretary did not adopt this suggestion in the Budget but later included it in the "Anti-epidemic Fund 2.0". Regrettably, the extent and ambit of his proposed fare reduction are not quite the same as what I suggested. Under the Government's proposal, MTR fares will be reduced by 20% starting from July, but this may drive plenty of passengers to take only MTR, thereby affecting other transportation services and the overall transportation efficiency. Why doesn't the Government subsidize the fares of other public transport services?
The Budget has proposed to reduce salaries tax, profits tax and tax under personal assessment, subject to a ceiling of $20,000 per person. However, this amount cannot reflect the adverse impacts of social incidents and virus outbreak on people's income. Many middle-class people and professionals therefore think that they are once again forgotten by the Government. To address this issue, I have previously suggested increasing the tax rebate ceiling significantly to $80,000, and I hope the Financial Secretary will consider my suggestion seriously.
Apart from cash handout, tax rebates and fare reduction, the Government may also increase public expenditure to stimulate the economy. Although fiscal deficit is expected owing to a decline in government revenues in the next few years, the Government should not curtail its investment in city and infrastructure LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5491 development. The building of a smart and livable city has been a hot topic in Hong Kong in recent years. After the current epidemic and the previous social incidents, the building of Hong Kong into a healthier and safer city has received greater support in the community and the trade.
Soon after the outbreak of a series of confirmed cases in Cheung Hong Estate, Tsing Yi, in early February, I went there with experts in the trade to explain how the virus could spread through pipes and asked the Government to inspect the pipes for the residents. Later, I further proposed an "anti-epidemic building inspection scheme" under which residents, schools, homes for the aged and residential care homes for persons with disabilities would receive subsidies for inspection and repair of pipes and ventilation facilities to reduce the risk of virus spread. Although the Government has proposed to inspect the external drainage pipe systems of about 20 000 private buildings, the inspection is not accompanied by repair works. I urge the Financial Secretary to take one more step by, say, offering an anti-epidemic repair subsidy through the existing Operation Building Bright so that residents can feel safe at home, parents can feel at ease with class resumption while jobs can be created.
Regarding the building of a safe city, I suggested before the epidemic outbreak that the Government should allocate resources for the expeditious repair of railings, floor tiles, roads, road signs, lamp posts and other public facilities damaged or graffitied in the social incidents that happened earlier. The Government may also take this opportunity to beautify and redesign those facilities so as to improve their safety, durability, appearance and features. As we have fewer pedestrians and vehicles on the roads these days, it is time for the Government to carry out the said works. Noting that the "Anti-epidemic Fund 2.0" has proposed the beautification of highway structures, I hope the Financial Secretary will earmark sufficient funding to speed up the works progress and carry out more beautification projects. Meanwhile, the Government may organize open design competitions for young professionals to give play to their creativity in selected projects, creating a new look for Hong Kong after the epidemic.
In addition, I hope the Financial Secretary will concur with me that Hong Kong should turn this epidemic crisis into an opportunity and enhance the overall town planning of Hong Kong by, for example, increasing the average living floor area per person, improving health care facilities and planning standards, increasing green public spaces, improving air quality and the provisions on air 5492 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 ventilation and natural lighting, encouraging the research and development of architectural technology and reviewing outdated laws and guidelines, so as to turn Hong Kong into a healthier, safer and smarter city.
President, lastly, I would like to quote the lyrics of Together in the Same Boat, a hit song of "God of Songs" Sam HUI:
"Since we have decided to stay on this boat Together we'll keep it intact and afloat Difficulties and challenges we face bravely Never will the boat capsize … Hong Kong is my home"
I so submit to support the Second Reading of the Appropriation Bill 2020.
MR MICHAEL TIEN (in Cantonese): President, just now, I found that the Financial Secretary did not stay in the Chamber to listen to our annual budget debate. Feeling a bit disappointed, I went out to look for him. He told me that he was working hard, trying to find ways to speed up the handing out of $10,000. Upon hearing his words, I did not ask him to come back and listen to my speech. However, as he is already working on the application procedure today, he should take my advice and start accepting applications in early May instead of early July.
Financial Secretary, I believe this is the most difficult budget in your tenure and probably the toughest ever since the reunification. I hope the drafting of future budgets will not be increasingly difficult. In January, as the six months of unrest had exhausted the vitality of society, many people, including the Roundtable, came to you to voice their opinions. The terrible situation back then was said to be once in a century. I and many others thus called for a universal cash handout of $10,000 to ease the difficulties facing the masses. As many wage earners were underemployed at that time, with their commissions and bonuses greatly reduced, the Government intended to disburse cash to pacify the public and meet their urgent needs. Unfortunately, what is bad can be worse. A few months later, the once-in-a-century situation turned into a once-in-two-centuries crisis. Many of those who were once satisfied with the cash handout initiative are now asking the Government to do more.
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Speed is crucial in disbursing cash. Many people are waiting for the "life-saving" $10,000 from the Government, and they often ask me when the money will be disbursed. At the special meetings of the Finance Committee in early April, I asked the Government why the application for cash handout would only be accepted in July, considering that the funding application was expected to get through the Legislative Council by the end of April. I then called on the Government to accept applications within one week after the funding approval so as to speed up the process. The Secretary, however, just gave me a general reply, saying that as the system used in 2011 had been removed, the Government had to rebuild a new system for the current cash handout exercise. Yet, I was not told how much time would be needed, how the system would be built, what kind of system it would be and what had been removed. Is the work related to rewriting a programme or collecting data? If it is related to the collection of data, the data can only be verified upon the receipt of applications, and all one has to do is to develop a system for applicants to fill in their information. I still cannot figure out what the Government is trying to say.
Before the epidemic, I had already requested the Government to, among others, increase the tax rebate ceiling to $35,000, waive the rents of public rental housing for two months and lower the eligible ages for "fruit grant" and Health Care Vouchers to 65 and 60 respectively. To the grass roots, these initiatives can be their lifesavers. Similarly, many marginal middle-class people are in hardship because they are burdened with household expenses, particularly rents and mortgage repayment. It is hence important for the tax rebate ceiling to be increased to $35,000, allowing an additional rebate of $15,000. As for the suggestion of lowering the eligible age for Health Care Vouchers to 60, I do not only mean to help the elderly because, as reflected in this epidemic, primary care and community medical service are very important. I hence made this suggestion to benefit Hong Kong in the long run.
The $2 concessionary fare for the elderly is an initiative that the Government has promised to extend but a timetable has yet to be provided. When I met with the Financial Secretary on 3 January to give views on the Budget, I requested that the eligible age for the $2 concessionary fare be lowered from 65 to 60. My "old friends" and I were overjoyed when we learnt in mid-January that the Government had accepted our request. We also appreciate the efforts of the Government in combating the abuse of "green cards" at the same time by seeking to abolish the "green cards" after all citizens aged 60 or above 5494 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 have got a Personalized Octopus. Nevertheless, the Government should not keep the "old friends" waiting until the abuse problem can be solved because, first of all, they are not the ones who abuse the use of "green cards" and, second, the two initiatives do not contradict one another. As a matter of fact, most of the elderly over 65 years of age do not use Personalized Octopus. Instead, they tend to use the "green card", which is available for sale to everyone. The only downside is that the elderly may be stopped and asked about their age before entering the gate. So, why doesn't the Government simply allow people aged between 60 and 65 to use "green cards"? There is no point to keep them waiting for one more year just because a new programme has to be written to cover people aged between 60 and 65. If the Government announces today that people aged between 60 and 65 are allowed to buy a "green card" to pay their fares without being prosecuted, the extension of fare concession is done. It requires no extra efforts but the Government simply refuses to do so.
While I understand that the Government is working hard to support different industries, the Financial Secretary should know that omission is inevitable no matter how hard he works. Recently, various trades have convened press conferences one after another to complain about being omitted by the Financial Secretary. Even if the Financial Secretary launches a few more rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund, there are still omissions. In view of this, I have to once again put forward my repeated proposal of deducting rent from tax payable. Although I will not go into details of this proposal, I would like to tell the Government earnestly that rent, rather than wage, is the biggest cost of many businesses in Hong Kong. In order to safeguard jobs, it is far more effective for the Government to urge landlords to reduce rent than to provide wage subsidies.
President, after I made this proposal at the Finance Committee meeting last week, the Permanent Secretary replied in that morning that tax concession was not a strong incentive to reduce rent because only 9% of companies had to pay taxes in Hong Kong. This view is, however, hard to understand. The point is not how many companies are paying taxes in Hong Kong but how much tax revenue comes from rental income. Assuming that in the most extreme case, only one company is paying tax in Hong Kong. As this company collects commercial rents all over the territory, its aggregate rental income is astronomical. If the Government allows the company to deduct rent from tax payable, other companies will also be greatly benefited, right?
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I later followed up my question in the afternoon and asked the Permanent Secretary the rationale behind this logic. She then corrected herself by saying that it was a matter of principle as the Government did not want to interfere in the market. I cannot but ask: Which of the measures under the two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund has not interfered in the market? When the Government grants subsidies to different industries and even takes the initiative to offer rental concessions, is it intervening in the market? Yes, it is, but in a selective and ineffective manner. While all shops are granted with a subsidy of $80,000, some are indeed making more money than they did in the previous year, while some have experienced an 80% plunge in sales. Is it fair for all shops to receive $80,000? Government measures often end up like this. By contrast, my proposal will leave the decision-making to landlords, given that they know which tenants must have an 80% rent cut and which tenants will be more than happy not to have a rent rise.
The fact that only 9% of companies have to pay tax has brought up two other problems. First, there is something wrong with our tax regime, and I will explain that later. Second, the remaining 90% of companies fail to make profits because they have to pay expensive rents to the 9% of companies making profits. The reply of the Permanent Secretary has actually revealed the sad story in Hong Kong over the years. In fact, most of the businessmen and enterprises in Hong Kong are working for the landlords. How can people start a business in this miserable reality?
My other suggestion is related to the transport issue that I am most concerned about, i.e. bus services. While Secretary Frank CHAN has a clear picture about the problem with bus frequency, I would like to seek help from the Financial Secretary. Currently, commuters mainly travel by bus or train. Of course, taxi and minibus are other options. During the epidemic, the serious drop in patronage has left bus companies with no choice but to cut bus trips to save costs. Given the large number of complaints received recently, I joined the representatives of The Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited ("KMB"), New World First Bus Services Limited ("NWFB") and Citybus Limited ("Citybus") to discuss the frequency issue with the Secretary. This week, the bus frequency has finally got back to some 80% or 90% of that before the epidemic. That is the utmost bus companies can do. Why are they willing to increase the bus frequency? It is because KMB has received a subsidy of about $1 billion and Citybus and NWFB a subsidy of some $200 million to increase the bus frequency.
5496 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Yet, the MTR Corporation Limited ("MTRCL") will later provide a 20% fare concession for six months, and the bus companies may then have to reduce bus frequency again. In fact, the bus companies should also reduce their fares by 20% in the same period. Why? I am not sure whether other Members of the Legislative Council have calculated the difference in fares after concession, but I think the Transport and Housing Bureau has not done so. Suppose a monthly pass user has to travel from Sheung Shui to Admiralty, based on the fares today and including the interchange discount with cross-harbour routes and the Government's fare subsidy, he needs to pay $700 a month for either bus trips or MTR rides. Nevertheless, once the MTR fare concession becomes effective and after the revision of the fare subsidy cap, the monthly MTR fare will dive from $695 to $480, as compared to the monthly bus fare declining from $700 to about $590 or $600.
In other words, during the six-month concessionary period of MTRCL, the monthly bus fare, which used to be more or less the same as the monthly MTR fare, will incur $100 more. In this case, bus passengers will certainly turn to take MTR, right? Then, what about passengers of other bus routes? Passengers commuting between Tuen Mun and Admiralty will find the difference between new fares even more drastic. At present, it is $65 cheaper for a monthly pass user to take buses than MTR. Yet, in the upcoming MTR concessionary period, the monthly bus fare will be $120 higher than the monthly MTR fare, giving rise to a difference of $185, or close to $200. I am quite sure that no one will take long haul buses in those six months as all passengers will turn to take MTR.
However, as we all know, the West Rail Line is the only rail line operated by MTRCL in New Territories West. Can it accommodate the increasing passengers? When passengers of cross-harbour bus routes flock to take the West Rail to save as many as $200 a month, I wonder how the consequent problems can be solved. It is disappointing that the Government cannot even address such a simple matter. In fact, all it has to do is provide the same subsidy to bus companies to offer a 20% fare concession. Given that bus companies cannot afford to share half of the cost in providing fare concession, the Government should provide them with full subsidy to cover all of the 20% concession. I do not mind the Government giving full subsidy to MTRCL as well to cover the cost of the remaining 10% concession because the sum of interest that the Government has obtained from its 70% shareholding in MTRCL is sufficient to cover the subsidy. How come the Government has to make things so complicated?
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Lastly, I would like to discuss two long-term structural problems of similar nature. No one bothers to deal with these problems the good times, and yet no one can give a ready solution when facing the imminent problems. Regrettably, no matter how many times I try to draw attention to these problems, no one is willing to listen to me.
The first problem concerns public health care. In the past few years, the Government always took stopgap measures to deal with the influenza surge. I have once consulted some frontline health care staff if a long-term solution could be devised. According to them, space is vital in dealing with infectious diseases, but the biggest problem is that the necessary space may lie idle most of the year, only to be used during the surge. To the Government, this arrangement may not be cost-effective. However, after the current epidemic, I believe the Government must consider this solution. I learnt from the SARS report that the construction of an infectious disease building was once proposed. Although this building would seldom be used, it could provide the necessary space in times of an outbreak of influenza A or new pneumonia. Unfortunately, this proposal was not followed up. Even if we do not talk about the once-in-a-decade novel pneumonia, can we guarantee that there will be no outbreak of influenza in future, affecting a large number of people?
Another long-term problem is about the tax regime. I supported the Financial Secretary's move to set up the Tax Policy Unit years ago. Yet, what has the Unit achieved so far? As pointed out by the Financial Secretary in the Budget, the financial situation of the Government will be tough in the foreseeable future. At first, the Financial Secretary forecasted in February that the fiscal reserves could meet 16 months of government expenditure at year-end. However, this calculation had not yet taken into account the $100 billion to be used for the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund. After deducting the $100 billion, the remaining reserves will only be enough for 13 months of recurrent expenditure, but there may still be a few more rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund. The Financial Secretary also forecasted a deficit for the next five years, yet the welfare, health care and other expenditure to meet the ageing population and the $500 billion earmarked for implementing the 10-year Hospital Development Plan have not been taken in to account. These figures are more than terrifying. So, how can the Government not immediately consider reforming the tax regime?
5498 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
I wish to tell the Financial Secretary that it is high time for tax reform. However, I will not propose to make any changes in tax types or tax rates for fear of political controversy. President, Hong Kong's simple and low tax regime has always been unfair because the richest people are not required to pay tax while the most profitable economic activities are tax-free. Wealth gap and social conflicts have hence been created. Therefore, I would suggest the Government exploring the introduction of various capital gains taxes, such as the so-called "property speculation tax", dividend tax and interest tax. As for the luxury tax, the more expensive the non-essential item (e.g. car) is, the higher the tax rate should be, so as to render the luxury tax an alternative sales tax.
To conclude, I would say that in principle, the tax regime should be reformed by increasing tax types, extending the tax net as far as possible and maintaining a relatively low tax rate to give the Government stable tax revenues. I urge the Government to reform the tax regime based on the principles of fairness and stability. Regarding the issues of health care and tax reform, although I know there will not be any immediate solutions even if they are raised today, the Secretary can afford no delay in thinking of solutions. I hope he will consider my proposals after disbursing $10,000.
MR CHRISTOPHER CHEUNG (in Cantonese): President, I speak today to express my full support for the Budget of Financial Secretary Paul CHAN to support enterprises, safeguard jobs and relieve people's burden. My reason is very simple. When our economy and people's livelihood are hard hit by the epidemic, the Financial Secretary has acted boldly by providing relief measures to benefit all members of the public. The Financial Secretary has even proposed a Budget with a high deficit of $139.1 billion, among which $120 billion will be spent on anti-epidemic initiatives, benefiting the general working class directly. I have to commend the Financial Secretary for his boldness, commitment and vision.
In face of the unprecedented epidemic, the business revenues of many industries have dropped sharply by some 70% to 80%, and even reaching the rock bottom. The room for survival is challenged significantly, affecting tens of thousands of employees. With companies closing down, employees lost their jobs. The latest unemployment rate has reached 4.2%. If the Financial LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5499
Secretary still refuses to offer reliefs, enterprises will fall like dominoes, closing down one after another, making the post-epidemic recovery of the Hong Kong economy even more difficult. Therefore, supporting enterprises is essential in supporting the economy, and in turn safeguarding jobs. I believe that the 100% loan guarantee scheme for small and medium enterprises launched by the Financial Secretary can avoid the massive closure of enterprises, thereby safeguarding employees' jobs.
The most welcomed initiative in the Budget is definitely the cash subsidy of $10,000 that benefits all people. Under the impact of the epidemic, members of the public are very anxious and hope that the "contingency money" can be disbursed earlier. Also, they expect that the relevant application procedures can be as simple and convenient as possible, such that the money can be swiftly disbursed in July.
In order to cope with this epidemic, the Budget has made arrangements on tax refund and rates waiver, rolled out a number of employment and training programmes to encourage employers to hire staff of various ages, and increased the allowance for retrainees, benefiting tens of thousands of employees. In addition, direct support is rendered to a number of affected industries. All these measures are greatly conducive to saving enterprises and safeguarding jobs.
Two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund and the relief measures in the Budget will amount to some $300 billion, accounting for more than 10% of the Gross Domestic Product. Consequently, the credit rating agencies has downgraded Hong Kong's rating. I believe this is only a short-term impact because the epidemic will be over someday. If we can protect enterprises and safeguard jobs today, it will lay a solid foundation for economic recovery tomorrow. Therefore, I thank the Financial Secretary for agreeing to support the financial sector in this round of the Anti-epidemic Fund, so as to boost the morale of small and medium securities dealers and licensed practitioners who are operating in hardship. As such, they can feel the Government's understanding of their contributions.
However, someone has deliberately smeared the well intention of the SAR Government, saying that the Government is safeguarding the interests of the functional constituencies. This is indeed a very big insult to the sector. It also 5500 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 reflects these people's total ignorance of the operation environment of the financial sector. They can be called the "financial desert". When the epidemic is over, Hong Kong as a financial centre still has to continue with its development. Hence, I agree that strengthening financial cooperation with the Mainland should be the direction for development, as proposed by the Financial Secretary in the Budget. Apart from taking forward expeditiously the new fiscal philosophy, we also have to launch the Exchange Traded Fund ("ETF") Connect, Southbound Trading of Bond Connect, Primary Equity Connect, Commodities Connect, and the market connectivity for derivatives, etc. We can even make use of the innovative mode for early and pilot implementation, so as to meet as far as possible the rapidly growing demand in financial management services amongst residents in the Greater Bay Area. In the meantime, we should proactively arrange Chinese concept stocks to seek a secondary listing in Hong Kong, so as to facilitate their inclusion in the mutual market access scheme as soon as possible. By doing so, we will open another door to Chinese concept stocks and allow Mainland investors to invest in more quality stocks, thereby reinforcing Hong Kong's status as a financial centre. This is precisely "killing several birds with one stone". Hence, I hope the Government can put in more efforts to lobby the Mainland Government to work in coordination.
Though the epidemic this year has dealt a heavy blow to Hong Kong's real economy, the financial market of Hong Kong has not been shattered despite huge fluctuations. Transactions in the market operate normally, fund flows are orderly and the Linked Exchange Rate is very stable. All these indicate Hong Kong's greatest edges in being the financial centre of the State. Hong Kong has to fully demonstrate its existing edges and make early planning to start anew after the epidemic, so as to attain the sustainable development of the economy. In order to strengthen the competitiveness of our financial market, the Financial Secretary has decided to waive the stamp duty on stock transfers paid by ETF market makers in the course of creating and redeeming ETF units listed in Hong Kong. I think this policy offers substantial benefits to promote the vibrant development of the ETF market. At the same time, the authorities should consider extending the market-making system to penny stocks and the Growth Enterprise Market to promote the trading of stocks, so that retail investors will also have the chance to sell their stocks, instead of not being able to encash after buying in. In order to further stabilize the market, I propose adopting special arrangements for special circumstances under the epidemic conditions. In respect of increase in shareholding by shareholders, I propose that the purchase LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5501 rate of 2% for majority shareholders should be slightly relaxed to 2.5% or 3%, so as to prevent retail investors being forced to sell their stocks at a very low price. This is conducive to stabilizing the financial market.
President, in paragraph 51 of the Budget speech, the Financial Secretary mentions that: "We will continue to fulfil the dual roles of facilitator and regulator. While consolidating our strengths and developing the market, we will ensure that our regulatory framework can keep pace with the times, manage systemic risks effectively and provide protection for investors." I strongly endorse this point, especially on the protection for investors. In this connection, I have to mention the dividend incident of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited ("HSBC"). While we can understand that the regulatory authority in the United Kingdom requires banks to have sufficient liquidity to cope with the epidemic, it is unreasonable for HSBC to suddenly revoke, after the ex-dividend date, its previous decision to pay dividend. HSBC has not only gone back on its words, but also blatantly undermined the legitimate rights and interests of shareholders, which is tantamount to a big financial scam. After HSBC halted the dividend payment, the United Kingdom Government directed the bank to use its internal capital to offer interest-free loans to British enterprises. Such a practice has ignored the fact that HSBC Hong Kong is the largest contributor of profits to the group. The act of robbing Hong Kong to subsidize British enterprises is indeed unacceptable and infuriating.
In fact, since HSBC revoked the dividend payment, countless HSBC shareholders have complained to me in tears, saying that they are long-term loyal supporters of HSBC who have invested their hard-earned money over the years or even all their life savings in HSBC shares. They are honest investors who do not think of getting rich overnight, they just want to get reasonable return via their normal investment. Given that HSBC has suddenly reneged on its promise and cancelled the dividend payment, investors will suffer double losses in respect of capital and dividend, and many retired persons who live on HSBC dividend may lost their means of living …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Christopher CHEUNG, please return to the subject of this debate.
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MR CHRISTOPHER CHEUNG (in Cantonese): President, I need to speak on this issue as it is related to the protection of investor's interests.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Please discuss how the Government should respond.
MR CHRISTOPHER CHEUNG (in Cantonese): Alright, I will come to this point soon. President, given that the senior management of HSBC ended the matter by just saying "deeply sorry" or "express sympathy", I hope the Government and the Securities and Futures Commission will speak out for the small investors in Hong Kong and claim justice
Lastly, I want to point out that our prospect is still bleak, suffering from internal and external setbacks. On the one hand, the epidemic is not yet fully under control, and the economy is under pressure; on the other hand, the disturbances arising from the opposition to the proposed legislative amendments since the middle of last year have dealt a heavy blow to Hong Kong, resulting in a negative economic growth that is rarely seen in recent years. While the wounds of society are yet to be healed, the sudden onset of the recent epidemic has added to the misfortunes of our economy. Our ranking as a global financial centre has fallen behind Tokyo, Shanghai and Singapore; and the unsettling Sino-United States relationship has brought many challenges to Hong Kong. Therefore, the task of economic reconstruction in future will be very tough. I hope that the Financial Secretary will put forward more farsighted, dynamic and forward-looking measures to revive the economy, and give full play to Hong Kong's advantage of having the Mainland as our hinterland while maintaining an international outlook. Moreover, the new governing team of the SAR Government should paint a new picture for members of the public, making them aware of the advantages of "one country, two systems" and the benefits of leveraging the Mainland, thereby refusing to "burn together" and committed to working in concerted effort to maintain social stability. Only in this way can Hong Kong see a bright future as soon as possible when the epidemic is over.
With these remarks, President, I support the early passage of the Budget.
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MR JEFFREY LAM (in Cantonese): President, within just two months after the Budget delivery, the situations in Hong Kong and the world have changed completely. During this period of time, many people have been on pins and needles, and they are so worried that their hair has turned grey. When facing the current crisis, employers or employees from different trades and industries have been greatly impacted.
The Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong and I think that the Budget and other relief measures should be put in place as soon as possible to help the public and enterprises tide over this difficult period. The social unrest last year has dealt a heavy blow to many economic activities, rendering business operation impossible and depleting operators with most of their savings. At the beginning of the year, we expected that the situation would turn for the better, but unexpectedly, the outbreak of the epidemic has resulted in a lockdown of places around the world, and all businesses have almost come to a standstill. Up till now, we still fail to see a ray of hope. It is not easy to maintain business as operators may hardly afford to pay rent and wages. If the Government does not provide assistance as soon as possible, businessmen really cannot sustain their business any further.
In the Budget, the Government has accepted our proposal of providing small and medium enterprises ("SMEs") with the special 100% loan guarantee. Under this guarantee, a loan up to the total amount of employee wages and rents for six months chargeable at a particularly low interest rate is provided. During this period of time, SMEs can also apply for principal moratorium. After the announcement of the scheme, people in the business sector told me that these measures could help them. With the Government's guarantee, banks, being risk-free, will naturally provide loans for the business sector to continue with their business.
Besides, in such a difficult environment, the relief measures introduced in the past are also indispensable. These measures, which include waiver of business registration fees and licensing fees, rates concession, water and electricity charge remission, etc., can at least slightly relieve the burden of the public. Although last year the Government accepted our proposal of paying tax by instalments, I believe that more companies and members of the public would have been benefited if the Government had accepted our other proposal of extending tax payment deadline automatically.
5504 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
President, as long as the operators can still continue with their business, they will not easily admit failure and close down their business. Moreover, I believe that even if the epidemic is very serious, people will ultimately win the battle against the virus. How will the economy be rejuvenated then? Where there is hope, a comeback can be made. If the economy is to recover, we have to rely on enterprises and employees for a speedy resumption of operation after the epidemic. For this reason, during this period of time, we often meet with the Government, banks, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority ("HKMA"), and so on to explore ways that can really support enterprises and safeguard jobs.
During the past period of time, the Government has taken good advice in implementing many measures to support the economy. The largest moves are of course implementing the Employment Support Scheme ("ESS") which funds employers' salary expenses, granting allowances to different industries, and relieving enterprises' cash flow difficulties. Companies and employees are actually in the same boat in that many people will lose their jobs and join the unemployed population if companies close down. The $9,000 allowance provided by the Government is to safeguard the jobs of employees. It is always better for them to stay in work than to become unemployed. However, there are still many uncertainties with regard to the implementation details of ESS. While I support disbursing allowances as soon as possible, the Government should at the same time enhance publicity and make continuous improvements, so that people will know how to calculate the amount receivable.
After ESS was announced, I have received many calls from people saying that they do not quite understand the calculation method. Only people with an IQ of at least 160 can do such calculation. Therefore, I hope that Secretaries of Departments and Directors of Bureaux can devise a simple and easily comprehensible way to provide assistance to the public.
ESS has not covered some people, including employees over 60 years old. They have been working conscientiously, but are unfortunately excluded from the scheme because of the issue concerning the Mandatory Provident Fund. The Government should think of ways to help these people.
Besides, the Government is willing to guarantee loan repayment, while HKMA has also reduced the capital buffer and relaxed the lending limits. We also suggest that banks should allow commercial customers to enjoy principal moratorium in respect of their loans. We put forward these measures and LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5505 proposals to facilitate the securing of bank loans by enterprises to meet their liquidity needs, and at the same time, to reserve some money to meet necessary expenses for continuous business operation.
Being a representative of the business sector, I have many years of experience in running business and have a good understanding of different industries. Employers greatly treasure their companies, staff and the relationship with their clients, which are the valuable assets accumulated over a long period of time. Employers have worked painstakingly with their staff to maintain the company's reputation. Closing down is not as easy as what one may imagine, because employers have to dismiss staff and sell their assets. Employers will not lightly give up unless they are desperate. Therefore, I sincerely call on Members not to manipulate politics anymore and not to treat "mutual destruction" as something casual. The employment rate has risen to 4.2%. While the epidemic may cause deaths, people who are affected by the poor economy may also die from poverty and hunger. This may have a long-term effect on the physical and mental well-being of the whole family. Opposition Members keep making criticisms without undertaking real work. After crippling the Legislative Council and society, their livelihood will not be affected because they receive support from foreign countries. However, many members of the public and businessmen have been working day and night to support their families and diligently build our home, Hong Kong. Opposition Members have made no contribution; they have racked their brains in putting Hong Kong to death, crippling Hong Kong and rendering the public unable to make a living. Do they still have conscience? Therefore, Members should really stop procrastinating. Rescuing the market is tantamount to saving life, which really brooks no further delays.
President, as stated in the Budget, we are now saving for a rainy day, which is always better than praying at the eleventh hour. Hong Kong has all along had over $1,000 billion in reserves. While we should adopt a proactive and innovative way of using the reserves, we also have to be prudent. Unfortunately, some people often casually put forward proposals of using the reserves. If the money had really been spent casually according to their proposals, we would have had difficulties in supporting the public and the affected enterprises today. Even if the reserves are ample, they can actually be used up quickly, as evident from the fact that the Government has spent $200 billion in one go.
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For enterprises, they suffered great loss last year, and they have really been driven into a quagmire this year. As Secretary Christopher HUI took office today, I very much hope that he will bring us a new style of governance. He is a financial expert, and I am fully aware that financial policies are very important to the development of our industrial and commercial sectors and the society as a whole. The current economic conditions are severe in that the United States is printing unlimited amount of money, crude oil futures are surprisingly going negative, and many other countries are taking strong measures to fight the epidemic. We can foresee that places or countries adjacent to Hong Kong will issue bonds in future, thereby affecting the exchange rates and the bond market of Hong Kong. For this reason, I had, some time ago, called on the Government to decide expeditiously the issuance of bonds, especially at a time when we still have hefty reserves. The issuance of bonds will not only increase the flexibility of resource deployment but also minimize the impact on Hong Kong dollars. Otherwise, when other places or countries have issued bonds to absorb a large quantity of funds, it will be more difficult for us to attract buyers even if we issue bonds again.
In the past, when businessmen made profits from their businesses, they might also buy factories and offices apart from continuing their investments. However, at the present difficult moment, their properties are nonetheless locked by the "curb" measures as they have to pay 20% to 30% more tax when they sell their properties. They may also have to lower the selling price. In fact, it is also not easy to find buyers nowadays. I hope that Secretary Christopher HUI will have a new way of thinking. Under the constraint of the "curb" measures for years, not only has the property market been affected, but the financial market and real economic activities have also been changed. I think a review should be conducted immediately, and the measures should be loosened where necessary.
President, the Government has introduced many regulatory laws over the past 10 years. Have the authorities considered how the industrial and commercial sectors are affected by each regulatory measure? The impacts include additional expenses, increased workload and even complaints from clients. The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce has proposed that the Government should, when planning to enact a new law, take into account the impacts brought by the new regulation. The Government should also review whether the restrictions imposed over the years are repetitive and unnecessary. To our disappointment, the Government has not faced this problem squarely and has still adopted the old way of thinking to handle the problem.
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When the Secretary was drafting this year's Budget, the situation back then was entirely different from the current environment. In fact, many contents need to be adjusted. For example, there is an item on promoting cruise tourism under the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau (Commerce, Industry and Tourism Branch). Under the current situation, should resources still be allocated to promoting cruise tourism? In fact, the manpower in this respect can be adjusted and the Government can make more changes to facilitate the situation. For example, airline companies have almost come to a complete standstill. Almost all planes are now grounded at the airport, affecting not only people flow, but also freight transport. It now takes a longer time for people to send a box of face masks to their overseas relatives and friends or to deliver some goods and materials from overseas back to Hong Kong. There is even no direct flight in some places as flights have almost stopped in every country. The Government should do some coordination work to maintain reasonable air traffic, which will not only keep airline companies in business to some extent but also facilitate freight and courier services. I think this can help online shopping or the delivery of business documents.
President, finally, I would like to say that the current environment has completely changed and we cannot return to the old days. While we have done quite well in fighting the epidemic, the global situations are more serious: when transport can resume is unknown; the flow of people and goods have been suspended; hundreds of millions of people around the world are forced to stay at home and mandatorily required to maintain social distancing; it is unknown when foreign countries can place orders again. On the other hand, even when the epidemic ends, we will also have to consider the attitude of western countries towards China. We really have to give due consideration to this issue and make good preparation for the future at this moment in time. Here, I would like to express my sincere wish for Hong Kong and I wish that every Hong Kong people will stay healthy, physically and mentally, and that we will defeat the virus at an earlier date (The buzzer sounded) … and improve the economy and people's livelihood.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Jeffrey LAM, please stop speaking.
I now suspend the meeting until 5:15 pm.
5508 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
4:45 pm
Meeting suspended.
5:15 pm
Council then resumed.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Kenneth LAU, please speak.
MR KENNETH LAU (in Cantonese): President, the drafting of this year's Budget should be the most difficult over the years. Heated social controversies and violent incidents, triggered by the movement of opposition to the proposed legislative amendments since June last year, have impacted various sectors and industries.
While the Government is engaged in stopping violence and curbing disorder, and trying to restore social order, there is a worldwide outbreak of novel coronavirus. People are living in fear, as evident from the long queues of people snapping up face masks, rice and toilet rolls. Last month, the Government announced "the order to prohibit group gatherings". Under this order, the food and beverage industry is required to comply with six major rules, and the operation of fitness rooms, places of entertainment, and so on has to be suspended. Hence, many wage earners are underemployed, and even have to take no-pay leave. The latest unemployment rate has reached a 10-year high level of 4.2%.
Although villages in the New Territories are not so densely populated as the urban areas, the villagers are very worried about being infected by the novel virus. The Junior Police Call Permanent Activity Centre at Pat Heung and Chun Yeung Estate in Fo Tan which have been requisitioned as quarantine centres, and the three isolation centres in the Sai Kung district are in close proximity to the residential areas. Since the Lunar New Year, all villages in the New Territories have, in response to the Government's call for disease prevention and control, cancelled all large and small-scale gatherings and memorial ceremonies in order LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5509 to avoid group gatherings. As everyone has a role to play in preventing and controlling the disease, the Heung Yee Kuk dares not slacken its efforts. It has cancelled many large-scale meetings and focused its resources on supporting the villagers affected by the epidemic. As a token of care, the Heung Yee Kuk has distributed anti-epidemic supplies to 27 villages, including giving face masks and air purifiers to the villagers of Kwai Tei New Village which is situated next to Chun Yeung Estate in Fo Tan. It has drawn villagers' attention to epidemic information and produced a series of short clips on anti-epidemic tips to promote hygiene in rural areas.
Furthermore, the Heung Yee Kuk has just set aside a sum of $3 million from its reserves to support the rural committees of 27 villages. It has provided each village with $100,000. For Pat Heung in Sha Tin and the three rural committees in Sai Kung affected by the isolation centres set up by the Government, an additional $100,000 was granted for purchasing anti-epidemic equipment and necessary supplies to meet the urgent needs of villagers.
President, in the face of the epidemic, all groups and organizations are eager to find ways to help the public tide over the difficult situation. This year's Budget focuses on fighting the epidemic and relieving people's burden. The Government has introduced measures to support enterprises, safeguard jobs and relieve people's burden, and if the two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund are also taken into account, the amount of allowances has reached an unprecedented level of $287.5 billion. The Financial Secretary has used public funds generously to relieve people's hardship, which is actually returning wealth to the people. The amount spent on rescuing the market represents 9.5% of the Gross Domestic Product, which is equivalent to the total revenues from land premium and profits tax in 2019.
Profits tax, land premium, stamp duty and salaries tax have all along been the four major sources of government revenue. Due to economic downturn, government revenue in 2019-2020 has significantly reduced by $58.8 billion when compared with the original estimates. The reduction is mainly attributed to a decrease in revenues from profits tax and salaries tax. However, thanks to the strong foundation of Hong Kong, the Government can use more than $1,000 billion in reserves to support the short-term huge expenses. Nevertheless, I must remind the Government that owing to rapid population ageing, tax revenue is expected to be dwindling while expenditure on health care benefits will be 5510 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 increasing gradually year on year. Therefore, the Government must be mindful of Hong Kong's long-term fiscal affordability, and manage its finances prudently so as to avoid entering a structural fiscal deficit cycle.
President, the first priority of Hong Kong is to safeguard the economy. However, will the situation turns out well by supporting enterprises and safeguarding jobs? When Hong Kong's economy rebounds, we cannot evade the deep-rooted problem that the public do not trust the Government and that the relationship between the Legislature and the Executive Authorities has broken down. If the Government fails to gain public support and trust, it will be more difficult for the District Council and the Legislative Council to operate effectively. Taking the election of the Chairman and the deputy Chairman of the House Committee of the Legislative Council as an example, despite 15 meetings have been held so far, spending more than 24 hours and wasting over $6.8 million of public money, a chairman and a deputy chairman have yet to be elected. Opposition Members have stopped at nothing to make the House Committee cease operation for more than half a year and hinder other Members from performing their duties, so as to ruin people's livelihood and their well-being as a whole. Such despicable behaviour is heinous.
One of the major functions of the Legislative Council is to scrutinize legislation. Since the House Committee fails to elect a chairman, 14 bills and 89 items of subsidiary legislation cannot be handled so far. Many items of legislation that are closely related to people's livelihood, including the legislation on extension of statutory maternity leave, the Trade Marks Ordinance which is very important to Hong Kong's competitiveness, the legislation regulating the guesthouse industry and promoting the development of the insurance industry, as well as the National Anthem Bill the scrutiny of which has been completed, have all come to a standstill. As only three months are left in the current term of the Legislative Council, the bills will lapse if their scrutiny cannot be completed. I call on opposition Members to get back onto the right track and resolve problems pragmatically. They should not gamble with people's interests to gain political mileage.
Next, I wish to talk about this Budget from the perspective of rural areas. As the Government may be heavily engaged in fighting the epidemic, the Budget has devoted little resources in rural development. The Government simply extends the Pier Improvement Programme and the project to enhance the coverage of optical fibre networks in remote rural areas, which have been LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5511 implemented over the years. After years of discussion, the development of rural areas is still at the stage of water supply, power connection, road construction and connection of optical fibres. There are no innovative new ideas on the sustainable development of the rural areas. Some villagers have told me that the scheme on optical fibres only provide subsidy to fixed network operators to lay optical fibres to the vicinity of the entrances of the villages. As some villages are built on hillside, villagers have to pay high installation fees to have the optical fibres laid to their villages and homes. Villagers who cannot afford the fees cannot enjoy high-speed Internet connection. It is hoped that the Government can provide more funding to subsidize fixed network operators to lay optical fibres to villages and homes.
President, in January this year, the Heung Yee Kuk proposed to the Financial Secretary to develop the rural New Territories into tourist areas to boost the local economy and genuinely activate the community. The epidemic has caused a lockdown of countries around the world, disrupting the outbound travel plans of the public. As many members of the public have taken this opportunity to visit the countryside, it is a good opportunity to promote local tours. In 2018, the Hong Kong Tourism Board launched the Pilot Scheme to Promote In-depth Green Tourism to support the tourist industry in developing five green tourism products with an expenditure of $4.5 million only. I think the resources put in this respect are not sufficient.
Over the past few years, I have been fighting for the opening of the restricted area in Sha Tau Kok because this area, with pier facilities already in place, possesses the basic conditions for developing tourism. Also, the area is gifted with unique historical cultural heritage and rich geological landscape, and Yan Chau Tong Marine Park is also in its vicinity. If the Government removes barriers, Sha Tau Kok can surely be developed into a green tourism product of great attraction and novelty, providing the public with one more good place to visit during their holidays, and offering tourists one more option.
The Heung Yee Kuk has all along advised the Government to allocate $5 billion to set up a rural development fund to provide funding for five major areas, such as rural infrastructure development, tourism promotion, cultural inheritance, nature conservation and assistance in special incidents. It is hoped that the Government will give more thought to this proposal after the epidemic.
5512 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
A colour symbolizing earth has been selected for the cover of this year's Budget. I also wish to take this opportunity to talk about the long-term land use planning in Hong Kong. President, I declare that I am the representative of the indigenous inhabitants of Lung Kwu Tan Village and I have lands in Lung Kwu Tan.
It has recently been reported by the media that the Government intends to directly submit the funding proposal for the engineering study for Lung Kwu Tan reclamation to the Finance Committee for scrutiny in order to have it passed in this current session. On the issue of shortage of land supply, people have expressed divided views on the Lantau Tomorrow plan. There is a saying that the Government, thinking that the resistance against the Lung Kwu Tan reclamation project is smaller, wishes to have the relevant funding proposal passed in the current session, so as to achieve something in land supply. Here, I hope the Government will understand that villagers of Lung Kwu Tan have clearly stated their opposition against the reclamation from the outset. The colour of the sand in Lung Kwu Tan beach is not vibrant earthy as the cover of the Budget, but natural greyish black.
I have said repeatedly in the Legislative Council that many obnoxious facilities have been built in the vicinity of Lung Kwu Tan Village since the development of Tuen Mun New Town. Every day, heavy vehicles and refuse collection vehicles pass by Lung Kwu Tan Road, making the place dusty. The noise and air pollution problems have caused nuisance to the villagers for years. In the early years, the Government promised the villagers to construct a tunnel, with the entrance and exit at Hong Po Road, Lam Tei, Tuen Mun. However, the Government has yet to honour its undertaking. The villagers were already very dissatisfied with the handling of the Government, and the news that the funding proposal for the reclamation project will be submitted to the Finance Committee directly has further infuriated them. I call on the Government not to take the short cut. Instead, it must face and address the villagers' demands and undertake to improve their quality of life, which include constructing more roads and improving the problems of noise and air pollution, saltwater intrusion and sewer blockage.
Finally, I wish to talk about the health care policy and measures that everyone is concerned about. As the problem of population ageing in Hong Kong is serious, the Government has introduced the Voluntary Health Insurance Scheme. Under this Scheme, some people can be diverted to private health care LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5513 services, thereby reducing the Government's expenditure on health care benefits in the long run. The Scheme has been favourably received. Within half a year after the implementation of the Scheme, 300 000 members of the public have already taken out the insurance, and among them, around half of the insured persons are below 40 years old.
Apart from offsetting public health care expenditures with insurance, it is also a global trend to use technology to relieve the burden on public health care and manpower resources. Recently, some surveys have found that more than 80% of the respondents have expressed great interest in using intelligent products if they can make health assessment, monitor health conditions and provide alerts.
In fact, there are many outstanding research and development projects on health care technologies in Hong Kong. For example, in February this year, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University announced that it has successfully developed a rapid, fully automated multiplex diagnostic system for respiratory diseases which could detect up to 40 respiratory pathogens (including the 2019 novel coronavirus) within an hour; The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology has developed a smart anti-microbial coating with an effective period of up to 90 days. However, I note that many research and development projects have failed to apply for the Government's Innovation and Technology Fund, and the development capital for preliminary researches mainly come from the local business community. There are views that the Government's Innovation and Technology Fund tends to sponsor projects that are relatively stable but fail to make major breakthroughs.
President, I have never doubted the Government's determination in improving health care benefits. This year, the Government has set aside $75 billion for the Hospital Authority, representing a significant increase of 35% when compared with the year 2017-2018. The Chief Executive has, since her assumption of office, been committed to developing innovative technology and has earmarked a huge amount of money for hardware development. She has also undertaken to raise the percentage of local research and development expenditure in Gross Domestic Product to 1.5% in 2022. While providing additional resources, the Government also needs to review whether the policy can provide the right remedy, which is related to the mindset and horizons of the responsible officials as well as inter-departmental coordination. This is not an issue that can be resolved by money alone.
5514 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
President, for more than half a year, Hong Kong people have had complex feelings. It can be said that their days drag on like years, failing to see a clear picture of the future. However, with each challenge, there will be opportunities. Some industries such as e-business, information technology, finance technology are performing quite well. After all, opportunities fall only on those who are prepared. This Budget is people-oriented as it provides the community with timely relief, and at the same time reserve resources for future investments. Therefore, on behalf of the Heung Yee Kuk New Territories, I express support for the Budget.
I so submit.
MR SHIU KA-CHUN (in Cantonese): President, Mr WU Chi-wai raised a very important question in his speech just now. He asked about the nature of the Budget. President, social policy is a tool for building or changing social relationship, and each year the budget provides resources for formulating social policy and policy initiatives. Therefore, we should be able to find out from the Budget the visions of social policy and the kind of social relationship to be built.
What actually is the social relationship in Hong Kong now? I believe that you and I have a clear picture. With the long-standing disparity between the rich and the poor in Hong Kong and the expanding industry bubble, the living conditions of different strata of people vary greatly. Some people, earning several hundred thousand dollars a month, can lead a very luxurious life with dividend payment from bank stocks alone. With private offices, drivers, standalone houses, the best and most advanced anti-epidemic items, they need not wear face masks during the epidemic. However, for those who are earning only a few thousand dollars a month which is not enough for paying rents, they have to go to work during the epidemic to engage in high-risk tasks, even though they are worried and cannot afford to buy face masks. As they live from hand to mouth, they can only tough the situation out. Owing to real estate hegemony, everyone has to pay high rents, and people have to use the life savings of one generation or even two generations to buy their own homes. Property prices have become unaffordable long ago and people's living quality is deteriorating. There are subdivided units, cubicles and bedspaces in every district; the public are paying increasingly higher rents, yet their living space is getting smaller and smaller.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5515
The community groups in need fail to obtain timely care and assistance. The waiting time for residential care homes for persons with disabilities and residential care homes for the elderly is getting longer and longer; and so is the waiting time for community care services. Whenever someone proposes to increase the number of places for such services, the Government will refuse, making various excuses, such as lack of capital, lack of land, or lack of manpower. As a result, though the economy is getting more and more prosperous and the property market is getting more buoyant, the numbers of homeless people and "McRefugees" are increasing. However, to be fair, this phenomenon is not unique to Hong Kong. This situation will arise in all cities where social resources are unevenly distributed. In these cities, social resources are monopolized by a small group of people, thereby creating a disparity in life quality among members of the public. Similarly, in Hong Kong, social division and social exclusion are very serious. The foundations of a relationship such as "solidarity", "unity" and "inclusiveness", as often claimed by government officials, have not existed at all.
Last year, the Government unrelentingly pushed through the draconian "China extradition law", giving rise to a lot of public grievances. With wolfish ambition, the Government has, for the sake of achieving its goal, made use of the Police and even made use of the triads, as claimed by some people, to suppress public resistance. It has also made arbitrary arrest to curb disorder. Not only have the Police used real firearms and bullets to shoot members of the public, but they have also incited one group of people against another so as to safeguard the Government. When facing such important incidents, the Government has yet to set up an independent commission of inquiry, thereby undermining justice. What is more, it has kept defaming and punishing a group of people who love Hong Kong and fight for the future of Hong Kong. Consequently, Hong Kong has become more divided. This is the social relationship at present.
In what ways have the social policy and the Budget responded to the situation? The Budget proposes to disperse $10,000 to all people. As everyone is affected by the epidemic and economic downturn, it is thus acceptable for the Government to compensate the people with $10,000 to address their various needs arising from disease control and prevention. However, as we all know, $10,000 simply fails to meet the urgent needs of the public. This is only a drop in the bucket and merely better than nothing.
5516 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
A bigger problem is that the measure to hand out "candies" in the Budget continues to intensify the uneven distribution of resources. Despite the presence of deep-rooted conflicts, the Government has no intention to implement any reforms. Earlier, the Government set up the Anti-epidemic Fund with the purpose of rescuing the market and safeguarding jobs, but not safeguarding people's income. The Government has a blind faith in the trickle-down effect, thinking that people can tide over this epidemic as long as enterprises are rescued, and employees will not be laid off or have their salaries reduced if employers are subsidized in their salary payments. In fact, the Budget is also moving in this direction, with supporting enterprises and safeguarding jobs as the objectives. The Government will continue to support enterprises to rescue the market. Regrettably, the measures for supporting enterprises are likewise unevenly distributed. During economic downturn, the Government has reduced the profits tax for enterprises having properties and profits, reduced rates of non-residential properties, and subsidized eligible tenants' electricity charges. However, for those small, micro and medium enterprises which may have difficulties for survival, profits tax reduction cannot benefit them at all. These measures will only benefit large enterprises, while rates concession will only benefit developers and property owners. Under the trickle-down theory, the ones who suffer the most are certainly the workers living at the lowest strata of society or at the grass-roots level. To put it bluntly, safeguarding jobs in a trickle-down way is just an empty slogan.
Apart from offering a universal cash handout of $10,000 and disbursing a one-off special allowance to 200 000 low-income families under the Anti-epidemic Fund, there are no other economic measures in the Budget to support grass-roots people who are unemployed, underemployed or having low income. In the short run, $10,000 and the special allowance may relieve the economic stress of the public for one to two months. However, in the medium to long run, under the persistent effects of the epidemic and economic downturn, the number of unemployed people will continue to increase, but the Government still refuses to implement an unemployment assistance system. Finally, when facing unemployment and underemployment, grass-roots workers can only apply for payment under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme. Thus, the social relationship cannot be mended.
The Budget has further aggravated social dissension and contradictions by strengthening the ruling of Hong Kong by the Police and increasing the expenditure for the Police. If we compare the expenditure for the Police with the expenditure on social welfare, we will find that non-directorate posts of the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5517
Police have increased by 2 542 from 35 790 to 38 332. Though there is a long-term lack of care workers, nurses and therapists in the social welfare sector, the Government has not implemented any measures to help the social welfare sector recruit sufficient manpower. However, when compared with the 2019-2020 Budget, the estimate for the Hong Kong Police Force ("HKPF") in 2020-2021 has increased by 24.7%, whereas the estimate for the Social Welfare Department in 2020-2021 has only increased by 11% when compared with that in 2019-2020. I must reiterate that there are now 40 697 elderly people waiting for subsidized residential care services for the elderly; the waiting time for subvented homes and contract homes is 40 months; 10 273 elderly people are waiting for subsidized community care services for the elderly, Integrated Home Care Services and Enhanced Home and Community Care Services, with an average waiting time of 13 months; the waiting time for Day Care Centres for the Elderly is also 13 months. The expenditure on social welfare has only increased by 26% in two years, but the expenditure for the Police has increased by 25% in just one year. HKPF has significantly increased operational equipment and facilities to support frontline operations, law enforcement, evidence searching and training; the amount involved has doubled significantly from $0.15 billion each year in the past to $0.3 billon. Besides, HKPF has used $0.138 billion to purchase and replace specialized vehicles of the Police, representing an increase of 44.7% when compared with the estimate in 2019-2020. It has also purchased more water cannon vehicles, armoured vehicles, stun guns, tear gas rounds, bean bag rounds and live ammunition to get prepared for better deployment to suppress the public and incite more public anger. How can this Budget achieve the objective of "relieving people's burden" as said by the Financial Secretary?
For the financial year of 2019-2020, the Government has used 16 191 canisters of tear gas, 1 880 shots of sponge rounds, 10 100 shots of rubber rounds, 2 033 shots of bean bag rounds and 19 shots of live ammunition for shooting members of the public participating in the "anti-extradition to China" movement. Every bullet has intensified the public's fury against the Police and the Government. Every bullet has undermined the public's trust in the Government and the Police. Every bullet has reduced the legitimacy of the Government in governing Hong Kong. Every bullet has aggravated the chaotic situation of the Hong Kong society. Over the past one year, elites or persons of authority from different sectors in society could not help standing out from time to time to strongly criticize the Police; this is a rare phenomenon over the years. The criticisms against the Police, in terms of quality or quantity …
5518 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr SHIU Ka-chun, I have to remind you that this Council is now debating the Appropriation Bill 2020. Please come back to the question of this debate.
MR SHIU KA-CHUN (in Cantonese): President, I have all along been speaking on this question. I am talking about the disproportionally high estimate for HKPF. As many Members have pointed out, we cannot support this Budget because we are strongly dissatisfied with the estimate and expenditure for HKPF. I was elaborating the dissatisfaction in this respect just now. I thank the President for his reminder.
Many friends, Members, elites and persons of authority have stood out to criticize the Police. Not only has the Government not responded to these criticisms, but has used the Budget to strengthen the police government and the police society. Arbitrary arrest by the Police is not something new in Hong Kong, and the situation has persisted since June last year. The dates of "12 June", "21 July", "31 August", "11 November", "14 November" and "16 November" make Hong Kong people worried and extremely angry. Police brutality caused by uncontrollable police officers has not ceased at all but has gone crazier than before. In the era of Chris TANG, the Police are making discriminate assaults to members of the public, reporters and Members in front of cameras even more openly and boldly. If one policeman is acting despicably, he or she is regarded as a black sheep; if the whole Police Force is acting despicably, they are sinking into degradation collectively. President, out of my great curiosity, I have surfed HKPF's web page and learnt that once appointed as a constable, trainees will need to undergo, in the Hong Kong Police College, 27 weeks of foundation training which includes laws, police procedures, sociology in policing, psychology in policing, footdrill, physical training …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr SHIU Ka-chun, I have to remind you once again. Please come back to the question of this debate.
MR SHIU KA-CHUN (in Cantonese): President, I am still speaking on the question concerning the Police's increasing funding. In the whole Budget, how come the funding for the Social Welfare Department is so small? How come the funding for social policy is so small? On the contrary, given the large amount of LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5519 funding for the Police, the Police are using the money to commit acts of brutality. Police brutality is tearing Hong Kong society apart and creating another kind of social relationship. Is the Hong Kong Government happy to see such kind of social relationship?
After looking up the detailed information of each item, I found that apart from weapon training, many other items I mentioned just now seem to have disappeared. I highly doubt who will still remember the mission and values of the Police; I highly doubt if any police officer will still remember the essential information concerning law enforcement, such as criminal justice system, laws and police procedures; I highly doubt if any police officer will still remember sociology and psychology in policing as mentioned by me just now. Have the Police conducted patrols normally? The President will say that I have digressed from the subject when I talk about these questions, so I will not repeat. Let me summarize my views. Judging from the performance of the Police over the past one year, what the police officers have learnt are tactics, firearm and weapon training. During their training, they have learnt how to use firearm and do arm wrestling. Therefore, we can see that many police officers have used force during conflicts. Regrettably, they have only learnt how to use force without learning the prerequisites and preconditions for using force, that is, when force should be used.
It is roughly estimated that around $400,000 is required for training a recruit police constable. Surprisingly, the tuition fee for a policeman in Hong Kong is higher than that for a university student. The other difference is that the expenses for training police officers are paid by taxpayers. When the Police system is corrupted and we cannot keep the Police power in check, why should we still set aside such a large amount of money from the Budget for HKPF? If you ask me why the Hong Kong Police has degraded from one of the world's finest to become dirty cops or the law-breaking force, to be condemned by most of the people in Hong Kong today, I will say that the answer is actually very simple. If you are present at the scene of conflict during the protest, even if you have only been at the scene for one time, you will still know what has actually happened. President, I cannot support this Budget because it condones dirty cops and police brutality, threatens Hong Kong people and makes Hong Kong sink into degradation.
President, I so submit.
5520 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
MRS REGINA IP (in Cantonese): President, first of all, I welcome the Budget submitted by the Financial Secretary to support enterprises, safeguard jobs, stimulate the economy and relieve people's burden. I also endorse the Financial Secretary's approach of adopting counter-cyclical measures and fiscal measures in times of economic downturn to offset the economic contraction. Having said that, I still have to point out the inadequacies of this Budget.
Firstly, on the management of public finances, the Financial Secretary has reminded us that we will have huge deficits in the coming years. What concerns us most is that as shown in the Financial Secretary's Medium Range Forecast, the economic growth will only be 2.8%, which is lower than that in the past. However, the increase in recurrent expenditure will range from 4.3% to 8.6% each year. When recurrent expenditure reaches 8.6%, the rate is very high indeed. I believe the Financial Secretary is reminding us that the increase in recurrent expenditure will actually violate the principle as stipulated in Article 107 of the Basic Law. We should ensure that the recurrent expenditure is kept in line with Hong Kong's economic growth rate. This has been the approach adopted by Hong Kong in managing public finances for years, and this is the cornerstone of the success of Hong Kong, a small and open economy. Since we have been managing public finances prudently and keeping expenditure within the limits of revenues, we can have ample reserves which enable Hong Kong to put forward three rounds of anti-epidemic fiscal measures at a time when we have been hard hit by black violence last year and the novel coronavirus this year. Therefore, I hope that the Financial Secretary will keep reminding various bureaux that recurrent expenditure cannot be expanded exceedingly and the money must be spent in a targeted manner, especially the expenditure on education.
Secondly, apart from managing public finances, the Financial Secretary should also adopt macroeconomic strategies. Regrettably, I fail to see such strategies in this Budget. I cannot see two things. First, there is no long-term growth strategy, that is, the strategy to promote economic growth. I am sorry to say that although the Financial Secretary has talked a lot about consolidating the financial industry and promoting technology development, and the Government has also spent a lot of money in these areas, we cannot rely on the development of the financial industry (for example, increasing the attractiveness of Hong Kong in wealth management, strengthening the insurance industry, attracting more private equity investments or debt markets, etc.) as the only engine to drive economic development, because after all, the number of people employed in the financial industry is small. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5521
I agree to the Financial Secretary's remark that our economy cannot possibly have a V-shaped rebound after the novel coronavirus epidemic, as in the case in 2003. In 2003, we relied on the Individual Visit Scheme in the Mainland to create many employment opportunities, especially those for the grass roots and people without a lot of special skills. However, this history will not repeat itself because during the era of Chief Executive Donald TSANG, the significant relaxation of the Individual Visit Scheme to allow more Mainland visitors to Hong Kong had caused a lot of conflicts. Also, since earning money was far too easy in those days, we did not score "early wins" and had not made use of technology for innovation. Consequently, we have lagged behind in respect of technology development. Therefore, we can no longer rely on the Individual Visit Scheme to drive the economy now. If we solely rely on the financial industry or the technology industry, the development of which is still immature, I cannot see a strong economic rebound or a robust economic growth. First, I fail to see any genuine new bright spots of the economy nor a growth strategy in this Budget.
Second, this Budget has not dealt with the problem of the disparity between the rich and the poor. Of course, if there is no economic growth, the Government will not be able to deal with wealth disparity. I just want to point out that one of the basic means to deal with wealth disparity is fiscal measures. Some governments will use tax (such as capital gains tax or progressive tax) as a means to redistribute resources. Of course, using tax is one of the means, but actually other social policies can also be used. For example, in January, the Chief Executive announced 10 major livelihood projects, and one of the projects, that is, rent control of subdivided units can slightly alleviate the disparity between the rich and the poor. Secretary Frank CHAN, I think this measure should be carried out expeditiously.
It is known to all that if rents are calculated per square foot, the rents for subdivided units are the highest, even higher than those for luxurious properties, and hence subdivided units have a higher return rate than luxurious properties. Even if rent control is implemented, it will only control the rate of increase but will not lower the rents mandatorily. However, as people living in subdivided units are the poor grass roots, the Government should expeditiously deal with the problems of rampant rent increase, and overcharging of water and electricity fees. Though the working group set up by the Government has a large membership, I do not understand why there are no representatives from the grass roots. This is really disappointing. 5522 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
In fact, it is not necessary to have 10 to 20 people to study the legislation on subdivided units. We can refer to the legislation of the United Kingdom on housing and multiple ownership; we can refer to the legislation in California where rent control has been fully implemented apart from assisting the underprivileged small owners; we can also refer to the legislation in Australia. The Government has set up a working group comprising many members; unless a stalling tactic is employed as in the case of the Task Force on Land Supply, I think the Government must really speed up the study on enacting legislation to control rent increases in subdivided units, so as to redistribute wealth and assist the underprivileged. As the existing problem of wealth disparity has not been dealt with, I think that the Government should, either by means of tax or policy, tackle the problem, because wealth disparity, especially the uneven distribution of land and housing, is one of the root causes for the great grievances of society.
After making some macro comments, I want to talk about some specific arrangements in the Budget now. In particular, I would like to talk about Radio Television Hong Kong ("RTHK") and the Police, especially after I have heard so many people criticizing the Police and opposing the allocation of funding to the Police.
I wish to point out that Hong Kong has long prided itself on its free economy. Although it is now ranked second in this respect, the economy is still very free. I wonder if the Financial Secretary has read The Wealth of Nations by Adam SMITH. If you have read the book by the founder of modern economy, you will know that the function of a government is to provide services which cannot be provided by the market, that is, public goods. That is the most basic function of a government; it does not have to do things that can be undertaken by the market. Under this principle, Adam SMITH considers that the top function of a government is defense, that is, maintaining stability and security, and safeguarding the community. These are the most important functions. He has dedicated a substantial part of his book to point out that security should be the top expenditure item.
The second is the justice system, and the third is public works and infrastructure, as these services will not be provided by society. If we feel that we are not safe, we can hire body guards; if buildings are not safe, security guards can be hired. Shopping malls have to hire security guards because they are private enterprises and the public will not share the expenditure involved. Likewise, a private enterprise will not provide security services for the whole LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5523 society. Therefore, this is the duty of a government. Last year, there were large scale disturbances in Hong Kong, and even now, bombs are still detected from time to time. Hence, the Government should spend more money to protect the lives and properties of the people. This is the top priority pointed out by Adam SMITH.
Under this principle, I have all along thought that we do not need to do the work that can be done by the market. This applies to broadcasting as well. I remember that last year I asked if RTHK was still required to undertake the work that can be undertaken by the business sectors and private broadcasters, such as Now TV or Cable TV? Was it still necessary for RTHK to produce certain programmes? Though I was only expressing this view, I was immediately criticized by the Hong Kong Journalists Association and labelled as suppressing press freedom. I think this approach is very wrong. RTHK was set up in 1928 and has been in operation for 70 to 80 years. The Financial Secretary should have reviewed this organization long ago. As the Financial Secretary is an accountant with business background, I would like to ask him if there are any organizations which have been in operation for 70 to 80 years but have not been reviewed. The Hong Kong Government commissioned McKinsey in 1973 to conduct a review. Consequently, a number of Policy Bureaux have been set up and they are still in operation now. The structure of the SAR Government itself should also be reviewed.
If RTHK is to be reviewed, it should be reviewed from three dimensions. The first one is value for money. The Director of Audit had done so and he gave many bad reviews for RTHK in respect of value for money in Report No. 71 of the Director of Audit. He said that the page views of the RTHK website
According to the Television Programme Appreciation Index in 2017, of the nine RTHK programmes among the top 20 programmes, the awareness level of five ranged from 1.5% to 13.8%, which was far below the average awareness level of 17.1% of all 223 programmes. Despite the fact that a lot of money had been spent on programme production, their awareness levels were still very low.
The TV ratings reports for RTHK Channels TV 31 and 31A for the period from January to June 2018 revealed that the TV ratings of TV 31 and 31A were low. While the average rating for RTHK Channels TV 31 and 31A for the 5524 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 six-month period was 0.1, the expenditure was huge. There are very detailed figures in the Director of Audit's Report. The programme production cost was high: from 2013-2014 to 2017-2018, the number of programmes per programme staff ranged from 8.2 to 12.8, while the cost per hour of TV programmes ranged from $276,200 to $472,900. Other costs were also higher than those of private broadcasters, but the TV ratings were low. From the perspective of value for money, I highly doubt whether it is worthwhile to render support anymore.
Secondly, if a more in-depth management review is to be conducted, we will query whether it is worth allocating so much money to RTHK to produce so many ironic and invective programmes, as well as the self-proclaimed outstanding "premier programmes" to raise sarcastic comments and pinpoint the ills of our time. There are four programme areas for RTHK, with the third one being school education television programme. The Education Bureau has pointed out that resources in this area will be slashed as TV rating is low and the programme will not be broadcast anymore this year. Nevertheless, it is right for the Education Bureau to upload the education television programme filmed by RTHK onto the Internet for public access.
As for radio, I think there is a need to maintain the service. In particular, the English channel and the programmes on classical music, culture and ethnic minorities should be retained.
The second programme area is public affairs and general television programme. The expenditure involved is exceedingly high, amounting to over $0.58 billion in the coming year. While the production cost is high, the TV ratings are low, and the programmes produced have been criticized by many people. I think RTHK has indeed deviated from the Charter of Radio Television Hong Kong ("the Charter"). I do not understand why it was so hard for Secretary Edward YAU and Director LEUNG Ka-wing to answer this question. RTHK has certainly deviated from the Charter, because the public purposes and mission of RTHK as stipulated in the Charter are to offer accurate and impartial news, information and perspectives. I have also watched the programme Pentaprism which has recently been criticized by the Communications Authority. In this programme, the report was lopsided and completely unbalanced. A lecturer from The Education University of Hong Kong hurled abuses rashly and was very unfair to the Police. This has already violated the Charter.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5525
As for promoting understanding of the implementation of "one country, two systems" in Hong Kong, promoting understanding of our community and nation, as well as engendering a sense of citizenship and national identity, RTHK has obviously not done so. If it has done so, why did a young female journalist named Yvonne TONG keep asking the World Health Organization ("WHO") if Taiwan could become a member state? Everyone knows that only sovereign states are allowed to join WHO. The question she raised was about the epidemic, but why did she ask such a political question? Obviously, Director LEUNG Ka-wing has not promoted his staff's understanding of their own country and "one country, two systems", and has not engendered their sense of citizenship and national identity. Management in this way is a failure and has also violated the Charter. Therefore, Secretary (The buzzer sounded) …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mrs Regina IP, please stop speaking.
MRS REGINA IP (in Cantonese): If possible, I will cut down its funding.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mrs Regina IP, please stop speaking.
DR HELENA WONG (in Cantonese): President, regarding the Budget this year, my speech will mainly focus on three aspects, namely, governance and constitutional affairs of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("SAR"); efforts in fighting the Wuhan pneumonia and resources for the Hong Kong Police Force and the Independent Police Complaints Council.
First, I will talk about governance and constitutional affairs of SAR. The global spread of Wuhan pneumonia has brought worldwide economic activities to a halt and dealt a hard blow to our economy and people's livelihood. Although the Government has introduced two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund costing a total of $167.5 billion, and proposed counter-cyclical measures in the Budget incurring more than $120 billion, Hong Kong is not only facing the risk of an economic downturn, but also the risk on the constitutional front. If "one country, two systems" cannot be upheld, Hong Kong cannot be saved no matter how many hundreds or thousands of billions of dollars are spent by the Government.
5526 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Recently, the royalists criticized the democrats for causing "mutual destruction" in Hong Kong and putting up banners territory-wide. However, in my view, Carrie LAM and the royalists have ignored public opinion, tried to push through the evil "extradition to China Bill", condoned dirty cops, refused to have an independent probe into police brutality and delayed in making a decision to close borders to save Hong Kong. These people are truly the "mothers of mutual destruction". Furthermore, last Friday, the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong SAR ("LOCPG") asserted that the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council ("HKMAO") and LOCPG ("the two Offices") were not within the general meaning of "department(s) of the Central People's Government" in Article 22 of the Basic Law. LOCPG also said that the "two Offices" have the authority to exercise supervisory power over Hong Kong. Two days ago, on Tuesday, HKMAO issued three commentaries one after the other to criticize the internal affairs of Hong Kong and the House Committee of the Legislative Council, including pointing out which Member of the Legislative Council was not performing competently and instructing Members how they should vote. In fact, it seems that HKMAO has let "river water flow back into well water" and the Central Authorities are exercising overall jurisdiction over Hong Kong.
I remember that during the early days of Hong Kong's reunification with China, the Central Authorities vowed that "river water will not intrude into well water", meaning the Central Authorities will not interfere with the internal affairs of Hong Kong within the limits of the autonomy of the SAR which are not relating to defence and foreign affairs. We also remember that the first Director of LOCPG …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Dr Helena WONG, please return to the subject of this debate.
DR HELENA WONG (in Cantonese): … I am about to return to the subject of this debate. I have three points to make and this is my first point. Mr JIANG Enzhu, the first Director of LOCPG, stressed that the Hong Kong SAR came directly under the Central People's Government and no affiliation had been established between the Hong Kong SAR and LOCPG. However, over the past 23 years since the reunification, there have been personnel changes in the Central Government …
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5527
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Dr Helena WONG, I remind you once again that this Council is debating on the Appropriation Bill 2020. Please return to the subject of the debate.
DR HELENA WONG (in Cantonese): … Thank you for your reminder, but this will only lengthen my speech.
President, over the past 23 years since the reunification, there have been personnel changes in the Central Government. No matter what DENG Xiaoping, LU Ping and JIANG Enzhu had said, it seems that their words do not count now. At present, the "two Offices" have openly distorted the meaning of the Basic Law and reneged on the past promises. The Communist Party of China has ruined "one country, two systems" by "mutual destruction" and Hong Kong is doomed eternally …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Dr Helena WONG, if you still do not return the subject of this debate, I will stop you from speaking. Please return the subject of this debate.
DR HELENA WONG (in Cantonese): President, I know you are very tired, but I hope you can be more patient.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): It has nothing to do with whether I am tired or not, a Member's speech should be relevant to the subject of the debate. At the beginning of your speech, you have slightly digressed from the subject and I have allowed you to continue. But thereafter, I have reminded you a number of times that if you do not return to the subject, I will stop you from speaking.
DR HELENA WONG (in Cantonese): Alright, thank you for the reminder. President, why do I have to talk about such issues? I was saying no matter how much money the Government has injected in the Budget, if it did not solve the problems relating to its internal governance and if "one country, two systems" 5528 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 could no longer be upheld, Hong Kong could not actually be saved. Even if Hong Kong has exhausted its reserves, it would, under the leadership of the Carrie LAM Government and the pressure of the "two Offices", ruin "one country, two systems" by "mutual destruction". Basically, no matter how much money is spent, Hong Kong is still beyond rescue.
President, we are most concerned about LOCPG's claim of its supervisory power over Hong Kong. The reason is that under the current circumstances, no one actually knows the powers of the Hong Kong SAR and its limitations. In the Budget, the Government proposes to spend a total of $19.1 million to organize classes on national studies. More than a thousand civil servants are expected to participate. The main target participants of such classes are civil servants and senior staff members of public organizations. It turns out that doctors, nurses and senior staff members of the Hospital Authority are also required to attend classes on national studies to learn about the Basic Law and understand national affairs. I think the money is wasted. Instead of taking the trouble to mobilize these people to travel all the way to Beijing to learn about the Basic Law, it would be better to ask the "two Offices" for instruction on how the Basic Law should be interpreted, since different interpretations may arise at different times. At present, no one, public officers included, dares say he or she understands the real meaning of the Basic Law since there can be new interpretations any time. This is really very sad and pathetic. As a teacher, how can I teach the Basic Law, or how should I interpret Article 22? It turns out that the interpretations in the past are different from those at present.
President, if the Government wants to revive the economy and improve people's livelihood, I think it should first stabilize the political situation, improve its governance and respond to the five demands. Nevertheless, the Budget certainly will not mention how the five demands should be responded to and what resources should be allocated in this respect. The Government has also refused to formulate its policies on the basis of public opinion. Thus, I often think that the money injected by the Government will not be cost effective and achieve good results. The Government has all along evaded the issue of implementing dual universal suffrage and it is even planning to require all civil servants to swear to uphold the Basic Law and swear allegiance to the Hong Kong SAR …
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5529
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Dr Helena WONG, I have given you the final warning earlier, but you keep digressing from the subject. Please stop speaking.
Mr Charles Peter MOK, please speak.
(Dr Helena WONG remained standing and continued to speak loudly; Mr Charles Peter MOK indicated his dissatisfaction in his seat)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): I have reminded Dr Helena WONG time and again that this Council is debating on the Appropriation Bill 2020 and I have asked her to return to the subject of the debate, but her speech has all along digressed from the subject.
Mr Charles Peter MOK, please speak.
(Dr Helena WONG still remained standing and continued to speak loudly; Mr Charles Peter MOK did not stand up to speak)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Charles Peter MOK, please speak.
(Mr Charles Peter MOK suggested in his seat that some Member request a headcount)
DR HELENA WONG (in Cantonese): President, I request a headcount.
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Will the Clerk please ring the bell to summon Members back to the Chamber.
(After the summoning bell had been rung, a number of Members returned to the Chamber)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Charles Peter MOK, please speak.
(Mr LAM Cheuk-ting indicated his wish to raise a point of order)
5530 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr LAM Cheuk-ting, what is your point of order?
MR LAM CHEUK-TING (in Cantonese): President, I noticed that you had stopped Dr Helena WONG from speaking just now. From what I heard from my office upstairs, you have adopted different criteria when ruling on the speeches of different Members. Soon after some Members had mentioned police brutality, you asked them to return to the question under debate in no time. On the other hand, in the case of Mrs Regina IP, who had criticized the Radio Television Hong Kong ("RTHK") for as long as seven to eight minutes, you simply allowed her to speak at will without intercepting once.
I would like to ask the President. As long as Members speak in support of government departments, the Police Force in particular, will you simply allow them to speak at will instead of ruling that they have digressed? Your criteria for implementing the Rules of Procedure are …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr LAM Cheuk-ting, please sit down. Are you speculating on my motive?
(Mr LAM Cheuk-ting rose and spoke aloud)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr LAM Cheuk-ting, please sit down. First, many Members who had digressed today have come back to the question under debate after I reminded them to do so. Although some Members would still digress for a while longer, they have come back to the question soon afterwards. Given that the content of Dr Helena WONG's speech had been totally unrelated to today's question, I reminded her four times to return to the question under debate. In Mrs Regina IP's case, the expenses of RTHK she had discussed were related to one of the funding proposals under the Appropriation Bill 2020. As she had not digressed, I allowed her to advance her arguments.
It is certainly not a problem for Members to elaborate on items of their concern under the Appropriation Bill 2020. However, most important of all, their speeches must be relevant to the question under debate. While it is inevitable for Members to digress sometimes, they should come back to the question as soon as possible after I have reminded them.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5531
I have already made a ruling and please refrain from discussing it any further.
(Mr LAM Cheuk-ting indicated his wish to raise a point of order again)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr LAM Cheuk-ting, what is your point of order?
MR LAM CHEUK-TING (in Cantonese): President, in response to your question just now about whether I had speculated on your motive, I absolutely did not have such an intention. As I have stated clearly just now, please clarify your criteria for implementing the Rules of Procedure. While you just noted Mrs Regina IP's discussion on RTHK's expenses, the procurement of bullets and water cannon vehicles mentioned by Mr SHIU Ka-chun was likewise related to expenses. Why did you rule that he had digressed? Why did you query Mr SHIU's saying that the Police had behaved improperly by wasting public money to perpetrate brutality and abuse power?
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr LAM Cheuk-ting, please sit down. While I had reminded Mr SHIU Ka-chun not to digress, I had never stopped him from speaking because he subsequently came back to the question under debate.
Mr Charles Peter MOK, please speak.
(Mr HUI Chi-fung indicated his wish to raise a point of order)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr HUI Chi-fung, what is your point of order?
MR HUI CHI-FUNG (in Cantonese): In my view, Dr Helena WONG did not stray from the question just now. Her mention of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("LOCPG") was simply intended to illustrate how LOCPG influenced government departments …
5532 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): I have made a ruling and no debate shall arise on the President's ruling. Please sit down.
Mr Charles Peter MOK, please speak.
(Mr HUI Chi-fung remained standing and continued to speak)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Charles Peter MOK, please speak.
(Mr HUI Chi-fung remained standing and continued to speak, and indicated his wish to raise a point of order)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr HUI Chi-fung, what is your point of order?
MR HUI CHI-FUNG (in Cantonese): My point of order is: Are you LOCPG's "guard dog"? Why would you stop Members from speaking every time they criticized LOCPG?
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr HUI Chi-fung, please withdraw your remark immediately. Otherwise, I will consider your remark to be extremely insulting.
(Mr HUI Chi-fung indicated his withdrawal of the remark and left the Chamber on his own)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Mr Charles Peter MOK, please speak.
(Some Members spoke aloud in their seats)
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Will Members please refrain from speaking aloud in their seats.
Mr Charles Peter MOK, do you wish to speak?
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5533
MR CHARLES PETER MOK (in Cantonese): President, I certainly have to wait until you instruct me to speak. This week has been really suffocating. At first, I thought I had the feeling from wearing face masks. However, this feeling remains even after I have returned to the Legislative Council. Last week, some people asked us to stop what we have been doing; in fact they only wanted to see us leave. While we have been acting in accordance with the procedures in the Legislative Council, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council and the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("the two Offices") have successively issued press releases. President, I will continue with my speech. Let us just see when you will consider my speech to be too long-winded.
It has never occurred to us that so many media outlets would ask the "two Offices" for their responses, hence they could repeatedly give their responses. The SAR Government has been forced to give in by issuing three press releases in one day and underwent a major reshuffle of Directors of Bureaux under the political accountability system. I really cannot tell if Carrie LAM is still the incumbent Chief Executive, or if she is just following the order of someone else, holding a position akin to that of the Chief Secretary while receiving the remuneration of the Chief Executive. President, this point is actually related to the Budget because the remuneration she has been receiving appears to be higher than the responsibilities and tasks she has undertaken. When we discuss the amendments later, I will elaborate on this.
Our discussion on the Budget today has also been suffocating. The President has ruled all criticisms of the "two Offices" by Members as digression. However, what the "two Offices" have been doing now has an impact not only on politics, but also the entire community and economic prospects. Commenting on the Finance Committee meeting held last week, the "two Offices" even claimed that Members should not vote against the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund ("AEF"). In fact, we were simply dissatisfied with the arrangement under AEF and hoped that the Government would come up with an enhanced proposal. Yet they did not even allow us to vote against AEF and insisted that it should be passed with a unanimous vote. If we vote against AEF, will they once again accuse us of committing the crime of misconduct in public office?
No wonder Mr Dennis KWOK has also doubted if the "two Offices" would like to turn the Legislative Council into a "Hong Kong version of the National People's Congress". Let me first make a declaration. Last week, we consulted 5534 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 the Secretary for Justice on the voting on the Budget and learnt that Members did have the right to vote against the Budget at the Finance Committee. In fact, in the past, some Members had all along proposed amendments to the Appropriation Bill, meaning that some Members disagreed with the Budget. Meanwhile, some Members did vote against the Appropriation Bill in the past, including myself. Furthermore, Articles 50 and 51 of the Basic Law have also set out ways to handle the situation if the Budget is voted down. As some Members raised this point just now, I am not going to repeat it. The potential failure of the Budget to get passed suggests that it can be voted down by a majority of Members. Given that the Basic Law has taken this potential situation into account, it is possible that the Budget will be voted down. However, it is really difficult to foresee the current situation. The Mainland Government may interpret the Basic Law anytime. The request for interpretation may not even have to be submitted to Beijing. The Basic Law may simply be directly amended via the "Western District".
I would therefore like to introduce a technique to government officials. They may retrofit the voting system at the Legislative Council Chamber by removing the "No" and "Abstain" buttons and leaving only "Yes" button. Alternatively, whichever the button a Member presses, only "Yes" can be displayed as the result. However, do we really want Hong Kong to be like this? I have to continue with my speech even I am feeling suffocated. Despite the predestination of Hong Kong people, we still have to resist where appropriate.
This Budget is of course closely related to Hong Kong's economic environment. Many Members from the pro-establishment camp, the royalist party and our pro-democratic camp have discussed the major issues under the current global conditions today. When government officials were drafting this Budget back then, little would they have imagined that the Wuhan pneumonia would have such a big impact, and they thus thought that all members of the public would be happy to receive the $10,000 cash handout. However, as we all know, since the Budget was announced, the Government has already allocated over $160 billion to launch two rounds of AEF. In contrast, the impact of the Sino-United States trade war on Hong Kong mentioned by some colleagues has become insignificant. At present, countries around the world may declare a "war of accountability" against China over the virus. Irrespective of who is right and who is wrong, in fact, restructuring of many global supply chains will follow. What is the position and role of Hong Kong after all? Can we maintain our status as a financial centre? Actually, the Government drafted the Budget as LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5535 early as some time before January. At the moment, it should reconsider and proactively propose amendments to the Budget. In the face of the current issues, it is impossible for the Government to simply make a few remarks to paint an optimistic picture.
According to the annual Index of Economic Freedom released by the United States Heritage Foundation ("the Foundation") in mid-March, Hong Kong has for the first time fallen to the second place this year, after being ranked first for 25 consecutive years. According to the Foundation, the political and social incidents which started last year have affected capital inflow. The royalist party will certainly take this opportunity to blame protesters for turning Hong Kong into the current state, but they have neglected one point that is clearly stated in the Foundation's report. According to the report, Hong Kong has been promoting its traditional economy by opening its market through integration with the Mainland in terms of trade, tourism and financial links. Meanwhile, the risk of our free economy will increase correspondingly, resulting in a drop in Hong Kong's investment freedom score from 90 to 80. A 10-point drop is actually very significant because a difference of one or two points may have an impact on rankings. People have frequently linked our economic freedom to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. The concept of "planned economy", which people are eager to talk about, has also resulted in a drop of our score. We cannot simply have it both ways. The Foundation has actually saved our face by saying that it is still extremely outstanding for Hong Kong to get the second place given the numerous economies around the world. However, I am afraid Hong Kong's ranking will continue to go down in future following this year's fall.
In the meantime, Fitch Ratings has also released a report downgrading Hong Kong's Long-term Foreign-currency Issuer Default Rating ("IDR"). Fitch Ratings' downgrade of Hong Kong's IDR from "AA" to "AA-", a further downgrade since September last year, is actually very accurate because it came before the issue of statements by the "two Offices". Hong Kong's current rating is even lower than Macao's. As explained by Fitch Ratings, the market bailout package to address the epidemic will incur substantial costs; furthermore, since the current political intervention of the Central Government in Hong Kong's political affairs has been the most obvious since the reunification, Hong Kong has been gradually integrated into China's national governance system; the increasing exchanges with the Mainland on the economic, financial, social and political fronts suggest that the respective sovereign rating of the two places should be 5536 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 correlated more closely. In other words, Hong Kong's score has been dragged down by the Mainland. In particular, the best case in point is that the Central Government has frequently expressed their views on Hong Kong affairs in recent days.
In fact, Fitch Ratings had already clearly stated this point even before the "two Offices" issued their statements. Certainly, Hong Kong's other world rankings have also fallen recently, including the 2020 World Press Freedom Index published by the Reporters Without Borders, which saw Hong Kong falling seven places to 80th in world ranking. The ranking, a record low for Hong Kong, is even lower than that of Mongolia and Tunisia. Not long ago, even after Hong Kong's reunification, we had been ranked 18th. The fall in Hong Kong's World Press Freedom Index is a result of the treatment of journalists during the pro-democracy protests.
President, my reference to police treatment of journalists is relevant to the Budget. The substantial sum allocated to the Police Force in the Budget will not only affect the local economy, but also Hong Kong's international rankings and our investment environment. This situation cannot simply be reversed by the Government by making a few remarks to paint an optimistic picture. The Government's intention to seek an appropriation of over $25 billion to the Police Force for, among others, recruiting 2 500 additional police officers will have a direct impact on Hong Kong's image and even create a negative impact for our finance and economy. As such, we certainly maintain that the expenditures of the Police Force must be cut.
In this connection, I have indicated to the Financial Secretary that it is necessary to improve the overall social environment and uphold freedom of the press in order to revitalize the economy, safeguard employment and create jobs. It is absolutely unacceptable for the Government to evict all foreign journalists and undermine the cornerstones of free flow of information and freedom of speech.
In the past six to seven decades, Hong Kong has weathered various unstable situations in China and around the world. What will happen this time? The current situation is really concerning. What is the difference between the current and previous situations? Apparently, Hong Kong-Mainland integration has brought not only benefits but also many disadvantages to Hong Kong. How can the Government strike a balance? Failure of the Government to make any effort to strike a balance has resulted in the current undesirable circumstances. LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5537
The Government has proposed in the Budget a cash handout of $10,000 to all citizens. While many political parties have been striving for this subsidy back in January and February, not many people have stepped forward to claim credits for successfully fighting for the subsidy. The first reason is that we know after the outbreak of the epidemic that the sum of $10,000 is totally insufficient. Thus, it is really necessary for the Financial Secretary to consider proposing amendments to the Budget because he is the only person empowered to propose an increase in funding in the Budget, whereas Members are only entitled to propose reductions.
The second reason is certainly the fact that the public have to wait until June or July to apply for the subsidy. My sector, including many Fintech companies, has always been finding ways to assist the Government in handing out the cash subsidy expeditiously. However, the Government has either claimed that it was still making preparation or indicated that it had tried its best to disburse the subsidy as soon as possible. The Government should have prepared the entire system as soon as possible in the future so that it will be able to hand out the cash subsidy simply by clicking a button. Only then can we call the subsidy "timely rain". Otherwise, if people have to wait a few months before getting the subsidy, the waiting time will be longer than the time required to turn water into ice in the freezer. A belated subsidy will not be of any use. In my view, the most important reason is not the failure of the computer system to support the disbursement, as suggested by the Government. After all, I believe that many issues have been constrained by government bureaucracy and procedural matters.
I would also like to talk about innovation and technology. Not many new measures have been put forward this year. Among them, the more "down-to-earth" example is the enhancement of the Technology Voucher Programme ("TVP") by raising the funding ratio from two thirds to three quarters and the funding ceiling from $400,000 to $600,000. However, under the second round of AEF announced by the Government last week, the Distance Business Programme ("DBP") will provide enterprises with 100% funding support, subject to a cap of $300,000. Frankly speaking, in the meantime, small and medium enterprises will scramble to apply for DBP because it is completely cost-free. This does not matter, anyway. In my view, however, the Government should expeditiously review in the next financial year if TVP's enhancement is sufficient. While TVP has only raised the funding ratio, another time-limited programme is 5538 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 offering 100% funding support. In fact, can the Government increase funding support or even offer a 100% subsidy to some projects based on their needs in the future?
In addition, the Government has also revamped the Researcher Programme and Postdoctoral Hub by expanding their scope to cover all technology companies conducting research and development activities in Hong Kong. However, I have received some suggestions and questions from my sector regarding the apparent tightening of the definition of research and development by the Government. The Government should definitely refrain from giving people the impression that it is relaxing some restrictions on the one hand while tightening other restrictions on the other. Many start-up companies have relayed such views to me. Furthermore, I have been proposing to the Government for years for stepping up personal training and providing continuing education vouchers. In particular, due to the impact of the current epidemic, employees should be given more assistance. However, the Government has not taken the proposal on board yet.
Due to the recent epidemic, small and medium enterprises and start-up companies are facing an extremely big problem with cash flow. I must reiterate that the Government should find ways to expeditiously offer them rental and operational subsidies to help them ride out this difficult time. All Directors of Bureaux, including those who stay or those who are newly appointed, should never wipe out the efforts we have made over the years in one go. This scenario can really come true given the extremely difficult situation currently facing these enterprises. It is really necessary for the Government to offer them rental and operational subsidies, either by introducing the third round of the Fund, or handling their cases on a case-by-case basis. Otherwise, a cash handout of $10,000 to every member of the public will simply be insufficient for saving job opportunities and rescuing start-up companies.
DR FERNANDO CHEUNG (in Cantonese): President, Members may only speak once in Second Reading debates subject to a time limit of 15 minutes, and the Second Reading debate on the Budget provides Members with a platform to express their views on the Budget. Given that the Budget is directly related to the overall operation of the Government and all aspects of our society, I hope that the President will adopt a lenient approach to Members' speeches instead of being stringent. The Budget covers a wide range of areas, which are not only directly related to the economy, but also closely linked to politics and society.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5539
Individual Members hold themselves accountable to the public by expressing their views on particular areas. As Members returned through direct elections, if our words and deeds fall short of public expectations, voters will make their choices in future elections, making it impossible for us to get re-elected. As long as our speeches are not frivolous and are addressing the big issues or contradictions in society, I hope that the President will give Members leeway as far as practicable to enable us to speak freely in the Chamber. An increasing number of limitations and constraints have actually been imposed on us. For example, the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("LOCPG") has suddenly brought up the power of oversight, while the Carrie LAM Administration has even taken the lead to defy Article 22 of the Basic Law by overturning what they have been upholding in the past two decades. Just imagine how ridiculous our society has now become.
Carrie LAM yesterday thanked the Legislative Council for passing the appropriation for the Anti-epidemic Fund and stated that Members should not block the passage of funding proposals out of different political views. She even went on to ask: What would Hong Kong become if the Legislative Council were to be dominated by Members opposing funding proposals? What could be done to alleviate the difficult situations of enterprises and members of the public?
I cannot wait to respond to Carrie LAM's question. In fact, I will vote against the Budget, and my reply to Carrie LAM is: If Hong Kong's public finance is in our hands, Hong Kong will see the following changes: We will ensure that Hong Kong people will not pay exorbitant rents and use 50% of their income for repaying mortgage loans; we will ensure that the waiting time for public rental housing will not continue to lengthen; we will ensure that the elderly and people with disabilities will not have to wait years for residential care homes; we will ensure that the afore mentioned situations will not occur. Although we may not achieve all these overnight, we definitely will work wholeheartedly and will achieve results which are 100 times better than those of the current Administration. The Government has to take into account the interests of too many parties, including the interests of the business sector and their own interests.
Under the current electoral system, this Government has been empowered to govern, and Carrie LAM has been appointed as the Chief Executive. For this reason, she has to obey the Central Authorities of the Communist Party of China ("CPC") and, above all, her boss President XI. In fact, Carrie LAM does not 5540 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 take orders from President XI directly because there are many intermediaries, including the State Council, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council ("HKMAO") and LOCPG. The overall hierarchy is very clear now. The status of HKMAO is higher than that of LOCPG under a tiered structure for intervening in Hong Kong affairs. Accordingly, the interests of Hong Kong people have been accorded the lowest priority. We have to fight for everything we want; politics always comes first before anything else; and we have to pledge allegiance to CPC on all matters. Hong Kong people must obey CPC, or else Hong Kong will "have no luck".
Members who have openly voted against the Budget and claimed to have represented the views of Hong Kong people are considered to be confronting the Central Government head-on. The Central Government could transfer officials and even made them suddenly disappear at will, but the Chief Executive has simply responded by saying that she would not comment on the performance of individual officials. Just imagine how frightening this is. Secretaries of Departments and Directors of Bureaux have been her own teammates, partners and colleagues. Once they have been suddenly removed, their boss would simply tell the public that she would not comment on individual officials. That is the way she treats members of her own Administration, not to mention people in the opposition camp like us, who hold different views and refuse to succumb to her.
We consider all matters from the standpoint of Hong Kong people. We refuse to endorse her surrender to her own interest groups. They certainly find us intolerable. If the Legislative Council were to be dominated by us, we would ensure that Hong Kong people will not …
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Dr Fernando CHEUNG, please come back to the question under debate.
DR FERNANDO CHEUNG (in Cantonese): I am speaking on the Budget. The Budget is supposed to address the injustice in Hong Kong. Given the wealth inequality in our society, if the Legislative Council were to be dominated by us, we would never approve a Budget which would aggravate the disparity between the rich and the poor; we would ensure a shorter waiting time for the most basic and urgent needs in Hong Kong, including housing and health care, as LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5541 well as the basic needs of the disadvantaged groups; we would not, on the one hand, say "sorry, we cannot identify any sites", but on the other hand, spend hundreds of billions of public money, or possibly over one thousand billion dollars eventually on the Lantau Tomorrow development project. How many hundreds of billions of dollars have been wasted on "white elephant" projects in the past? Is it really true that those expenses have not involved pecuniary interests? Where have the interests involved been transferred to? We at least would show respect for the environment, rather than hindering this and that site from development because of the interests involved therein. Reclamation will thus become the easiest and clear-cut option, regardless of its environmental impact. We would at least show respect for life and strive for social justice. We think that our society is actually way too unbalanced.
According to the Hong Kong Poverty Situation Report 2018, Hong Kong's poverty rate has exceeded 20%, which is really intimidating. Which country has a poverty rate of over 20%? The poverty rate after policy intervention is still as high as 14.9%. As Commissioner of Police Chris TANG put it, this should be something to be ashamed of. Why is the poverty rate so high in a wealthy society like Hong Kong? What is the elderly poverty rate? How about the post-intervention poverty rate? While one third of persons with disabilities are in the poor population, the Government has still refused to implement universal retirement protection. If we were to govern, the Budget would be revised; tenancy control would be implemented early, particularly in respect of subdivided units. I nearly fell off my chair on learning the relief measures announced by the Government. Let us just wait and see when the Government will implement them. I believe that these measures will never be implemented before the end of the current legislative term. All are just empty words.
Frankly speaking, if we were to govern, the current situation, where elderly people have no one to depend on and many patients of rare diseases and cancers cannot afford the available medicines for treatment, would never occur. Even before the outbreak of the epidemic, we would have reformed the entire health care system long time ago so that the long waiting time for accident and emergency services and the overflow of patients at all hospital wards would have been avoided.
We will explore resources to address the shortfall. The tax regime should have been reformed a long time ago. Despite our low profits tax rates, what is the reason for the Government to cut rates repeatedly? The rates cuts have 5542 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 completely discouraged enterprises from ploughing their profits back into the community. In the absence of a tiered or progressive tax system, our profits tax rates are so low that enterprises have no interest whatsoever in doing so. Tax regimes in different countries around the world are tiered and progressive. If the profit of an enterprise reaches a particular level, its tax rate will increase significantly. Enterprises will therefore rather donate their profits or set up a charitable fund in order to contribute to society, but our Government has never considered this option. Of course, the Government has such a huge surplus that it can give cash handout of as much as $10,000 to all citizens amid the epidemic. If we were to govern, the $10,000 subsidy would not be discussed at the Legislative Council, but should have been approved by the Finance Committee much earlier; registration would have already started by now and the sum would have been disbursed expeditiously within one month. This is what we would do. We would not submit the funding proposal to the Legislative Council and wait until a few months later to disburse the subsidy.
Let us think about this. The Financial Secretary introduced this initiative back in February. It is late April now, and the initiative will not be approved until May. What is the reason for the long wait? To the public, the subsidy is a lifesaver. If we were to govern, the subsidy would be tackled long ago before the introduction of the two rounds of the Anti-epidemic Fund. The Government has failed to do so because they have misspent public funds. We have already voted in favour of the first round of the Anti-epidemic Fund. Although the Financial Secretary has apparently tried to rescue the market rather than the people, we have offered our support anyway in view of the need to bail out the market. However, we understand that members of the public who are unemployed, underemployed or are forced to take no-pay leave are most pitiful. After rescuing employers, the Government should have assisted employees and unemployed persons in the second round of the Anti-epidemic Fund. However, the Government has failed to do so, but instead asked unemployed persons to apply for the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA"). What is the point of doubling the current asset limit for CSSA applicants? The asset limit for a three-person family is $130,000, which is not even enough for paying one year of rents. How low should the income level of a poor family be in order to qualify for government assistance? As family income drops, how much hardship and arguments will a family have to go through? How many people will have to sacrifice? Should they seek help from all of their family members, relatives and friends first? Can social harmony still be maintained? Does the Government understand this fundamental problem?
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5543
The Government should assist unemployed persons. We have called for the setting up of a $30 billion unemployment assistance fund long ago to facilitate the provision of support to all unemployed persons. Under the Enterprise Support Scheme ("ESS") introduced by the Government to safeguard jobs, 80% of the funds have been misspent because all enterprises, even profitable and unaffected ones, are eligible for the benefits. Some enterprises have made it clear that they will certainly apply for the subsidies available. According to Mr David WEBB, listed companies in particular have the basic responsibility to maximize profits in the capitalist market. Since the Government has not excluded profitable companies from ESS, they will certainly submit their application. It is really "brainless" for ESS to disburse subsidies in hundreds of millions of dollars. Based on my rough estimate, PARKnSHOP and A.S. Watson Group alone will receive $700 million. They do not even bother to say thank you. How can such a stupid scheme be implemented to squander so much of the public money? Basically, four fifths of the $80-odd billion should not be disbursed. European countries have earmarked all subsidies to employees on no-pay leave, and have specifically set up a fund for unemployed persons. As a result, unemployed persons will not have to fall into the eligibility net to qualify for social security assistance and they will receive support earlier in the interim. However, our Government has refused to do so.
If we were to govern Hong Kong and dominate the Legislative Council, we would implement support measures much earlier, and the Government would never have made such a mess. I would like to ask Carrie LAM to look herself in the mirror. Has she considered herself to be very remarkable and capable? She has already ruined Hong Kong, and CPC has also come to pick quarrels and provoke trouble. We simply want to fight the epidemic. However, they have been making trouble for no reason and insisted on picking fights with us. They will not be satisfied until Hong Kong can never see a day of peace.
IR DR LO WAI-KWOK (in Cantonese): President, after Financial Secretary Paul CHAN announced the Budget this year, discussion on the Anti-epidemic Fund ("AEF") appears to have quickly dominated the community. While AEF provides one-off relief, the Budget is mainly concerned with the recurrent spending of the Hong Kong SAR Government for the current financial year. Both of them warrant our attention.
5544 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
Hong Kong has suffered one blow after another for the better half of last year. After months of extremely violent protests, it is hit by the novel coronavirus epidemic recently. Various industries are facing unprecedented hardships. A large number of small and medium enterprises in Hong Kong are struggling. It can be said, in all fairness, that the Budget as a whole goes along with public opinion and has taken on board the 80 or so proposals put forth by the Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong ("BPA"). In an unprecedented effort, the Budget has introduced one-off relief measures costing $120 billion, such as a cash handout of $10,000 to all Hong Kong citizens, a concessionary low-interest loan applicable to small and medium contractors and subcontractors, for which the Government will provide 100% guarantee, and a relaxation of the funding restrictions for technology vouchers. According to the findings of a survey conducted by an organization on the Budget this year, the rate of people's satisfaction has reached a record high in a decade, indicating that the community has responded positively to the relief measures.
In order to achieve the Budget's objectives of fighting the epidemic, supporting enterprises, safeguarding jobs and benefiting people's livelihood, the support measures must be implemented expeditiously without delay. I hope Members of various political parties and groupings in the Legislative Council can sense the people's urgency, so that the provisions in the Budget can be passed as soon as possible. Meanwhile, the Government should streamline as far as possible the application procedure for the relief measures, so that resources can reach those in need timely. Needless to say, various trades and industries are facing different kinds of challenges that require different kinds of support. In view of the rapid development of the novel coronavirus epidemic in Hong Kong, on the eve of the Budget announcement, Chief Executive Carrie LAM announced the establishment of AEF. The commitment for the first round of AEF was $10 billion, the amount was later increased to $30 billion to implement 24 measures, such as $710 million for supporting the construction sector in anti-epidemic efforts, including a subsidy of $50,000 to each eligible contractor, subcontractor and consultant and a subsidy of $1,500 to each eligible registered construction worker. The subsidies will benefit about 7 000 construction establishments and 240 000 construction workers. In the Budget, the Financial Secretary also announced the provision of a $20,000 financial subsidy to eligible small and medium contractors and registered subcontractors to tide over the present difficulties.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5545
I, together with my fellow colleagues from BPA, have repeatedly conveyed to the Government that many businesses and wage earners were excluded from the first round of AEF. The Government should make good use of its fiscal reserves by promptly introducing measures to plug the gap to extend care to all citizens during the epidemic. Most importantly, while supporting enterprises, it should safeguard jobs by providing workers with material support. BPA therefore welcomes the second round of the $137.5 billion AEF, introduced on 8 April, to implement an unprecedented package of initiatives to support enterprises and safeguard jobs. One of the initiatives is the $81 billion Employment Support Scheme to offer 50% wage subsidies up to $9,000 per employee for six months, on the condition that employers will not lay off staff.
As another measure to safeguard jobs, the Administration has undertaken to create 30 000 time-limited jobs totalling $6 billion in the public and private sectors in the coming two years. As the largest employer, the Government will continue to recruit around 10 000 civil servants and provide short-term internships to about 5 000 young people during this financial year. Besides, the Government also granted an interest-free deferral of loan repayments to all student loan repayers for a period of two years. We are happy that with full support of all Members of the pro-establishment camp, the funding proposal for the second round of AEF was approved by the Finance Committee, after two days of meeting, on Saturday afternoon, 18 April, with 41 Members voted in favour of it, 22 Members voted against it and 2 Members abstained.
President, AEF is an exceptional measure introduced under unusual circumstances to provide relief to the people in dire straits. At noon today (22 April), I and my fellow BPA colleagues met with Chief Secretary for Administration Matthew CHEUNG to make further suggestions on the Government's relief measures. We pointed out that the problem with the second round of AEF is not with scarcity but unequal distribution of the benefits, as some sectors and employees, including persons aged 65 or above who are not making Mandatory Provident Fund contributions and persons unemployed, are still unable to benefit from AEF. BPA urges the Government to roll out more relief measures in a timely manner, and plug the gaps by providing direct assistance to those enterprises and wage earners who cannot be benefited. This is the way to achieve, to the fullest extent, the objectives of supporting enterprises, safeguarding jobs, stabilizing the economy and benefiting people's livelihood.
5546 LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020
BPA is also particularly concerned about the situation of our young people, including the employment prospects of new graduates. We have asked the Government to adopt a more proactive attitude and devise specific support measures to increase job opportunities across public and private sectors. Here, I would like to make a point. As the two rounds of AEF involve various trades and industries as well as people from different strata, we hope the Government will step up publicity and set up an one-stop information portal to provide the public with convenient access to enquiry channels and application methods for the relief measures, as well as other useful information.
President, in a move unprecedented in Hong Kong, the Government has introduced two rounds of AEF and a series of support measures in the Budget, totalling $287.5 billion. However, such relief measures at best can only alleviate some of the hardships faced by the people, and we cannot turn a blind eye to the fact that the labour market is undergoing rapid changes. According to the latest labour force statistics released by the Census and Statistics Department, the seasonally adjusted unemployed rate increased to 4.2% between January and March 2020, which is the highest in nine years. The underemployed rate also increased to a decade high of 2.1%. Both the year-on-year rate of decline in total employment and workforce widened to 3.6% and 2.2% respectively, the biggest drops on record. The construction industry is the hardest hit, with the unemployment and underemployment rates surging to 8.5% and 7.1% respectively. In the better half of last year, some violent protesters threatened with "mutual destruction" repeatedly, but what we see is wage earners being laid off. As I have repeatedly emphasized to the SAR Government, the approval of public works funding has been sluggish in recent years due to filibustering in the Legislative Council. The current novel coronavirus outbreak is only making things worse after the social turmoil that lasted for a greater part of last year. The construction sector is facing the interruption of three chains: work chain, supply chain and capital chain. Hence, in addition to providing timely enhanced relief measures, the authorities should concentrate more on how to restore society's normal functioning in an expeditious manner when the epidemic has been brought under control, focusing on economic development and improving people's livelihoods. That is the way to tackle the problem at root.
In the case of Hong Kong, an instant fix is to engage all sectors in the community in urging the Finance Committee ("FC") to approve expeditiously the public works projects that are already on the agenda. Owing to filibustering by LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 22 April 2020 5547
Members of the opposition camp, out of the $140.2 billion proposed works approved by the Public Works Subcommittee in the last legislative session, more than $75 billion are still awaiting approval by FC. After FC resumed its meetings this year, it has only approved about $54.9 billion, the remaining amount is still pending for approval. Since the beginning of the current legislative session, the Public Works Subcommittee has approved new works projects costing around $20.7 billion, among which only $8.4 billion has been approved by FC. The Capital Works Reserve Fund Block allocations of $22.5 billion will be spent on more than 10 000 public works projects. The Public Works Subcommittee was unable to complete the scrutiny of the projects after three meetings, one of which was held on 26 February during the epidemic with Members wearing face masks. Given the urgent demand for funding, the Administration had no choice but to submit the projects directly to FC for consideration. The funding was fnally approved on 11 March. If opposition Members stop filibustering, FC can expeditiously approve funding for works projects worth more than $100 billion. These projects will not only be a shot in the arm for the construction sector, but will also bring improvements to various facets of people's livelihood, including land and housing supply, as well as services such as transport, health care, social welfare, education and security.
President, when there is an economic downturn, many governments will increase investments in public infrastructure to boost the economy and pave the way for recovery. Therefore the SAR Government should be more flexible in implementing works projects. First, it should speed up the redevelopment of old housing estates as a way of generating jobs opportunities and reducing housing shortage. Based on the Government's 10-year Public Housing Programme, there is still a shortage of 29 000 units from the production target of subsidized housing flats. In order to increase flat supply, the Government can rebuild old public housing projects such as Shek Kip Mei Estate in the future. However, the Government has been too conservative. I am worried that under the novel coronavirus epidemic, many wage earners have to live from hand to mouth, and the demand for subsidized housing will be driven up, thus aggravating the already tight supply of public rental housing. Expediting the redevelopment of old housing estates is a "multiple-win" solution that will boost housing supply and create employment opportunities.
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Second, the Government should accelerate the implementation of new railway projects. The Government's Railway Development Strategy 2014 announced in 2014 had set out seven new railway projects to be completed by 2031, yet it was not until six years later that the commencement of the Tung Chung Line Extension project was announced on 7th this month and MTR Corporation Limited was invited to proceed with detailed planning and design. Though it is better late than never, given the current situation and circumstances, we should play catch-up on the proposed new railway project in order to stabilize jobs and encourage new community growth.
President, Hong Kong has accumulated several hundred billions of fiscal reserves through the hard work of its people. However, since being hit by the novel coronavirus outbreak, this year's fiscal deficit has risen to nearly $300 billion. I am sure we are all aware that unless we explore ways to cut cost and increase income, our reserves can easily be depleted. Hence, in the long run, we must identify ways to enhance our industrial structure, boost our overall competitiveness and promote regional cooperation, thereby providing wider horizons of development for enterprises and talents in Hong Kong. Once the epidemic has subsided, all sectors of the community must come together to commence discussion.
President, Hong Kong is in the midst of unprecedented challenges and economic hardship. With about three months to go before prorogation of the Council, I sincerely hope and urge that Members can act in the best interest of the whole community, expeditiously put aside their disagreement, stop their pointless argument and enable the Council to function effectively. Some opposition Members said that people should not fear the fiscal cliff and they must free themselves from fiscal kidnapping. Those Members have even said that Hong Kong people must have the courage to jump off the fiscal cliff. I must state categorically that the people of Hong Kong do not want to jump off the cliff. The people of Hong Kong expect Members to do concrete things for people's livelihood. As such, Hong Kong can develop sustainably, people can live and work in contentment, and opportunities for upward mobility can be created for the new generation.
President, with these remarks, I support the expeditious passage of the Appropriation Bill 2020.
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SUSPENSION OF MEETING
PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): I now suspend the meeting until 9:00 am tomorrow.
Suspended accordingly at 7:08 pm.