************************
Following is a question by the Hon Cheung Hok-ming and a written reply by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Professor K C Chan, in the Legislative Council today (February 27):
Question:
In addition to procuring its own vehicles and hiring drivers to provide services for government officers, the Government also implements the Taxi Hiring Scheme, under which government officers are allowed to use hourly-hired taxis for official duty journeys. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of hirings and expenditure incurred in using hourly-hired taxis by various government departments in the past three years;
(b) in comparison with maintaining a government fleet, of the amount of public money saved under the above Scheme in each of the past three years; and
(c) of the current procedures, mode of operation and details of the charges for using hourly-hired taxis, and whether standardised guidelines on the above Scheme have been drawn up for various government departments?
Reply:
Madam President,
Government departments are required to consider using the most appropriate mode of transport, including public transport, government vehicles and hired vehicles for the purpose of discharging duties, taking into account operational needs and cost effectiveness. Government officers should use the most economical means of public transport for duty journeys. However, they may choose to use other appropriate modes of transport having regard to factors such as location of outside duty, items that have to be brought along and urgency of the job. Government departments are required to strictly adhere to this principle when deciding the appropriate mode of transport and approving claims for reimbursement of relevant travelling expenses.
The Government has implemented the "Use of Hourly-hired Taxis for Duty Journeys Scheme" since February 2003. It aims mainly at providing an additional alternative mode of transport for duty journeys of government officers having regard to operational needs and cost effectiveness.
My reply to the three-part question is as follows:
(1) The number of hirings and expenditure incurred in using hourly-hired taxis by various government departments in the past three years from 2005 to 2007 are set out in Annex 1.
(2) After launching the "Use of Hourly-hired Taxis for Duty Journeys Scheme" in 2003, the Government Logistics Department reduced its fleet by ten medium saloon cars and deleted ten relevant government driver posts. The relevant staff salaries and departmental operating costs saved estimated then were $2.13 million per year.
(3) The Government Logistics Department has issued a set of guidelines to bureaux and departments on the "Use of Hourly-hired Taxis for Duty Journeys Scheme". The guidelines require officers who intend to use hourly-hired taxis for duty journeys to first make applications and obtain approval in accordance with procedures set by their departments, and then select and contact taxi associations/taxi radio stations participating in the scheme on rotation to hire taxis on an hourly basis. The charge of hiring hourly-hired taxis is based on the duration of usage with a minimum period of two hours per hiring. Details of hiring rates are set out in Annex 2. Upon completion of journey, the government officer will pay the hire charge to the driver and subsequently seek reimbursement from his or her department based on the hiring record.
Ends/Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Issued at HKT 14:52
NNNN
