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The following is issued on behalf of Legislative Council Secretariat:
The Legislative Council (LegCo) will hold a meeting this Wednesday (December 5) at 11am in the Chamber of the LegCo Complex. During the meeting, Members will consider a proposed resolution on appointing a select committee to inquire into the discontinuation of sound broadcasting service by Digital Broadcasting Corporation Hong Kong Limited and related issues.
The proposed resolution, to be moved by Mr Albert Chan under the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance, states: "That this Council appoints a select committee to inquire into the discontinuation of sound broadcasting service by Digital Broadcasting Corporation Hong Kong Limited and related issues; and that in the performance of its duties the committee be authorised under section 9(2) of the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance (Cap. 382) to exercise the powers conferred by section 9(1) of that Ordinance."
Members will also debate a motion on Executive Council as gate-keeper for MTR fares. The motion, to be moved by Mr Michael Tien, states: "That the net profit of the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) in 2011 reached $14,716 million, but as computed under the formula of the Fare Adjustment Mechanism (FAM) (i.e. the mechanism that allows fares to go upwards and downwards), MTR fares may be increased by 5.4%, rendering the burden of rail transport expenses on grass-root people heavier; at present, the community generally considers the formula not comprehensive enough and that the Government should, during the present review of MTRCL's FAM, include in the formula components that can better reflect public affordability and profit level, rental income and service performance (including the level of performance in handling incidents), etc. of MTRCL; however, the re-establishment of a formula is bound to be protracted, time-consuming and fruitless because the various social sectors can hardly reach a consensus on the definitions, assessment methods and respective weightings of the aforesaid components; there is also a proposal in society of using the dividends distributed by MTRCL to set up a fare stabilisation fund to offset the extent of fare increases, yet both the Government and academics consider that this 'dedicated-funds-for-dedicated-uses' practice deviates from the Government's public finance principle; in this connection, this Council urges the Government, being the major shareholder of MTRCL, to:
(a) maintain the existing formula of FAM, and submit the fare adjustment rates computed under the formula to the Executive Council for vetting, with the Executive Council having the power to make final adjustments, subject to the condition that the difference between such adjustment rates and the adjustment rates computed under the formula must not exceed 30%; such an arrangement enables the Executive Council to serve as the final gate-keeper on MTR fares and MTRCL and its shareholders to have a basis for projecting the profit of MTRCL;
(b) require MTRCL to strictly implement the 'eight-minute notification system' to ensure that MTRCL can speedily notify the public in case of incidents, and the Executive Council should take account of MTRCL's performance in this regard when vetting MTRCL fare adjustment rates; and
(c) require MTRCL to introduce reasonably-priced territory-wide monthly tickets to benefit all passengers, and utilise this as an incentive to promote working across districts, with a view to alleviating workers' financial burden."
Dr Kwok Ka-ki, Mr Lee Cheuk-yan, Mr Frederick Fung, Mr Wu Chi-wai, Mr Tang Ka-piu, Mr Frankie Yick, Mr Chan Kam-lam, Mr Gary Fan and Mr Kenneth Leung will move separate amendments to Mr Michael Tien's motion.
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Meanwhile, Members will debate a motion on supporting the development of the securities industry. The motion, to be moved by Mr Christopher Cheung, states: "That, given the great contribution of local securities firms to Hong Kong's financial market and their unrivalled importance in safeguarding Hong Kong's financial safety and supporting its financial development, this Council urges the Government to adopt specific measures to support the development of the local securities industry."
Mr Wong Kwok-hing, Mr Kenneth Leung, Mr Ronny Tong, Mr Sin Chung-kai, Mr Ng Leung-sing and Mr Martin Liao will move separate amendments to Mr Christopher Cheung's motion.
On motions, the Secretary for Justice will move a proposed resolution under section 34(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance to amend the Solicitors' Accounts (Amendment) Rules 2012 and the Accountant's Report (Amendment) Rules 2012, laid on the table of the LegCo on October 17, 2012.
During the meeting, Members will also ask the Administration 20 questions on various policy areas, six of which require oral replies.
The agenda of the above meeting can be obtained via the LegCo website (www.legco.gov.hk). Please note that the agenda is subject to change, and the latest information about the agenda could be found in the LegCo website.
Members of the public are welcome to observe the proceedings of the meeting from the public galleries of the Chamber of the LegCo Complex. They may reserve seats by calling 3919 3399 during office hours. Seats will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Members of the public can also watch or listen the meeting via the web broadcast system on the LegCo website.
Ends/Monday, December 3, 2012
Issued at HKT 18:10
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