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LCQ19: Celebration events held by the Government for the anniversaries of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
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     Following is a question by the Dr Hon Kwok Ka-ki and a written reply by the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Lau Kong-wah, in the Legislative Council today (October 25):

Question:
 
     July 1 of this year marked the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).  Regarding the celebration events held by the Government for the anniversaries of the establishment of HKSAR, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) in respect of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of HKSAR, of

(i) the number of celebration events held locally by the Government so far and, in respect of each of the events, the name and description of the event, the number of participants in the event, the expenditure incurred for the event and its achievements;
(ii) the number of celebration events to be held locally by the Government and, in respect of each of the events, the name and description of the event, the expected number of participants in the event, the estimated expenditure to be incurred for the event and its expected achievements;
(iii) the number of celebration events held outside Hong Kong by the Government so far and, in respect of each of the events, the name and description of the event, the number of participants in the event, the expenditure incurred for the event, its achievements and the location at which it was held; and
(iv) the number of celebration events to be held outside Hong Kong by the Government and, in respect of each of the events, the name and description of the event, the expected number of participants in the event, the estimated expenditure to be incurred for the event, its expected achievements and the location at which it is to be held;

(2) of the respective numbers of celebration events held by the Government in the relevant financial years for the 1st, 5th, 10th and 15th anniversaries of the establishment of HKSAR, as well as the respective expenditures and achievements of each of the events; how the total expenditures of the celebration events held in those years compare with the relevant total expenditure estimated for this year; and

(3) whether it will assess if the various celebration events have accomplished or will accomplish their expected achievements, so as to ensure the proper use of public money?

Reply:

President,

     Our consolidated reply to the various parts of the question is as follows:

     With the theme "Together · Progress · Opportunity", the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) focus on, inter alia, providing opportunities for Hong Kong people to celebrate together Hong Kong's return to our Motherland and share the joy of the 20th anniversary of the HKSAR, and at the same time achieving participation by all and inclusiveness in society through celebrations.  The Government attaches great importance to the implementation of the celebration events.   As the 20th anniversary celebration events are held throughout 2017 and some of them will be completed by the end of this year or early next year, we will conduct a comprehensive review of their effectiveness when nearly all of them are completed.

     There are altogether more than 1 200 local celebration events.  As at the end of September this year, over 900 of these events have been held.  There are also about 200 celebration events held in Mainland and overseas cities, among them more than 160 have been held.  It is estimated that the number of participants in the events held have exceeded 10 million.  Many of these events were well received by the general public.  For example, the Eternal Life - Exploring Ancient Egypt exhibition held by the Hong Kong Science Museum attracted over 850 000 visitors; the Hong Kong Masters 2017 snooker competition attracted more than 10 000 spectators (viewers on television not included); and all classical Cantonese opera performances presented by the Chinese Artists Association of Hong Kong in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the HKSAR were sold out.  The names and contents of all the events are detailed in the list of celebration events on a dedicated website: www.hksar20.gov.hk.

     The Home Affairs Bureau does not maintain central data on the celebration events of the 1st and the 5th anniversaries of the HKSAR.  For celebration events of the 10th and the 15th anniversaries, about $95 million and $20 million was provided respectively as additional funding.  As regards the 20th anniversary, the Government has earmarked a provision of $640 million in 2017-18 for hosting or sponsoring various celebration events.  The actual expenditure of these events can only be calculated collectively by relevant government departments and the Economic and Trade Offices overseas / in the Mainland upon completion of all events.

     Since the targets, focuses, number and scale of activities, number of participants, arrangement etc. of the celebration events for every anniversary of the HKSAR are different, the relevant figures should not be compared directly.
 
Ends/Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Issued at HKT 11:30
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