Issued by Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government Information Services
Garden Road, 5th-8th Floors, Murray Building, Hong Kong. Tel: 2842 8777
Wednesday, December 3, 1997
CONTENTS
========
1. Special working group on contaminated medicine announced
2. CE welcomes travel trade representatives
3. Acquisition of Pacific Link Communications Limited approved
4. Third batch of retired leaders to visit Hong Kong
5. Long range aeronautical search and rescue exercise
6. Land Registry statistics for November released
7. Clearing facility for HKD cheques presented in Shenzhen
8. 40 government quarters to be sold
9. Employer of visitors jailed four months
1. Special working group on contaminated medicine announced
********************************************************
The Department of Health today (Wednesday) announced
the membership, terms of reference and scope of work of
the special working group appointed by the Director of
Health to carry out a thorough and full-scale
investigation into the contaminated medicine incident.
The convenor of the special working group is Mrs
Kathryn Wong, Assistant Director (Administration), who is
a non-medical professional in charge of management and
administrative matters in the department.
Other members comprise Dr Stephen Foo Kam-so,
President of the Hong Kong College of Family Physicians;
Mr Kenneth Lee Kwing-chin, Associate Professor of the
Chinese University of Hong Kong's Department of Pharmacy;
and Miss Nora Yau Ho-chun, Director of the Christian
Family Service Centre.
The special working group may invite any persons whom
it considers appropriate to assist the investigation.
The terms of reference of the special working group
are:
* To investigate thoroughly the incident of wrong
dispensing of medicine at the Cheung Sha Wan Clinic
Dispensary which was reported to the Director of Health on
November 25, 1997;
* To review the procedure and practices in the
dispensary; and
* To make recommendations to the Director of Health
on measures to prevent the occurrence of similar mistakes
in the future.
Announcing at a press conference this afternoon, the
Deputy Director of Health, Dr P Y Lam, said the special
working group would carry out the investigation
independently and with the maximum degree of autonomy and
flexibility within a very tight schedule.
"The special working group has already started
preparatory work and devised a scope of activities to
ensure thoroughness, openness and accountability," Dr Lam
said.
"Members of the group will study all available
documents and information relating to the incident and the
operation of the dispensary and will draw reference from
other dispensaries.
"They will interview key persons involved in the
incident and conduct on-site inspection of the dispensary.
"A questionnaire survey will also be conducted to
obtain information from parents of the patients involved
and others who may have useful information to assist in
the enquiry."
Dr Lam said the special working group had also
decided to extend its scope of investigation to the anti-
fever syrup dispensed since the beginning of November in
the Cheung Sha Wan Clinic Dispensary.
"The decision stemmed from the results of laboratory
tests obtained yesterday afternoon on two samples of
anti-fever syrup handed to the department by clients who
received the medicine from the Cheung Sha Wan Clinic
Dispensary on November 15," he said.
"The results showed the presence of mouth-wash in low
concentration in the anti-fever syrup. Although at such
low concentration, it will require the consumption of 146
ml at one go for a two-month old baby to give rise to
serious effect, the convenor of the special working group
considered it necessary to extend the scope of
investigation.
"In view of the expanded scale of the investigation,
the special working group may require more than two weeks
to complete the investigation. Nonetheless, members are
committed to an early completion of the probe."
The findings of the special working group will be
made public, Dr Lam added.
End
2. CE welcomes travel trade representatives
****************************************
The Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, welcomes some
200 representatives from the travel trade from 22
countries at a reception held at Government House this
(Wednesday) evening.
The group is on a five-day rediscovery programme,
Hong Kong Salutes the World, organised by the Hong Kong
Tourist Association to promote Hong Kong as one of Asia's
favourite travel destinations.
Addressing the guests, Mr Tung noted that Hong Kong
is a unique travel destination for visitors.
"As Hong Kong entered a new era on July 1 this year,
we are building a Hong Kong that will be even more
prosperous and vibrant," he said.
Mr Tung said that the Government would ensure that
the development of Hong Kong's tourism industry was
supported by adequate infrastructure and facilities.
An example is the plan to set up a $100 million
International Event Fund next year to promote Hong Kong as
"the event capital of Asia". The Fund will be used to
support the staging of 50 international events in Hong
Kong in the next five years.
"Furthermore, the Government is studying the need for
additional convention and exhibition space and will review
the manpower and training needs of the tourism industry.
"Hong Kong is also working closely with the tourism
promotion authorities in South China and other cities to
enhance the territory's position as the gateway to the
many attractions in the region," Mr Tung said.
End
3. Acquisition of Pacific Link Communications Limited approved
***********************************************************
Having carefully considered a joint application made
by Pacific Link Communications Limited (Pacific Link) and
Hong Kong Telecom CSL Limited (CSL), the
Telecommunications Authority (TA), Mr Anthony S K Wong,
announced today (Wednesday) that he has approved a
transfer of licence from Pacific Link to CSL.
Pacific Link is currently licensed to operate a
digital cellular phone system, a Personal Communications
Service (PCS) and a radio paging service.
Under the arrangement approved by the TA, CSL will
acquire all shares in Pacific Link from the existing
shareholders and take over the operation of all
telecommunication services of the acquired company. CSL
will continue to honour all commitments and obligations
under the licences of Pacific Link, including the
performance bond obligations under the PCS licence.
"I have given my approval of the acquisition after
considering whether competition in the market would be
adversely affected, whether the interest of the existing
customers of Pacific Link has been adequately safeguarded
and other relevant factors," said Mr Wong.
"I am satisfied that the level of competition in the
markets for mobile phone and paging services would not be
unduly affected by the acquisition. Although the number
of competing operators in the mobile phone market is
reduced by one, there will still be three major players
and four new PCS operators which are rapidly developing
their networks and improving their capability to compete.
Hong Kong remains one of the most competitive markets in
the world for mobile phone services after the
acquisition," continued Mr Wong.
"Although the market share of CSL will grow to about
40 per cent after the acquisition, it cannot dominate the
mobile phone market as the current price and service
offerings in this market are extremely competitive. This
is because of the existence of two well established
competitors and four new PCS operators which are ready and
keen to compete in the market.
"I am also satisfied that consumers' interest would
not be affected. CSL is required to take over all the
obligations of Pacific Link under Pacific Link's licences.
All existing services of Pacific Link will continue to be
provided to its customers in a seamless manner without any
disruption," said Mr Wong.
Mr Wong added that the approval of this transaction
will not set any precedent for future applications. Any
future proposal of this nature would need to be considered
on its own merits by the TA.
End
4. Third batch of retired leaders to visit Hong Kong
*************************************************
The next batch of retired Chinese leaders will visit
Hong Kong shortly, an SAR Government spokesman said today
(Thursday).
They are former vice chairmen of the National
People's Congress Standing Committee, Mr Ye Fei and Mr
Liao Hansheng; former Vice Chairman of the Chinese
People's Political Consultative Conference, Mr Yang
Chengwu; and former President of the Supreme People's
Court, Mr Zheng Tianxiang.
The Central People's Government is responsible for
organising and arranging the visits of the retired Chinese
leaders to Hong Kong. The SAR Government will assist in
arranging some visit programme for them. As the retired
leaders are on private visits, their itineraries will not
be announced.
End
5. Long range aeronautical search and rescue exercise
**************************************************
The annual Search and Rescue Exercise organised by
Civil Aviation Department (CAD) of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region Government will be held for three
days starting today (Wednesday).
The exercise is to provide training and
familiarisation in search and rescue techniques for staff
of CAD and other rescue units.
The exercise this year will consist of a static
display of search and rescue aircraft consisting of a P3
of the United States Navy, a C9 of the United States Air
Force and a Super King Air and Sikorsky helicopters of the
Government Flying Service, a Search and Rescue Symposium
by various participating units and a Long Range Exercise
in the South China Sea.
In addition to CAD, other participants included are
the United States Air Force, United States Coast Guard,
United States Navy, Government Flying Service, Hong Kong
Police Force, Marine Department, Civil Aid Service and
Information Services Department.
A number of search and rescue experts from the Asia-
Pacific -Region including Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai,
Macau and Vietnam have also participated as observers.
A spokesman for CAD, which is responsible for
organising and co-ordinating the exercise, said the main
event would be the Long Range Search and Rescue Exercise
which would be held tomorrow (Thursday).
The exercise is aimed at testing the alerting, co-
ordination, communication facilities and the search and
rescue techniques of various participants. It will be
activated this evening, simulating an aircraft in distress
about 130 kilometres south of Hong Kong. Three search
aircraft will be despatched to the area the next morning
to search for the "missing aircraft" in the South China
Sea.
End
6. Land Registry statistics for November released
**********************************************
The Land Registry received 15,443 sale and purchase
agreements on residential and non-residential units last
month (November).
The figure represented an increase of 3.2 per cent
over the previous month but a decrease of 3.6 per cent
from November last year.
The total consideration of these agreements was $60.2
billion, down 1.1 per cent and up 2.1 per cent
respectively when compared with the amounts in October
1997 and November last year.
The figures were contained in the monthly statistics
released today (Wednesday) by the Land Registry on deeds
relating to property transactions received for
registration in the Urban and New Territories Land
Registries in November 1997.
Relevant statistics for October 1997 and November
1996 were provided for comparison. Figures on sale and
purchase agreements received for the past 12 months and
the year-on-year rate of change were also released.
These statistics generally relate to land
transactions executed up to four weeks prior to their
submission for registration as there is usually a time lag
between the execution of deeds and their lodgement for
registration.
End
7. Clearing facility for HKD cheques presented in Shenzhen
*******************************************************
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced
today (Wednesday) that agreement has been reached with the
Shenzhen Branch of the People's Bank of China (PBoC) on a
new Joint Clearing Facility to speed up the processing of
Hong Kong dollar cheques issued by banks in Hong Kong and
presented in Shenzhen.
The Joint Clearing Facility, which will be
implemented by the Hong Kong Interbank Clearing Limited
(HKICL) and the Shenzhen Financial Electronics Settlement
Centre (SFESC), will take effect on January 2, 1998
(Friday). The facility will significantly reduce the time
required for clearing Hong Kong dollar cheques presented
in Shenzhen down to two days.
Under the existing practice, the clearing and
settlement of Hong Kong dollar cheques issued by banks in
Hong Kong and presented in Shenzhen may take up to 14 days
before good funds can be credited to the payees' accounts
in Shenzhen.
"I welcome the introduction of the new Joint Clearing
Facility, which is part of the HKMA's on-going efforts to
develop our market infrastructure. By reducing settlement
time and risks, the facility will enhance and facilitate
the economic and financial links between Hong Kong and
Shenzhen.
"The facility is also another example of practical
co-operation between the PBoC and the HKMA under the 'One
Country, Two Systems' framework," said the Chief Executive
of the HKMA, Mr Joseph Yam.
End
8. 40 government quarters to be sold
*********************************
The Government Property Agency today (Wednesday)
released details of 40 government quarters in Baguio Villa
to be sold to the public by open tender.
This is the second stage of the sale which was
announced on November 13. The third stage involves
another 40 Baguio Villa flats which will be offered on
December 30, 1997.
Show flats will be open for inspection from Saturday
(December 6) to December 14 (Sunday) while all the other
flats will be available for inspection on days specified
in the Tender Notice. Tenders will close at noon on
December 16 (Tuesday).
The basic terms for the sale of these 40 flats will
be identical to those in the previous exercises. They will
go to the highest bidders, subject to minimum prices
specified for the individual flats.
Only individual end-users who have not bought surplus
government quarters before will be eligible to tender, and
no one will be able to buy more than one unit.
The Government will have the right, to be exercised
at its complete discretion, to buy back the property at
the purchase price plus a five per cent increase per annum
if the successful buyer decides to sell within the first
two years of acquisition.
Advertisements carrying details of the offers and the
procedure for lodging bids will appear in selected local
newspapers.
End
9. Employer of visitors jailed four months
***************************************
A contractor, being the person-in-charge of a
construction site, received imprisonment sentence at
Western Magistracy for employing eight Chinese visitors.
The 60-year-old defendant pleaded guilty to six
counts of being the employer of a person not lawfully
employable. He was sentenced to four months imprisonment
on each charge, all run concurrently.
Seven male and one female mainlanders, aged 26 to 50,
was each convicted of one count of taking up employment
without the permission from the Director of Immigration.
Six males pleaded guilty to the charges and were each
jailed one month, sentence suspended for two years.
For the other two who pleaded not guilty to the
charges, their cases were adjourned to December 30 for
further hearing.
The eight mainlanders were arrested by the police
officers who raided a construction site located at Zone
103 near Saddle Ridge Garden, Sha Tin on November 8, 1997.
The visitors were found either clearing construction
refuse or applying cement. The case was later referred to
the Immigration Department for further investigation.
Subsequent investigation showed that the mainlanders
arrived in Hong Kong on the strength of Two-way Chinese
Exit Permits. They came to Hong Kong in September and
early November. They were allowed to stay as visitors
until mid-November to late January 1998.
They worked for the defendant as construction workers
for a daily wage ranging from $150 to $200. The defendant
admitted that he knew the eight were visitors to Hong Kong
and he had recruited them to work.
A spokesperson for the Immigration Department warned:
"It is an offence for anyone to employ someone who is not
lawfully employable. The maximum penalty is a fine of
$350,000 and imprisonment for three years.
"Visitors are not allowed to take up employment in
Hong Kong, whether paid or unpaid, without the permission
of the Director of Immigration."
"Those who breach the conditions of stay are liable
to prosecution and upon conviction to a maximum fine of
$50,000 and to imprisonment for two years," added the
spokesperson.
End
PROVISIONAL LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL MEETING SUPPLEMENT
CONTENTS
========
1. Decontamination and restoration of landfills
2. Quality of the Housing Authority estates
3. Food delivery to elderly singletons
4. Middle East and Eastern European nationals visa applications
5. Need to retain Frontier Closed Area as buffer zone confirmed
6. Measures to prevent contracting of hepatitis A
7. Energy efficiency in building services design
8. Road maintenance
9. Two-way permit holders taking up illegal employment
10. Height for parapet walls of Trident public housing blocks
11. Plans to set up more one-way viewer rooms
12. Workload of medical staff in A & E departments
13. Additional special school places in northern NT
14. Measures to prevent abuse of A & E services
15. Hong Kong Futures Exchange Limited
16. Octopus system
17. Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund financial position
18. Control of the import of contaminated vegetables
1. Decontamination and restoration of landfills
********************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Ho Chung-tai and a
reply by the Secretary for Planning, Environment and
Lands, Mr Bowen Leung, in the Provisional Legislative
Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
It is reported that the Government will spend several
hundred million dollars to decontaminate two polluted
landfills in Tseung Kwan O. In this connection, will the
Government inform this Council:
(a) of the landfills in Hong Kong which are
polluted;
(b) whether it has any plan to change the planned
land use of these landfills (such as to enable the
building of sitting-out areas on them); if so, whether the
authority will decontaminate the landfills before
commencing the construction work, so as to ensure the
safety of the users; and
(c) of the measures in place to ensure that the
decontaminated landfills will not pose health hazards to
the users of the facilities built on them?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) At present, tThere are 13 old landfills in Hong
Kong. All of them have been closed. They were designed
some 30 to 40 years ago using the technology of the day,
and were hence deficient in terms of environmental control
measures which we would adopt today located around South
East Kowloon, Tseung Kwan O, Shuen Wan, Kwai Chung, and
the North West New Territories areas. Unlike the three
operational strategic landfills which have been developed
as state-of-the-art environmentally controlled waste
disposal facilities, few environmental controls were
imposed on these old landfills. These sites would old
landfill sites have thus become contaminated by the
pollution resulting from the gradual decomposition is
position of the waste buried in them. All these old
landfills have now been closed.
(b) The Government considers that the old landfill
sites can be put to beneficial use after suitable
decontamination and restoration. Our plans are that at
least four of the sites can be used for recreational
purpose. The Secretary for Broadcasting, Culture and
Sport is responsible to co-ordinate the development of
these sites. The Environmental ProtectionMost of these
landfill sites have been left derelict since they were
closed down. For safety and environmental reasons, the
Environmental Protection Department is implementing a
landfill restoration programme to restore these all the
old landfill sites to a safe and environmentally
acceptable condition. The restoration works include the
construction of landfill gas and leachate management
systems and long-term operation and an operation and
maintenance of programme for these systems will also be
carried out until these landfill sites can be brought are
brought back to normal development use. Construction of
the restoration facilities on some seven of these landfill
sites is already in progress and once these facilities are
completed, the surfaces of these landfill sites can be
used for recreational activities. The Government is
considering using these restored landfill sites for
various recreational uses including sports grounds,
gardens/parks, golf courses etc. The Secretary for
Broadcasting, Culture and Sport is tasked with the
responsibility to co-ordinate the development of these
recreational uses.
(c) Once the restoration facilities are in place,
the emission of landfill gas and discharges of leachate
from the old landfills will can be under controlled. The
Regular monitoring by the Environmental Protection
Department and its restoration contractors will be made
will carry out necessary work and regular monitoring to
ensure that these landfill sites are safe and will not to
ensure that these landfill sites are safe to the pose a
threat to the users of the facilities built on them,
nearby residents or the wider environment.
End
2. Quality of the Housing Authority estates
****************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Cheng Kai-nam and
a reply by the Secretary for Housing, Mr Dominic Wong, in
the Provisional Legislative Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
In connection with the quality of the Housing
Authority estates (i.e. estates under the Home Ownership
Scheme and the Private Sector Participation Scheme), will
the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the measures in place to prevent contractors
and developers from compromising workmanship because of
the tender prices, and to ensure the quality of building
inspections; and
(b) whether it will review the existing system of
the Private Sector Participation Scheme, under which the
Buildings Department will issue "Letters of Satisfaction"
according to the building inspection reports submitted by
private developers; and of the measures in place to ensure
the credibility of the results of building inspections
carried out by these developers?
Reply:
Madam President,
The Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) is developed by the
Housing Authority. In selecting contractors for
construction projects, tender price is not the only
criterion adopted. Financial capability, past performance
and current workload of tenderers are also taken into
account.
Housing projects under the Private Sector
Participation Scheme (PSPS) are undertaken by private
developers. A weighted scoring system is adopted to
ensure objective assessment of tenders submitted by
developers. In selecting tenders, consideration is given
not only to the tendered premium but also to the "non-
premium" aspects of tenders which include overall planning
and detailed design of projects, past performance and
financial capability of tenderers, and other proposals
relating to construction, environment and future
management.
Concerning building inspections, HOS projects are
inspected by Housing Department's professionals. The
practice for PSPS projects, which is similar for private
housing developments, is prescribed in the Buildings
Ordinance. Authorised Persons and Registered Structural
Engineers are to give such periodical supervision of
building works or structural works of PSPS projects as may
be necessary, and Registered Contractors are to give such
continuous supervision of building works. Their roles are
to ensure that buildings constructed are in accordance
with the plans approved by the Building Authority and the
provisions of the Ordinance and regulations. In addition,
the Director of Housing appoints an independent surveyor
to generally oversee the development of the project and to
monitor progress.
As regards part (b) of the Question, the general
practice for private housing developments is followed in
the case of PSPS projects. Occupation permits are issued
by the Building Authority based mainly on certificates
submitted by Authorised Persons. These certificates must
be signed by Authorised Persons, Registered Structural
Engineers and Registered Contractors of these projects,
all of whom must be registered with the Building Authority
under the Buildings Ordinance.
End
3. Food delivery to elderly singletons
***********************************
Following is a question by the Hon Selina Chow Liang
Shuk-yee and a reply by the Secretary for Health and
Welfare, Mrs Katherine Fok, in the Provisional Legislative
Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
Will the Government inform the Council:
(a) of the Social Welfare Department (SWD)'s current
timetable for the delivery of meals to elderly people
living alone and the detailed arrangements in this
respect;
(b) whether it has stipulated the nutritional
content of the meals;
(c) of the days when meal delivery services are not
available from the SWD, and the means to ensure that these
old people can still be provided with meals on those days;
and
(d) of the present procedures for elderly people
living alone to lodge complaints about the meal delivery
arrangements; and the number of such complaints last year?
Reply:
Madam President,
Home help service is funded by the government and
provided by non-governmental organisations. It covers a
wide range of services including general personal care,
meal delivery service, household chores, purchase of daily
necessities laundry service and escort services. When an
application for home help service is received, the
responsible social worker will perform a detail assessment
of the need of the client in order to decide what services
are required, including those on Sundays and public
holidays, and then carry out suitable arrangement.
(a) Meal delivery service is an important part of
home help service. It is normally provided on weekdays
and Saturdays. Two meals are delivered each day. The
time of delivery will be arranged by the organisations
according to operational needs. Normally lunch will be
delivered fron 11 am to 1 pm and dinner from 4 pm to 6 pm.
The home helpers will take the chance to have a chat
with the elderly and if problems are observed, the home
helpers will inform the social worker who will then follow
up.
(b) Every home help team is headed by a social
worker. The Social Welfare Department provides training
to the home helper in-charge. The content of the training
includes information on nutrition, how to set up menu and
the eating habits of the elderly.
In providing the meals, other than taking into
consideration the clients' likes and requests, the service
agencies will also try to provide nutritionally-balanced
diets. They will also provide special diets according to
medical recommendations for clients with specific needs,
e.g. clients with diabetes or high blood pressure.
(c) Home help service is provided to people who
cannot take care of themselves and whose families cannot
take care of them. During holidays and Sundays, most of
the elderly people who have families and friends can be
taken care of by them. Those without family and who
cannot take care of themselves can request the service
agencies to provide meal delivery service during holidays
and Sundays. Because of this, the Social Welfare
Department provide each home help team with a special
allowance.
The service agencies have the discretion to use the
special allowance either as holiday allowance of the home
helpers in the teams or the remuneration given to
neighbours who will provide the meals instead. Enlisting
help from neighbours can also act as an incentive to
encourage community participation in the provision of
elderly services.
(d) Any comments or complaints about the meal
delivery services from the elderly can be lodged with the
service agencies or addressed to the Social Welfare
Department for appropriate action to be taken.
Amongst the 18,000 or more clients that had been
served in the past year, the Social Welfare Department
only received two anonymous complaints about the meal
delivery services arrangement but none was received by
service agencies. The clients will sometimes offer their
views on the service and food to the home helpers, e.g.
whether the food suit their wishes, and the service
agencies will try their best to fulfill their requests.
End
4. Middle East and Eastern European nationals visa applications
************************************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Howard Young and a
reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Peter Lai, in the
Provisional Legislative Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
In respect of visa applications from nationals of
Middle East and Eastern European countries, and nationals
of other countries, will the Government inform this
Council of:
(a) the respective average time taken to process the
applications from these two categories of nationals;
(b) the reasons for the difference in time in
processing these applications; and
(c) the numbers of applications from these two
categories of nationals over the past three years and, of
these applications, the numbers which were rejected and
the reasons of rejection?
Reply:
Madam President,
All foreign nationals who wish to enter the Hong Kong
SAR for residence, employment or training must apply for
the appropriate visas. However, for short visits,
nationals of only 39 countries (including some Middle East
and Eastern European countries) need to apply for visas,
while nationals of 170 countries do not need to apply for
visas. Out of the 21 Middle East countries, nationals of
only seven countries are required to apply for visit
visas. For the 27 Eastern European countries, nationals
of 19 countries are required to apply for visit visas. To
expedite the issuance of the visit visas, applications for
stay of less than 14 days from nationals of these 19
Eastern European countries and Somalia are approved by the
overseas diplomatic and consular missions of the Peoples'
Republic of China at the applicants' places of domicile,
without them being referred to the Immigration Department
for processing.
Against this background, the answers to the three
parts of the question are as follows:
(a) The Immigration Department does not keep
statistics on "average time" taken to process visas, since
there could be substantial variations between individual
cases. Our performance measurement is expressed as the
percentage of visit visa applications completed within a
stated timescale. In the case of Middle East countries,
94% of visit visa applications received in the first 10
months this year were finalised within four weeks. In the
case of Eastern European countries, 85% of the
applications received were finalised within four weeks.
For applications from nationals of countries other than
these two categories, 95% were finalised within four
weeks.
(b) There is no significant variation in the
performance measures for the three categories of
applications (i.e. those from nationals of Middle East,
Eastern European and other countries). The slightly
higher proportion of applications from nationals of
Eastern European countries which took more than four weeks
to complete was primarily due to the longer time taken by
the sponsors of these cases in providing the required
supporting information. The processing time for all
categories of visit visas is within the stated performance
pledge of the Immigration Department, i.e. to process 70%
of visa applications within four-six weeks.
(c) In 1994, 1995 and 1996, the Immigration
Department received a total of 1,946, 1,966 and 2,329
visit visa applications from nationals of Middle East
countries. The numbers of rejections are one, seven and
one respectively. In the case of Eastern European
countries, the numbers of applications are 311, 182 and
255, with the respective numbers of rejections being 0, 10
and 15. For nationals of countries other than these two
categories, out of the 6,681, 8,266 and 10,340
applications received, 53, 115 and 190 were rejected. It
can be seen that the numbers of rejections in all cases
only account for small percentages of the numbers of
applications. These applications were mostly rejected
because the applicants concerned did not fulfil the normal
immigration criteria, such as doubts as to the genuine
intention of the visitors, or for security reasons.
End
5. Need to retain Frontier Closed Area as buffer zone confirmed
************************************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Lau Kong-wah and a
reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Peter Lai, in the
Provisional Legislative Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
The extensive coverage of the existing frontier
closed area in Hong Kong, with a total area of about 3,410
hectares, has caused inconvenience to members of the
public. In this connection, will the Government inform
this Council:
(a) whether it has conducted any study to see if it
is necessary to have such an extensive frontier closed
area; if so, what the finding is; and;
(b) whether it will consider reducing the area
covered by the frontier closed area in Sha Tau Kok and Ta
Kwu Ling, and constructing houses and schools in the
disestablished closed area, so that more facilities can be
provided for residents in the vicinity?
Reply:
Ms President,
Since the establishment of the Frontier Closed Area
(FCA) in 1951 and the extension of the area to its present
boundaries in 1962, the Government has from time to time
reviewed the need for the FCA and its coverage. All these
reviews have confirmed the need to retain the FCA as a
buffer zone to facilitate effective operations against
illegal immigration, smuggling and other cross-boundary
crimes. Except for some fine tuning of boundary of the
FCA (inclusion of Lok Ma Chau Boundary Crossing Point in
1989 and exclusion of the North East New Territories
landfill in 1991), the coverage of the FCA has been found
to be appropriate.
At this stage, we have no plan to reduce the area
covered by the FCA. However, we shall continue to monitor
the effectiveness of the FCA and review the need for its
retention and its coverage from time to time, taking into
account any changes in circumstances.
End
6. Measures to prevent contracting of hepatitis A
**********************************************
Following is a question by Dr the Hon Tang Siu-tong
and a reply by the Secretary for Health and Welfare, Mrs
Katherine Fok, in the Provisional Legislative Council
today (Wednesday):
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council:
(a) whether it has studied if an outbreak of
hepatitis A would take place next year;
(b) of the estimated number of persons aged below 30
who have no antibodies against hepatitis A virus at
present;
(c) whether it has any vaccination plans against
hepatitis A; and
(d) whether it will work more closely with the
provisional municipal councils on adopting measures to
ensure food hygiene?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) It is required by law that cases of hepatitis
must be notified to the Department of Health. From the
notification figures, we can keep abreast of the disease
trend. In the period of 1988-1991, the average number of
hepatitis A cases notified was about 1,100 per year. In
1992 there was an increase to more than 3,600 cases.
Since then, the number of cases has been less than 900
each year. In 1996, only 260 cases were notified which is
the lowest ever recorded. Infectious diseases normally
show a periodic trend. In the past, hepatitis A cases
rose to a high level every four to six years. In the
first ten months of this year, the Department of Health
has received 400 notifications of hepatitis A cases, but
this does not necessarily imply there would be an outbreak
of hepatitis A next year. Since hepatitis A is not an
airborne disease but an infectious gastrointestinal
disease, an outbreak can be avoided if preventive measures
on food hygiene are taken effectively.
(b) Based on the data kept by the Government Virus
Unit, we estimate that about two million people aged below
30 may not have antibodies against hepatitis A. This is
due to the continuous improvement in the sanitary
conditions which reduce the risk of contracting hepatitis
A and thus producing the antibodies.
(c) Vaccination is one of the measures to prevent
hepatitis A. Yet a more effective way is to observe good
personal and food hygiene, since hepatitis A is mainly
transmitted through contaminated food. Food should be
thoroughly cooked before consumption. Thorough cooking
not only prevents hepatitis A but also other infectious
gastrointestinal diseases like cholera, bacillary
dysentery, etc. As regards the need to provide hepatitis
A vaccination for the community, the Department of
Health's Advisory Committee on Immunization will examine
the relevant data, refer to the views of the World Health
Organisation and the immunization programmes of other
countries and make recommendations to the Government.
(d) To ensure food hygiene, the Department of
Health, the two municipal councils and two municipal
services departments maintain close collaboration and
cooperation. They will continue to strengthen health
education through Announcements in Public Interest,
distribution of pamphlets and publication of a newsletter
"Food Bulletin" soon to raise public and food traders'
awareness on proper food, personal, and environmental
hygiene practices. We will also educate them on proper
ways to purchase, handle and cook high risk food such as
shellfish. During inspection of food premises, staff of
the Department of Health and the two municipal services
departments also enhance health education on the food and
personal hygiene for the food handlers.
End
7. Energy efficiency in building services design
*********************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Edward Ho and a
written reply by the Secretary for Planning, Environment
and Lands, Mr Bowen Leung, in the Provisional Legislative
Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council of the
measures it will adopt to encourage the architectural
profession to design more environment-friendly Building?
Reply:
Madam President,
The Government has already adopted a wide range of
environmental, energy efficiency and conservation measures
to encourage the architectural profession, both within the
Administration and in the private sector, to design more
environment-friendly buildings. We are conscious that
this is an area where many technological improvements are
taking place world-wide, and we will continue to monitor
developments to ensure that appropriate measures are
applied in Hong Kong.
The Director of Environmental Protection has
commissioned a consultancy study on indoor air pollution
in offices and public places. We expect to receive the
recommendations shortly and would examine the measures
necessary to ensure acceptable indoor air quality is
provided through appropriate design, operation and
maintenance.
On the energy efficiency and conservation side, we
will introduce building energy codes to promote energy
efficiency in building services design. The codes for
lighting and air-conditioning will be implemented in 1998.
Codes for electrical installations, and lifts and
escalators are being prepared. This is intended to be a
voluntary scheme, initially, but we are examining whether
it should be put on a mandatory basis in future.
Also in 1998, we will examine how to promote the
wider adoption of water-cooled commercial air-conditioning
systems with the primary aim of reducing energy
consumption and consider amendments to the building
regulations to allow for the provision of space in new
buildings for waste recovery activities as part of the
Waste Reduction Plan.
The private sector is also making valuable
contributions. The Centre of Environmental Technology
(CET) is promoting, on a voluntary basis, the adoption of
environmentally friendly building designs, through the
Hong Kong Building Environment Assessment Method (HK-
BEAM).
The Government, in co-operation with the CET, has
organised the Energy Efficient Building Awards Scheme
1997, to recognise achievements in building designs and
management. The awards presentation will take place on
December 16, 1997. It is clear from the quality of the
entrants to the award scheme that Hong Kong already has
environmentally-aware architects of very high standards.
We are aware of the importance of public education in
promoting greater awareness of the need for more
environmentally-friendly buildings. In April 1996, we
started a $6 million programme to implement pilot energy
management opportunities to 20 government buildings. This
has been successful and we intend to compile case studies
based on the results of this programme for promulgation to
the public and private sectors. We hope to encourage both
the incorporation of energy efficient measures in the
design of new buildings and the retrofitting of existing
buildings.
End
8. Road maintenance
****************
Following is a question by the Hon Cheung Hon-chung
and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport, Mr
Nicholas Ng, in the Provisional Legislative Council today
(Wednesday):
Question:
It is learnt that road maintenance contractors often
carry out repair works on highways during rush hours,
resulting in traffic congestion or even traffic accidents.
In this connection, will the Government inform this
Council:
(a) of the number of traffic accidents directly or
indirectly caused by road maintenance contractors carrying
out repair works on highways, in each of the past three
years;
(b) whether it has drawn up a code of practice in
respect of highway repair works; if so, how it ensures
observance of the code by contractors; and
(c) whether it has prescribed stipulations
prohibiting contractors from carrying out repair works on
highways during rush hours?
Reply:
Madam President,
It is not possible to establish a precise correlation
between road maintenance works and traffic accidents, as
traffic accidents are normally the result of a combination
of contributory factors, e.g. road conditions, weather
situation, physical fitness of drivers and state of the
vehicle(s) involved. We do not therefore have statistics
on traffic accidents caused directly or indirectly by
maintenance works on roads. Neither was there any
prosecution case against Government's road maintenance
contractors for repair works causing traffic accidents in
the past three years.
Under the Road Traffic Ordinance (Chapter 374), the
Director of Highways has prescribed a Code of Practice on
safety requirements for road maintenance works, and the
Government exercises close monitoring of the contractors'
observance of the Code. For highways works, contractors'
proposals for works are first checked and approved by
engineers of the Highways Department before execution of
works. The detailed arrangements on site are then further
checked by site inspectorate and supervising staff of the
Highways Department. The contractor is also required to
give seven days advance notice to the Police before
execution of works. Upon such notification, the
respective Regional Police Road Management Office (RMO)
will assess the nature and extent of the works, and may
impose specific conditions where appropriate. Thereafter,
regular inspections are conducted by both the RMO officers
and the Regional Police traffic patrol officers. Warning
and summons action will be taken by the Police, if any of
the conditions is breached.
Road maintenance contractors are normally required to
carry out works outside peak hours, except for justifiable
emergency works, so as to minimise the traffic impact and
to avoid traffic congestion. For pre-planned road works
on expressways, Transport Department also issues traffic
advice to inform motorists.
End
9. Two-way permit holders taking up illegal employment
***************************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Lau Kong-wah and a
written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Peter Lai,
in the Provisional Legislative Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of Two-way Permit holders (TWPH)
arrested by the Police in each of the past five years for
taking up employment illegally at construction sites;
(b) whether the Police had, when arresting the
TWPHs, also arrested the persons in charge of the
concerned construction sites; if so, whether any
difficulties were encountered in arresting them and of the
average penalties imposed by the court on these persons-
in-charge upon their conviction;
(c) whether it is a common practice for persons in
charge of construction sites to report illegal workers to
the Police before the pay day; and
(d) whether discussion has been held with the
relevant Chinese authorities on how to deter workers from
taking up employment illegally in Hong Kong, in particular
those who have been repeatedly arrested for working
illegally in Hong Kong?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) The number of Two-way Permit holders arrested at
construction sites for taking up unapproved employment in
each of the past five years is listed as below:
Year/Month No. of arrest
1993 239
1994 385
1995 755
1996 422
1997 (Jan - Oct) 489
(b) In arresting the Two-way Permit holders taking
up illegal employment at construction sites, the Police
and Immigration Department generally have little
difficulty in also arresting the responsible employers,
who could be the site controllers, subcontractors or
foremen. Difficulties, however, lie in obtaining
sufficient evidence to prosecute them successfully. In
the first ten months this year, a total of 57 employers of
Two-way Permit holders working at construction sites were
convicted. The typical sentence terms were suspended
custodial sentences of one to 16 months, plus a fine of
$3,000 to $5,000. In some cases, imprisonment terms of
two to six months were handed down.
(c) According to Labour Department, Immigration
Department and Police, there is no evidence to suggest
that there is a common practice for site controllers to
report illegal workers to them before pay day.
(d) We maintain close liaison with the Mainland
authorities and exchange information on repeated
offenders. We understand that the Mainland Authorities
seek not to issue Two-way Permits to those who are likely
to take up illegal employment in Hong Kong, such as those
with adverse records.
End
10. Height for parapet walls of Trident public housing blocks
*********************************************************
Following is the question by the Hon Tang Siu-tong
and a written reply by the Secretary for Housing, Mr
Dominic Wong, in the Provisional Legislative Council today
(Wednesday):
Question:
Does the Government know of:
(a) the criteria adopted by the Housing Authority in
deciding on the height of parapet walls of Trident public
housing blocks; and
(b) the measures in place to prevent children from
climbing over and falling off such walls?
Reply:
Madam President,
The standard height of parapet walls in Trident
public housing blocks managed by the Housing Authority is
1.2 metres, which is higher than the statutory requirement
of 1.1 metres under the Building (Planning) Regulations.
Besides adopting a higher standard of height for
parapet walls, the Housing Authority has also adopted
other measures to prevent children from climbing over and
falling off such walls. Estate staff patrol common areas
in housing blocks on a daily basis. Through regular
publicity, tenants are advised not to place articles in
corridors. At "black spots" where there is a possibility
of children climbing over, metal grilles are installed.
End
11. Plans to set up more one-way viewer rooms
*****************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Choy Kan-pui and a
written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Peter Lai,
in the Provisional Legislative Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council of:
(a) the number of identification parades arranged by
the Police in each of the past three years; and the
breakdown of occasions on which the victims or the
witnesses were required to meet the suspects face to face
during the course of identification, and those on which
the parades were carried out in rooms with one-way
viewers;
(b) the circumstances under which the victims or the
witnesses have to meet the suspects face to face during
the course of identification; and whether the victims or
the witnesses may reject such arrangement and request
parades be carried out in rooms with one-way viewers; and
(c) the current number of identification rooms in
Police stations which are not fitted with one-way viewers;
whether the authority will consider installing one-way
viewers in such rooms; if so, when these will be
installed?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) The Police do not keep statistics on the number
of identification parades conducted.
(b) The Police General Orders specify that one-way
viewer identification parade should be conducted when the
Police have reasonable grounds to believe that there is an
appreciable risk of retaliation or the witness/victim is
apprehensive about the possibility of retaliation. The
witness or victim can therefore request the parade to be
carried out in a one-way viewer room if he is worried
about retaliation. Otherwise face to face interviews
would be conducted.
(c) At present, there are 10 one-way viewer rooms
with one located at the Police Headquarters and the rest
at nine stations spread out in all Police land regions.
There is no figure on the number of identification rooms
as face to face identification parade is conducted in any
suitable room in a Police station. If necessary, officers
of those Police stations without a one-way viewer room can
liaise with the nearest Police station fitted with such
facility to conduct the parade. Plans are in hand to set
up one-way viewer rooms in two more Police stations by
January 1998. We will keep under review the need for such
facility and install more as necessary.
End
12. Workload of medical staff in A & E departments
**********************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Hui Yin-fat and a
written reply by the Secretary for Health and Welfare, Mrs
Katherine Fok, in the Provisional Legislative Council
today (Wednesday):
Question:
Recently, there were quite a number of cases in which
staff on duty at accident and emergency departments of
public hospitals were alleged to have failed to provide
timely or appropriate medical treatment to patients, and
directly or indirectly led to the loss of lives.
Regarding the services of accident and emergency
department of public hospitals, does the Government know:
(a) of the following statistics in respect of the
accident and emergency department of each public hospital
over the past three years:
(i) the number of attendances and the percentage of
increases;
(ii) the average number of cases handled by each
doctor per shift;
(iii) the average treatment time of each case; and
(iv) the number of medical and nursing staff on
duty;
(b) of the standard adopted by the Hospital
Authority (HA) to evaluate the relationship between the
workload of doctors at accident and emergency departments
and the accuracy of their diagnosis;
(c) whether there is an established standard ratio
between the number of doctors on duty and the number of
attendances at accident and emergency departments of
public hospitals; if so, whether the number of doctors on
duty at each of the accident and emergency departments
meet the established standard; if the standard is not met,
what the reasons are; and
(d) whether the HA will use the increased number of
cases handled by accident and emergency departments as the
basis for determining the additional manpower required at
such departments for each year; if not, of the criteria
adopted for determining the deployment of additional
manpower at accident and emergency departments?
Reply:
(a)(i) The number of attendances in the accident and
emergency (A&E) department of each public hospital over
the past three years and the respective percentage
increases are shown in Annex I.
(ii) The number of A&E cases handled by each
doctor per shift varies across hospitals depending on the
number of attendance, the attendance profile and the case-
mix of each hospital. Based on the assumption that each
medical staff works about 240 shifts per year, the number
of attendance handled by each medical staff per shift
ranges from 24 to 40 cases with an average of 30 cases
over the past two years.
(iii) The Hospital Authority (HA) does not have
readily available information on the average treatment
time of each A&E case.
(iv) The statistics on the strength of medical and
nursing staff in the A&E department of each public
hospital over the past two years are shown in Annexes II
and III.
(b) The number of A&E cases handled by each doctor
is only one of many factors in accounting for the workload
of the doctor. Other factors include the case mix and
other duties assigned to the doctor. To enhance clinical
quality, HA ensures that all patients in A&E departments
will receive appropriate medical treatment by way of a
number of quality assurance measures. These measures
include close supervision of junior staff by senior staff,
requiring complex cases to be re-assessed by senior
doctors and the conduct of regular clinical audits. With
these safeguards in place, HA considers it not necessary
to adopt a standard to evaluate the relationship between
the workload of doctors at A&E departments and the
accuracy of their diagnosis.
(c) The actual number of medical staff deployed for
each duty shift depends on a wide range of factors
including the total number of attendances, the attendance
pattern and the case mix in each A&E department. HA has
not established a standard ratio between the number of
doctors on duty and the number of attendances at A&E
departments because a simple correlation between these two
parameters does not reflect the whole picture in deciding
the deployment of manpower resources in different A&E
departments.
(d) HA regularly reviews the manpower requirement of
A&E departments in the context of its annual planning
process. In deciding whether to allocate additional
resources to an A&E department, HA will have regard to,
inter alia, the increase in patient demand, the actual
manpower requirements of other A&E departments with
similar demand profile and the opportunity for
productivity improvements. In this connection, the
increased number of cases handled by an A&E department
will be taken into account as a demand indicator in the
resource allocation process. HA has in the past years
introduced various productivity improvements to streamline
the work flow of A&E department and improve the physical
layout of A&E departments.
Annex I
-------
A&E Attendances in Public Hospitals
-----------------------------------
Hospital 1994 1995 1996
Caritas Medical 83,525 96,678 (16%) 107,083 (11%)
Centre
Fanling Hospital 51,437 57,425 (12%) 64,117 (12%)
Kwong Wah 166,982 182,077 (9%) 199,362 (9%)
Hospital
Princess Margaret 160,452 141,007 (-12%) 136,246 (-3%)
Hospital
Pok Oi Hospital 51,263 57,455 (12%) 62,196 (8%)
Prince of Wales 200,680 210,491 (5%) 217,756 (3%)
Hospital
Pamela Youde 87,884* 145,724 (66%) 177,059 (22%)
Nethersole Eastern
Hospital
Queen Elizabeth 224,659 233,006 (4%) 229,660 (-1%)
Hospital
Queen Mary 126,876 136,467 (8%) 145,077 (6%)
Hosptial
St John Hospital 7,686 8,815 (15%) 10,339 (17%)
Tuen Mun Hospital 174,035 194,243 (12%) 199,106 (3%)
Tang Siu King 99,947 103,818 (4%) 107,778 (4%)
Hospital
United Christian 179,030 206,557 (15%) 239,222 (16%)
Hospital
Yan Chai Hospital 29,821* 130,112 (336%) 160,883 (24%)
Total 1,644,277 1,903,875 (16%) 2,055,884 (8%)
Note:
----
( ) Figures in bracket show the percentage increase in
attendance over the previous year.
* The A&E Departments in these hospitals we4re not in
full operation in 1994.
Annex II
--------
Medical Staff (1) Strength in A&E Departments
---------------------------------------------
Hospital 1995 as at 1996 as at
September September
Caritas Medical Centre 15 16
Fanling Hospital (2) 6 7.5
Kwong Wah Hospital 20 21
Princess Margaret Hospital 24 22
Pok Oi Hospital (2) 9 10
Prince of Wales Hospital 31 32
Pamela Youde Nethersole 22 24
Eastern Hospital
Queen Elizabeth Hospital 35 35
Queen Mary Hospital 22 22
St John Hospital (2) 1.25 1.25
Tuen Mun Hospital 26 31
Tang Siu Kin Hospital 17 17
United Christian Hospital 24.5 29.5
Yan Chai Hospital 17 18
Total 269.75 286.25
Note:
----
(1) Medical staff includes medical officer, senior
medical officers and consultants.
(2) The A&E medical staff in Fanling Hospital, Pok Oi
Hospital and St John Hospital work as a team with the
General Out-Patient (GOP) departments of the hospitals,
the strength of which are not shown in this table.
(3) Information of staff stegnth for A&E departments
prior to 1995 was not collected on departmental basis,
since the A&E staff in most hospitals then needed to carry
duties in general wards and out-patient clinics.
Annex III
---------
Nursing Staff (1) Strength in A&E Departments
---------------------------------------------
Hospital 1995 as at 1996 as at
September September
Caritas Medical Centre 28 27.5
Fanling Hospital 18 20.5
Kwong Wah Hospital 41 42
Princess Margaret Hospital 49 44
Pok Oi Hospital 20.5 20
Prince of Wales Hospital 56 56
Pamela Youde Nethersole 42 43.5
Eastern Hospital
Queen Elizabeth Hospital 66 72
Queen Mary Hospital 43 44
St John Hospital 6.25 6.25
Tuen Mun Hospital 51 58
Tang Siu Kin Hospital 32 31
United Christian Hospital 43 53
Yan Chai Hospital 40 39
Total 535.75 556.75
Note:
----
(1) Nursing staff includes Departmental Operation
Manager, Ward Manager/Nursing Officer and Registered
nurse/Enrolled nurse/Student nurse.
(2) Information of staff stegnth for A&E departments
prior to 1995 was not collected on departmental basis,
since the A&E staff in most hospitals then needed to carry
duties in general wards and out-patient clinics.
End
13. Additional special school places in northern NT
***********************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Ngan Kam-chuen and
a written reply by the Secretary for Education and
Manpower, Mr Joseph W P Wong, in the Provisional
Legislative Council today (Wednesday):
Question:
In connection with the earlier criticism by some
parents of mentally handicapped children about the
inadequate provision of special school places in Northern
New Territories (NT), will the Government inform this
Council:
(a) whether it has conducted any study to see if the
provision of special school places in Northern NT
(including both Tai Po District and Northern District) is
inadequate; if so, what the outcome is, and if the study
indicates an inadequate provision of special school places
in Northern NT, of the number that falls short;
(b) of the average waiting time for mentally
handicapped children residing at Northern NT to be
enrolled in special schools; and
(c) whether it has any plan to provide more special
school places in Northern NT to meet the demand; if so, of
the time frame for increasing the number of special school
places in these districts?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) At present, there are sufficient special school
places for mentally handicapped children in Tai Po and
North District. The Education Department regularly
reviews the provision of special school places. Based on
statistics from the 1996 Population By-Census, it is
projected that there will be sufficient school places for
severely mentally handicapped children. However, there
will be a shortage for mildly and moderately mentally
handicapped children in Tai Po and North District between
1998 and 2000, as follows:
November March March March
School Category 1997 1998 1999 2000
Mild mental handicap
--------------------
Demand 278 320 325 314
Provision 280 280 280 280
Shortfall/(Surplus) (2) 45 40 34
Moderate mental handicap
------------------------
Demand 167 180 178 177
Provision 170 170 170 160
Shortfall/(Surplus) (3) 10 8 17
To relieve the shortage in the short term, the
Education Department will use vacant school places in
neighbouring districts. In 2001, additional school places
will be provided when a school is reprovisioned in North
District.
(b) At present, with sufficient special school
places for mentally handicapped children in Tai Po and
North District, children requiring such places are
admitted as soon as admission procedures are completed.
(c) An existing special school for mentally
handicapped children in North District is scheduled for
reprovisioning. This project is due for completion in
2001. The reprovisioned school will be a standard 20-
classroom combined-grade special school providing an
additional 120 and 40 places for mildly and moderately
mentally handicapped children respectively. This will
fully meet the projected demand in the Tai Po and North
districts.
End
14. Measures to prevent abuse of A & E services
*******************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Hui Yin-fat and a
written reply by the Secretary for Health and Welfare, Mrs
Katherine Fok, in the Provisional Legislative Council
today (Wednesday):
Question:
According to the information provided by the Hospital
Authority (HA), non-emergency attendance represent more
than 30% of the total attendance at accident and emergency
departments of public hospitals and are particularly high
during public holidays, resulting in heavier workload for
front-line medical staff. In this connection, will the
Government inform this Council:
(a) of the measures to be taken (including liaising
and working with the HA) to ensure that general patients
seek medical treatment at general out-patient clinics of
the Department of Health, instead of accident and
emergency departments of public hospitals; and
(b) whether the Department of Health has any plans
in place to operate full-day service at its general out-
patient clinics during long public holidays (starting from
the Christmas holidays this year), and to increase the
number of such public holiday clinics; if not, why not?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) The Department of Health (DH) and the Hospital
Authority (HA) make continuous efforts to promote the
proper use of accident and emergency (A&E) services in
public hospitals and to publicise the availability of
general out-patient services during public holidays.
These efforts are made through various channels, including
(a) display of relevant posters, notices and sign boards
at the general out-patient clinics and the A&E
departments of public hospitals; (b) operation of a 24-
hour telephone information service by DH to introduce the
general out-patient services; (c) issue of media
announcements, prior to long holidays, to advise the
public of the locations of the operating general out-
patient clinics during the holidays; and (d) dissemination
of the latter information during the holidays through
local paging systems and the MediLink hotline of the Hong
Kong Medical Association.
(b) To cater for the need of the public for general
out-patient services during holidays, DH has, since end of
June this year, increased the number of public holiday
clinics (PHCs) from 8 to 10. In future, these 10 PHCs
will offer service from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm during all
public holidays, except on the first day of the Lunar New
Year. At present, DH has no plans to operate a full-day
service during public holidays. During the long holidays
from June 28 to July 2, 1997, the 10 PHCs were opened from
9:00 am to 5:00 pm. The afternoon session however had
only an average utilisation rate of 38% against that of
the morning session of 74%.
End
15. Hong Kong Futures Exchange Limited
**********************************
Following is a question by the Hon Ngan Kam-chuen and
a written reply by the Secretary for Financial Services,
Mr Rafael Hui, in the Provisional Legislative Council
today (Wednesday):
Question:
In connection with the staffing and development of
the Hong Kong Futures Exchange Limited (HKFE), does the
Government know:
(a) of the places from which the last five Chief
Executive Officers of HKFE were recruited, and whether
they were engaged in related sectors in overseas countries
after leaving the post;
(b) of the measures put in place by the HKFE to
provide training for local people in the area of futures
products and derivatives; and
(c) of the details of the HKFE Five-year Plan; and
whether HKFE will re-evaluate its Five-year Plan in the
wake of the recent financial crisis; if so, what the
details are; if not, why not?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) On the basis of information available to the
HKFE, three of its five previous Chief Executive Officers
(CEO) (or holder of equivalent post), had worked in the US
securities market before joining the HKFE and two of them
are known to be still engaged in the financial sector.
(b) In the last year, HKFE has conducted
approximately 50 futures and options training seminars
involving more than 10,000 participants from the local
community and industry. As part of a recent
reorganisation of the HKFE, an entire department of HKFE
will be dedicated to providing futures and options
training to the staff of HKFE members and their clients.
An enhanced development program for HKFE staff will also
be implemented as part of the reorganisation.
(c) HKFE's Five-year Plan aims at the
diversification of HKFE, including its members, their
clients, and the HKFE product base. The diversification
of membership aims to attract more international members
and members trading currency futures, commodities futures,
etc. As regards new products, the Plan will focus on
futures and options on regional equity markets, regional
interest rate futures and options, regional foreign
currency products, and in the longer term on deliverable
commodity products to assist the further development of
the Mainland. The Five-year Plan will also include an
internal re-structuring of the Exchange with a view to
improving the effectiveness and efficiency of operations.
The Five-year plan seeks to set out the broad
direction for the medium term development of the HKFE.
Plans of this nature must be able to accommodate
exceptional market movements and volatilities so that when
needed the necessary adjustments and other safeguard
measures may be introduced. The HKFE therefore has no
intention to depart from its policy of diversification as
its broad direction for future development, although it
may be necessary for it to re-assess the timing for the
introduction of new products to take into account
prevailing market situations.
End
16. Octopus system
**************
Following is a question by the Hon Howard Young and a
written reply by the Secretary for Transport, Mr Nicholas
Ng, in the Provisional Legislative Council today
(Wednesday):
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council whether it
has any plan to introduce the Octopus system to the
Airport Railway upon its commencement next year; if so, of
the preventive measures it will take in respect of the
problems identified relating to the use of Octopus in
other modes of transport?
Reply:
Madam President,
The Mass Transit Railway Corporation will implement
the Octopus system on the Airport Railway when it opens
for service next year.
Creative Star, the joint venture company for
developing and operating the Octopus system, has taken
steps to rectify the operational problems that occurred
during the initial period of the new smart card system.
The Octopus system is now operating well. It is expected
that the Octopus system will operate just as well on the
Airport Railway.
End
17. Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund financial position
*************************************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Ho Sai-chu and a
written reply by the Secretary for Education and Manpower,
Mr Joseph W P Wong, in the Provisional Legislative Council
today (Wednesday):
Question:
It is learnt that the Yaohan Department Store (HK)
Ltd has applied for winding up and the arrears of wages
and allowances amounting to over 100 million dollars will
be advanced in the form of ex gratia payments from the
Protection of Wages on Insolvency Fund. In this
connection, will the Government inform this Council of the
financial position of the Fund, and whether it has
assessed the capability of the Fund in making such
advances in the event of a series of insolvency cases?
Reply:
Madame President,
As at September 30, 1997, the Protection of Wages on
Insolvency Fund had a total accumulated balance of $921
million. Given this financially healthy state, the Fund
should be more than able to cope with applications for ex-
gratia payments arising from the insolvency of Yaohan
Department Store (H.K.) Ltd. The Administration will
closely monitor the trends of insolvency cases and assess
their implications on the financial position of the Fund.
End
18. Control of the import of contaminated vegetables
************************************************
Following is a question by the Hon Chan Kam-lam and a
written reply by the Secretary for Health and Welfare, Mrs
Katherine Fok, in the Provisional Legislative Council
today (Wednesday):
Question:
Recently there have been cases in which vegetables
contaminated with pesticides were directly imported from
Mainland farms and sold in the local market. In this
connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the respective percentages of vegetables
supplied wholesale by the Vegetable Marketing Organisation
and of those imported directly from Mainland farms, in the
total amount of vegetables supplied in Hong Kong;
(b) whether the regulatory measures of and random
tests by the Department of Health on vegetables from these
two sources are different; if so, what the details are;
(c) whether the Department of Health will step up
inspection on vegetables directly imported from the
Mainland, so as to prevent vegetables contaminated with
pesticide from being sold in the market; and
(d) whether it will consider requiring that all
vegetables for sale in Hong Kong be imported through the
Vegetable Marketing Organisation?
Reply:
(a) Hong Kong's daily consumption of vegetables is
some 1,440 tonnes, of which some 800 tonnes, (i.e. 56%)
come from the Mainland. Over 60% of the vegetables from
the Mainland (i.e. some 500 tonnes) are marketed by the
Vegetable Marketing Organisation (VMO), with the remainder
being marketed through other vegetable wholesale markets
or imported directly from the Mainland.
(b) Vegetables from the Mainland are subject to
inspection and testing by the Department of Health at the
point of entry, irrespective of their destinations.
Vegetables marketed by the VMO are also subject to testing
by the VMO. Tests conducted at the point of entry and at
the VMO are essentially the same. In addition, sample
testing is also conducted by the Department of Health at
the retail level.
(c) The Department of Health has already stepped up
surveillance at the point of entry, particularly at Man
Kam To. The number of random tests has increased from
4,000 in August to some 5,000 in October 1997, an increase
of 25%.
In response to the recent outbreaks, a targeted
approach has been adopted. All vegetable consignments
carrying any of the incriminated vegetables, namely
Chinese Chrysanthemum, French Beans and Sugar Pea Shoots,
will be subject to sample testing.
(d) We do not propose to require that all vegetables
for sale in Hong Kong must be imported and marketed
through the VMO as this would operate contrary to our
policy of encouraging competition in the wholesale
marketing sector. The VMO has to compete for business
with government-managed wholesale vegetable markets and
rural vegetable markets. This ensures choice and
efficient services for vegetable producers, importers and
buyers and ultimately is in the interests of consumers.
End
