sc.legco.gov.hk...LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 27 February 2019 7169 . OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS . Wednesday, 27 February 2019 . The Council met at Eleven o'clock . MEMBERS PRESENT:

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 27 February 2019

7169

OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS

Wednesday, 27 February 2019

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.

LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 27 February 2019 7170

THE HONOURABLE MRS REGINA IP LAU SUK-YEE, G.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE PAUL TSE WAI-CHUN, 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.


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DR THE HONOURABLE FERNANDO CHEUNG CHIU-HUNG DR THE HONOURABLE HELENA WONG PIK-WAN THE HONOURABLE IP KIN-YUEN DR THE HONOURABLE ELIZABETH QUAT, B.B.S., J.P. THE HONOURABLE MARTIN LIAO CHEUNG-KONG, S.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 JIMMY NG WING-KA, 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 THE HONOURABLE SHIU KA-CHUN THE HONOURABLE WILSON OR CHONG-SHING, M.H.


THE HONOURABLE YUNG HOI-YAN DR THE HONOURABLE PIERRE CHAN THE HONOURABLE CHAN CHUN-YING, J.P. THE HONOURABLE TANYA CHAN THE HONOURABLE CHEUNG KWOK-KWAN, 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 KWONG CHUN-YU THE HONOURABLE JEREMY TAM MAN-HO THE HONOURABLE GARY FAN KWOK-WAI THE HONOURABLE AU NOK-HIN THE HONOURABLE VINCENT CHENG WING-SHUN, M.H. THE HONOURABLE TONY TSE WAI-CHUEN, B.B.S. THE HONOURABLE CHAN HOI-YAN MEMBER ABSENT: THE HONOURABLE CHU HOI-DICK


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PUBLIC OFFICERS ATTENDING: THE HONOURABLE MATTHEW CHEUNG KIN-CHUNG, G.B.M., G.B.S., J.P. CHIEF SECRETARY FOR ADMINISTRATION THE HONOURABLE PAUL CHAN MO-PO, G.B.M., G.B.S., M.H., J.P. FINANCIAL SECRETARY THE HONOURABLE MS TERESA CHENG YEUK-WAH, G.B.S., S.C., J.P. SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE THE HONOURABLE WONG KAM-SING, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR THE ENVIRONMENT THE HONOURABLE NICHOLAS W. YANG, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY THE HONOURABLE LAU KONG-WAH, J.P. SECRETARY FOR HOME AFFAIRS THE HONOURABLE JAMES HENRY LAU JR., J.P. SECRETARY FOR FINANCIAL SERVICES AND THE TREASURY DR THE HONOURABLE LAW CHI-KWONG, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE THE HONOURABLE JOSHUA LAW CHI-KONG, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR THE CIVIL SERVICE 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 PROF THE HONOURABLE SOPHIA CHAN SIU-CHEE, J.P. SECRETARY FOR FOOD AND HEALTH


THE HONOURABLE EDWARD YAU TANG-WAH, G.B.S., J.P. SECRETARY FOR COMMERCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT THE HONOURABLE MICHAEL WONG WAI-LUN, J.P. SECRETARY FOR DEVELOPMENT THE HONOURABLE KEVIN YEUNG YUN-HUNG, J.P. SECRETARY FOR EDUCATION THE HONOURABLE PATRICK NIP TAK-KUEN, J.P. SECRETARY FOR CONSTITUTIONAL AND MAINLAND AFFAIRS CLERK IN ATTENDANCE: MR KENNETH CHEN WEI-ON, S.B.S., SECRETARY GENERAL


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TABLING OF PAPERS The following papers were laid on the table under Rule 21(2) of the Rules of Procedure: Subsidiary Legislation/Instruments L.N. No.

Merchant Shipping (Seafarers) (Ships Using Low-flashpoint Fuels) Regulation .................................................... 15/2019

Merchant Shipping (Seafarers) (Passenger Ships―Training)

(Amendment) Regulation 2019 .............................. 16/2019 Merchant Shipping (Seafarers) (Ships Operating in Polar Waters)

Regulation ............................................................... 17/2019 Administrative Appeals Board Ordinance (Amendment of

Schedule) Order 2019 ............................................. 18/2019 Merchant Shipping (Seafarers) (Fees) (Amendment)

Regulation 2019 ...................................................... 19/2019 Merchant Shipping (Seafarers) (Certification and Watchkeeping)

(Amendment) Regulation 2019 .............................. 20/2019 Merchant Shipping (Prevention of Air Pollution)

(Amendment) Regulation 2019 .............................. 21/2019 Merchant Shipping (Prevention and Control of Pollution)

(Fees) (Amendment) Regulation 2019 ................... 22/2019 Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (Amendment of First Schedule)

Order 2019 .............................................................. 23/2019 Other Papers

No. 74 ― Education Scholarships Fund Trustee's Report on the Administration of the Fund and Financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2018 (including Report of the Director of Audit)


No. 75 ― Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority Report on Activities September 2017-August 2018 and Financial statements for the year ended 31 August 2018 (including Independent auditor's report)

No. 76 ― Estimates

for the year ending 31 March 2020 Volume I― General Revenue Account (not including the Consolidated Summary of Estimates, the General Revenue Account― Summary and the Revenue Analysis by Head) Volume II―Fund Accounts

Report No. 12/18-19 of the House Committee on Consideration of Subsidiary Legislation and Other Instruments

WRITTEN ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS Retrofitting barrier-free access facilities to walkways 1. MR WILSON OR (in Chinese): President, in August 2012, the Government introduced the Universal Accessibility Programme ("the Programme") to retrofit barrier-free access facilities to public walkways, and expanded its scope in 2016. In October last year, the Government announced that it would commence a feasibility study in the first half of this year on proposals to retrofit lifts to the remaining some 120 walkways under the Programme. On retrofitting barrier-free access facilities to walkways, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the (i) names, (ii) (anticipated) works commencement dates,

(iii) anticipated works completion dates and (iv) anticipated commissioning dates, of those projects under the Programme at present which are underway or have yet to commence works;

(2) of the (i) implementation timetable and (ii) latest progress of the

aforesaid feasibility study;


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(3) whether the Government invoked the Lands Resumption Ordinance (Cap. 124) in the past decade to resume private lands for carrying out lift retrofitting projects not under the Programme; if so, of the details; and

(4) given that the Government has all along been refusing to include in

the Programme those walkways which are within the areas of the Tenants Purchase Scheme estates and private housing estates on grounds that such walkways are privately owned, whether the Government will consider bearing the costs of retrofitting barrier-free access facilities to such walkways; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

SECRETARY FOR TRANSPORT AND HOUSING (in Chinese): President, my reply to the various parts of the question raised by Mr Wilson OR is as follows. The Government has been installing barrier-free access facilities at public walkways (i.e. public footbridges, elevated walkways and subways maintained by the Highways Department ("HyD")) (referred to as the "Original Programme"). Currently, 95 of the 145 items under the Original Programme have been completed. HyD is undertaking construction works for 41 items (most of them are anticipated to be completed for commissioning in the next one to two years) and carrying out investigation or design work for the remaining 9 items (works schedules to be confirmed upon the completion of design work and public consultation). The relevant information is set out in Annex 1. The Government launched the Universal Accessibility ("UA") Programme in August 2012 to expand the programme to retrofit barrier-free access facilities at public walkways with a view to facilitating the access to public walkways by the public. When the Programme was announced, we invited members of the public to propose locations at public walkways where they considered lift retrofitting necessary. Response from the public was overwhelming and numerous proposals were suggested. Upon the invitation of the Government, the 18 District Councils ("DCs") selected a total of 57 items(1) for priority (1) Each DC selected three public walkways (locations) for priority implementation, viz. a

total of 54 public walkways (locations). Among them, some public walkways (locations) involve more than one structure number (item), resulting in a total of 57 priority items.


implementation (referred to as the "Expanded Programme"). Currently, 22 items under the Expanded Programme have been completed. HyD is undertaking construction works for 33 items (most of them are anticipated to be completed for commissioning in the next one to two years) and carrying out investigation or design work for the remaining 2 items (works schedules to be confirmed upon the completion of design work and public consultation). The relevant information is set out in Annex 2. In response to public demand, the Government announced in the 2016 Policy Address that the ambit of the UA Programme would be further expanded to cover walkways meeting certain criteria(2) and no longer be confined to public walkways. Among the public suggestions which fall within the expanded ambit of the Programme, DCs further selected 47 items(3) for implementation (referred to as the "Second Phase"). At present, HyD is carrying out investigation or design work for these items with a view to commencing the construction works progressively starting from the first half of this year. The relevant information is set out in Annex 3. As the UA Programme has been widely supported by the community, the Government announced in the 2018 Policy Address that we would commence a feasibility study on lift retrofitting proposals at the remaining some 120 walkways across various districts under the current ambit of the Programme with a view to (2) The following criteria have to be met and no land resumption should be involved for the

walkways: (a) the walkways span across public roads repaired and maintained by HyD; (b) the walkways are open for public access from public roads at all times; (c) the walkways are not privately owned; and (d) the parties responsible for the management and maintenance of the walkways agree

to such lift retrofitting proposals and are willing to cooperate with the Government during the implementation of the retrofitting works for the said lifts as well as the subsequent management and maintenance works of the lifts.

(3) Upon the Government's invitation, each DC has further selected not more than three

existing walkways for implementation under the Second Phase and a total of 45 walkways (locations) have been selected. Among them, one of the walkway (location) involves three structure numbers (items), resulting in a total of 47 items. However, two items have been confirmed to be technically infeasible after investigation. HyD has reported the relevant findings to the respective DCs. Therefore, investigation or design work for a total of 45 items are being carried out currently.


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taking forward the feasible items expeditiously so as to benefit the elderly and people in need (referred to as the "Third Phase"). HyD has been undertaking the relevant preparation work with a view to engaging consultants in the first half of 2019 to carry out investigation and design work for the lift retrofitting items under the Third Phase. If the lift retrofitting items are confirmed to be technically feasible, HyD will subsequently commence their design work and conduct public consultation. Subject to the support of the respective DCs, the relevant constructions works are anticipated to commence progressively from 2021. Having consulted the Lands Department, the Government did not invoke the Lands Resumption Ordinance (Cap. 124) to resume private land for carrying out any lift retrofitting project in the past decade. To ensure the proper use of public funds and to avoid the Government taking over the responsibilities of private owners, walkways within the areas of Tenants Purchase Scheme estates and private housing estates are currently not covered under the UA Programme. Subsequent to the Government's announcement in the 2018 Policy Address, we are conducting a review to explore whether there is any scope for further expansion of the UA Programme. We will consider the relevant suggestions when reviewing the ambit of the Programme.

Annex 1

List of Items under the Original Programme (under Construction or under Investigation/Design by HyD)

(As at 31 January 2019)

Item Structure Number Location

The retrofitting works for 41 items under construction: 1 HF78 Across Island Eastern Corridor and Chai Wan Road near Chai

Wan Road Roundabout 2 HF81 Across Pok Fu Lam Road near the University of Hong Kong 3 HF90A Across King's Road and Tin Chiu Street 4 HF95 Across O'Brien Road and Hennessy Road near Wan Chai

MTR Station



5 HF116 Across Gloucester Road near Stewart Road 6 HF119 Across Connaught Road Central near Waterfront Police

Station 7 HF145 Across Gloucester Road and Fenwick Street 8 H116 Wong Chuk Hang Road near Nam Fung Road 9 KF3 Across Hong Chong Road and Salisbury Road near Hung

Hom Cross Harbour Tunnel 10 KF13 Across Lung Cheung Road near Beacon Heights 11 KF29 Across Kowloon City Road and San Shan Road 12 KF48 Across Ngau Tau Kok Road and Chun Wah Road near Chun

Wah Court 13 KF82 Across Chatham Road South and Granville Road near Hong

Kong Science Museum 14 KF83 Across Lin Tak Road near Hing Tin Street 15 KF128 Across Kwun Tong Road from Kowloon Bay MTR Station to

Choi Wan Road 16 KS7 Across Lung Cheung Road near Choi Hung MTR Station 17 KS10 Across Prince Edward Road East and Ma Tau Chung Road

near Tak Ku Ling Road 18 KS12 Across Choi Hung Road at Lok Sin Road 19 KS27 Across Shun Ching Street near San Lee Street and Shun Lee

Estate 20 KS35 Across Prince Edward Road East near San Po Kong

Interchange 21 KS49 Across Jordan Road near Canton Road and Ferry Street 22 K8 Along Fung Mo Street over Lung Cheung Road 23 K36 At Po Kong Village Road over Lung Cheung Road 24 K50 Across New Clear Water Bay Road at Shun Lee Tsuen Road 25 NF1 Across Kwai Chung Road near Kwai Fong Estate 26 NF40 Across Tai Po Road―Sha Tin near Wo Che Street 27 NF74 Across Lion Rock Tunnel Road near Fung Shing Court 28 NF78 Across Fanling Highway near Tai Hang Fui Sha Wai between

Hong Lok Yuen and Tai Hang 29 NF80 Across East Rail Line Track near Yuen Leng


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30 NF82 Across East Rail Line Track near Tai Wo Service Road East and Tong Hang

31 NF104 Across Fanling Highway and San Wan Road 32 NF127 Across Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road from Tuen Mun

Park to Tuen Wui Street and Tuen Mun Cultural Square 33 NF167 Across Tai Chung Road near Sha Tsui Road 34 NF206 Across Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road from Tuen Mun

Park to Tuen Wui Street and Tuen Mun Cultural Square 35 NF248 Across Shing Mun Road near Castle Peak Road―Tsuen Wan

36-37 NS1 & NS1A

Across Kwai Chung Road near Princess Margaret Hospital

38 NS7A Across Castle Peak Road―Hung Shui Kiu Section at Hung Shui Kiu Light Rail Station

39 NS28A Across Fo Tan Road near Yuen Wo Road 40 NS175 Across a slip road from Tolo Highway to Chak Cheung Street

near Sui Cheung Street 41 N546 Tsing Tsuen Bridge

The retrofitting works for 9 items under investigation/design: 1 HF40 Across Cotton Tree Drive near Lippo Centre 2 HF106 Across Harbour Road and Convention Avenue near Arts

Centre 3 HF113 Across a slip road from Cross Harbour Tunnel to Gloucester

Road near Hung Hing Road Flyover 4 KS9 Across Prince Edward Road West at Kowloon City

Interchange 5 KS23 Across East Rail Line Track near Surrey Lane and Dianthus

Road 6 KS32 Across Ma Tau Chung Road near Olympic Avenue and

Kowloon City Interchange 7 KS41 Across Chatham Road North near Winslow Street 8 NS106 Across Fanling Highway near Tai Tau Leng 9 ST04 Across Tate's Cairn Tunnel Toll Plaza


Annex 2

List of Items under the Expanded Programme (under Construction or under Investigation/Design by HyD)


Item District Structure Number Location

The retrofitting works for 33 items under construction: Hong Kong Island

1 Central and Western

HF135 Along Cochrane Street near Tun Wo Lane 2 HF142 Across Connaught Road West leading to Sun Yat

Sen Memorial Park 3

Eastern HF92 Across Island Eastern Corridor near Quarry Bay

Park 4

Southern

HF104 Across Aberdeen Praya Road near Nam Ning Street

5 HF105 Across Aberdeen Praya Road near Ocean Court 6 H186 Elevated walkway connecting Tin Wan Praya

Road and Tin Wan Hill Road 7

Wan Chai HF154 Across Gloucester Road and Percival Street near

Sino Plaza 8 HS9 Across Canal Road East near Sports Road

Kowloon 9

Kowloon City

KF102 Across Hung Hom South Road near Hung Ling Street and Whampoa Street

10 KF106 Across Hung Hom South Road near Hung Hom Road

11 Kwun Tong

KF90 Across Lei Yue Mun Road near Tsui Ping Road 12 KF109 Across Shun Lee Tsuen Road near Shun Lee Estate

Park 13 KS56 Across Kwun Tong Road near Ting On Street 14 Sham

Shui Po KF69 Across Lai Chi Kok Road and Tonkin Street

15 KF97 Across Tai Po Road near Tai Wo Ping Road 16

Wong Tai Sin

KF56 Across New Clear Water Bay Road near Choi Wan Commercial Complex Phase II

17 KF76 Across Fung Tak Road near Lung Poon Street


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18 Yau Tsim Mong

KF88 Across Ferry Street and Waterloo Road along West Kowloon Highway

19 KF89 Across Ferry Street at Junction of Dundas Street New Territories

20

Kwai Tsing

NF51 Across Castle Peak Road―Kwai Chung Section near Wo Yi Hop Road

21 NF72A Across Kwai Foo Road near Kwai Yi Road 22 NF229 Across Junction of Castle Peak Road―Kwai

Chung, Kwai Chung Road and Lei Muk Road 23

Islands NF328 Across Yu Tung Road and Chung Yan Road

24 NS230 Across Shun Tung Road near Lantau North Police Station

25 Sai Kung NF309 Across Po Ning Road near Po Shun Road 26

Sha Tin

NF73 Connecting Pai Tau Street and Sha Tin MTR Station

27 NF316 Across roundabout at Che Kung Miu Road and Mei Tin Road

28 NS287 Across Ma On Shan Road and Hang Tai Road near Ma On Shan Rail Tai Shui Hang Station

29 Tai Po NF191 Across Ting Kok Road connecting Tai Yuen Estate and Fu Heng Estate

30 Tsuen Wan

NF186 Across Tai Chung Road near Heung Che Street 31 NF288 At Sai Lau Kok Road near Exit A of Tsuen Wan

MTR Station 32

Yuen Long

NF306 Connecting Yuen Long Plaza and Long Ping West Rail Station

33 NF376 Across Ping Ha Road near Exit B of Tin Shui Wai West Rail Station

The retrofitting works for 2 items under investigation/design: 1 Wan Chai HF85 At the Junction of Yee Wo Street, Pennington

Street and Sugar Street 2 Sham

Shui Po KF115 Across Ching Cheung Road between Ching Lai

Commercial Centre and Mei Foo MTR Station


Annex 3

List of Items under the Second Phase of the UA Programme (under Investigation/Design by HyD)



Hong Kong Island 1 Central

and Western

HF135 Across Robinson Road near Vantage Park

2

Eastern

HF76@ Across Island Eastern Corridor near Shun Tai Road

3 HF138@ Across Siu Sai Wan Road near Bus Terminus 4 HS14@ Across Shun Tai Road near Wing Tai Road

Garden 5

Southern

HKS01* Across Lei Tung Estate Road near Tung Sing House, Lei Tung Estate

6 HKS02* Across Tin Wan Street near Tin Wan Shopping Centre

Kowloon 7

Kowloon City

KS8 Across Prince Edward Road West near Lion Rock Road

8 K64@ Across Hung Hom Road near Dyer Avenue 9 KC01* Across Junction Road near Renfrew Road 10

Kwun Tong

KS43@ Across Chun Wah Road near Lok Wah South Estate

11 K49 Along Lee On Road over New Clear Water Bay Road

12 KT02* Across Wai Yip Street near Telford Gardens Block D2

13

Sham Shui Po

KF98@ Across Lung Yuet Road near Chak On Road 14 SSP01*@ Across Tai Hang Tung Road near Nam On House

of Nam Shan Estate and Tung Fai House of Tai Hang Tung Estate

15 SSP02*@ Across Tai Hang Tung Road near Tung Lung House and Tung Yu House of Tai Hang Tung Estate


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16

Wong Tai Sin

KF73@ Across Tung Tau Tsuen Road near Tung Lung Road

17 KF92A@ Across Lung Poon Street near Fung Tak Road 18 WTS04*@ Across Chuk Yuen Road connecting Pang Ching

Court and Chuk Yuen South Estate New Territories

19 Kwai Tsing

NF113 Across Lai King Hill Road near Yin Lai Court 20 K&T01* Across Ching Hong Road near Cheung Hong

Estate Commercial Centre No. 2 21 K&T02* Across Tsing King Road near On Pak House 22 Islands ID01* Across Ying Hei Road near the Visionary and

Caribbean Coast 23

North

ND01* Across Fanling Highway connecting Choi Yuen Estate and Tai Ping Estate

24 ND02* Across Choi Yuen Road connecting Choi Yuen Plaza and Sheung Shui Station

25 ND03* Across Fanling Station Road near Fanling Station 26

Sai Kung

NF310 Across Chiu Shun Road near Tin Ha Wan Village 27 SK01* Across Tsui Lam Road near Tsui Lam

Community Hall 28 SK02* Across Tsui Lam Road connecting Tsui Lam

Shopping Centre and King Ming Court 29

Sha Tin

NF137@ Across Sha Kok Street near Sha Kok Estate 30-32 NS225,

NS284 & NS285

Across Sai Sha Road and Hang Ming Street near Renaissance College

33 ST06* Across On Shing Street and On Luk Street connecting On Shing Street Garden and Sunshine City Phase 3 and 4

34

Tai Po

NS154@ Across Tai Po Tai Wo Road near Tai Wo Neighbourhood Community Centre

35 TP02* Across Sai Sha Road near Symphony Bay 36 TP03* Connecting Plover Cove Garden Arcade and Tai

Po Mega Mall 37

Tsuen Wan

NF242@ Across Kwan Mun Hau Street and Castle Peak Road near Kam Mun Hau Garden

38 NF334@ Across Castle Peak Road near Tsuen King Circuit and Sha Tsui Road



39 TW03* Across Mei Wan Street connecting Tsuen King Circuit Sports Centre and Discovery Park

40

Tuen Mun

NF98 Across Wu King Road near Siu Hei Court Commercial Centre

41 NF196@ Across Ming Kum Road near Yan Oi Tong Chan Wong Suk Fong Memory Secondary School

42 NF342 Across Ming Kum Road near Po Tin Estate 43

Yuen Long

NF130 Across Castle Peak Road―Yuen Long and Fung Cheung Road

44 NF374 Across Tin Fuk Road near Exit D of Tin Shui Wai West Rail Station

45 NF451 At the Public Transport Interchange of Lok Ma Chau Terminus

Notes: * Walkways that are not maintained by the Highways Department @ Construction works anticipated to commence in 2019 Implementation of the sanctions decided by the Security Council of the United Nations 2. MR DENNIS KWOK (in Chinese): President, the Chief Executive has made separate regulations under section 3 of the United Nations Sanctions Ordinance (Cap. 537) to implement the respective sanctions decided by the Security Council of the United Nations against (i) Democratic People's Republic of Korea (i.e. North Korea), (ii) Iran and (iii) Yemen. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of the respective numbers and details of the law enforcement actions taken in each of the past five years by the law enforcement agencies under those regulations, and the respective numbers of prosecutions and convictions arising from such actions? SECRETARY FOR COMMERCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (in Chinese): President, according to the Charter of the United Nations, Member States of the United Nations (including the People's Republic of China ("PRC")) should apply measures decided by the United Nations Security Council ("UNSC") to maintain or restore international peace and security. As part of the


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PRC, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("HKSAR") implements UNSC sanctions pursuant to the instructions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to fulfil our international obligation. Currently, UNSC imposes sanctions or restrictions against 14 places(1) (including the Democratic People's Republic of Korea ("DPRK"), Iran and Yemen) and two organizations(2). The HKSAR Government has fully implemented sanctions or restrictions imposed by UNSC against the 14 places and two organizations through the United Nations Sanctions Ordinance (Cap. 537) ("the Ordinance") and the regulations made under the Ordinance by the Chief Executive. Relevant law enforcement agencies have been acting in accordance with the law, without fear or favour, to follow up on suspected violations of the Ordinance. The Hong Kong Police Force ("HKPF") and the Customs and Excise Department ("C&ED") are the law enforcement agencies of the Ordinance. The breakdowns by year of suspected cases of sanctions violations investigated by HKPF and C&ED in the past five years are as follows:

Year Number of cases 2014 13 2015 5 2016 14 2017 86 2018 182 Total 300

Note: A suspected case involving different sanction measures will be followed up and investigated by the two departments separately. The above figures represent the aggregate of the number of cases handled by the two departments. To ensure confidentiality of investigation work, we will not disclose details of the cases (including the place or organization involved in the cases). Hong Kong has a robust system to implement sanctions imposed by UNSC. Coupled with the investigation efforts of our law enforcement agencies which are vigilant and with deterrent effect, a number of alleged Hong Kong-registered

(1) These 14 places are Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the

Congo, DPRK, Guinea-Bissau, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Yemen.

(2) The two organizations are Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and Al-Qaida.


companies have been struck off, and suspicious vessels have been denied entry into Hong Kong waters. All these are conducive to preventing attempts to make use of Hong Kong as a base to violate UNSC sanctions, and hence safeguarding the international reputation of Hong Kong. There are currently no prosecution or conviction cases under the Ordinance. Hong Kong will continue to maintain a stringent system of implementing UNSC sanctions in accordance with the law. Exercising their statutory authorities, the law enforcement agencies will continue to follow up on all suspected violations of UNSC sanctions, and will institute prosecution when there is sufficient evidence. Elective subjects of the senior secondary curriculum 3. MRS REGINA IP (in Chinese): President, under the arrangements of the New Senior Secondary academic structure, apart from the four compulsory core subjects, schools may decide on their own to offer a certain number of elective subjects (with the average number of last school year being 11) out of 20 subjects which are Key Learning Area elective subjects, Applied Learning courses and six other language courses, and their students may choose to take two to three subjects among the subjects offered. It is learnt that in respect of some elective subjects (e.g. Combined Science, Integrated Science as well as Design and Applied Technology), the numbers of students taking and the numbers of schools offering such subjects have been persistently on the low side in recent years. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it has assessed if there are faults in the curriculum designs of those subjects with persistently low student enrolments; if it has assessed and the outcome is in the affirmative, whether the Government will conduct a comprehensive review of the curriculum designs of such subjects; if it has not assessed, of the reasons for that; and

(2) whether it will consider consolidating those elective subjects which

are offered by a small number of schools and have a low student enrolment, so that the schools concerned may concentrate their teaching resources on other elective subjects; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?


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SECRETARY FOR EDUCATION (in Chinese): President, our consolidated reply to the questions of Mrs Regina IP is as follows: The primary aim of the senior secondary curriculum under the New Academic Structure ("NAS") is to provide students with a broad and balanced curriculum under which they take two or three elective subjects (four at most) on top of four core subjects (i.e. Chinese Language, English Language, Mathematics and Liberal Studies). The curriculum is also supplemented by a wide range of activities for "Other Learning Experiences" to broaden students' horizons and foster their whole-person development. Under the open curriculum framework, schools can offer students an appropriate and adequate choice of elective subjects from 20 senior secondary elective subjects, some 30 Applied Learning ("ApL") courses and six other languages. This arrangement not only caters for students' interests and needs, but also provides schools with sufficient flexibility to develop their school-based curricula in the light of their contexts as well as the needs of students. Being an international city boasting a blend of Chinese and Western cultures, it is of the utmost importance for Hong Kong to nurture a pool of talent in various fields. The design of the senior secondary curriculum under NAS is based on the development of both Hong Kong and the world as well as local socio-cultural, economic and geographical factors, and reference has been made to the trends in curriculum development in other countries/regions. The senior secondary curriculum should also cater for students' diverse needs so as to enable them to choose suitable subjects according to their interests, aspirations and abilities. The student enrolment of each elective subject every school year depends on an array of factors. In particular, the continuous decline in student population over the past few years has directly affected the student enrolment of elective subjects, while the requirements for admission to different departments of universities (e.g. prerequisite or non-prerequisite elective subjects) impact on the number of elective subjects taken by students. For instance, some universities or departments might set the order of admission priority based on the attainments in the best five or six subjects of candidates meeting the General Entrance Requirements. This might have led some candidates to focus on their strong subjects or even drop individual subjects at Secondary Five or Six in order to strive for better results. In this regard, the high or low student enrolment of an elective subject may not necessarily bear a relationship to whether there is room for improvement in its curriculum design.


We are aware that the numbers of students taking individual senior secondary elective subjects, such as Literature in English, Integrated Science, Technology and Living, Music and individual ApL courses (e.g. Applied Learning Chinese (for non-Chinese speaking students), Animal Care, Entrepreneurship for Small and Medium Enterprises), have been rather low. Yet, as stated above, in the context of the holistic design of school curriculum, we have to consider students' needs and school contexts from a professional angle to offer different senior secondary elective subjects including those with low student enrolments. In doing so, students with different aptitudes, abilities and backgrounds are provided with an adequate choice of subjects, hence catering for learner diversity and supporting students in multiple study and career pathways. Taking Combined Science and Integrated Science as examples, we provide two integrated science subjects, in addition to the traditional science subjects (including Physics, Chemistry and Biology), to not only meet students' need for taking science subjects to master essential scientific knowledge, but also give students space to consider acquiring the domains of knowledge in connection with subjects under other Key Learning Areas. In fact, given the increasingly diverse pathways to further study, local tertiary institutions also offer bachelor's degree and diploma progammes of a cross-disciplinary/integrated nature which go beyond traditional subject learning. At present, schools in general are offering about 11 elective subjects at the senior secondary level. To give students a wider choice of subjects, the Education Bureau has been providing schools with the Diversity Learning Grant ("DLG") since the 2009-2010 school year to encourage collaboration among schools on offering joint-school curricula of different senior secondary subjects (e.g. Music, Physical Education, Design and Applied Technology, Ethics and Religious Studies), hence optimizing the use of resources across schools as well as catering for students' diverse interests. For now, over 150 secondary schools are involved in offering the joint-school curricula. The funding from DLG can also be used to make arrangements for students to take other languages and/or ApL courses offered by course providers in order to cater for students' diverse learning needs. ApL courses cover six areas of studies, namely Creative Studies; Media and Communication; Business, Management and Law; Services; Applied Science; and Engineering and Production. Fewer than 5 000 students are enrolled on some 30 courses, each of which is taken by a fairly small number of students. However, taking into consideration the potential for broadening


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students' learning experiences and enabling them to learn fundamental theories and concepts through application and practice, ApL courses are meaningful subject choices. The Education Bureau has been monitoring the development of the senior secondary curriculum under NAS since its launch in 2009. Regular meetings are also held by the committees on various senior secondary subjects under the Curriculum Development Council ("CDC") to review the implementation of the subjects. Given that curriculum development is an ongoing process, the committees on various senior secondary subjects under CDC will, in a timely manner, review and update the design of the curricula of senior secondary subjects as well as the examination and assessment arrangements in the light of the ongoing renewal of the school curriculum to respond to changes in society and students' needs. Guarding against sudden deaths of employees caused by overexertion at work 4. DR FERNANDO CHEUNG (in Chinese): President, in recent years, incidents of sudden deaths of employees suspected to be caused by overexertion at work (commonly known as "deaths from overexertion") have been heard from time to time, arousing public concern about overexertion at work. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the number of cases, as recorded by the Labour Department ("LD") in each year since 2013, in which employees suddenly died not as a result of an accident arising out of and in the course of the employment, together with a breakdown by the gender of the deceased, the age group to which the deceased belonged, the industry and job type in which the deceased was engaged before death, as well as the cause of death of the deceased (e.g. brain disease and heart disease);

(2) whether it knows which 10 industries had the highest median weekly

working hours in each year since 2013, as well as the relevant distributions of working hours;


(3) given that LD has commissioned the Occupational Safety and Health Council to conduct a study on cases of employees' sudden deaths at work, of the progress of the study; and

(4) whether it will draw up a legal definition for "death from

overexertion" and stipulate death from overexertion as one of the incidents in respect of which employers must pay compensation in accordance with the Employees' Compensation Ordinance (Cap. 282)?

SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE (in Chinese): President, my reply to the question raised by the Member is as follows:

(1) Occupational injury statistics published by the Labour Department ("LD") are released on a quarterly basis and the latest available statistics are up to the first three quarters of 2018. The breakdown of the number of fatalities not caused by accidents (i.e. fatalities due to various non-occupational diseases) by sex, age, industry section and disease from 2013 to the first three quarters of 2018 are set out in Annex 1. LD does not keep the statistical breakdown by trade.

(2) According to Annual Earnings and Hours Survey undertaken by the

Census and Statistics Department, the 10 industries with the highest employees' median weekly working hours and their respective distributions of weekly working hours during the period from May to June 2013 to May to June 2017 are set out in Annex 2.

(3) The causes of death of employees not caused by work accidents in

the course of the employment are often complex, and may involve a multitude of factors including personal health condition, heredity, eating and living habits, work nature and environment, etc. In October 2017, LD commissioned the Occupational Safety and Health Council ("OSHC") to conduct a study focusing on death of employees at workplace caused by cardiovascular diseases or cerebrovascular diseases. OSHC will look into the possible causes leading to the death of these employees from different perspectives, like working condition, personal health condition, living habits, etc.,


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through interviewing the deceased workers' relatives, employers and colleagues. OSHC started the interviewing work in the first quarter of 2018 and expects to complete the study in about three years.

(4) As stipulated in the Employees' Compensation Ordinance ("ECO")

(Cap. 282), if an employee sustains an injury or dies (including the case of sudden death) as a result of an accident arising out of and in the course of the employment, the employer is liable to pay compensation in accordance with the Ordinance. To further expand the scope of ECO to cover all fatal cases that happen during the period of work irrespective of whether they are caused by work accidents would involve a significant change in the basic principle of employees' compensation, and employees' benefits as well as affordability of employers should also be taken into account.

Annex 1

Breakdown of the number of occupational fatalities not caused by accidents by sex from 2013 to the first three quarters of 2018

Sex 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017* First three quarters of 2018*

Female 3 16 13 15 16 11 Male 84 97 85 111 121 63 Total 87 113 98 126 137 74

Breakdown of the number of occupational fatalities not caused by accidents by age from 2013 to the first three quarters of 2018

Age group 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017* First three quarters of 2018*

Below 40 4 8 6 8 9 4 40-49 20 20 11 17 30 12 50-59 29 52 46 55 54 30 60 or above 34 33 35 46 44 28 Total 87 113 98 126 137 74


Breakdown of the number of occupational fatalities not caused by accidents by industry section from 2013 to the first three quarters of 2018

Industry section 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017* First three quarters of 2018*

Agriculture, forestry and fishing 0 0 0 1 0 0 Manufacturing 3 2 2 9 5 2 Electricity, gas and waste management

1 3 1 1 1 0

Construction 10 12 21 13 24 14 Import/export, wholesale and retail trades

7 12 9 22 14 4

Transportation, storage, postal and courier services

13 10 14 15 14 8

Accommodation and food services 9 7 7 9 18 8 Information and communications 2 1 0 1 1 2 Financing and insurance 2 7 0 0 1 0 Real estate 17 19 12 15 18 9 Professional and business services 20 27 16 26 27 14 Public administration, and social and personal services

2 10 12 14 14 9

Other industries 1 3 4 0 0 4 Total 87 113 98 126 137 74

Breakdown of the number of occupational fatalities not caused by accidents by disease from 2013 to the first three quarters of 2018

Disease 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017* First three quarters of 2018*

Heart disease 45 63 58 74 76 46 Brain disease 16 21 18 23 27 15 Others# 26 29 22 29 34 13 Total 87 113 98 126 137 74 Notes: * The figures for 2017 and the first three quarters of 2018 are provisional figures as some

cases are still under investigation. # Other cases are mainly related to multiple diseases, cancer, respiratory diseases, etc.


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Annex 2

Distribution of weekly working hours(2) in the 10 industries with the highest employees'(1) median weekly working hours(2)

(May to June 2013 to May to June 2017) May to June 2013

Industry (in descending order of median weekly

working hours)

Weekly working hours 25th

Percentile Median

75th Percentile

1 Restaurants 48.0 54.0 60.0 2 Estate management, security and

cleaning services 45.7 52.6 66.0

3 Construction 45.7 50.7 54.0 4 Accommodation(3) and other food

service activities 47.8 49.9 54.0

5 Land transport 44.3 49.4 55.4 6 Miscellaneous activities(4) 44.3 49.0 54.0 7 Retail trade 40.6 48.0 54.0 7 Manufacturing(5) 42.5 48.0 51.0 9 Other transportation, storage, postal

and courier services(6) 40.6 45.7 50.4

9 Wholesale 41.1 45.7 49.4 May to June 2014


working hours)


Percentile Median

75th Percentile



3 Construction 44.3 49.4 54.0 4 Miscellaneous activities(4) 44.3 48.2 57.0 4 Accommodation(3) and other food


6 Retail trade 42.5 48.1 54.9



working hours)


Percentile Median

75th Percentile

7 Land transport 40.6 48.0 55.1 7 Manufacturing(5) 42.2 48.0 51.6 9 Travel agency, reservation service and

related activities 41.8 46.2 48.5

10 Other transportation, storage, postal and courier services(6)

40.6 45.7 49.8

10 Electricity and gas supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities

40.6 45.7 47.5

May to June 2015


working hours)


Percentile Median 75th Percentile

1 Restaurants 45.5 54.0 60.0 2 Accommodation(3) and other food


3 Estate management, security and cleaning services

44.3 49.4 66.0

4 Retail trade 42.5 48.8 55.4 5 Miscellaneous activities(4) 44.8 48.2 54.8 6 Construction 44.3 48.0 54.0 6 Land transport 42.0 48.0 55.4 8 Other transportation, storage, postal and

courier services(6) 40.6 45.7 49.9

9 Manufacturing(5) 40.6 45.3 49.0 10 Wholesale 40.6 44.4 48.0 May to June 2016


working hours)






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working hours)



3 Construction 42.5 48.0 54.0 3 Retail trade 41.5 48.0 55.5 3 Land transport 39.7 48.0 60.0 3 Miscellaneous activities(4) 43.5 48.0 54.0 3 Accommodation(3) and other food


8 Manufacturing(5) 42.0 46.7 49.9 9 Other transportation, storage, postal and

courier services(6) 40.6 45.7 50.8

10 Human health activities; and beauty and body prettifying treatment

40.6 44.3 48.0

10 Other activities not classified above 39.3 44.3 48.0 10 Real estate activities(7) 40.6 44.3 47.0 10 Wholesale 40.6 44.3 48.0 10 Travel agency, reservation service and

related activities 41.3 44.3 48.0

May to June 2017


working hours)


Percentile Median

75th Percentile

1 Restaurants 42.0 54.0 60.0 2 Estate management, security and cleaning services

45.0 49.0 66.0

3 Construction 43.2 48.0 54.0 3 Retail trade 41.5 48.0 55.4 3 Land transport 42.4 48.0 62.9 3 Miscellaneous activities(4) 44.3 48.0 54.5 3 Accommodation(3) and other food service activities

45.1 48.0 53.3

8 Manufacturing(5) 42.0 47.0 49.4 9 Other transportation, storage, postal and courier services(6)

40.6 45.7 53.2



working hours)


Percentile Median

75th Percentile

10 Human health activities; and beauty and body prettifying treatment

40.6 44.4 48.0

Notes: (1) Excluding government employees, as well as student interns, work experience students

and live-in domestic workers as exempted by the Minimum Wage Ordinance. (2) Working hours refers to contractual/agreed working hours and overtime hours worked at

the direction of employers. Meal break is included in the working hours if it is regarded as working hours according to the employment contract or agreement with the employer, or if an employee has to be in attendance at a place of employment during his/her meal breaks in accordance with the employment contract or with the agreement or at the direction of the employer, irrespective of whether he/she is provided with work or not during the meal break period.

(3) Accommodation services cover hotels, guesthouses, boarding houses and other

establishments providing short-term accommodation. (4) Including: (i) elderly homes; (ii) laundry and dry cleaning services; (iii) hairdressing and

other personal services; (iv) local courier services; and (v) food processing and production.

(5) Excluding food processing and production. (6) Excluding local courier services. (7) Excluding real estate maintenance management. Source: Annual Earnings and Hours Survey, Census and Statistics Department Entry visa requirements for non-local people participating in cultural, arts and sports events 5. MR MA FUNG-KWOK (in Chinese): President, several months ago, the Legislative Council Secretariat conducted, at my request, a study on the visa requirements for overseas individuals' entry into eight selected places for participating in local cultural, arts and sports ("CAS") activities. The study report points out that all of the selected places allow the entry of overseas individuals for participating in CAS activities by using visitor visas, and the


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maximum permitted length of stay is three months. The study report points out, however, that currently, the Hong Kong Government has not adopted any flexible and fast-track visa policy for overseas individuals to come to Hong Kong for participating in CAS activities. Besides, the Government has not issued any specific guidelines on the circumstances under which such people may enter Hong Kong by using visitor visas and the other circumstances under which they are required to apply for employment visas, which have more demanding requirements than visitor visas, for entry into Hong Kong. It is learnt that at present, non-local people mainly apply for employment visas under the General Employment Policy ("GEP") or the Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals ("ASMTP") for coming to Hong Kong to participate in CAS activities. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the respective numbers of non-local people who were granted permission in the past three years to come to Hong Kong to take up employment relating to (a) arts/culture and (b) recreation and sports under GEP and ASMTP, with a breakdown by employment period (i.e. (i) less than one month, (ii) one to three months and (iii) more than three months) in a table of the same format as the table below;

Table 1: General Employment Policy

Nature of employment (a) (b) Employment period (i) (ii) (iii) Overall (i) (ii) (iii) Overall

2016 2017 2018

(2) of the average time taken by the Immigration Department ("ImmD")

to process the applications mentioned in (1); the measures put in place by ImmD to expedite the vetting and approval procedure;

(3) of the measures currently put in place by ImmD to facilitate

non-local people's visa applications for coming to Hong Kong to participate in CAS activities; whether it will, by making reference to the practices adopted by other places, issue electronic visas in place of paper visas, so as to facilitate visa application by such people; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and


(4) whether it has examined the contents of the aforesaid study report and, in the light of the practices adopted by other places, considered relaxing the entry requirements for non-local people coming to Hong Kong for participating in CAS activities, such as granting them, subject to their meeting specified conditions, visa-free access or entry permission under visitor visas, so as to obviate the need for them to apply for employment visas; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

SECRETARY FOR SECURITY (in Chinese): President, the reply to Mr MA's question regarding the immigration arrangement for non-local individuals of the cultural, arts and sports sectors is as follows:

(1) According to the prevailing policy, the General Employment Policy ("GEP") is applicable to overseas, Taiwan and Macao residents whereas the Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals ("ASMTP") is applicable to Mainland residents only.

The statistics on applications approved under GEP and ASMTP with

breakdown on applicants' industry/sector being "Arts/Culture" or "Recreation and Sports" in the past three years are as follows:

GEP

Industry/Sector Arts/Culture Recreation and Sports

Employment period

Less than

1 year

1 year or

above Total

Less than

1 year

1 year or

above Total

2016 4 385 51 4 436 5 317 288 5 605 2017 3 115 56 3 171 4 962 330 5 292 2018 3 390 49 3 439 4 857 323 5 180

ASMTP


Employment period

Less than

1 year

1 year or

above Total

Less than

1 year

1 year or

above Total

2016 2 819 52 2 871 289 28 317 2017 3 892 26 3 918 435 33 468


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Employment period

Less than

1 year

1 year or

above Total

Less than

1 year

1 year or

above Total

2018 4 560 47 4 607 371 41 412 As the system in the Immigration Department ("ImmD") maintains

statistics using one year as a parameter, ImmD does not maintain other breakdown statistics mentioned in the question.

(2) and (3) At present, ImmD pledges that 90% of GEP and ASMTP

applications will be finalized within four weeks upon receipt of all necessary documents. In 2018, over 99% of GEP and ASMTP applications were finalized within four weeks upon receipt of all necessary documents, exceeding the standard of performance pledge notably.

In processing visa/entry permit applications for participation in local

cultural, arts or sports events or competitions, ImmD maintains close communication and coordination with the event or competition organizers. ImmD, having regard to the dates and circumstances of the events or competitions, takes appropriate facilitating measures, including streamlining the visa/entry permit application procedures (such as waiving the submission of supporting documents on academic qualifications and relevant work experience) and according priority to urgent applications, in order to meet the actual needs of the participants and organizers.

Besides, ImmD plans to develop the "Next Generation Application

and Investigation Easy Systems" ("the new system") in 2019 for implementation in phases from 2021. Regarding the application for visas/entry permits, the new system will enhance service delivery through various improvement initiatives such as providing electronic means for application submission, providing web-based application forms for online data input and electronic notification of application results, extending services from web-based platform to mobile platforms (e.g. mobile phones, tablets), as well as introducing


self-service kiosks for submission of applications and supplementary documents and collection of application results. ImmD will also make reference to the international trends and practices of electronic visa issuance and enhance the design of the new system so as to provide greater convenience for visa/entry permit applicants.

(4) The HKSAR Government has noted the study conducted by the

Research Office of the Legislative Council Secretariat in respect of overseas visa policies on non-local persons participating in local cultural, recreational and sports activities. Relevant Policy Bureaux, including Home Affairs Bureau, will look into the proposal, and review relevant immigration policies in due course to ensure that the policies meet Hong Kong's actual circumstances and needs.

Suspension of fresh water supply in public rental housing estates 6. MR HO KAI-MING (in Chinese): President, quite a number of residents in public rental housing estates ("estates") have relayed to me that in recent years, fresh water supply to the estates in which they reside was suspended on many occasions due to bursts of communal water mains, causing inconvenience to their daily lives. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the respective numbers of incidents of suspension of fresh water supply in each of the past five years that were caused by (i) bursts and (ii) leakages of communal water mains in the estates, and set out the duration of each incident by name of estate;

(2) given that aged water mains are more susceptible to bursts and

leakages, whether the authorities will expeditiously and comprehensively replace the communal water mains in those estates aged 30 years or above, so as to minimize the occurrence of such incidents;

(3) whether master meters have been installed in all estates at present; if

not, whether it has plans to install master meters in all estates to facilitate monitoring water losses in the communal water mains in the estates; if so, of the details and timetable; and


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(4) whether the Water Supplies Department and the Housing Department have put in place a coordination mechanism to monitor the conditions of communal water mains in the estates and carry out timely repair and maintenance?

SECRETARY FOR TRANSPORT AND HOUSING (in Chinese): President, having consulted the Development Bureau and the Water Supplies Department ("WSD"), I set out my consolidated reply to various parts of the question raised by Mr HO Kai-ming as follows: In respect of the water supply systems in the common area of public rental housing ("PRH") estates, the Hong Kong Housing Authority ("HA") has since 1995 gradually replaced the aged galvanized iron fresh water supply pipes by non-ferrous pipes under a large scale replumbing programme. The programme is currently generally completed. In addition, HA conducts regular inspections on water supply systems and arrange contractors to carry out maintenance and repair works in a timely manner to ensure their proper functioning. HA also evaluates the condition of the systems annually for formulating appropriate maintenance arrangements and improvement programmes. Since 2006, all new PRH estates with two or more building blocks have been installed with master meters as required by WSD. WSD is gradually installing master meters in other existing PRH estates. Currently, master meters have been installed in about 100 PRH estates. Installation works of the remaining about 80 PRH estates is targeted for completion by 2023. WSD has always been attaching great importance to the leakage problem of the water supply system in Hong Kong, including PRH estates. WSD and HA have put in place a regular communication mechanism for examining the general leakage situation of PRH estates; sharing the experience of handling of water leakage as well as maintenance and repair of water mains with a view to reducing the risk of water main bursts; following up the progress of installing master meters in the existing PRH estates; coordinating related works, etc. From time to time, WSD advises HA of the cases with suspected water leakages in underground communal water mains, so as to facilitate HA to carry out necessary testing and to arrange timely repair. WSD would also discuss with HA the progress of relevant cases.


Since 2016, WSD has referred to HA about 30 suspected water loss cases in PRH estates. Among these cases, 2 were confirmed to be not related to HA properties after examination. HA has completed the follow-ups and repairs for 12 cases. The remaining 16 cases are being tested or repaired with WSD's assistance. As our follow-up works are carried out at hours with less impact to the residents, the disruptions to the fresh water supply of the concerned estates are usually minimal. Both WSD and HA do not keep statistics on water supply interruption incidents resulted from pipe seepage and burst of common water mains in PRH estates. Monitoring the performance of bus captains by using black boxes 7. MR JEREMY TAM (in Chinese): President, the Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited ("KMB") has installed electronic data recording devices (commonly known as "black boxes") on all its buses to monitor the performance of bus captains. Upon detecting instances of speeding, etc., the black boxes issue real-time alerts to the bus captains concerned and automatically generate exception reports for KMB to take follow-up actions. However, a staff union for bus captains has recently pointed out that as the black boxes are erroneous in measuring vehicle speed and their positioning function is inaccurate, the black boxes have often incorrectly identified buses not exceeding the speed limits as speeding, and therefore have mistakenly issued speeding alerts and recorded instances of speeding. The staff union has claimed that there were over 1 000 cases in the past six months of bus captains being wrongly issued warning letters about speeding. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it knows (i) the number of bus speeding cases recorded by

the black boxes of KMB's bus fleet and (ii) the number of warning letters about speeding issued by KMB to its bus captains, in each of the past three years;

(2) whether it knows when KMB began to use black boxes to monitor

bus speed across the board; whether the number of bus speeding cases known to KMB after using the black boxes has increased significantly when compared with the situation before then;


7205

(3) whether it knows the name of the supplier for the black boxes currently used by KMB; the number of suppliers in the market which supply similar devices;

(4) whether the Transport Department ("TD") received any reports or

complaints last year about errors of black boxes in measuring the vehicular speeds and positions; if so, whether TD conducted any investigation;

(i) if investigations were conducted and the outcome was that the

reports or complaints were substantiated, whether TD has requested KMB to review the bus speeding cases stated in the exception reports generated by the black boxes in the past and revoke the punitive actions taken against the bus captains concerned; whether TD has requested KMB to work out the solutions to the aforesaid problems of the black boxes with the supplier or change the black box supplier; and

(ii) if investigations were conducted and the outcome was that the

reports or complaints were unsubstantiated, whether TD has requested KMB to adopt measures to reduce bus speeding instances (including retrofitting speed limiting retarders on all buses), adopt a scientific approach to identify road sections prone to speeding and regularly publish statistics on bus speeding; and

(5) whether it knows if errors have been found in the black boxes of the

bus fleets of other franchised bus companies in measuring the vehicular speeds and positions?

SECRETARY FOR TRANSPORT AND HOUSING (in Chinese): President, under the requirements of the franchise terms, all franchised buses are required to be installed with electronic data recording devices (commonly known as "black boxes"). At present, all franchised bus operators make use of the black boxes to generate real-time alerts to bus captains as well as exception reports automatically when the speed of the vehicle exceeds a pre-set threshold. The franchised bus operators will review the exception reports, investigate improper driving behaviour and take appropriate follow-up actions, such as issuance of verbal


advice, verbal warning, written warning; and step up the remedial trainings for the bus captains concerned. The bus captains concerned may be dismissed should circumstances warrant. On the other hand, the Transport Department ("TD") set up in March 2018 the Working Group on the Enhancement of Safety of Franchised Bus ("Working Group"), which comprises representatives from all franchise bus operators, to consider and study possible measures to further enhance bus safety. Among others, TD has, through the Working Group, requested the franchised bus operators to liaise with the suppliers of black boxes for their bus fleets to develop a bus monitoring and control system ("BMCS") with positioning function, operational information monitoring function and geo-fencing technology. One of the functions of BMCS is, by making use of the black boxes and Global Positioning System or other positioning technologies, to conduct real-time monitoring of the bus speed on roads with different speed limits. This will facilitate a more comprehensive monitoring of speeding and enable the generation of real-time alerts to bus captains. All franchised bus operators have commenced a trial of the geo-fencing technology since the third quarter of 2018, and they are fine-tuning their BMCS by using the data collected from the trial, so as to further enhance the system. When rolling out the various safety enhancement measures, including the real-time monitoring of the bus captains, the franchised bus operators will keep good communication with their frontline staff, listen to their views carefully and refine the various measures as appropriate with a view to further enhancing the operational safety of franchised buses. Our reply to the various parts of Mr Jeremy TAM's question is as follows:

(1) According to the information submitted to TD by the Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited ("KMB"), the number of suspected speeding cases recorded by the black boxes in 2016, 2017 and 2018 is 3 223, 2 093 and 6 255 respectively. It should be noted that the figure in 2018 increased noticeably when compared with that in the past two years because KMB enhanced the function of the black boxes and the monitoring standard in 2018. In the past, the system was not able to detect speeding cases not exceeding 70 km/hour on road sections with speed limit of 50 km/hour, and it has now been enhanced to be able to monitor speeding in accordance


7207

with the various speed limits of different road sections in conjunction with the electronic map data. The figure in 2018 also includes the bus trips not in service.

When following up suspected speeding cases, KMB will verify the

data recorded in the black boxes and the speed limits of the road sections concerned vigorously, and conduct stringent analysis and prudent assessment, before mapping out the appropriate follow-up actions. The number of warning letters issued to KMB bus captains in respect of verified speeding cases is 84, 102 and 790 in 2016, 2017 and 2018 respectively. The figure in 2018 is higher than that in the past two years because of the change in KMB's arrangements on handling speeding cases since mid-2018. The company has cancelled the practice of deducting the bonus of the speeding bus captains as penalty (the related bonus has been incorporated into the basic salary of bus captains to improve the remuneration packages of bus captains) but increased the use of warning letters in order to further improve the situation of bus captains speeding. The above mentioned monitoring in conjunction with the electronic map data is also a reason for the higher number in 2018 when compared with that in the past two years.

(2) The use of black boxes could effectively monitor the speeding

situations of bus captains. KMB has been using black boxes to monitor speeding by bus captains since 2008. In 2014, KMB started to make use of black boxes to provide real-time alerts for speeding, and installed at driver cabins driving indicators which will give out light signals and emit sounds to alert the captains when the bus speed exceeds 70 km/hour. In 2018, KMB enhanced the function of black boxes by using electronic map data so as to allow the black boxes to monitor speeding on road sections with different speed limits automatically and further enhance the monitoring of speeding by bus captains.

(3) At present, the black boxes used by the franchised bus operators in

Hong Kong mainly come from two suppliers, namely NEC Hong Kong Ltd. and ZF Friedrichshafen AG. The current supplier of KMB's black boxes is Openmatics s.r.o, a subsidiary of ZF Friedrichshafen AG.


(4) TD has not received report or complaint about errors of black boxes in measuring the vehicular speeds and positions. Nonetheless, as mentioned above, KMB made it clear that in monitoring bus speeding and following up such cases, the company will verify the speed data recorded in the black boxes and the speed limits of the road sections concerned vigorously, and conduct stringent analysis and prudent assessment before a decision is made on the appropriate remedial trainings to be received by or disciplinary actions imposed on the bus captains concerned. Furthermore, KMB has set up an independent appeal mechanism to handle appeals made against any disciplinary action to protect the rights of the bus captains concerned and ensure the procedural justice of the review process. The appeal board is a standing mechanism. The appellant can come before the board in person to put up his/her case and the board will process each appeal case.

(5) Other franchised bus operators indicated that no significant errors

have been found in the black boxes of their bus fleets in measuring the vehicular speeds and positions. TD will continue to follow up with the franchised bus operators on the trial of geo-fencing technology to refine the system with a view to further enhancing the operational safety of franchised buses.

Use of e-textbooks and e-learning resources by schools 8. MR CHEUNG KWOK-KWAN (in Chinese): President, it was pointed out in Report No. 71 of the Director of Audit published in October last year that in the 2016-2017 school year and on class-level basis, among the primary and secondary schools, only 24% and 8% respectively of them used e-textbooks, and 65% and 66% respectively of them used e-learning resources. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it has formulated specific strategies and long-term goals for promoting the wider use of e-textbooks and e-learning resources by schools; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;


7209

(2) given that as at April last year, the number of e-textbooks (49 sets) available on the recommended textbook lists of the Education Bureau ("EDB") was far lower than that of printed textbooks (479 sets), whether the Government will consider launching a new round of the e-Textbook Market Development Scheme or taking other measures to promote the development and use of e-textbooks; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(3) whether it has studied if the use of e-learning resources by students

has resulted in any improvement in their academic achievements and in their interest and confidence in learning, as well as how this affects the students' health; if it has studied, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that; and

(4) whether officials of EDB conducted any overseas visit in the past five

years to learn from the experience of other places in using information technology to enhance teaching and learning; if so, of the countries/regions visited and the experience gained; if not, the reasons for that?

SECRETARY FOR EDUCATION (in Chinese): President, the Education Bureau launched the Fourth Strategy on Information Technology in Education ("ITE4") in the 2015-2016 school year to enhance the information technology ("IT") environment such as hardware, resources and teacher training in schools. It enables schools to devise school-based plans for practising e-learning in consideration of their school contexts and development needs, so as to make good use of IT to enhance learning and teaching effectiveness. Schools are encouraged to promote e-learning by using the right technology in teaching and learning at the right time when considering whole school planning and use of IT for teaching. The promotion of e-textbook development aims to provide schools with another option of quality learning and teaching resources in addition to printed textbooks. It should be stressed that as one of the many learning modes, e-learning, which is ever evolving and diversified, is open and flexible. There is no so-called best practice or standard which schools should follow. The Education Bureau values the views of the sector for improving the relevant work. The Steering Committee on Strategic Development of Information Technology in Education advises the Education Bureau on the


strategic direction, implementation and evaluation of integrating IT into education and the implementation of e-learning in schools, including the use of e-learning resources and e-textbooks. To improve the measures on supporting the needs of schools in the development of IT in education, the Education Bureau continues to explore and enhance different strategies by maintaining close communication with the relevant stakeholders and making reference to the information gathered through different means such as school visits and questionnaire surveys. We will continue with the relevant work in order to understand the views of the stakeholders. My reply to the question raised by Mr CHEUNG Kwok-kwan is as follows:

(1) and (2) Teachers' professional capabilities of using e-learning resources to

enhance learning effectiveness and the availability of quality e-learning resources already developed in the market are two crucial factors for promoting e-learning. On teachers' professional training, the Education Bureau has been enhancing teachers' professional capabilities of using e-learning resources (including e-textbooks) in teaching various subjects through professional development programmes. In addition to continually strengthening relevant professional development programmes for teachers, the Education Bureau will also form learning communities among schools for teachers to share their successful experiences and effective pedagogical practices in e-learning with each other, with a view to fostering a paradigm shift in the mode of teaching and enhancing the effectiveness of learning and teaching for the benefit of students.

The Education Bureau launched the e-Textbook Market

Development Scheme ("EMADS") with the aim of facilitating and encouraging the participation of potential and aspiring e-textbook developers to develop e-textbooks for various subjects in line with the local curricula, and trying out a quality vetting and assurance mechanism for e-textbooks. At present, the submission of e-textbooks for review has become a regular arrangement which has been extended to all subjects. The publishers are in general familiar with the arrangement of the submission and publishing of


7211

e-textbooks, and have gained related experiences. The Education Bureau continues to communicate with the publishing industry to improve the technical and functional design of e-textbooks so as to create favourable conditions for promoting the development and use of e-textbooks. Given that in principle the supply of e-textbooks is market driven, we have no plan to launch another round of EMADS.

As stated above, e-learning is an open and flexible learning mode

and there is no so-called best practice or standard which schools should follow. Moreover, e-learning measures are not necessarily more effective than conventional measures in every case. As such, schools are not compelled to follow any fixed standards or practices. In fact, schools should exercise their professional judgment in selecting and using suitable learning and teaching resources (including e-textbooks and other e-learning resources) that suit students' needs and school contexts so as to cater for learner diversity.

(3) The Education Bureau launched ITE4 so as to enhance interactive

learning and teaching experience. To continuously enhance various support measures under ITE4, we have been reviewing the progress and effectiveness of the relevant measures through different means such as school visits, questionnaire surveys and case studies. Schools hold a positive view towards e-learning and generally agree that it is conducive to strengthening the learning motivation and self-directed learning ability of students.

The Education Bureau attaches great importance to students' health

and has been promoting the information related to e-learning and health through joint efforts with various stakeholders. The framework on "Information Literacy for Hong Kong Students" was updated in 2016 to enable schools to incorporate information literacy into their curriculum so as to foster students' ability to use information with the correct attitudes, under which the issue on healthy use of the Internet is covered. Moreover, relevant professional development programmes and an information kit on e-learning are available for teachers. To assist schools in undertaking relevant parent education, we have produced video clips in collaboration with various government departments and


non-governmental organizations. Through seminars, assistance has been given to parents on ways of helping their children develop good habits in using IT in their daily life and study, such as maintaining their own physical and mental health and not indulging in Internet surfing. Besides, a telephone hotline has been set up to provide individual support to parents, teachers and students in need. To further support teachers to develop students' proper attitude, we have produced the "Smart e-Master" Information Kit on e-Learning which contains information that promotes e-learning and health.

(4) Over the past five years, the Education Bureau officials have visited

places such as the Mainland, England, the United States, Canada, Singapore and Finland to better understand their latest development of IT in education. Through attending relevant international conventions and exhibitions and visiting various organizations and schools, we have learnt from their experiences of promoting e-learning, including relevant curriculum planning, development of learning and teaching resources for teachers' reference and encouraging teachers to use these resources in teaching, and understanding how schools in different places made good use of various e-resources, such as tablet computers to facilitate interactive learning. From our observation, teachers in Hong Kong, as teachers of other places will select e-learning resources from various sources to cater for the learning topics and their students' learning needs. Taking into account the development needs of our schools, we will learn from the successful experiences in different places, such as innovative pedagogical practices in e-learning, e-learning resources and the latest IT teaching tools and devices and share them with the education sector.

Assisting persons aged between 60 and 64 in securing employment 9. MR LUK CHUNG-HUNG (in Chinese): President, given that the eligible age for elderly Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA") has been raised, since the 1st of this month, from 60 to 65, able-bodied persons aged between 60 and 64 may no longer apply for elderly CSSA and they may only apply for CSSA for the unemployed ("CSSA-U"). On the other hand, CSSA-U recipients are required to participate in the Support for Self-reliance ("SFS")


7213

Scheme, in the hope that they can move towards paid employment and self-reliance as early as possible. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of (i) the number of participants in the SFS Scheme, (ii) the employment rate of the participants and (iii) the percentage of participants who left the CSSA net, in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by the age group (i.e. aged 15 to 25, 26 to 35, 36 to 45, 46 to 55, 56 to 59) to which the participants belonged;

(2) whether it knows, in respect of those persons who successfully

secured employment and left the CSSA net as mentioned in (1), (i) the types of the industries which they joined, and (ii) the distribution of their average number of working hours per month and average monthly wage in the past five years; if no such information has been kept, how the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") evaluates and follows up the employment situation of the participants, and whether it will compile the relevant statistics in future;

(3) of the targeted measures, taken by SWD under the SFS Scheme since

the 1st of this month, to assist CSSA-U recipients aged between 60 and 64 in finding jobs, and whether prior consultation with various stakeholders has been conducted on such measures; whether it has increased the estimates of expenditure and manpower for the SFS Scheme to cope with the additional workload generated by the increase in the number of participants;

(4) whether the Labour Department has compiled statistics on the

current number of job vacancies in the labour market that are open for application by persons aged between 60 and 64; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(5) of the new measures (e.g. provision of financial incentives) taken to

encourage employers to hire persons aged between 60 and 64, and whether it will enhance the protection of the labour rights and interests of such persons; and


(6) whether it will consider expeditiously enacting legislation against age discrimination in the employment field, so as to ensure that the relatively older persons are given fair treatment and protected from exploitation?

SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE (in Chinese): President, in view of the improved life expectancy of the population of Hong Kong and the trend of extending the retirement age to 65, the Government announced in the Policy Address in January 2017 that the eligible age for elderly Comprehensive Social Security Assistance ("CSSA") would be adjusted from 60 to 65. The Government has implemented the relevant arrangements on 1 February 2019. Persons aged between 60 and 64 who have received elderly CSSA before 1 February 2019 are "grandfathered" and will not be affected by the new arrangements. The CSSA payments of persons with disabilities or persons in ill health will not be affected either. They will, regardless of age, continue to receive CSSA payments which are higher than those applicable to able-bodied adults. It is also worth noting that around 70% of the existing CSSA recipients aged between 55 and 59 are with disabilities or in ill-health. As for the able-bodied recipients aged between 60 and 64 under the new arrangements, they will continue to be entitled to CSSA as able-bodied adults, and are eligible for the standard rates and special grants applicable to able-bodied adults. In addition, the Government has, since 1 February 2019, provided the Employment Support Supplement ("ESS") to these able-bodied adults under the CSSA Scheme. At present, each eligible CSSA recipient will receive ESS at a fixed rate of $1,060 per month (i.e. the difference between CSSA standard rates applicable to elderly singleton and able-bodied adult singleton). This supplement seeks to encourage able-bodied adult recipients aged 60 to 64 to join the labour market. It is also applicable to employed able-bodied adult recipients in this age group to support them to remain in employment. In addition, CSSA recipients may also benefit from the disregarded earnings arrangement with its maximum amount at $2,500 per month. The Social Welfare Department ("SWD") also provides employment support that suits the circumstances and needs of able-bodied adult recipients through the Integrated Employment Assistance Programme for Self-reliance ("IEAPS").


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My reply to the question raised by the Member is as follows:

(1) As individual IEAPS participants may leave or rejoin the programme owing to short-term paid employment or change in their personal circumstances (such as their health conditions), SWD does not maintain statistics on the number of IEAPS participants including breakdowns as mentioned in the question.

SWD has compiled the cumulative number of IEAPS participants in

person-times. From January 2013 to end-November 2018, there were 95 774 person-times participated in IEAPS. The statistics of participating person-times broken down by age is as follows:

Age group Person-times 15 to 19 6 853 20 to 29 11 358 30 to 39 15 149 40 to 49 29 798 50 to 59 32 616

Total 95 774

Out of the 95 774 person-times participated in IEAPS, 20 365 of them (comprising 21.3% of the total number of participating person-times) successfully secured employment or returned to mainstream schooling. Amongst the 20 365, 4 317 left the CSSA net after participated in IEAPS (comprising 4.5% of the total number of participating person-times).

(2) Given the reason explained in part (1) of the reply, SWD does not

maintain statistics as mentioned in the question. (3) Following the Government's arrangements to adjust the eligible age

for elderly CSSA from 60 to 65 on 1 February 2019, SWD will invite able-bodied adult CSSA recipients aged 60 to 64 to participate in IEAPS. Through participating in IEAPS operated by non-governmental organizations, these recipients may obtain up-to-date labour market information, benefit from job placements, and receive personalized and focused employment services


according to their needs. To this end, the Government has announced the extension of the service period of IEAPS with its current service mode to end-March 2020.

Apart from the above arrangements, the Government will strengthen

the collaboration among SWD, the Labour Department ("LD"), the Employees Retraining Board and the non-governmental organizations, so as to provide more comprehensive employment and retraining services to able-bodied adult CSSA recipients. SWD will continue to listen to stakeholders' views with a view to further encouraging and assisting CSSA recipients to seek and stay in employment.

Of note, the total CSSA caseload as at end-December 2018 was

226 437, which was the lowest since 2000. In particular, the unemployment case was the lowest since 1996, and was 80% lower than the historical peak.

(4) LD has not conducted any statistical survey on job vacancies in the

labour market that are opened to job seekers aged 60 to 64. Generally speaking, LD does not agree that job vacancies in general should carry age restrictions. LD requires employers using its recruitment services not to impose any discriminatory entry requirements (including age) on their job vacancies submitted, and does not generally accept job vacancies with age restrictions. Therefore, the vast majority of vacancies published by LD are suitable for job seekers of different ages to apply. Job seekers with different backgrounds (including mature persons) may choose vacancies which suit their personal circumstances, interests and needs, and apply directly to employers or through LD's employment services.

(5) The Government is committed to promoting employment of mature

persons. On the basis of its Employment Programme for the Middle-aged, LD has enhanced the programme and renamed it as the Employment Programme for the Elderly and Middle-aged ("EPEM") on 1 September 2018, so as to further encourage employers to hire job seekers aged 60 or above and provide them with on-the-job training at the initial stage of employment. Employers engaging job seekers aged 60 or above who are unemployed or have left the


7217

workforce are offered a monthly on-the-job training allowance up to $4,000 per employee for a period of 6 to 12 months under EPEM. As for employers engaging each unemployed job seeker aged 40 to 59, the maximum amount of on-the-job training allowance remains at $3,000 per month for a period of three to six months. EPEM covers both full-time and part-time jobs.

LD also implements various measures to support the employment of

mature job seekers, such as staging large-scale job fairs for mature persons and the middle-aged, setting up special counters and organizing district-based job fairs on part-time employment as well as employment briefings for them in its job centres, establishing a dedicated web page for them on the Interactive Employment Service website, etc. to facilitate their access to updated employment information and search for suitable job vacancies.

Furthermore, LD has all along been actively encouraging employers,

having regard to the individual circumstances of their enterprises, to adopt friendly employment practices for mature persons, and extend the working life of their employees so that mature persons who wish to work may stay in employment. LD will continue to promote a friendly working environment for mature persons through various publicity activities, such as publishing feature articles in newspapers, publicizing relevant messages through different employers networks, etc.

LD will also continue to protect the statutory rights of all employees

irrespective of their age. (6) The Government is committed to eliminating any concepts and acts

of discrimination through various measures. For employment matters, we encourage employers to "Count on Talent, Not Age in Employment" and use consistent selection criteria to assess the abilities of job seekers and employees. LD has issued the Practical Guidelines for Employers on Eliminating Age Discrimination in Employment since January 2006, setting forth the best practices for eliminating age discrimination in recruitment and workplace. To enhance public awareness and the importance of eliminating age discrimination in employment, the Government has been promoting


equal employment through various measures, such as broadcasting announcements of public interest in the digital media and distributing the Practical Guidelines and leaflets to the public and employers.

To eliminate age discrimination in employment through legislation

involves very complex issues, and needs to take into account carefully the impact on the socio-economic situation and the labour market in Hong Kong, etc. The Government currently does not have any plan to legislate against age discrimination in employment. We will continue to publicize the message of equal employment, promote and safeguard equal employment opportunities, and enhance the employability of different age groups though strengthening training and retraining.

Assisting owners of old buildings in complying with Fire Safety Directions 10. MR SHIU KA-CHUN (in Chinese): President, the Fire Safety (Buildings) Ordinance (Cap. 572) ("the Ordinance"), which came into operation on 1 July 2007, requires that the fire safety measures of composite and domestic buildings which were constructed, or with their plans of the building works first submitted for approval, on or before 1 March 1987, be enhanced to a level that meets the current fire safety standards. The Fire Services Department and the Buildings Department will, after inspecting the buildings, issue Fire Safety Directions ("Directions") to owners or occupiers to specify the required fire safety improvement works. However, some owners of buildings aged above 50 years and built without lifts in Yau Tsim Mong District have relayed to me that they have encountered quite a number of difficulties in complying with the Directions, including the inability of owners who are retirees to pay the huge costs of works and the absence of owners' corporations ("OCs") to coordinate the relevant works. On assisting owners of such old buildings in carrying out fire safety improvement works, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the number of old buildings which currently do not meet the fire safety requirements and the categories to which they belong (i.e. composite or domestic buildings) and, among them, (i) the percentage of those with OCs established and (ii) the number of those located in Yau Tsim Mong District;


7219

(2) of the number of old buildings whose owners have been issued the Directions by the authorities since the Ordinance came into operation, with a breakdown by the required fire safety improvement works;

(3) of the respective current numbers of old buildings, with a breakdown

by the category to which they belong, for which the required fire safety improvement works (i) are being carried out and (ii) have been completed; and

(4) as some owners refuse to share the costs of works and some old

buildings do not have an OC to coordinate the relevant works, of the authorities' new measures to assist the owners concerned in complying with the Directions?

SECRETARY FOR SECURITY (in Chinese): President, the Fire Safety (Buildings) Ordinance (Cap. 572) ("the Ordinance") stipulates that composite and domestic buildings which were constructed on or before 1 March 1987, or with the plans of the building works first submitted for approval on or before that day ("target buildings"), must be enhanced to meet modern fire protection requirements. The Ordinance is enforced by the Fire Services Department ("FSD") and the Buildings Department ("BD"). FSD is responsible for fire service installations and equipment ("FSIs"), while BD is responsible for fire safety measures in relation to planning, design and construction of buildings. FSD and BD will issue Fire Safety Directions ("Directions") to owners and/or occupiers with regard to fire safety measures of the relevant buildings and specify the required fire safety improvement works. Before issuing any Directions, FSD and BD will deploy officers to conduct a joint inspection of the target building. Direction(s) will be issued to owners and/or occupiers in light of the actual condition of the building and in accordance with the Ordinance, requiring them to provide appropriate FSIs and/or carry out works in relation to fire safety construction, with a view to enhancing the fire safety of their building. We appreciate that individual old buildings may not be able to fully comply with the requirements of the Directions due to their structural or spatial constraints. As such, FSD and BD have been adopting a flexible and pragmatic


approach in handling each case, on the premise of not compromising basic fire safety. Having regard to the condition of individual buildings and/or information provided by the authorized persons in relation to the execution of the Directions (for instance, the building structure, and whether there are spatial constraints), the departments will consider enforcing certain requirements flexibly or accepting alternative proposals put forward by the owners. Case officers of FSD and BD are prepared to meet with the owners and their appointed authorized persons, registered structural engineers, consultants or registered fire service installation contractors, to explain to them the substance of the Directions and assist them in solving potential problems concerning the works. Having consulted the relevant departments, my reply to Mr SHIU's question is as follows:

(1) to (3) Based on BD's information, about 13 500 target buildings are

regulated under the Ordinance. FSD and BD conduct joint inspections for these buildings in two stages: about 10 500 target composite buildings ("TCBs") will be inspected in the first stage, after which about 3 000 target domestic buildings ("TDBs") will be inspected in the second stage.

The two departments are now conducting the first stage of

inspections. As at 31 January 2019, the two departments have inspected 8 953 TCBs. The second stage of inspecting TDBs will commence upon completion of the first-stage inspection.

As at 31 January 2019, FSD and BD have issued Directions to the

owners and occupiers of 7 298 TCBs. Among TCBs issued with Directions, around half of them have set up owners' corporations ("OCs"). As far as Yau Tsim Mong District is concerned, Directions have been issued to 1 544 TCBs.

Among TCBs with Directions issued, 195 have complied with the

Directions on FSIs issued by FSD and 154 have complied with Directions on fire safety construction in relation to planning, design and construction of buildings issued by BD. Among these TCBs, 44 have complied with the Directions of both FSD and BD. The


7221

remaining TCBs have yet to comply with the Directions (i.e. they are still carrying out or planning for the fire safety improvement works as required under the Directions, or have not taken any follow-up action yet). FSD and BD do not keep any breakdown of the number of buildings which are carrying out fire safety improvement works.

As stated above, before issuing any Direction on improvement works

in relation to FSIs or fire safety construction, FSD and BD will deploy officers to conduct a joint inspection of a target building, with a view to issuing Direction(s) to owners and/or occupiers in light of the actual condition of the buildings and in accordance with the requirements of the Ordinance. Hence, the fire safety improvement works required for each target building may vary. FSD and BD do not keep any breakdown of the types of fire safety improvement works required of target buildings.

(4) We are aware that in complying with the requirements under the

Ordinance, some owners may encounter financial difficulties and problems in coordination amongst owners/occupants of the buildings. As such, FSD and BD have been maintaining close liaison with the Home Affairs Department ("HAD"), the Hong Kong Housing Society ("HKHS") and the Urban Renewal Authority ("URA"), and have also been taking an active part in offering professional advice to owners of old buildings in relation to financial support and owners/occupants' coordination, with a view to assisting the owners to comply with the Directions as soon as practicable.

Regarding financial assistance, in order to assist owners of private

buildings in conducting maintenance and repair works for their buildings, the Government, HKHS and URA have been operating various financial assistance schemes for owners in need. Those schemes include the Building Safety Loan Scheme, the Common Area Repair Works Subsidy and the Building Maintenance Grant Scheme for Elderly Owners, all of which have been consolidated into the Integrated Building Rehabilitation Assistance Scheme ("IBRAS") launched by URA. Fire safety improvement works pertaining to the Ordinance have been incorporated into the list of


works eligible for subsidies or loans under these schemes. Besides, an information leaflet about IBRAS is attached to the Directions for eligible persons' reference and application of subsidies (if in need).

To further assist owners of old buildings, the Government has

devoted about $2 billion to launch the Fire Safety Improvement Works Subsidy Scheme ("FSWS") in 2018 for subsidizing owners of TCBs for complying with the fire safety improvement requirements under the Ordinance. FSWS is administered by URA, and subsidized buildings may be granted up to 60% of the works costs and the consultancy fees. We hope that through FSWS, further financial support can be provided to owners of old buildings, so that they may commence works as soon as possible to comply with the requirements under the Ordinance and enhance the fire safety standards of these old buildings.

Besides, we understand that the so-called "three-nil" buildings

(i.e. buildings without OCs, residents' organizations or property management companies), or target buildings without OCs but with other residents' organizations (such as owners' committees or mutual aid committees ("MACs")), may encounter difficulties in coordinating fire safety improvement works. Therefore, FSD and BD will refer the list of such target buildings without OCs to HAD so that the latter can assist the owners of the buildings concerned in establishing OCs.

To strengthen the provision of free professional advice and support

services to old buildings and enhance building management and maintenance works, HAD has since 2011 implemented the Building Management Professional Advisory Service Scheme. The scheme engages professional property management companies to provide owners of old buildings with one-stop professional support services, which include organizing and assisting the owners in the establishment of OCs, helping them to apply for various subsidies or loan schemes for repair works, as well as following up on the repair works and tendering matters. Noting that some owners of old buildings are not residing therein and this may pose difficulties in OC formation and proper building management, HAD has also launched the Resident Liaison Ambassador ("RLA") Scheme to


7223

recruit owners/residents to serve as RLAs and unite the efforts of owners/residents to assist in improving the management and environment of the buildings, with the long-term goal of promoting the formation of OCs in such buildings through RLAs or other residents' organizations.

To further assist owners, OCs, owners' committees and MACs in

handling issues related to building management and large-scale maintenance projects, HAD launched the Central Platform on Building Management in September 2018 which conducts regular briefings for owners, OCs, owners' committees and MACs, and invites relevant government departments and organizations, (including BD, FSD, the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, the Hong Kong Police Force, the Independent Commission Against Corruption, URA and the Competition Commission) to introduce various services and schemes on building management and maintenance. Owners, OCs and owners' committees participating in these one-stop briefings can learn more about the details and application procedures of related services and schemes, as well as the means of contact for future enquiries. Representatives from BD and FSD will attend the briefings to explain to participants the Ordinance and relevant requirements.

Upon issuing Directions to "three-nil" buildings, FSD will publicize

the recruitment of Fire Safety Ambassadors and Building Fire Safety Envoys in these buildings in a timely manner, with a view to enhancing the residents' awareness of fire prevention and facilitating coordination of improvement works for FSIs in the future. The Social Services Team appointed by BD will also provide further support if the need arises, including coordinating residents of the buildings in carrying out the related works, and aptly assisting them in applying for suitable financial assistance schemes, etc. Case officers of FSD and BD will from time to time attend, upon invitation, the owners' meetings of target buildings to provide detailed responses to enquiries in relation to the Ordinance.

If the owners of target buildings need time to form an OC or require

more time to prepare for and carry out the improvement works, the enforcement authorities will duly consider their applications for


extending the compliance period of the Directions, in the light of the justifications provided and/or the scale of works involved and so forth.

The relevant departments will review the measures implemented

from time to time and continue to explore various options, with a view to streamlining the procedures in conducting fire safety improvement works for old buildings and reducing the costs incurred by the owners, subject to basic fire safety not being compromised. We hope that these measures will enhance the fire safety level of the old buildings, strengthen the protection for people who work, live or carry out various activities in these places, and reduce the threat of fire.

Making use of the next generation government cloud infrastructure 11. MR WU CHI-WAI (in Chinese): President, in May last year, the Finance Committee ("FC") of this Council approved a funding of more than $530 million for the establishment of the next generation government cloud infrastructure ("cloud facilities") and a big data analytics platform to support agile delivery of e-Government services. The Government anticipates that those systems will be commissioned in the third quarter of 2020 and they can bring about a one-off cost avoidance of about $570 million for the Government over the next six financial years. However, when the Government recently put forward proposals of other projects on information technology ("IT") systems (e.g. a centralized electronic platform for the administration of Mandatory Provident Fund registered schemes), it did not mention how it would make use of the cloud facilities to achieve greater cost-effectiveness. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the latest progress (including whether there are changes in the projected (i) commissioning dates and (ii) cost-effectiveness) of the establishment of the two aforesaid systems;

(2) of the number of proposed projects on IT systems, since May last

year, in respect of which the Government has submitted discussion papers and/or funding proposals to the panel(s) and FC of this


7225

Council, as well as the following details of each of such projects: (i) the name of the project, (ii) the policy bureau/government department ("B/D") responsible, (iii) the estimated non-recurrent expenditure, (iv) the (projected) date for awarding the service contract for system development, (v) the (projected) commissioning date for the system, (vi) whether the system will make use of the cloud facilities, and (vii) the panel(s) concerned (set out in a table);

(3) whether the tender documents for the projects in (2) have

contained/will contain provisions (i) specifying that the proposed IT system must make use of the cloud facilities, and (ii) encouraging the successful bidder to make use of the cloud facilities in developing the proposed IT system; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(4) regarding the estimations of the non-recurrent expenditure and the

financial benefits for the projects (2) submitted by the Government to this Council, of the respective numbers of those projects for which (i) the bases of such estimations included the making use of the cloud facilities, and (ii) quantitative assessments on the cost implications for using the cloud facilities were provided;

(5) whether the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer

("OGCIO") has been involved in the preparatory work and tender exercises for the projects in (2); if so, of the details of OGCIO's involvement in each of such projects (including whether it has conducted any technical and cost assessments on making use of the cloud facilities in the projects concerned), and whether OGCIO has advised the B/Ds concerned to provide, when drawing up the relevant tender conditions, incentives for encouraging the successful bidders to make use of the cloud facilities in developing the proposed IT systems; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(6) whether the Government has put in place policies and guidelines to

encourage various B/Ds and public bodies to make use of the cloud facilities in future; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and


(7) of the estimated number of funding proposals for projects on IT systems to be submitted by the Government to this Council's FC in the coming year and, among such projects, the number of those which will make use of the cloud facilities, and set out by project name the details, such as the B/D responsible?

SECRETARY FOR INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY (in Chinese): President, our reply to the seven parts of the question is as follows:

(1) The Office of the Government Chief Information Officer ("OGCIO") is conducting tender exercise for the implementation of the Next Generation Government Cloud Infrastructure ("GovCloud") and Big Data Analytics Platform. It is expected that the concerned system and platform will be launched in the third quarter of 2020 as planned. The estimated total expenditure for the project is $533 million. The cost savings from GovCloud in other government IT systems between 2019-2020 and 2024-2025 are estimated to be about $573 million, which include the costs of upgrading individual infrastructures and developing respective government bureaux/departments ("B/Ds") systems. The cost-effectiveness figure remains unchanged.

(2) Between May 2018 and January 2019, relevant panels of the

Legislative Council have discussed six funding proposals for government department IT system projects and the Finance Committee ("FC") has approved five of them. Details are as follows.

Name of Project B/D

Estimated Non-recurrent Expenditure ($ million)

Estimated Contract

Award Date for System

Development Services

Estimated System

Commissioning Date

Will GovCloud

be adopted

Panel Concerned

(1) Redevelopment of Service Performance Management Information System

Social Welfare Department

65.42 Not applicable (the system is mainly developed by in-house staff)

September 2022

Yes Panel on Welfare Services


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Name of Project B/D

Estimated Non-recurrent Expenditure ($ million)

Estimated Contract

Award Date for System

Development Services

Estimated System

Commissioning Date

Will GovCloud

be adopted

Panel Concerned

(2) Redevelopment of Client Information System

Social Welfare Department

316.88 Not applicable (the system is mainly developed by in-house staff)

June 2023 Yes -ditto-

(3) Electronic Submission Hub

Buildings Department

214.39 Q2 2019 To be rolled out in phases from Q1 2022 to Q2 2025

Yes Panel on Develop-ment

(4) Information Technology Equipment and Services for the 2021 Population Census#

Census and Statistics Department

202.68 Service contracts for individual sub- systems will be awarded from June 2019 to October 2020

Individual sub- systems will be rolled out progressively from June 2020 to September 2022

Yes Panel on Financial Affairs

(5) Development of Smart Library System

Leisure and Cultural Services Department

877.30 December 2020

December 2024

Yes Panel on Home Affairs

(6) Information Technology Enhancement Project of the Department of Health (covering 35 projects)

Department of Health

1,057.13 To be awarded in Q4 2019 at the earliest depending on individual projects

To be fully completed by December 2024

Yes Panel on Health Services

Note: # The funding proposal is yet to be approved by FC

In addition, the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau

submitted to the Panel on Financial Affairs the proposal for the IT project "Centralized Electronic Platform for the Administration of


Mandatory Provident Fund Registered Schemes" in December 2018. According to the information provided by the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority is considering different options, including the adoption of GovCloud.

(3) to (7) In August 2016, OGCIO issued guidelines to B/Ds, requesting them

to accord priority to adoption of GovCloud when developing new systems or revamping existing systems. Relevant B/Ds should also include the requirement of adopting GovCloud in their tender documents.

The estimated non-recurrent expenditure and financial benefits for

the six projects in the reply for part (2) above have included the resources involved for adopting GovCloud.

Currently, OGCIO does not have the timetable of other B/Ds'

proposals for IT system projects to be submitted to the Legislative Council in the coming year. It is envisaged that large-scale projects on IT systems submitted to the Legislative Council FC for funding approval in the coming year will adopt GovCloud.

Requests made to information and communication technology companies for disclosure and removal of information 12. MR CHARLES PETER MOK (in Chinese): President, regarding the requests made by the Government to information and communication technology ("ICT") companies for disclosure and removal of information, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the following details of the requests for information disclosure made by the Government respectively in the first and the second halves of 2018 to ICT companies (set out the information in a table, broken down by government department):


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(i) total number of ICT companies involved, (ii) names and types of ICT companies involved (e.g. Internet

service providers, device producers, social media and search engines),

(iii) total number of requests made, (iv) total number of user accounts involved, (v) types of information requested for disclosure (e.g. user names,

Internet Protocol addresses and contact methods) and the respective numbers of the requests concerned,

(vi) nature of information requested for disclosure (i.e. metadata

and/or content of communication) and the respective numbers of the requests concerned,

(vii) reasons for making the requests concerned (e.g. investigation

of cases, law enforcement and other reasons) and the respective numbers of the requests concerned,

(viii) number of requests made under court orders, (ix) number of requests acceded to, and (x) reasons why some requests were not acceded to (e.g. the

request not made under a court order, failure to provide appropriate legal documents, insufficient justifications, not in compliance with the policies of the ICT companies, and other reasons) and the respective numbers of the requests concerned;

if such information cannot be provided, of the reasons for that;

(2) of the following details of the requests for information removal made

by the Government respectively in the first and the second halves of 2018 to ICT companies (set out the information in a table, broken down by government department):


(i) total number of ICT companies involved,

(ii) names and types of ICT companies involved, (iii) total number of requests made, (iv) volume of information requested for removal, (v) types of information involved (e.g. videos, text, images) and

the respective numbers of the requests concerned, (vi) nature of information involved (e.g. indecent content, illegal

advertisements, copyright infringement and false information) and the respective numbers of the requests concerned,

(vii) reasons for making the requests concerned (e.g. for

investigation of complaints, law enforcement and other reasons),

(viii) number of requests made under a court order, (ix) number of requests acceded to, and (x) reasons why some requests were not acceded to and the

respective numbers of the requests concerned;

if such information cannot be provided, of the reasons for that;

(3) given that information technology is advancing and changing rapidly and the methods adopted by law enforcement agencies for collecting evidence have changed, whether it has plans to review and amend the relevant laws such as the Interception of Communications and Surveillance Ordinance (Cap. 589), to ensure that Hong Kong people continue to fully enjoy the rights to freedom of speech, privacy of communication, etc., as safeguarded under Articles 27 to 30 of the Basic Law;


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(4) given that quite a number of advanced countries/regions have enacted laws (e.g. the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 of the United Kingdom, the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act 1979 of Australia and the Communication Security and Surveillance Act of Taiwan) to regulate the access to residents' electronic communication records and personal data by law enforcement agencies, and those countries/regions also require law enforcement agencies to proactively make public, on a regular basis, statistics and reports on access to such information, so as to ensure that there is a certain degree of transparency in law enforcement actions, whereas Cap. 589 of Hong Kong regulates only matters such as "postal interception" and "telecommunications interception" and does not regulate the interception of communication records and personal data stored in media such as web servers, whether the Government has plans to amend its internal guidelines and codes of practice, to regulate the making of requests by various law enforcement agencies concerning information disclosure and removal (including the aspect of enhancing transparency); if not, of the reasons for that; and

(5) whether the authorities will proactively and regularly make public,

in machine readable format, the statistics and reports on requests for information disclosure and requests for information removal made to ICT companies, so as to enhance the transparency of law enforcement actions; if not, of the reasons for that?

SECRETARY FOR INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY (in Chinese): President, in consultation with relevant bureaux and departments, our reply is as follows:

(1) and (2) Details of the requests for information disclosure and information

removal made by the government to information and communications technology ("ICT") companies in 2018 are set out in Tables 1 and 2 respectively.


(3) The Security Bureau advises that the Interception of Communications and Surveillance Ordinance (Cap. 589) ("ICSO") regulates interception of communications and covert surveillance by the four designated law enforcement agencies ("LEAs") for prevention and detection of serious crimes and protection of public security. The covert operations regulated by ICSO do not cover general government LEAs' requests to the Internet Service Providers during their day-to-day work for information that does not involve non-open communications, such as user information, Internet Protocol ("IP") addresses, login records, etc.

ICSO was amended in June 2016, and the Code of Practice issued by

the Secretary for Security under section 63 of ICSO was also updated in the same month. The government will keep in view closely the application of ICSO and does not have any plan to further amend ICSO in the near future.

(4) If officers of individual government departments and LEAs, in

discharging their duties, need to request for information or cooperation from relevant persons or organizations (including ICT companies), they will make the requests in accordance with duty-related legislations, procedures or guidelines, and will ensure that relevant requests would only be made if they are necessary for discharging their duties. The above mechanism and procedures or guidelines have been functioning properly and effectively. At present, the government does not have any plan to change the above.

(5) Regarding the requests made by the government to ICT companies

for disclosure and removal of information, no relevant statistics and reports are provided in machine-readable format at present. Provided that it will not affect future investigation and enforcement actions, the government will consider disseminating regularly relevant data in machine-readable format having regard to specific circumstances.


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Table 1



7235


Table 2


7237



7239

Implementation of the Mandatory Window Inspection Scheme 13. MR TONY TSE (in Chinese): President, it has been reported that between the 21st and 24th of last month, there were five successive incidents of windows falling from residential buildings or hotels, causing the death of a pedestrian. On the other hand, the Buildings Department ("BD") has, since June 2012, implemented the Mandatory Window Inspection Scheme ("MWIS"), under which 5 800 private buildings aged 10 years or above ("target buildings") are selected each year for mandatory window inspection. Upon receipt of MWIS notices issued by BD, owners of target buildings are required to appoint a qualified person to (i) carry out the prescribed inspection of all windows of the buildings, and (ii) supervise the prescribed repair works found necessary after inspection (if any), within a specified timeframe. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the number of reports received by the authorities since the implementation of MWIS on incidents of windows falling from private buildings aged 10 years or above, and the respective numbers of persons who were injured and died as a result of those incidents;

(2) of the current number of licensed hotels in Hong Kong and, among

them, the number of those which fall within the scope of MWIS; (3) since the implementation of MWIS,

(i) of the number of MWIS notices issued by BD; the number of

buildings involved in those MWIS notices, with a breakdown by type of buildings (i.e. residential building, commercial building, hotel, industrial building and others),

(ii) the number of non-compliant MWIS notices upon expiry of the

timeframe specified and the longest overdue period, and (iii) whether prosecutions have been instituted against those

owners who did not comply with MWIS notices; if not, of the reasons for that;


(4) whether the authorities reviewed, in the past two years, the implementation of MWIS, including its effectiveness, the adequacy of law enforcement manpower, if the number of buildings to be inspected and the number of target buildings each year can be increased, and the improvements that can be made; if not, of the reasons for that; and

(5) of the qualifications required of a qualified person under MWIS, and

whether such qualifications include the professional knowledge on (i) inspecting the various types of windows to see if they are safe and (ii) how the various types of windows can be repaired to render them safe; whether the authorities reviewed and raised those qualification requirements in the past two years; if not, of the reasons for that?

SECRETARY FOR DEVELOPMENT (in Chinese): President, regular inspections and timely repairs are crucial and one should not wait until the buildings have become defective or dangerous for taking remedial actions. Upholding the concept of "prevention is better than cure", the Buildings Department ("BD") has fully implemented the Mandatory Building Inspection Scheme and Mandatory Window Inspection Scheme ("MWIS") since 30 June 2012. For MWIS, the relevant legislation empowers BD to issue statutory notices to owners of private buildings aged 10 years or above (except domestic buildings not exceeding three storeys), requiring them to carry out prescribed inspections and requisite prescribed repairs of the windows in their buildings after inspection. On the other hand, BD encourages owners to carry out inspections for their windows voluntarily in accordance with the requirements and procedures under MWIS. BD will not issue a statutory notice in respect of the same window within the inspection cycle. In consultation with BD and the Home Affairs Department, the Development Bureau provides a consolidated reply as follows:

(1) BD has been compiling statistics on the reports of window falling incidents received since 2016. As at 31 December 2018, BD had received a total of 216 window falling reports involving private buildings aged 10 years or above. The statistics currently kept by


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BD do not include any information on the casualties involved (if any). BD will add this information when compiling the statistics in future, if such is available.

(2) Based on information provided by the Office of the Licensing

Authority of the Home Affairs Department, there were about 310 licensed hotels in the territory as at 20 February 2019 and, among them, about 230 are covered by MWIS as they are situated at private buildings aged 10 years or above (except domestic buildings not exceeding three storeys).

(3) (i) Since the implementation of MWIS, up to 31 December 2018,

BD had selected 9 843 private buildings for MWIS, and a total of around 500 000 notices were issued. The breakdown by the type of buildings is as follows:

Type of Buildings Number of Buildings

Domestic (include domestic and composite use) building

7 842

Commercial building 966 Industrial building 478 Hotel 48 Building of other usage (e.g. hospital, school)

509

Total 9 843

(ii) and (iii) As MWIS involved large amount of statutory notices, BD will

generally first issue warning letters for non-compliant cases, urging the owners to comply with the notices as soon as possible. If the concerned notices are still not complied with, BD will serve fixed penalty notices to the concerned owners. If necessary, BD will consider carrying out the required prescribed inspection and repair works in default on behalf of the owners, and seeking to recover the cost of inspection, repair works, supervision charges plus not more than 20% surcharge of the relevant costs from the owners. For serious


cases (such as repeated offences or non-compliance without reasonable excuse), BD will also consider instigating prosecution against the concerned owners.

As at 31 December 2018, there were about 59 000 expired

notices not yet complied with, accounting for 12% of all notices issued. Among the non-compliant cases, the longest overdue period is about six years.

BD followed the above enforcement policy to handle the

non-compliant notices gradually. Specifically, BD had issued 3 700 fixed penalty notices over the same period. Furthermore, BD had exercised its statutory authority on behalf of the owners of more than 70 buildings to carry out prescribed inspection and repair for the windows in the common parts of their buildings. Up to now, BD has not instigated any prosecution for non-compliant notices, but is planning to instigate prosecution actions against the more blatant cases.

(4) Since the implementation of MWIS, BD has been reviewing from

time to time the progress and implementation details of the scheme in the light of its operational experience, market condition and feedback from stakeholders and the community, etc.

In so far as the selection of target buildings is concerned, BD adopts

a risk-based approach in selecting target buildings annually for carrying out MWIS. BD will from time to time review the number of target buildings and the selection criteria for MWIS.

BD will also continue to enhance its efficiency through simplified

procedures and application of information technologies with a view to utilizing resources in a more effective manner for the implementation of MWIS. BD will also as needed bid for additional resources in accordance with the established resource allocation procedures.


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In addition, during the implementation of MWIS, BD has tightened up the requirements for registration as qualified persons ("QPs") and eligible registered contractors under the scheme (to be explained in part (5) below).

(5) QP appointed to carry out the inspection or supervision of the repair

for windows under MWIS shall be a person whose name is on one of the following registers kept by BD under the Buildings Ordinance:

(a) Authorized Persons; (b) Registered Structural Engineers; (c) Registered Inspectors; (d) Registered General Building Contractors; or (e) Registered Minor Works Contractors registered for the class,

type and item of minor works in respect of windows. The person included in the above registers should possess the

required qualifications and appropriate practical experience (such as practical experience in building repair and maintenance).

BD reviews the requirements for registration from time to time. In

particular, in the past, if a person applied for registration as a Registered Minor Works Contractor (individual) for minor works in respect of windows without specified recognized skills qualifications, he should possess at least six years of experience in personally carrying out relevant works to prove himself having the abilities and skills to personally carry out the items of minor works that he intended to apply for registration. Since December 2018, however, BD has ceased to accept registration applications from applicants who only possess relevant works experience without recognized skills qualifications so as to enhance the technical qualifications of QPs.


Effective implementation of policies by the Government 14. MR PAUL TSE (in Chinese): President, it has been reported that recently, quite a number of members of the public were dissatisfied with the Government's implementation of policies. For instances, the raising of the eligible age for elderly Comprehensive Social Security Assistance to 65 has caused a great furore; the arrangements for giving out up to $4,000 under the Caring and Sharing Scheme have caused nuisance to the public and are time-consuming; the toll adjustment proposal for the rationalization of traffic distribution among the three road harbour crossings has been temporarily withdrawn as the proposal was ill-considered; and healthcare personnel have staged demonstrations to protest against the Government's failure to squarely address the long-standing overload situation and manpower shortage of the public healthcare system. On the other hand, as revealed by the findings of a global survey, Hong Kong was ranked the seventh among the top 10 unhappiest places in the world. The findings of another survey revealed that only 50% of Hong Kong people claimed that they were leading a happy life; most respondents were dissatisfied with the Government's implementation of policies; and the satisfaction level of members of the public with the public healthcare services dropped to a record low in three years. The findings of these two surveys reflect the ineffectiveness of the Government's implementation of policies and its failure to enable members of the public to lead a happy life. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether the Government has put in place a mechanism for gauging,

before the introduction of any policy, the public's overall reaction to and acceptance of the policy concerned;

(2) whether it has assessed if the fact that quite a number of government

policies have recently been criticized for causing nuisance to the public as well as being divorced from reality and ill-considered has aggravated the public's sense of alienation from and dissatisfaction with the Government; and

(3) given that the Government of Bhutan, which was once ranked the

world's happiest country, has formulated a Gross National Happiness Index, set up a relevant commission and required that before any bill is submitted to the Cabinet, consideration must be given to whether the bill can boost the Index, whether the


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Government will consider, by drawing reference from this practice, formulating a gross happiness index for Hong Kong residents that comprises elements such as building a just society, promoting economic development, enhancing cultural conservation and environmental protection, and fostering good governance, as well as giving, when formulating policies in the future, consideration to the impacts of such policies on this index?

CHIEF SECRETARY FOR ADMINISTRATION (in Chinese): President, the current-term Government endeavours to "care", "listen" and "act" while being "innovative", "interactive" and "collaborative" in implementing our policies and measures to serve the people of Hong Kong. The recent concern over some livelihood policies and measures has led us to reflect on and rethink our work. We agree that we could have been more prudent in handling the implementation of the relevant policies and measures and clearer in explaining the policy objectives and implementation details to the public, in addition to the introduction of suitable complementary measures. My consolidated reply to the three parts of the question raised by Mr TSE is set out below. In formulating policies and measures, the Government has all along adhered to the principles of openness, transparency and public accountability. Having regard to the nature and needs of individual policy areas, we will assess the implications of our policy proposals on various aspects, including environment, sustainable development, family, economy, finance, manpower, etc. We will also gauge and assess public views and responses by conducting consultation through various channels. In light of our recent experience in introducing new policies and measures, we will further enhance our work in relation to the implementation of policies and measures. In this regard, the Policy Committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration, in discussing major items relating to people's livelihood in future, will not only carefully consider and formulate policy direction and content, but also carefully examine their concrete implementation details. Before formally launching any initiative, the relevant bureaux and/or departments will conduct a "reality check" to review the implementation details from the perspective of a member of the public and a user, with a view to ensuring that the


proposal will be implemented in a people-oriented, pragmatic and effective manner. Should there be any cross-bureau and cross-department issues, the Policy Committee will also iron out and resolve the issues right away. In fact, regarding the four cases mentioned in the question, the Government has, having listened to the views of various sectors and individuals of the community, introduced various measures to actively address their demands. Regarding the formulation of a "gross happiness index for Hong Kong residents" as mentioned in the question, we have no plan to do so at present. Nevertheless, the Government will continue to gauge the views of and engage the public in the course of policy formulation in a humble, receptive and conscientious manner. From policy formulation to implementation, we will carefully examine the details of our proposals and consider their implications and assess the responses from the public. We will also strengthen collaboration among Policy Bureaux and departments with a view to bringing benefits and convenience to the public. Planning for the facilities in various districts 15. MR ANDREW WAN (in Chinese): President, some residents from Yuen Long, Tsuen Wan and Tuen Mun have relayed to me that with the successive intake of residents by newly completed public and private housing estates in those districts in recent years, the shortage of facilities, such as social welfare and healthcare facilities, in such districts has become more acute. Moreover, in recent years, there has been an upsurge in the number of inbound Mainland visitors going to those districts for shopping, thereby aggravating the problem of insufficient retail facilities in such districts. Regarding the planning for the facilities in various districts, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) given that the current ratios of public general outpatient clinics to

population of Yuen Long and Tuen Mun are lower than that proposed in the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines ("HKPSG") (i.e. the provision of one general clinic for every 100 000 persons), whether the Government will provide, apart from the community health centre proposed to be built at Tuen Mun Area 29 West, new public general outpatient clinics in those two districts in the coming three years; if so, of the details;


7247

(2) given that as at 31 December 2017, the general beds to population ratios for the New Territories West Cluster (which covers the public hospitals in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long) and the Kowloon West Cluster (which covers the public hospitals in Tsuen Wan) were 2.3 beds and 2.5 beds/1 000 persons respectively, which were lower than the overall ratio for the Hospital Authority ("HA") (i.e. 3.0 beds/1 000 persons), whether the Government knows if HA has plans in the coming three years to increase the numbers of general beds in those two clusters and to allocate the additional resources required; if HA does, of the details;

(3) since it is provided in HKPSG that there should be one District

Elderly Community Centre ("DECC") in each new development area with a population of around 170 000 or above, and the Government indicated in July last year that "...[w]here appropriate, there should be one Neighbourhood Elderly Centre in each new and redeveloped public rental housing estate and one in private housing areas with a population of 15 000 to 20 000 in new residential areas", whether the Government will, in the coming three years, provide Neighbourhood Elderly Centres or DECCs in Yuen Long, Tsuen Wan and Tuen Mun respectively; and

(4) whether the Government will, in response to the growing number of

inbound Mainland visitors, review afresh the estimated demand and planning approach for the retail facilities in the relevant districts?

SECRETARY FOR FOOD AND HEALTH (in Chinese): President, having consulted the Labour and Welfare Bureau, the Development Bureau and the Hospital Authority ("HA"), my reply to the various parts of the question raised by Mr Andrew WAN is as follows:

(1) HA is committed to providing community-based primary care services through its general outpatient ("GOP") services. Its service users mainly include the elders, low-income individuals, and patients with chronic diseases. At present, the number of General Outpatient Clinics ("GOPCs") in Tsuen Wan, Yuen Long and Tuen Mun Districts is two, five and three respectively.


In order to enhance public primary health care services and meet growing service demand, HA has implemented a series of measures to augment the service capacity of existing GOPCs. These measures include actively recruiting additional staff, carrying out clinic renovation and renewing its facilities, so as to streamline patient flow, improve the clinic environment and increase clinical space.

Apart from the above, the Food and Health Bureau and HA have been working closely with Government Property Agency, Planning Department, Housing Department ("HD") and Lands Department in exploring suitable sites in each district so as to facilitate long term planning for public primary health care service development. In view of the service demand in Tsuen Wan District, the Food and Health Bureau, HA and the Department of Health are working together to explore the feasibility of redeveloping the current Lady Trench Polyclinic Site with a view to expanding its GOP service in the district. As for Yuen Long District, the Government is proactively identifying suitable sites for primary care purpose in the longer run. Regarding Tuen Mun District, apart from HA's planned Community Health Centre in the public housing development in Tuen Mun Area 29 West led by HD which is expected to be completed by 2024, concerned government departments are also exploring the proposal of redeveloping the Tuen Mun Clinic Site (where HA's Tuen Mun Clinic is currently located). Initial assessment on its land use is being conducted.

(2) In the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines ("HKPSG"),

the beds as referred to in the beds to population ratio include all types of hospital beds (general (acute and convalescent), infirmary, psychiatric and mentally handicapped beds) in public and private hospitals, and are not limited to general beds in public hospitals. With the growing and ageing population, HA has drawn up plans to increase the number of beds to cope with the rising demand for medical services.

The Kowloon West Cluster covers the service requirement from the residents in Sham Shui Po, Kwai Tsing, Tsuen Wan and Lantau Island. In the recent years, development of North Lantau Hospital, phase 2 redevelopment of Caritas Medical Centre and redevelopment


7249

of Yan Chai Hospital in the cluster have been completed and put into operation. The new North Lantau Hospital ("NLTH") has commenced operation in September 2013 by phases. The first phase development of NLTH will provide 180 hospital beds. As at 31 December 2018, 90 beds have been put into service. The second 10-year Hospital Development Plan under planning will cover the study of in-situ redevelopment of Princess Margaret Hospital and expansion of NLTH.

For the New Territories West Cluster, which covers the service requirement from the residents in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long Districts, the new hospital constructed in Tin Shui Wai has commenced operation in the first quarter of 2017 by phases and will provide 300 hospital beds. As at 31 December 2018, 32 beds have been put into service. In the long run, HA has considered making use of the adjoining site of Tin Shui Wai Hospital for future expansion of the hospital in the second 10-year Hospital Development Plan to further increase service capacity. At the same time, the Government has reserved a site at Hung Shui Kiu New Development Area for the construction of a new hospital to meet the growing health care demand of the population in the New Territories West.

(3) The Government will construct the following two projects in Tuen

Mun and Yuen Long Districts in the coming three years:

- A Neighbourhood Elderly Centre ("NEC") at Sites 1 & 1A of the Public Housing Development Project at Tuen Mun Area 54

- An NEC at the ex-Long Bin Interim Housing site and its

adjoining area

At the same time, in accordance with the recently announced planning ratios for elderly services in HKPSG, the Government will proactively follow-up with the relevant departments and units with a view to further increasing the number of District Elderly Community Centres and NECs to satisfy the districts' demand for the services.


(4) The retail industry as one of the major economic activities in Hong Kong is a commercial use in terms of land use. The Government has been monitoring the market demand for commercial floor space and is committed to increasing the supply of sites, space and hardware for commercial uses in order to facilitate the development of different economic activities and maintain Hong Kong's competitiveness. The development and choice of uses for commercial land and floor space is preferably market-driven, allowing business operators to respond to the fast-changing market situations and make timely and flexible decisions. The existing planning system, including the statutory plans, has embodied sufficient flexibility to facilitate retail activities in many land use zones. For example, "retail shops" is an always permitted use on the land zoned "Commercial" in the core business areas and major shopping areas. In the "Residential (Group A)" zones of major residential areas, retail shops are also always permitted in the lower storeys of buildings. Developers can also propose change of land use for sites considered suitable for development of retail business via planning applications.

Workload and manpower of Social Security Officers 16. DR CHIANG LAI-WAN (in Chinese): President, recently, some Social Security Officers ("SSOs") employed by the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") have relayed to me that as the Government has implemented in recent years quite a number of new policies and measures relating to the social security programmes (such as introducing the Old Age Living Allowance ("OALA") and the Higher OALA, raising the eligible age for elderly Comprehensive Social Security Assistance and providing one-off extra allowances to recipients of social security payments), which is coupled with a continuous rise in the number of elderly persons due to increasing average life expectancy, the workload of SSOs has become increasingly heavy. However, the Government has not increased the establishment of the SSO grade accordingly, resulting in a tremendous increase in their work pressure. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the respective numbers of SSO II and SSO I currently employed by

SWD;


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(2) of the respective average numbers of Social Security Assistants supervised by each of the officers at the two ranks mentioned in (1) ("supervision ratios") (i) in each of the past 10 years and (ii) at present; whether there are currently guidelines specifying the supervision ratios;

(3) whether there are currently guidelines specifying the specific

methods for calculating the manpower requirements for the various ranks in the SSO grade; and

(4) whether it has assessed the adequacy of current manpower at the

various ranks in the SSO grade; if so, of the outcome, and whether it will increase the manpower?

SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE (in Chinese): President, in recent years, the Government has introduced a number of social security measures (including rolling out of the Normal Old Age Living Allowance ("OALA") and the Guangdong Scheme in 2013, and the Higher OALA and the Fujian Scheme in year 2018) to provide targeted support to needy persons. In view of the implementation of various programmes, the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") would seek additional manpower resources according to service needs so as to cope with the corresponding work. My reply to the Member's question is as follows:

(1) As at end-January 2019, there are 81 Social Security Officer I

("SSO I") posts and 310 Social Security Officer II ("SSO II") posts in SWD.

(2) and (3)

When estimating the manpower requirement of Social Security Officers ("SSOs"), SWD takes into account the anticipated work of administration and supervision required, and the procedures and complexity involved in vetting various types of cases. The manpower ratio between ranks/grades is not the sole basis of estimation. SWD does not set a so-called supervision ratio between SSOs and Social Security Assistants ("SSAs").


Based on the above principle, establishment of manpower for the above ranks/grades each year from 2014-2015 to end-January 2019 is provided below:

Rank/Grade

Financial year* SSO I SSO II SSA Grade

2014-2015 77 289 1 319 2015-2016 77 288 1 317 2016-2017 78 294 1 331 2017-2018 79 298 1 351 2018-2019 (As at end-January 2019)

81 310 1 389

The increase in the 5-year period (from 2014-2015 to end-January 2019)

4 (5.2%)

21 (7.3%)

70 (5.3%)

Note: * Figures as at the end of the financial year

(4) SWD has been reviewing the manpower of SSO grade from time to

time, and has implemented various measures to provide appropriate support for its staff according to the actual work requirements. These measures include creating new posts subject to the availability of resources, conducting risk management studies to enhance resource allocation and efficiency, and improving the workflow and streamlining procedures, etc. SWD will continue to maintain close communication with its staff of the social security grades, and stay attentive to their job arrangements and staffing situation so as to ensure efficient delivery of services to the public by the department.

Support for elderly persons and persons with disabilities discharged from hospital 17. MR LEUNG YIU-CHUNG (in Chinese): President, currently, the Government collaborates with the Hospital Authority in implementing the Integrated Discharge Support Programme for Elderly Patients ("IDSP") to provide a range of support services for high-risk elderly persons who are newly


7253

discharged from public hospitals, with an aim to reduce the rate of their unplanned readmission to hospital. In addition, the Community Care Fund ("CCF") rolled out in February 2018 the Pilot Scheme on Support for Elderly Persons Discharged from Public Hospitals after Treatment ("the Pilot Scheme"). The Pilot Scheme, which will last for three years, targets at people aged 60 or above who are newly discharged from public hospitals and have been assessed by medical staff to be in need of transitional care services and support but are not covered by IDSP. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the following information on IDSP: (i) a list of the

non-governmental organizations operating the Home Support Teams ("HSTs"), (ii) the number of HSTs, (iii) the contents of the support services, (iv) a list of the public hospitals and specialty departments participating in IDSP, and (v) in each of the past five years, the number of participants, total expenditure, as well as the number of users, expenditure and unit cost of each support service;

(2) of the method for calculating the rate of unplanned readmission of

elderly persons to hospital, as well as the effectiveness of IDSP in reducing such rate in the past five years;

(3) of the following information on the Pilot Scheme since its launch: (a)

the number of participants, together with a breakdown by the co-payment category to which they belonged, (b) the contents and number of users of each service, (c) a list of the public hospitals and specialty departments participating in the Scheme, and (d) the number of participants who have left the Scheme, with a breakdown by the following reasons for leaving (set out in a table): (i) no suitable service providers/service packages, (ii) expiry of the service period, (iii) to be/having been admitted to/receiving subsidized community

care services or subsidized/private residential care services, (iv) deceased,


(v) having carers, such as family members or domestic helpers, and

(vi) other reasons (such as hospitalization, out of town, etc.);

(4) how the Government caters for the need for support of persons with disabilities ("PWDs") living in the community upon their discharge from hospitals; whether it will regard PWDs as the service targets of IDSP and the Pilot Scheme; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(5) given that those participants of the Pilot Scheme who are still in

need of care and support after the six-month service period may only apply for Integrated Home Care Services or Enhanced Home and Community Care Services, but the waiting time for these two care services is rather long at present, whether the authorities have put in place any mechanism to ensure that there will not be a gap in services; if so, of the details; if not, whether they will put in place such a mechanism;

(6) given that a funding of about $226 million has been provided by

CCF for the implementation of the Pilot Scheme, of (i) the total expenditure incurred so far, together with a breakdown by expenditure item, (ii) the current number of service places provided, and (iii) the current unit cost of service; and

(7) given that the Social Welfare Department will commission a

consultant to evaluate the effectiveness of the Pilot Scheme, of the number, names and background information of the members of the consultant team commissioned as well as the estimated expenditure on the consultant fees?

SECRETARY FOR LABOUR AND WELFARE (in Chinese): President, my reply to the Member's question is as follows:

(1) Through a multi-disciplinary approach, the Integrated Discharge Support Programme for Elderly Patients ("IDSP") mainly provides transitional one-stop integrated support services to medical patients aged 60 or above who are discharged from hospitals and have higher


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risk of unplanned re-admission to hospital. Under IDSP, each/each group of participating hospital(s) of the Hospital Authority ("HA") has set up a Discharge Planning Team ("DPT") comprising doctors, nurses, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, etc. to formulate personalized discharge plans for patients to be discharged. Each DPT also partners with one Home Support Team ("HST") operated by a non-governmental organization ("NGO") commissioned by HA which mainly comprises social workers and care workers. DPT, in collaboration with HST, provides post-discharge support for the patients, for example referring needy patients to HA's geriatric day hospitals for nursing care and rehabilitation services, providing transitional home support services through NGOs, etc. Training and support are also provided for the carers of the patients so as to facilitate their ageing-in-place. In the past five years, about 33 000 persons participated in IDSP each year.

At present, the HA hospitals participating in IDSP and NGOs operating the partnering HSTs (a total of 13 teams) are as follows:

Hospital/group of hospitals participating in IDSP

NGO operating HST which partners with the

hospital/group of hospitals on the left column

1. Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital and Ruttonjee Hospital

Methodist Centre

2. Queen Mary Hospital Aberdeen Kai fong Welfare Association Social Service Centre

3. Kwong Wah Hospital The Salvation Army 4. Queen Elizabeth Hospital The Neighbourhood

Advice-Action Council 5. Tseung Kwan O Hospital Haven of Hope Christian

Service 6. United Christian Hospital Haven of Hope Christian

Service 7. Caritas Medical Centre Caritas―Hong Kong 8. Princess Margaret Hospital

and North Lantau Hospital The Hong Kong Society for the Aged


Hospital/group of hospitals

participating in IDSP

NGO operating HST which partners with the

hospital/group of hospitals on the left column

9. Yan Chai Hospital Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui Lady MacLehose Centre

10. Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital

Tung Wah Group of Hospitals

11. North District Hospital Hong Kong Young Women's Christian Association

12. Prince of Wales Hospitals The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hong Kong (Evangelical Lutheran Church Social Service Hong Kong)

13. Tuen Mun Hospital and Pok Oi Hospital

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hong Kong (Evangelical Lutheran Church Social Service Hong Kong)

In the past five years, the annual total expenditure of IDSP is as follows:

Year Total expenditure ($million)

2014-2015 171.6 2015-2016 176.2 2016-2017 182.7 2017-2018 187.3 2018-2019 (revised estimate) 192.4

HA does not keep information on the expenditure and unit cost of each type of support service provided under IDSP.

(2) HA had evaluated the effectiveness of IDSP based on the data

collected during its trial run. The results showed that there were significant reductions in the number of Accident and Emergency (A&E) attendance and the number of admission to hospital via A&E by patients participating in IDSP. There were also improvements in the measuring indicators of their functional capacity, ability in


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performing daily self-care activities, and quality of life, such as the Barthel Index and the SF12: Physical Component and Mental Component Summary Scale. In view of the effectiveness of IDSP, the scheme was regularized since 2012 and implemented across the territory. HA has continued to collect users' opinions on HSTs through a questionnaire.

(3), (5) to (7)

The Pilot Scheme on Support for Elderly Persons Discharged from Public Hospitals After Treatment ("Pilot Scheme") has been implemented since February 2018. There are two types of services under the Pilot Scheme, namely transitional residential care services ("TRCS") and transitional community care and support services ("TCCS"). The services provided under TRCS include basic and special nursing care, meal services, personal care services, regular visits by registered doctors, regular social recreational activities and laundry service, etc. On the other hand, the services provided under TCCS include basic and special nursing care, personal care, rehabilitation exercise, day care services, support services for carers, respite services, counselling, 24-hour emergency support, environmental risk assessment and home modifications, carer training and support services, home care and meal delivery, transportation and escort services, etc.

The Pilot Scheme is implemented in 10 hospitals (United Christian Hospital, Tseung Kwan O Hospital, Haven of Hope Hospital, Prince of Wales Hospital, Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital, North District Hospital, Shatin Hospital, Tai Po Hospital, Tuen Mun Hospital and Pok Oi Hospital) of three Clusters under HA (Kowloon East Cluster, New Territories East Cluster and New Territories West Cluster). The Pilot Scheme does not require that participants ought to be under any particular specialty departments.

As at end-January 2019, there were a total of 471 persons aged 60 or above receiving services under the Pilot Scheme. The number of persons by co-payment categories and the number of persons using the two types of services mentioned above are as follows:


Co-payment Categories (Rate of Co-payment

Amount)

Number of Persons

Service Type under the Pilot

Scheme

Number of Persons

I (5%) 69 TRCS 272

II (8%) 236 III (12%) 57 TCCS

166 IV (16%) 69 V (25%) 10 Both

33 VI (40%) 30

Total: 471 Total: 471

Furthermore, amongst the aforementioned 471 persons aged 60 or above participating in the Pilot Scheme, 277 of them left the Pilot Scheme after receiving the services under it, but none of them left due to expiry of the service period. The breakdown of the number of participants leaving the Pilot Scheme by reasons for leaving is as follows:

Reason for Leaving the Pilot Scheme Number of Persons

Living independently or being looked after by family

167

Being allocated with places in subsidized/private residential care services

41

Being allocated with places in subsidized community care and support services

32

Passing away 18 Others (including being hospitalized, leaving Hong Kong, etc.)

19

Total: 277

Under the Pilot Scheme, the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") has set up a Discharge Support Team ("DST") mainly comprising social workers to assess the needs of the participants after receiving transitional services and make necessary referral to connect them to other subsidized community care and support services seamlessly upon their leaving the Pilot Scheme as far as possible.


7259

As at end-January 2019, the amount of subsidy disbursement for the Pilot Scheme was about $14.4 million (including about $8 million for subsidizing the provision of services for the participants, about $5.6 million for the staff cost of SWD's DST, and about $0.8 million for the evaluation study and administration fee). It is estimated that the Pilot Scheme will provide services for at least 3 200 persons aged 60 or above within three years. SWD does not have information on the current unit cost of service.

SWD commissioned the Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care of the Chinese University of Hong Kong to conduct an evaluation on the Pilot Scheme in June 2018. The consultation team is led by Prof YEOH Eng-kiong, Professor of Public Health of the Faculty of Medicine of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Other major members of the consultation team include two other Professors of the Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, as well as several researchers. The total cost of the consultancy study is about $2.95 million.

(4) Apart from community support services for the elderly, SWD has all along endeavoured to provide appropriate community support and day care services for persons with disabilities living in the community through provision of various kinds of subsidized community support services, so as to strengthen their independent living capacity and facilitate their continuous living at home and integration into the community. At present, there are four SWD-subvented community rehabilitation day centres in Hong Kong, Kowloon, New Territories East and New Territories West respectively, providing services for newly discharged patients who still require continuous rehabilitation training with a view to raising their functional and self-care abilities and assisting them in continuously living in the community. Discharged patients who are aged 15 or above and suffering from stroke, neurological or physical impairments or other physical illnesses affecting their functional performance are eligible to receive the services of community rehabilitation day centres with referrals made by medical officers/occupational therapists/physiotherapists of HA.


In respect of persons with severe disabilities in need of home care service, SWD through the Home Care Service for Persons with Severe Disabilities ("HCS") and the Integrated Support Service for Persons with Severe Physical Disabilities ("ISS") provides a package of home-based services including personal care, nursing care, rehabilitation training services etc., in order to help relieve the pressure of their family members/carers and improve their quality of living.

Without any age limit, both HCS and ISS have introduced the case management service to provide one-stop support service for persons with disabilities and their family members/carers, and to plan and coordinate inter-disciplinary services, so that persons with disabilities May receive timely and necessary rehabilitation and welfare service at different life stages. ISS also provides special subsidy for persons with severe physical disabilities having intensive care need and meeting the eligibility criteria to relieve their financial burden on medical equipment and medical consumables.

Supply of commercial and office space 18. MR JIMMY NG (in Chinese): President, some operators of small and medium enterprises ("SMEs") have relayed that the high rents and prices of shops and offices have exerted tremendous pressure of operating expenses on them, and dampened foreign investors' desire to set up regional headquarters and offices in Hong Kong. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it knows, in respect of Grade A and Grade B private offices

in the four districts of (a) Central, (b) Wan Chai and Causeway Bay, (c) Tsim Sha Tsui and (d) Hong Kong East, their respective (i) vacancy rates, (ii) per-square-foot median monthly rents, and (iii) average per-square-foot prices, in each month from January 2014 to January this year;

(2) whether it has examined the impacts of the supply of private offices

of various grades on the levels of their prices and rents in the past decade; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;


7261

(3) of the projected supply and demand situations of various grades of private offices in the coming decade;

(4) of the projected commercial space to be provided in the third Core

Business District on the proposed artificial islands to be formed by reclamation in the Central Waters, with a breakdown by the uses thereof; and

(5) of the specific strategies put in place by the Government to increase

the supply of commercial space, so as to mitigate the forces that drive up the rents and prices of shops and offices, thereby alleviating the pressure of operating expenses faced by SMEs and attracting more foreign investors to set up regional headquarters and offices in Hong Kong; the relevant work plans and timetable?

SECRETARY FOR DEVELOPMENT (in Chinese): President, to sustain Hong Kong's position as an international financial and business centre, Government strives to provide commercial land and floor space. My answers to the different parts of the question are as follows:

(1) Year-end vacancy rates of private offices in Central, Wan Chai/Causeway Bay, Tsim Sha Tsui and North Point/Quarry Bay provided by Rating and Valuation Department ("RVD") are at Annex 1.

Please refer to "Hong Kong Property Review(1)" prepared by RVD for average monthly rents and prices of private offices in Hong Kong. The relevant average rent and price were analysed for general reference only, which were not intended for applying to any particular property. The levels at a certain period depended to a large extent on the characteristics of the premises (including building quality and location) leased or sold during the period. As such, the changes between different periods might be due to variations in the characteristics of the properties being analysed, and should not be conclusively taken as indicating a general change in value over the period. Moreover, some figures were derived from limited number of transactions. Rental and price indices should be comparatively better in reflecting the change in value. Notwithstanding that,

(1) Accessible in RVD's website: <https://www.rvd.gov.hk/en/publications/index.html>


average monthly rents and prices of private offices in Central, Wan Chai/Causeway Bay, Tsim Sha Tsui and North Point/Quarry Bay provided by RVD are at Annex 2 for easy reference.

(2) RVD's information about private offices of various grades (in terms

of stock, price indices, and rental indices) in Hong Kong over the past 10 years is set out in Annex 3.

According to the information in Annex 3, there was an increase in the stock of private offices over the years, albeit marginally. The price and rent were rising continuously, indicating apparently that office supply could not fully meet the demand, and that the scarcity of land in Hong Kong was affecting the supply of economic land (including offices). In response to the report made by the Task Force on Land Supply ("TFLS") last week, Government has pointed out that our core strategy is to increase land supply on a sustained basis to avert the current stalemate of land demand-supply imbalance.

(3) To supplement the review of the territorial development strategy (i.e. "Hong Kong 2030+: Towards a Planning Vision and Strategy Transcending 2030" ("HK2030+")), Planning Department completed a consultancy study on the "Review of Land Requirement for Grade A Offices, Business and Industrial Uses" ("the Review") in end-2016. Apart from Grade A offices, the Review estimated also the supply of and demand for land in respect of general business (including non-Grade A offices) and industries. The details are shown on the consultancy report of the Review.(2) According to the estimate set out in the Review, if all committed and planned developments would materialize fully, there would be a deficit of 480 000 sq m of gross floor area ("GFA") for Grade A offices in core business districts ("CBD") in the next 10 years (from 2014 to 2023). In the long term (up to 2041), there would be a deficit of 1 million sq m of GFA in respect of CBD Grade A offices.

(2) Accessible at the following link: <https://www.hk2030plus.hk/document/Review%20of% 20Land%20Requirement%20for%20Grade%20A%20Offices_Business%20and%20Indus

trial%20Uses(Eng)_FCR.pdf>


7263

Long-term planning is very important to the future development of Hong Kong. Therefore, in response to TFLS's report, Government has proposed that the Steering Committee on Land Supply ("the Steering Committee") chaired by Financial Secretary, upon its forthcoming expansion, would adopt a vision-driven and forward-looking approach in reassessing land demand for all needs of Hong Kong (including economic needs). In so doing, the Steering Committee would take into account the space required to maintain our economic competitiveness and other strategic considerations, and would consider accordingly the scale of a land reserve that we should target to keep. The revised assessment would be incorporated into the final strategy for HK2030+ Study to be released in the latter half of 2019.

(4) As part of the strategy of "Lantau Tomorrow Vision", the proposed

third CBD, developing on the 1 000 hectare-artificial islands near Kau Yi Chau, would have its locational advantage. At a location of about 10 km from Central only, and connected with strategic transport infrastructure, the artificial islands would complement the traditional commercial centre in Hong Kong Island to form a metropolitan business core, and create a synergy with the "Aerotropolis" in Lantau with economies of scale and clustering effects. The third CBD would be established as a financial and industrial/commercial supporting service hub, closely connected with the Hong Kong International Airport. Besides, smart, innovative and quality new offices would be delivered on the artificial islands to provide ample development space to support traditional and emerging industries, and to help achieve a more balanced overall spatial development pattern of Hong Kong.

We initially propose that the third CBD would provide a commercial floor area of about 4 million sq m, comprising not only Grade A offices, but also hotel, retail, dining and other uses, to create a vibrant new business area with comprehensive supporting facilities. The specific development parameters the third CBD, including the floor area of individual uses, are subject to further studies.

(5) One of the strategies to increase the commercial floor space supply is

to convert land within developed areas into uses that facilitate future economic development through rezoning and policy or financial incentives. For example, we are expediting transformation of


Kowloon East into the second CBD. Kowloon East currently has over 2.6 million sq m of commercial/office floor area. It is anticipated that Kowloon East has the potential of supplying about 4.4 million sq m of commercial/office floor area additionally in future, including about 1.05 million sq m of commercial/office floor area in the next five years in respect of private development projects (including new developments, redevelopments, and wholesale conversion).

We would also continue to put up commercial sites for sale in an orderly manner, through the Land Sale Programme announced annually, to meet the market demand. Over the five recent financial years (i.e. 2014-2015 to 2018-2019), Government sold 15 commercial/business sites through the Land Sale Programme, providing about 776 000 sq m of floor area. In the coming few years, we are expected to put up a number of commercial sites for sale including those located at the topside of Hong Kong West Kowloon Station of Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, Kai Tak Development Area, New Central Harbourfront, Caroline Hill Road, and Queensway Plaza, etc. to increase commercial floor area gradually, and to address economic development needs of the community.

Besides, 133 applications(3) have been approved under the previous revitalization scheme for industrial buildings ("IBs"). With gradual completion of conversion or redevelopment works since 2012, more than 2.1 million sq m of floor area for different non-industrial uses, including 1.9 million sq m for commercial uses including shops and offices could be delivered. And we are now reactivating the revitalization scheme for IBs. We would, as before, encourage owners to undertake wholesale conversion of IBs through exemption of waiver fee. In addition, we are relaxing the maximum permissible non-domestic plot ratio, as a matter of policy direction, to allow an increase of up to 20% for eligible projects to incentivize redevelopment of IBs and increase the supply of commercial floor space.

(3) These excluded applications withdrawn and terminated by applicants.


7265

Also, we are reserving some new land developed in the New Development Area projects for economic uses. Apart from developing the third CBD on the 1 000 hectare-artificial islands near Kau Yi Chau as mentioned above, we would reserve land when planning the major development projects in Tung Chung New Town Extension, Kwu Tung North and Fanling North, Hung Shui Kiu, Yuen Long South, etc. in accordance with the development direction and spatial pattern of Hong Kong's future economy, which would provide about 3.5 million sq m of GFA for commercial uses. This would not only meet the needs of our economic development, but would also seek to achieve a jobs-housing balance as far as possible.

Annex 1

Table 1: Year-end Vacancy Rate of Private Offices

(Vacancy Rate %)

Central Wan Chai/ Causeway Bay Tsim Sha Tsui North Point/

Quarry Bay Grade A Private Offices 2014 4.9 4.8 3.7 3.0 2015 5.4 3.7 4.1 3.9 2016 3.5 5.4 9.9 4.5 2017 3.8 7.8 12.3 8.9 Grade B Private Offices 2014 3.1 6.5 5.0 3.7 2015 3.1 7.2 6.2 5.1 2016 5.7 5.9 10.9 4.0 2017 7.0 7.4 4.7 3.5 Notes: (1) According to RVD's definition, Grade A office refers to office with modern with high

quality finishes, flexible layout, large floor plates, spacious, well decorated lobbies and circulation areas, effective central air-conditioning, good lift services zoned for passengers and goods deliveries, professional management and parking facilities normally available; and Grade B office refers to office with ordinary design with good quality finishes, flexible layout, average-sized floor plates, adequate lobbies, central or free-standing air-conditioning, adequate lift services, good management and parking facilities not essential. Location is not a feature of grade.


(2) The vacancy rate indicates the vacant condition of the properties at the end of each year. As the vacancy survey is a substantial exercise carried out only at the end of every year, RVD has no monthly statistics.

(3) RVD will announce the year-end vacancy rate of 2018 in the coming "Hong Kong

Property Review". Source: RVD <https://www.rvd.gov.hk>

Annex 2

Table 2A: Average Monthly Rent of Private Offices

(Rent $ per sq m#)

Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

January 2014

1,033 730 524 480 681 478 429 356

February 2014

899 693 539 467 723 514 414 372

March 2014

1,010 672 533 461 667 495 429 389

April 2014

1,001 708 515 461 677 489 447 398

May 2014

1,043 663 512 438 681 486 421 369

June 2014

1,005 707 508 452 688 492 431 384

July 2014

1,000 691 563 475 685 479 435 357

August 2014

1,040 662 521 455 690 477 421 394

September 2014

1,080 712 532 497 698 480 443 376


7267

Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

October 2014

972 619 546 508 700 514 444 371

November 2014

1,016 706 534 539 638 498 446 394

December 2014

1,039 686 533 465 698 516 443 382

January 2015

1,007 704 527 474 683 506 423 336

February 2015

996 640 529 454 767 509 498 399

March 2015

973 654 547 513 661 504 451 362

April 2015

1,033 712 527 438 738 526 450 380

May 2015

1,039 732 539 447 733 534 462 379

June 2015

926 767 534 460 761 503 473 369

July 2015

1,019 756 521 460 739 529 471 386

August 2015

1,093 724 545 464 784 532 456 381

September 2015

1,105 720 538 479 719 536 482 407

October 2015

1,045 691 571 463 783 528 458 417

November 2015

1,059 755 538 477 732 529 456 351

December 2015

1,082 743 548 483 777 523 473 402

January 2016

1,080 716 580 524 694 509 453 403


Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

February 2016

1,139 733 524 494 741 530 446 410

March 2016

1,107 740 567 477 724 534 480 376

April 2016

1,097 696 533 496 770 519 493 389

May 2016

1,075 730 565 548 772 535 452 366

June 2016

1,159 793 528 487 713 531 476 352

July 2016

1,098 751 543 495 746 532 454 353

August 2016

1,076 735 559 553 762 515 484 388

September 2016

1,176 742 573 472 754 524 473 380

October 2016

1,134 782 555 513 739 541 484 342

November 2016

1,165 761 550 495 760 522 491 394

December 2016

1,079 799 554 521 741 542 504 379

January 2017

1,168 770 540 500 775 551 456 (363)

February 2017

1,149 783 574 523 884 534 482 408

March 2017

1,180 759 576 504 758 524 470 413

April 2017

1,179 783 548 553 729 555 463 396

May 2017

1,171 812 535 458 757 546 475 413


7269

Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

June 2017

1,157 770 554 476 755 529 496 384

July 2017

1,222 798 591 534 854 555 480 426

August 2017

1,200 851 579 533 769 522 461 392

September 2017

1,254 775 591 532 747 551 500 401

October 2017

1,249 769 578 533 792 553 489 413

November 2017

1,157 770 574 509 805 531 499 424

December 2017

1,247 761 547 495 869 573 458 396

January 2018

1,188 725 599 519 762 526 467 403

February 2018

1,281 736 550 559 880 564 461 438

March 2018

1,181 773 575 548 831 564 510 414

April 2018

1,241 711 570 527 870 544 488 439

May 2018

1,302 798 588 560 797 560 477 437

June 2018

1,330 840 573 591 835 544 484 424

July 2018*

1,163 843 568 555 833 571 504 405

August 2018*

1,240 856 602 567 881 562 486 425

September 2018*

1,323 813 599 545 830 572 501 438


Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

October 2018*

1,254 772 633 615 817 566 506 512

November 2018*

1,308 812 603 639 828 549 489 455

December 2018*

1,426 817 555 536 882 576 491 471

Notes: # Measured on the basis of "internal floor area" which is defined as the area of all enclosed

space of the unit measured to the internal face of enclosing external and/or party walls. * These are provisional figures. RVD will announce the confirmed figures in the coming

"Hong Kong Property Review". ( ) Indicate fewer than five transactions. (1) Please refer to the notes of Table 1 in Annex 1 on RVD's definition on Grade A and

Grade B offices. (2) RVD does not maintain the median of the above rent data. Source: RVD <https://www.rvd.gov.hk>

Table 2B: Average Monthly Price of Private Offices

(Price $ per sq m#)

Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

January 2014

(305,514) - (168,927) - - (155,017) - (124,410)

February 2014

(365,871) - - - - (211,607) (175,183) -


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Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

March 2014

(455,781) - (169,388) - - (189,053) (145,977) -

April 2014

- - (225,146) (179,465) - (234,156) (144,243) -

May 2014

(292,258) - (192,780) - - (238,607) (139,815) (135,108)

June 2014

(414,900) (156,080) (206,427) - - (222,468) (156,381) (139,860)

July 2014

(312,778) (389,108) (177,262) - (185,652) 208,076 (186,981) (134,298)

August 2014

(332,334) (211,273) (198,570) (155,203) (233,285) (201,357) (166,524) -

September 2014

(334,825) - 183,487 - (294,531) 190,312 - -

October 2014

(330,550) (301,922) (228,182) - (205,477) (200,624) (197,192) (123,076)

November 2014

(368,156) - (217,846) - (300,847) (201,286) (193,941) (132,011)

December 2014

- - 188,470 - - (225,402) 186,956 -

January 2015

(312,982) (313,281) (192,552) - (303,030) (158,407) (186,920) -

February 2015

(317,704) - (191,806) - (290,231) (215,758) 181,135 -

March 2015

(383,687) (191,861) 175,346 - (315,651) (242,575) 176,993 (122,289)

April 2015

(372,750) (189,698) (170,575) - (501,266) (244,240) 192,768 -

May 2015

319,094 - 204,191 - - (220,263) 188,190 -

June 2015

(299,456) (432,113) (231,022) - (270,440) (148,148) (160,818) (149,721)


Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

July 2015

(346,399) (328,606) (214,075) - - (314,815) (192,610) (124,847)

August 2015

(343,131) (247,633) (226,376) - (348,416) (199,314) (183,054) -

September 2015

- (509,600) (172,575) - - (229,825) (179,312) -

October 2015

(343,635) - - - - - - -

November 2015

(475,308) (169,173) 198,465 - (235,400) (165,037) (202,293) (130,526)

December 2015

(395,632) - (183,889) - (190,800) (264,225) (161,252) -

January 2016

(319,689) (478,633) - - - - - -

February 2016

- (257,792) - - - (192,225) - -

March 2016

(506,098) (234,019) (163,340) - - (132,935) (186,437) -

April 2016

- - (171,202) - - (204,574) (164,366) -

May 2016

(382,525) (214,788) (179,986) - (321,711) - 162,754 -

June 2016

425,541 (228,860) (164,307) - - (226,629) (158,281) -

July 2016

(346,019) - (183,405) - - (152,047) (176,630) -

August 2016

(377,970) - (199,848) - (184,615) (214,965) (170,021) (109,639)

September 2016

(423,934) - 227,755 - - (217,397) 176,551 -

October 2016

(355,178) (195,238) (213,160) - - (206,279) (113,485) (128,611)


7273

Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

November 2016

(401,154) (268,889) (175,581) - - (259,786) (130,552) (133,257)

December 2016

(478,516) (413,907) 209,271 - - (263,180) (208,560) -

January 2017

(506,659) (260,576) 181,613 - - 273,294 (173,184) -

February 2017

(414,214) - (214,164) - - (228,234) (175,462) -

March 2017

431,635 (202,469) (202,985) (218,564) (316,637) 229,583 192,605 (131,002)

April 2017

(404,823) (248,914) 222,481 - (212,191) (304,956) (186,774) (165,340)

May 2017

- (220,209) (250,709) (280,619) - 304,035 171,482 (165,975)

June 2017

(519,005) - (207,897) (189,189) (248,618) (172,764) (164,736) (141,284)

July 2017

(559,105) - (223,341) - (219,005) (262,354) 195,115 -

August 2017

(550,093) - (303,104) - (330,729) (225,225) (152,575) (169,797)

September 2017

(463,489) (203,008) (190,854) - - (182,881) 195,407 -

October 2017

- (224,266) (253,771) (225,642) - (241,999) 206,293 (164,657)

November 2017

(511,965) (402,313) (264,129) - - (199,185) (183,638) (164,656)

December 2017

- (259,877) (236,000) - - (191,288) 222,213 (147,326)

January 2018

(444,612) - 221,954 - - (273,860) (242,868) (156,679)

February 2018

(570,521) - (239,645) - - (348,740) (226,119) -


Month/ Year

Grade A Grade B

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

Cen

tral

Wan

Cha

i/ C

ause

way

Bay

Tsim

Sha

Tsu

i

Nor

th P

oint

/ Q

uarr

y Ba

y

March 2018

(547,086) (359,980) (248,264) - - (315,546) 194,659 -

April 2018

(543,950) - (207,483) - - (349,296) (191,814) (157,620)

May 2018

(506,335) (217,490) (252,538) - - (256,399) (191,940) (160,677)

June 2018

(543,179) (258,405) (187,097) (358,169) (398,596) (284,726) (210,885) (162,734)

July 2018*

(491,488) - (253,530) - - (290,937) (202,024) -

August 2018*

(587,157) - (304,569) - (543,626) (352,780) (196,822) -

September 2018*

(388,585) - (191,939) - - - - (191,652)

October 2018*

(820,864) - - - - - (212,830) -

November 2018*

(718,170) (261,343) - - (215,630) (303,260) (220,788) -

December 2018*

- (267,198) - - (491,628) - (210,450) -

Notes: # Measured on the basis of "internal floor area" which is defined as the area of all enclosed space of the unit

measured to the internal face of enclosing external and/or party walls. * These are provisional figures. RVD will announce the confirmed figures in the coming "Hong Kong

Property Review". ( ) Indicate fewer than five transactions. Please refer to the notes of Table 1 in Annex 1 on RVD's definition on Grade A and Grade B offices. Source: RVD <https://www.rvd.gov.hk>


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Annex 3

Table 3A: Year-end Stock of Private Offices by Grade

(sq m#) Year Grade A Grade B Grade C Total 2009 6 569 100 2 432 500 1 527 400 10 529 000 2010 6 744 000 2 424 700 1 520 300 10 689 000 2011 6 817 500 2 461 000 1 503 600 10 782 100 2012 6 898 200 2 499 100 1 493 800 10 891 100 2013 6 995 900 2 487 800 1 499 500 10 983 200 2014 7 061 000 2 509 400 1 490 300 11 060 700 2015 7 179 600 2 616 400 1 487 200 11 283 200 2016 7 390 600 2 664 000 1 475 400 11 530 000 2017 7 595 000 2 762 800 1 480 400 11 838 200

Notes: # Measured on the basis of "internal floor area" which is defined as the area of all enclosed

space of the unit measured to the internal face of enclosing external and/or party walls. (1) According to RVD's definition, Grade A office refers to office with modern with high

quality finishes, flexible layout, large floor plates, spacious, well decorated lobbies and circulation areas, effective central air-conditioning, good lift services zoned for passengers and goods deliveries, professional management and parking facilities normally available; Grade B office refers to office with ordinary design with good quality finishes, flexible layout, average-sized floor plates, adequate lobbies, central or free-standing air-conditioning, adequate lift services, good management and parking facilities not essential; and Grade C office refers to office with plain with basic finishes, less flexible layout, small floor plates, basic lobbies, generally without central air-conditioning, barely adequate or inadequate lift services, minimal to average management and no parking facilities. Location is not a feature of grade.

(2) RVD will announce the year-end stock of private offices of 2018 in the coming "Hong

Kong Property Review". Source: RVD <https://www.rvd.gov.hk>

Table 3B: Price Indices of Private Offices by Grade (All Districts)

(1999=100) Year* Grade A Grade B Grade C All Grades 2009 183.1 184.1 171.0 179.8 2010 239.1 231.4 217.6 230.4 2011 301.2 304.9 286.7 297.9


Year* Grade A Grade B Grade C All Grades 2012 321.6 349.5 337.4 334.7 2013 378.9 434.4 430.7 409.8 2014 374.3 448.7 444.2 423.0 2015 401.1 485.2 474.0 448.9 2016 400.1 457.2 444.7 426.9 2017 450.6 524.9 507.4 487.1 2018 540.5 581.2 556.6 555.2

Notes: * The figure in the table is the average of monthly figures of the year. In addition, the

figures of 2018 are provisional figures. RVD will announce the confirmed figures in the coming "Hong Kong Property Review".

Please refer to the notes of Table 3A on RVD's definition on Grade A, Grade B and Grade C offices. Source: RVD <https://www.rvd.gov.hk>

Table 3C: Rental Indices of Private Offices by Grade (All Districts)

(1999=100) Year* Grade A Grade B Grade C All Grades 2009 141.5 134.7 117.2 135.7 2010 150.4 150.2 133.1 147.6 2011 177.0 166.6 147.7 169.9 2012 196.9 183.8 163.5 188.3 2013 211.5 200.7 182.2 204.1 2014 219.0 212.1 195.8 213.7 2015 230.9 226.0 210.9 226.7 2016 237.9 231.0 213.6 232.3 2017 248.8 237.6 221.7 241.8 2018 261.0 246.4 228.1 252.0

Notes: * The figure in the table is the average of monthly figures of the year. In addition, the

figures of 2018 are provisional figures. RVD will announce the confirmed figures in the coming "Hong Kong Property Review".

Please refer to the notes of Table 3A on RVD's definition on Grade A, Grade B and Grade C offices. Source: RVD <https://www.rvd.gov.hk>


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Reducing air pollutants emitted by navigation 19. MR CHAN HAK-KAN (in Chinese): President, according to the 2016 Hong Kong Air Pollutant Emission Inventory Report published by the Environmental Protection Department, among the emission sources of the various types of pollutants, navigation emitted the largest quantities of pollutants in terms of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, respirable suspended particulates and fine suspended particulates, etc. Regarding the reduction of air pollutants emitted by navigation, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the emissions of various types of air pollutants in each of the past two years, with a breakdown by emission source;

(2) of the respective (i) numbers, (ii) average ages and (iii) types of the

marine propulsion systems of the vessels of various licensed ferry operators in each of the past three years;

(3) of the respective (i) numbers, (ii) average ages and (iii) types of

marine propulsion systems of the vessels of various government departments in each of the past three years;

(4) as the Air Pollution Control (Fuel for Vessels) Regulation

(Cap. 311AB) provides that from 1 January this year, all vessels (except for vessels of specified types) are required to use low sulphur marine fuel within Hong Kong waters, whether it has assessed the effect of the implementation of such a requirement on improving the air quality in Hong Kong;

(5) given that the Government has injected $300 million to set up the

Pilot Green Transport Fund ("the Fund") to subsidize the testing of green innovative technologies applicable to the public transport sector and goods vehicles, of the number of cases in which the Fund provided subsidies in the past three years for innovative technologies used by ferries and the amounts involved, as well as the respective percentages of such figures in the relevant totals;

(6) as some members of the transport trade have relayed that the parts

and components of water transport carriers are generally more expensive than those of road transport carriers, whether the


Government will raise the Fund's subsidy caps for the innovative technologies used by ferries; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(7) given that the Government has implemented a subsidy programme in

recent years to assist the transport trade in phasing out pre-Euro IV diesel commercial vehicles, whether the Government has any plan to introduce a similar programme in respect of navigation to phase out vessels with high pollutant emissions; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, whether it will introduce the relevant measures;

(8) given that the retirement age for franchised buses is 18 years,

whether the Government will stipulate a retirement age for licensed ferries; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(9) whether it will take the proportion of green vessels in the total

number of vessels of a ferry operator as one of the considerations when vetting and approving applications for service licence for ferry routes; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(10) as some licensed ferry operators have indicated that the existing

power supply facilities at piers fail to meet their needs on switching to the use of electric ferries, whether the Government will consider providing subsidies for operators to upgrade such facilities; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

SECRETARY FOR THE ENVIRONMENT (in Chinese): President, my reply to the question raised by Mr CHAN Hak-kan is as follows:

(1) The Environmental Protection Department ("EPD") compiles the Hong Kong Air Pollutant Emission Inventory every year to analyse the distribution and trends of major air pollution sources in Hong Kong. While the emission inventories for 2017 and 2018 are still under preparation, those for 2015 and 2016 setting out the emissions of major air pollutants with a breakdown by emission sources are at Annex 1.


7279

(2) According to the information provided by the Transport Department ("TD"), there are currently 13 licensed ferry operators providing regular passenger ferry services and dangerous goods vehicular ferry services. The number of vessels of various ferry operators, the average ages and types of propulsion system of their vessels during 2016 to 2018 are set out at Annex 2.

(3) According to the information provided by the Marine Department

("MD"), the number of vessels of various government departments, the average ages and types of propulsion systems of their vessels during 2016 to 2018 are set out at Annex 3.

(4) The Air Pollution Control (Fuel for Vessels) Regulation

(Cap. 311 sub. leg. AB) ("the Regulation") has entered into force on 1 January 2019. Vessels are required to use compliant fuel, including low sulphur marine fuel with sulphur content not exceeding 0.5%, liquefied natural gas or any other fuel approved by the Director of Environmental Protection, irrespective of whether they are sailing or berthing in Hong Kong waters. It is anticipated that the implementation of the Regulation will reduce about 6 300 tonnes of sulphur dioxide ("SO2") and 710 tonnes of respirable suspended particulates ("RSP") from marine vessels in 2020, compared with 2015 emission levels.

(5) From 2016 to 2018, the Pilot Green Transport Fund ("the Fund")

approved two trials for testing out diesel-electric propulsion system(1) for ferry at a total amount of $6 million, accounting for around 3% of the total number of trials approved and about 10% of the funding approved during the said period.

(6) According to the current rules of the Fund, the amount of subsidy for

conducting engine retrofit or testing alternative-fuel engines at ferries is capped at $3 million per device/engine, which is higher than the cap of $1.5 million per device for retrofitting or converting

(1) A trial for testing out a diesel-electric propulsion system for ferry was also approved

under the Fund in October 2014; the amount approved for the trial was $3 million. The trial was completed on 31 December 2017.


in-use vehicles with after-treatment emission reduction devices or fuel saving devices. It is stated in the 2018 Policy Address that the Government will review the scope of the Fund with a view to facilitating the transport sector's wider use of green innovative transport technologies. To this end, EPD is conducting the review along the following directions:

(i) while the current conditions for approving subsidy for the

trials (i.e. trials of technologies that stand a good chance of coping with local operational requirements and can be adopted by relevant transport sectors for wider use upon successful trials) should be retained, we would review if improvements could be made in various areas including the scope of the subsidy, eligibility for application, subsidy levels, limits on applications and terms for subsidy; and

(ii) for technologies proven upon trials to be mature enough for

local application, ways should be explored to encourage their wider use by the transport sectors (for instance, whether the sectors should be subsidized to procure and not just try out such products). Specifications and operational parameters for these technologies should also be set.

(7) The marine transport industry encompasses different types of vessels

with different designs, operation modes as well as business models. The service life of vessels may differ greatly and therefore, it is not appropriate to phase out old vessels to reduce their emissions of pollutants by adopting a similar programme for phasing out aged diesel commercial vehicles.

Regarding measures to reduce marine emissions, the Government

has mandated ocean going vessels, which account for 95% and 68% of the emissions of SO2 and RSP respectively from the marine sector, to use low sulphur fuel while at berth at Hong Kong waters since 1 July 2015. Hong Kong is the first port in Asia to mandate the fuel switch requirement. On 1 January 2019, we implemented a new regulation requiring all vessels to use compliant fuel within


7281

Hong Kong waters, in order to further reduce their emissions (see the above reply No. 4). In controlling emissions from local vessels, a statuary cap of the sulphur content of locally supplied marine light diesel at 0.05% had been imposed since 1 April 2014, which was a 90% reduction as compared with the sulphur content of previously supplied marine light diesel. This measure can reduce about 3 000 tonnes of SO2 and 230 tonnes of RSP each year.

The Government will continue to closely monitor the global

development of technologies and measures to reduce marine emissions and their feasibility of implementation in Hong Kong.

(8) to (10) As for ferry services, operators are required to provide proper

maintenance and repairs for their fleets. Services can only be provided after the vessels concerned have passed MD's inspections, certifying that all necessary safety standards have been complied with. Currently, operations of ferry services (such as types of services, journey time and service levels) vary among one another. The design of the ferries running on the services are also different in terms of carrying capacities, speeds and propulsion systems, etc. From the perspective of monitoring ferry services, the Government has no plan to set a maximum serviceable year for ferries at this stage. That said, the Government has all along been encouraging ferry operators to, with regards to their financial positions, consider upgrading their fleets. Eligible ferry operators may also apply to EPD for subsidy under the Fund to put projects that might enhance the green performance of their fleets on trial.

When formulating the requirements of tender for ferry services, TD

will, in consultation with the relevant departments such as MD, the Civil Engineering and Development Department and EPD, set out the vessel requirements having regard to the operational circumstances of each ferry route including passenger demand, service level, actual pier conditions, etc. The vessel requirements will be one of the assessment items in the tender exercise. In future


tender exercises for ferry services, TD will incorporate green elements, encouraging operators, subject to financial viability of their ferry services, to use green vessels or equipment which have been tested and proven to be suitable for local application.

The Government will explore the launch of a pilot scheme to adopt

green technologies in local ferries such as electric propulsion system and hybrid propulsion system, etc. for exploring the full implementation of such technologies in the future to reduce the emissions of air pollutants.

Regarding ferry piers leased to ferry operators for their use, major

infrastructures therein including power supply facilities are all provided and maintained by the Government. Yet due to constraints in pier space and structure, not every pier can be retrofitted to increase the power supply. If any ferry operator plans to switch to electric ferries, the Government may consider offering assistance on a case-by-case basis.

Annex 1

2015 and 2016 Hong Kong air pollutant emission inventory

Year Pollution sources

Emissions (tonnes)(1)(2)

SO2 Nitrogen

oxides RSP

Fine suspended particulates

2015 Road Transport 40 18 100 490 450 Navigation 11 460 33 940 1 860 1 690 Public electricity generation 7 280 26 090 580 300 Civil Aviation 510 5 800 50 50 Other Combustion 240 9 100 760 700 Non-combustion - - 910 470 Total emissions(3) 19 530 93 020 4 640 3 660


7283

Year Pollution sources

Emissions (tonnes)(1)(2)

SO2 Nitrogen

oxides RSP

Fine suspended particulates

2016 Road Transport 40 16 200 420 380 Navigation 8 540 32 900 1 640 1 480 Public electricity generation 8 020 25 620 610 310 Civil Aviation 530 6 060 50 50 Other Combustion 180 8 850 740 690 Non-combustion - - 890 480 Total emissions(3) 17 310 89 640 4 350 3 380

Notes: (1) All figures are rounded to the nearest 10. (2) "-"denotes not applicable. (3) There may be slight discrepancies between the sums of individual items and the total

emissions shown in the table because of rounding.

Annex 2

Fleet information of regular licensed ferry operators from 2016 to 2018

Operator

Number of regular vessels

Average vessel age Type of

propulsion system

as at end

2016

as at end

2017

as at end

2018

as at end

2016

as at end

2017

as at end

2018 1. New World First Ferry

Services Limited 18 19 19 22 23 24 Propeller

2. Hong Kong and Kowloon Ferry Limited

4 4 4 16 17 18

3. Islands Ferry Company Limited

4 4 4 5 6 7

4. Winnertex Limited 2 2 2 11 12 13 5. Maris Ferry Service

Limited 2 2 2 26 27 28


Operator

Number of regular vessels

Average vessel age Type of

propulsion system

as at end

2016

as at end

2017

as at end

2018

as at end

2016

as at end

2017

as at end

2018 6. Tsui Wah Ferry Service

(H. K.) Limited 1 1 1 26 27 28

7. Chuen Kee Ferry Limited 1 1 1 35 36 37 8. Fortune Ferry Company

Limited 2 2 3 22 23 28

9. Peng Chau Kaito Limited 1 1 1 19 20 21 10. Discovery Bay

Transportation Services Limited

8 8 8 22 23 24

11. Park Island Transport Company Limited

4 4 4 14 15 16

12. Coral Sea Ferry Service Company Limited

2 2 2 34 35 36

13. The Hongkong & Yaumati Ferry Company LimitedNote

5 5 5 35 36 37

Note: Operator of vehicular ferry route for carrying dangerous good vehicles.

Annex 3

Numbers, average vessel ages and types of propulsion systems of government vessels from 2016 to 2018

Year 2016 Type of propulsion system

Department

Hovercraft Outboard Propeller Waterjet

Total Average age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department

- - 21 11.38 3 17.67 - - 24 12.17

Auxiliary Medical Service - - 1 18.00 - - - - 1 18.00


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Year 2016 Type of propulsion system

Department


Total Average age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Civil Aid Service - - 6 9.17 - - - - 6 9.17 Civil Engineering and Development Department

- - - - 3 18.00 - - 3 18.00

Correctional Services Department

- - - - 2 21.50 - - 2 21.50

Customs and Excise Department

- - 13 8.15 13 12.54 - - 26 10.35

EPD(1) - - 1 23.00 1 23.00 - - 2 23.00 Fire Services Department 2 9.50 24 11.79 9 15.22 2 1.00 37 11.92 Department of Health - - - - 1 13.00 - - 1 13.00 Hong Kong Police Force - - 77 10.19 34 18.50 24 9.46 135 12.16 Immigration Department - - - - 9 13.44 - - 9 13.44 Leisure and Cultural Services Department

- - 131 11.18 - - 5 9.60 136 11.12

MD - - 10 15.10 25 19.48 - - 35 18.23 Water Supplies Department - - 6 12.50 2 16.00 - - 8 13.38 Total 2 9.50 290 11.03 102 17.21 31 8.94 425 12.35 Note: (1) There are two other vessels operating by a contractor and delivering sludge from the Stonecutters Island

Sewage Treatment Works to the sludge treatment facility (T‧PARK) in Tuen Mun since 2015. Both vessels were built in 2015 and use propeller propulsion systems.

Year 2017 Type of marine propulsion system

Department


Total Average age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age


- - 22 11.82 3 18.67 - - 25 12.64

Auxiliary Medical Service - - 1 19.00 - - - - 1 19.00 Civil Aid Service - - 6 10.17 - - - - 6 10.17 Civil Engineering and Development Department

- - - - 3 19.00 - - 3 19.00


- - - - 2 22.50 - - 2 22.50



Department


Total Average age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age


- - 13 9.15 13 13.54 - - 26 11.35

EPD(1) - - 1 24.00 1 24.00 - - 2 24.00 Fire Services Department 2 10.50 23 12.48 9 16.22 5 0.80 39 11.74 Department of Health - - - - 1 14.00 - - 1 14.00 Hong Kong Police Force - - 75 11.47 33 19.70 24 10.46 132 13.34 Immigration Department - - - - 9 14.44 - - 9 14.44 Leisure and Cultural Services Department

- - 133 10.97 - - - - 133 10.97




Department


Total Average

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age


- - 22 12.82 4 14.75 - - 26 13.12

Auxiliary Medical Service - - 1 20.00 - - - - 1 20.00 Civil Aid Service - - 6 11.17 - - - - 6 11.17 Civil Engineering and Development Department

- - - - 3 20.00 - - 3 20.00


- - - - 2 23.50 - - 2 23.50


- - 13 10.15 13 14.54 - - 26 12.35

EPD(1) - - 1 25.00 1 25.00 - - 2 25.00 Fire Services Department 2 11.50 21 13.05 9 17.22 5 1.80 37 12.46 Department of Health - - - - 1 15.00 - - 1 15.00


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Department


Total Average

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Num

ber

Aver

age

age

Hong Kong Police Force - - 75 12.47 33 20.70 24 11.46 132 14.34 Immigration Department - - - - 9 12.56 - - 9 12.56 Leisure and Cultural Services Department

- - 132 11.98 - - 1 11.00 133 11.97



Promoting the popularization of electric cars 20. DR ELIZABETH QUAT (in Chinese): President, road transport is a major emission source of air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds and carbon monoxide, and exhaust emissions from fuel-engined vehicles are the major source of roadside air pollutants. It is learnt that promoting the popularization of electric vehicles ("EVs") is conducive to improving air quality, and slowing down global warming by reducing carbon emissions. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it will consider afresh increasing the concessions on the first registration tax for electric private cars and hybrid electric vehicles; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(2) whether site searches were conducted last year for providing new

public charging facilities for EVs; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(3) whether it took the initiative, in the past five years, to contact the

property management companies and owners' corporations of private buildings for gaining an understanding of their concerns


regarding the installation of charging facilities for EVs in their buildings; if so, of the details (including the number of meetings concerned); if not, the reasons for that;

(4) whether it will consider providing one-off subsidies for retrofitting

charging facilities for EVs in existing private car parks; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(5) whether it will consider installing public charging facilities for EVs

in locations such as on-street parking spaces, petrol filling stations as well as idle spaces underneath flyovers and idle sites in industrial areas; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(6) whether it will consider setting up an inter-departmental working

group to provide central coordination for the installation of charging facilities for EVs; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(7) whether it will unify the charging standards for all EVs in Hong

Kong; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; (8) whether it will raise the subsidy caps for local research and

development ("R&D") projects concerning electric commercial vehicles ("e-CVs") under the Pilot Green Transport Fund ("PGTF"), and provide additional subsidies for successful R&D projects; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(9) whether the current review of PGTF covers the following areas:

(i) shortening the testing time required for subsidized EV technologies, (ii) shortening the time needed for vetting and approving applications, (iii) expanding the funding scope to include commercial private cars, (iv) relaxing the eligibility criteria for applicants so that new operators who have been carrying out business in the relevant transport service for less than one year may apply for the subsidies under PGTF, and (v) assisting the trade in obtaining passenger service licences needed for electric tourist coaches under trial; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;


7289

(10) whether it has put in place new measures to step up the training for personnel who are tasked with testing, repairing and maintenance of EVs; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(11) whether it will introduce legislation to prohibit non-EVs from

occupying parking spaces installed with public charging facilities for EVs; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(12) as the Government plans to set up a smart system for the

Government's public EV charging network, the features of which include providing instant electronic information such as the utilization status of the charging facilities, of the timetable for developing this system and whether the features of the system will include making reservations for using charging facilities; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(13) whether it will relax the current restrictions on gross weight

applicable to e-CVs to facilitate the trade to introduce EVs that best suit the uses; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(14) of the latest progress of the Government's work on promoting the

recycling of waste EV batteries; and (15) whether it has put in place new measures to support the transport

trade in making a large-scale switch to e-CVs; if so, of the details, if not, the reasons for that?

SECRETARY FOR THE ENVIRONMENT (in Chinese): President, commercial vehicles ("CVs") account for 95% of the vehicular emissions of respirable suspended particulates and nitrogen oxides, both of which are major air pollutants. CVs have thus been a major target of the Government's measures to improve roadside air quality. As electric vehicles ("EVs") have no tailpipe emissions, replacing conventional vehicles, especially CVs, with EVs can help improve roadside air quality. The Government has all along been committed to promoting the use of electric CVs ("e-CVs"). Measures taken include waiving the first registration tax ("FRT") of e-CVs in full since 1994; putting in place since March 2011 a


$300 million Pilot Green Transport Fund ("PGTF") to support the transport sector to try out green innovative transport technologies (including e-CVs); and subsidizing franchised bus companies to test out electric buses. For electric private cars ("e-PCs"), the Government's standing policy is to encourage the public to use public transport as far as possible, and should they need to acquire private cars ("PCs"), they are encouraged to choose e-PCs. The Government promotes the use of e-PCs in Hong Kong mainly through offering financial incentives such as tax concession and lower annual vehicle licence fee, and facilitating the development and enhancement of charging networks for e-PCs. My responses to the questions raised by Dr Elizabeth QUAT are as follows:

(1) When drawing up FRT concessions for e-PCs, the Government on one hand aims to avoid the overall growth of PCs causing traffic congestion and aggravating roadside air pollution; and on the other hand, hopes that the incentives could aptly encourage vehicle buyers to go for EVs as far as possible when there is a need to buy PCs. Taking account of these two factors, the technological development and market situation of EVs, as well as road traffic conditions and views of stakeholders, the Government decided to continue with the FRT concessions of up to $97,500 for e-PCs from 28 February 2018 to 31 March 2021. For the same period, a new "One-for-One Replacement" Scheme ("the Scheme") has also been introduced to allow eligible existing vehicle owners who buy a new e-PC and scrap their own eligible old PC to enjoy a higher FRT concession of up to $250,000. In addition to the said FRT concessions, annual vehicle licence fees for e-PCs are far lower than those for conventional PCs, and the electricity tariffs incurred for running e-PCs are also less expensive than the fuel charges incurred for running conventional PCs.

With ongoing technology development in e-PCs, there are currently

a number of relatively more affordable e-PC models which are priced between $240,000 and $400,000 (FRT excluded) in the market, with their laboratory-tested driving range reaching 280 km to 400 km, thus fairly meeting Hong Kong drivers' general needs of


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daily mileage of only a few tens of km. Currently, amongst the eight brands of e-PC available in the local market, seven of them already provide models that can enjoy full waiver of FRT under the Scheme. Besides, after considering the views of stakeholders on the Scheme since its introduction, the Government has relaxed the eligibility criteria of ownership period and licensed period of an old PC under the Scheme starting from 28 January 2019. The number of PCs meeting the relaxed requirements would be increased by 30% to more than 0.25 million.

We are of the view that the current arrangements represent a right

balance of various relevant factors. The Government will, as scheduled, review the existing FRT arrangements for EVs before their expiry on 31 March 2021, and has no plan to revise the current arrangements at this stage.

Compared to conventional vehicles, hybrid-electric ("hybrid")

vehicles in general can offer better fuel efficiency, but they still have tailpipe emissions and their fuel saving and environmental performance depend on the driving modes. In comparison, EVs have no tailpipe emissions, and are more effective in improving roadside air quality in a high-density environment in Hong Kong. In the case of private cars, taking into account the Government's standing policy to promote the use of public transport, we consider that it is appropriate to grant FRT concession for e-PCs only. The Government currently has no plan to provide FRT concession for hybrid private cars.

As CVs have been a major source of roadside air pollution, the

Government, apart from waiving e-CV's FRT in full, has been offering reduction in the FRT of newly registered environment-friendly commercial vehicles starting from 1 April 2008. The Environmental Protection Department ("EPD") has reviewed annually the qualifying emission standards for environment-friendly commercial vehicles under the scheme in the light of vehicle technological advancement and the prevailing statutory emission standards for newly registered vehicles such that the tax incentive is available only to CVs with an outstanding environmental performance. Currently, vehicles that meet the


qualifying emission standards for environmentally friendly commercial vehicles already include some hybrid commercial vehicles.

(2), (5) and (6) Regarding the charging arrangements for e-PCs, it has been the

Government's standing policy that e-PC owners should perform daily charging of their e-PCs by using charging facilities at their home, workplace or other suitable places. Public charging facilities in Hong Kong are supplementary in nature, set up for EVs to top up their batteries at times of occasional needs. They do not serve as daily charging facilities or their alternatives. The number of public chargers in Hong Kong which are distributed in 18 districts increased from about 1 000 in 2013 to 2 166 (including 782 owned by the Government and the remaining owned by the private sector) in the end of 2018.

With the increase in the number of e-PCs, the Environment Bureau

is cooperating with other relevant government departments to set up an interdepartmental working group to review the policies and measures relating to the ancillary facilities for charging e-PCs. The work includes installing additional charging facilities in existing Government car parks, looking for suitable on-street parking spaces to install charging facilities as a pilot and looking for suitable locations for the pilot scheme on quick charging station. The Government will release more information once a detailed plan is prepared.

(3) and (4) EPD established in 2011 a dedicated team and a hotline to provide

information and technical support on installation of charging facilities. Besides, EPD has appealed to owners' corporations and property managers for their support in installing EV chargers at their premises through seminars and workshops. We will continue to step up the communication, publicity, education and technical assistance to building owners, property management companies and owners' corporations in the installation of EV charging facilities.


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The Government will explore practicable measures to encourage installation of EV charging-enabling infrastructure or chargers in existing private buildings.

(7) At present, there is no unified international EV charging standard.

The International Electrotechnical Commission's Standards are mainly adopted by Europe while the Society of Automotive Engineers standards are mainly adopted by North America and Japan. GuoBiao is a national standard adopted by the Mainland. We will closely monitor the situation of the local EV supply and the development of international EV standards to determine whether and, if suitable, how to adopt unified EV charging standard.

(8) PGTF aims to subsidize the trials of green innovative transport

technologies locally, which stand a good chance of coping with the local operational requirements and could be adopted by the relevant transport sectors for wider use upon successful trials, but not the research and development ("R&D") of e-CVs. On the R&D of e-CVs, EV R&D projects funded by Automotive Parts and Accessory Systems R&D Centre under "Innovation and Technology Support Programme" of "Innovation and Technology Fund" ("ITF") could receive a cash rebate equivalent to 70% of its expenditure in project. Also, "Public Sector Trial Scheme" of ITF provides funding support for production of prototypes/samples and conducting of trial schemes in the public sector to facilitate and promote the realization and commercialization of R&D results under ITF projects.

(9) To further encourage the transport sectors to try out green innovative

transport technologies and the wider use of those green innovative transport technologies that have been proved to be relatively mature and suitable for adoption locally, the Government has announced in the 2018 Policy Address that PGTF will be reviewed. EPD is conducting the review along the following directions:

(i) Whilst the current conditions for approving subsidy for PGTF

trials (i.e. trials of technologies that stand a good chance of coping with the local operational requirements and could be adopted by the relevant transport sectors for wider use upon


successful trial) should be retained, we would review if improvements could be made in various areas such as extending the subsidy scope(1) to vehicle types which has not been included currently (including electric commercial private cars and electric commercial private buses), applicants' eligibility, time required to approve applications, subsidy levels, limits on the number of applications for each type of technologies and conditions for receiving the subsidy, including testing time of related technologies.

(ii) The review should also explore means to encourage wider use

of technologies that have been proved by the trials, e.g. e-CVs, to be relatively mature and suitable for adoption locally, e.g. whether subsidy should be provided to the trades for procuring the products for use and not for trial. We also need to map out the specifications and criteria for implementation.

As for part (iv) of the question on non-franchised bus ("NFB")

services (including tourist coach services mentioned by the Honorable Member), under the Road Traffic Ordinance (Cap. 374) and its subsidiary legislation, operators must hold valid passenger service licences ("PSLs") and passenger service licence certificates, while NFBs should also obtain appropriate service endorsements in order to operate relevant services. In approving the applications for PSLs, the Transport Department ("TD") mainly takes into account factors such as the need for the services to be provided by the applicant, the level of services already or planned by other public transport operators, traffic conditions in the areas and on the roads where the services are to be provided, and the standard of service to be provided by the applicant. Operators are free to choose the appropriate vehicle types (such as electric buses, hybrid buses or conventional diesel buses) having regard to their operational needs. As at the end of 2018, 10 electric NFBs were registered. TD will continue to maintain close communication with the trade with a view to providing appropriate assistance.

(1) The vehicle types in the current subsidy scope of the PGTF include taxis, public light

buses, franchised buses, non-franchised public buses and goods vehicles.


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(10) According to Education Bureau, post-secondary institutions enjoy academic freedom and have a high degree of autonomy in curriculum development. At the same time, in addition to ensuring the quality and academic standards of the programmes offered, the institutions should also ensure that the curriculums meet the needs of society. To this end, institutions regularly liaise with relevant stakeholders to keep track of the latest manpower trend and industry needs.

Regarding the University Grants Committee ("UGC")-funded

universities, there are about 8 000 students who are enrolled in the UGC-funded undergraduate programmes related to the design, research and maintenance of electric vehicles in the 2017-2018 academic year ("AY"). The academic programme categories of such programmes include "chemical engineering & materials techniques", "electrical & electronic engineering (including computer engineering)", "manufacturing & industrial engineering", "mechanical engineering" and "other engineering".

In the 2017-2018 AY, about 230 students of the Vocational Training

Council ("VTC") were enrolled in full-time or part-time training courses relating to hybrid vehicles and EV. The programmes include Higher Diploma in Automotive Engineering and a series of in-service training courses concerning the automobile industry. The Diploma of Vocational Education ("DVE") (Automotive Technology) Programme run by VTC also introduced a new module on new energy vehicles in the 2017-2018 AY. In the 2018-2019 AY, about 900 full-time and part-time students have enrolled in the DVE and Certificate in Vocational Education programmes in automotive technology.

The Pro-Act (Automobile) under VTC provides part-time evening

programmes for training EV mechanics. Since the 2015-2016 AY, about 280 in-service training places have been provided for the vehicle servicing trade. Relevant contents are also included in the Higher Diploma in Automotive Engineering Programme offered by the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education. VTC also encourages EV suppliers to share maintenance information related to the vehicle servicing trade in order to ensure that their programme contents can meet the industry's needs.


EPD has all along been communicating and cooperating with VTC on vehicle repair and maintenance courses, and will continue such work.

(11) According to TD, given that e-PCs currently account for only about

2% of the total number of registered PCs, and that charging facilities furnished at government car parks are supplementary in nature, parking spaces with charging facilities will not be designated for the exclusive use of EVs on the principles of taking full advantage of parking space resources and according equal treatment to users of EVs and non-EVs. Nevertheless, having regard to the utilization of government car parks, the contractors engaged by TD or the Government Property Agency ("GPA") will reserve parking spaces with charging facilities for priority EV charging by arranging for traffic cones to be placed and notices to be displayed at such spaces whenever practicable during non-peak hours. In addition, the Government plans to install new public chargers (all are medium chargers) at car parks under TD and GPA which are open for public use. The new chargers will be located at high levels of the car parks as far as possible to increase the chance of using them by EVs.

(12) To support the development of Smart City, the Government plans to

set up a smart system for the Government's public EV charging network. The features will include instant electronic information on the status of chargers, payment system and management facilities for parking spaces equipped with chargers. We will also explore the feasibility of including other features, such as enabling reservation of parking space equipped with chargers. EPD is now installing equipment on public chargers in some Government car parks to test the real-time electronic information on the use of 100 chargers for public information through the Government Electronic Platform. The trial will be completed by the end of this year.

(13) The Government always welcomes the trade to introduce

commercial electric vehicles that are suitable for use in Hong Kong. Currently, 83 models of electric vehicles have been approved for registration and use in Hong Kong, among which 25 are commercial vehicles, including light goods vehicles, light buses, buses and taxis of brands from Europe, Japan and the Mainland China.


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To safeguard the structural and operational safety of roads, TD would, as stipulated in the Road Traffic (Construction and Maintenance of Vehicles) Regulations (Cap. 374A), limit the maximum gross weights for various classes of vehicles, having regard to the road design and road environment in Hong Kong, with no differentiation between electric vehicles and nonelectric vehicles. Since relaxation of the maximum gross weights of vehicles involves such considerations as structural and operational safety of roads, the Government would need to handle the matter with great caution. Currently, the Government has no plan to fully relax the relevant statutory requirement. In case any particular road users would need to use overweight vehicles due to exceptional circumstances, TD may give special consideration and grant exemption on a case-by-case basis provided that the safety of other road users and the road structure would not be compromised.

(14) Waste EV batteries have to be properly handled under the Waste

Disposal Ordinance. Most EV manufacturers or agents currently have engaged licensed collectors to collect/handle their waste EV batteries. After proper preliminary treatment, these waste EV batteries are exported to appropriate treatment facilities in Japan, Korea or Belgium for proper handling and/or recycling. Although the age of most EVs in Hong Kong remains low and the number of retired EV batteries remains small at this stage, as EVs will become more popular in the future, we are exploring with EV suppliers the issues of proper collection and handling of waste EV batteries so as to enhance protection of the environment.

(15) The effectiveness of our policies on promoting the use of e-CVs

depends very much on the maturity of e-CV technologies, their prices and suitability for use in Hong Kong (including their ability to suit the modus operandi of local transport sectors), etc. In order to find e-CVs that have been tested to meet local operational needs, the Government has been subsidizing local trials of green innovative transport technologies, including EVs, that stand a good chance of coping with the local operational requirements and could be adopted by the relevant transport sectors for wider use upon successful trials through PGTF, and fully subsidizing franchised bus companies to try out electric buses.


As at the end of December 2018, PGTF approved 140 trials, including 75 trials of e-CVs with a subsidy of some $90 million, covering various types of vehicles (a total of 106 vehicles including taxis, light buses, single-deck buses and goods vehicles). Results of the trials have shown that most of the e-CVs currently in the local market have limitations such as high production cost, limited service life, long charging time and/or low energy density of the batteries. Thus, the driving range and charging time of most e-CVs are yet to be able to fully cope with the operational needs of the local transport sectors. Besides, prices of e-CVs are generally not as competitive as their conventional counterparts. The trades also reflect that insufficient maintenance service support is quite common.

Nevertheless, results of the trials have also shown that compared

with other e-CVs, electric light goods vehicles ("e-LGVs") are more likely to gain popularity in Hong Kong and are suitable for operators who require relatively lower daily mileage and payload because batteries of these vehicles can be topped up outside operation hours. In order to promote the use of e-LGVs, we have organized experience sharing workshops for the transport sectors who are suitable to adopt this vehicle type.

We will continue to keep in view the development of e-CV

technology and encourage the transport sectors to make use of PGTF to try out other green innovative transport technologies and other suppliers to introduce more products to the local market. Since the results of PGTF trials have also shown successful examples, such as e-LGVs, that could meet the operational requirements of some transport sectors as evidenced by the willingness of more transport operators to try out e-LGVs under PGTF, as stated in the answer to question 9 above, the Government is reviewing PGTF on how to further encourage the transport sectors' wider use of those green innovative transport technologies, including EVs, that have been proved to be relatively mature and suitable for adoption locally.

As for franchised buses, there are currently about 6 100 franchised

buses in Hong Kong. About 95% of them are double-deckers and the remaining are single-deckers. Currently the technology of double-deck electric buses is still developing and there are very few


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models available in the international arena. Furthermore, their passenger carrying capacity and operational efficiency still cannot meet the operational needs in Hong Kong (including long daily service hours, high peak passenger loadings, the need to tackle hilly terrains as well as intense air-conditioning demand in hot and humid summer). We will keep in view the development in other places and introduce trials in due course. Besides, EPD is recently working with the two major franchised bus companies to preliminarily explore the feasibility of developing double-deck electric franchised buses suitable for local use.

Regarding the single-deck electric buses, the Government provided

$180 million to fully subsidize franchised bus companies to acquire 36 single-deck electric buses (including 28 battery-electric buses and eight supercapacitor buses) and their charging facilities for conducting two-year trials to test out their performance, reliability as well as economic feasibility in local conditions. At present, 26 battery-electric buses and four supercapacitor buses have commenced operations on a number of routes. The trial programme of single-deck electric buses is still in progress. Subject to the outcome of the trials, the Government will promote wider use of electric buses by the franchised bus companies, taking into account affordability of the companies and passengers.

Promoting mind sports 21. MR JAMES TO (in Chinese): President, mind sports, such as bridge, go, chess, draughts, Chinese chess and "Scrabble" (an English words creating game), refer to sports in which the contests between participants are mainly on intellectual ability. In recent years, mind sports have been in the ascendant around the world and some of those sports have been included as medal sports in the Asian Games. It is reported that Hong Kong players have attained great achievements in mind sports competitions in recent years. For instance, a Hong Kong player was crowned as the Blitz game World Champion at the World Amateur Chess Championship 2017; two Hong Kong players were among the world's top 10 finishers in the World Youth Championship of Scrabble last year, one of whom was even awarded the third place in the Under 16 Group. Regarding the promotion of mind sports, will the Government inform this Council:


(1) given that more and more young people have participated in various kinds of mind sports in recent years, and some of them who participated in international mind sports competitions on a self-financing basis achieved good results, whether the Government will:

(a) promote the popularization of mind sports in primary and

secondary schools, so as to boost students' intellectual ability and logical thinking,

(b) provide free of charge (i) training venues and (ii) venues for

holding territory-wide and international competitions, and (c) by making reference to the way it supports the Hong Kong

Inter-City Bridge Championships which is held annually, offer subsidies to (i) organizers of international mind sports competitions in Hong Kong and (ii) local players participating in such competitions;

if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(2) whether it has studied if the act of awarding cash awards or prizes to

winners of international mind sports competitions held in Hong Kong is in breach of the law; if it has studied and the outcome is in the affirmative, of the details, and whether it will amend the legislation to relieve the criminal liabilities of such an act?

SECRETARY FOR HOME AFFAIRS (in Chinese): President, there are many types of activities and competitions that are based on intellectual ability. Some of them have a long history, such as bridge, chess, go and Chinese chess, for which relevant organizations have been set up in Hong Kong many years ago to promote the respective activities and secured membership in local or international sports organizations, for instance, the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China ("SF&OC"), the International Olympic Committee ("IOC") or the relevant International Federation ("IF"). The Government has been committed to promoting the development of different types of sports through the Sports Subvention Scheme ("the Scheme") of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD"), which provides


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subvention to eligible "national sports associations" ("NSAs") and sports organizations to organize various sports activities. Since 2011-2012, subvented NSAs or organizations under the Scheme must fulfil six criteria, including that the organization must be a member of SF&OC and concurrently be affiliated to the relevant IF.(1) However, 26 organizations had long been subvented under the relevant subsidy scheme of the two former municipal councils in the past, and were therefore transitioned into the current Scheme. At present, there are four organizations in Hong Kong promoting activities based on intellectual ability that are subvented under the Scheme. Details are as follows:

(i) Bridge: the Hong Kong Contract Bridge Association is a member of SF&OC and is affiliated to the relevant IOC-recognized IF, therefore fulfilling the criteria to apply for subvention under the Scheme;

(ii) Chess: the Hong Kong Chess Federation is not a member of SF&OC

but had long been subvented under the relevant subsidy scheme of the two former municipal councils in the past, and was hence transitioned into the current Scheme and would continue to be subvented;

(1) Since 2011-2012, LCSD has required that sports organizations applying for the Scheme

must fulfil all of the following criteria: 1. it is a member of SF&OC; 2. it is affiliated to IF of the respective sports; 3. it is registered under the Companies Ordinance and has Articles of Association; 4. it is a non-profit-making sports organization; 5. it has been in operation and has organized sports programmes for at least three

years; and 6. the kind of sports it promotes is one of the sports/potential sports of the following

major games: Asian Games, Asian Winter Games, Asian Youth Games, Asian Indoor & Martial Arts Games, Asian Beach Games, Asian Para Games, Asian Youth Para Games, Olympic Games, Olympic Winter Games, Youth Olympic Games, Winter Youth Olympic Games, World Games, Paralympic Games and Paralympic Winter Games.


(iii) to (iv) Go and Chinese chess: the Hong Kong Go Association and the Hong

Kong Chinese Chess Association are members of SF&OC, but there are no IOC-recognized IFs on go and Chinese chess. Given that the two associations had long been subvented under the relevant subsidy scheme of the two former municipal councils in the past, they were transitioned into the current Scheme and would continue to be subvented.

At present, there are 84 NSAs and organizations subvented under the Scheme. The total subvented amount in 2018-2019 is around $320 million. New applications by organizations for the Scheme must fulfil the six criteria as stated above in Footnote 1.

My reply to the enquiries on activities based on intellectual ability is as follows:

(1) The Hong Kong Contract Bridge Association, the Hong Kong Chess

Federation, the Hong Kong Go Association and the Hong Kong Chinese Chess Association may apply for subvention under the Scheme to organize various activities, including promotional activities in schools, training and local events. They may also reserve venues for activities subvented under the Scheme and enjoy rental subsidy in accordance with LCSD's booking procedures for recreational and sports facilities, and apply for funding support from the Arts and Sport Development Fund (Sports Portion) to organize international events in Hong Kong.

(2) Generally speaking, awarding cash awards or prizes to winners in an

international event organized by the above mentioned four NSAs or federation would not constitute an illegal act. However, whether or not the relevant act is in breach of the laws of Hong Kong depends on the specific circumstances of each case.

Hong Kong's participation in the affairs of international organizations 22. MR KENNETH LEUNG (in Chinese): President, it has been reported that the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership ("CPTPP") collectively signed by 11 countries formally took effect in


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December last year, marking the birth of a new economic circle accounting for 13% of the global gross domestic product and having a population of over 500 million as well as the world's third largest free trade area. On the other hand, Article 151 of the Basic Law provides that "[t]he Hong Kong Special Administrative Region may on its own, using the name 'Hong Kong, China', maintain and develop relations and conclude and implement agreements with foreign states and regions and relevant international organizations in the appropriate fields, including the economic, trade, financial and monetary, shipping, communications, tourism, cultural and sports fields". Regarding Hong Kong's participation in the affairs of international organizations, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the decision-making mechanism concerning Hong Kong's

participation in the affairs of international organizations and entering into agreements on regional cooperation, and whether the Government will discuss the relevant issues with the Central People's Government or its departments concerned; if so, of the details;

(2) whether it has conducted studies on Hong Kong's accession to

CPTPP; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and (3) as it has been reported that quite a number of countries around the

Pacific Rim are going through the procedures for accession to CPTPP, whether it has assessed, under the circumstances that Hong Kong has yet to accede to CPTPP, the impact of those countries' accession to CPTPP on Hong Kong's economic and trade competiveness in the coming three years; if so, of the outcome; if not, the reasons for that?

SECRETARY FOR COMMERCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (in Chinese): President, in accordance with Articles 116 and 151 of the Basic Law, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region ("HKSAR"), as a separate customs territory, may, using the name "Hong Kong, China", participate in relevant international organizations, and sign and implement free trade agreements ("FTAs") with its trading partners.


Making full use of its unique status conferred by the Basic Law and the principle of "one country, two systems", Hong Kong has all along participated in international organizations such as the World Trade Organization ("WTO") and Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation as a full and separate member under the name "Hong Kong, China", and has negotiated and signed FTAs on its own with its trading partners, with a view to pursuing deeper economic integration with different parts of the world. Hong Kong enjoys "a high degree of autonomy" in our participation in external trade and economic matters. This exemplifies the successful implementation of the "one country, two systems". With globalization of the world economy, it has become a major trend for trading partners to enter into FTAs and regional economic cooperation arrangements. As an ardent advocate of free trade, Hong Kong welcomes any initiatives that promote free trade. Our replies to the three parts of the question are as follows:

(1) In selecting and determining our target FTA partners and their relative priorities, we take into account the unique characteristics of Hong Kong's economy and devise a strategy that is in the best interest of Hong Kong, including through the signing of FTAs with economies that have strong economic and trade connections with Hong Kong, markets with development potential or at strategic locations, as well as like-minded trading partners, with a view to expanding our global economic and trade network. Once the priority targets are identified, the Government will explore with the concerned economies the possibility of an FTA initiative and ascertain whether the two sides would like to strengthen bilateral economic ties through an FTA.

So far, Hong Kong has reached agreement on 9 FTAs with 21

economies, i.e. Mainland China, New Zealand, the 4 member states of the European Free Trade Association,(1) Chile, Macao, the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ("ASEAN"),(2) Georgia, Maldives and Australia.

(1) The European Free Trade Association comprises Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway and

Switzerland. (2) The member states of ASEAN are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos,

Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.


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In the Policy Address announced in October 2018, the Chief Executive set out the Government's priorities in signing FTAs in future. Hong Kong is exploring an FTA with the Pacific Alliance(3) and plans to seek accession to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership ("RCEP")(4) after its negotiations have been completed. We are also exploring with the United Kingdom options for furthering our economic ties, including the possibility of an FTA in future.

The four members of the Pacific Alliance, namely Chile, Columbia,

Mexico and Peru, account for nearly 40% of the gross domestic product ("GDP") of Latin America. They are also Hong Kong's major trading partners in that part of the world. Signing an FTA with the Pacific Alliance will help deepen our economic and trade cooperation with Latin America and bring new opportunities to Hong Kong businesses.

All the 16 RCEP participating economies are Hong Kong's important

trading partners. Their combined GDP represents nearly one third of the world's total. In 2018, Hong Kong's total trade with RCEP economies was US$836.9 billion, accounting for 74% of our total trade. Joining RCEP will enable Hong Kong's entry into the largest FTA in the Pan-Asia region and help strengthen Hong Kong's role as a trading and investment hub in the region.

The United Kingdom and Hong Kong have deep and long economic

and trade relations. With the launch of the Strategic Dialogue on Trade Partnership, Hong Kong and the United Kingdom are exploring the possibility of signing a bilateral FTA after Brexit which will be vital to consolidating and further promoting bilateral trade relations.

We are making every effort to follow up on the various new FTA

initiatives set out in the Policy Address mentioned above.

(3) Pacific Alliance comprises Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru. (4) RCEP participating economies are the 10 Member States of ASEAN and its 6 FTA

partners, i.e. Australia, Mainland China, India, Japan, Korea and New Zealand.


(2) As a staunch supporter of free trade, Hong Kong supports the removal of trade barriers and measures that promote free trade. We have all along been monitoring the bilateral and plurilateral FTA negotiations of other economies, including the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership ("CPTPP")(5) and the above mentioned RCEP.

The Government has all along been actively seeking to forge FTAs

with our trading partners and we have an open mind on accession to CPTPP. We note that, unlike WTO agreements and traditional FTAs, CPTPP has a very extensive coverage, including a number of policy areas beyond core trade issues. We will continue to assess the situation.

(3) Broadly speaking, the relaxation of trade restrictions among

members of CPTPP would improve the resources allocation efficiency in member economies, thereby improving their income and production capacity as well. This would in turn lead to strengthening of import demand in those economies and hence boosting worldwide trade flows as well as the global economy.

Such spill-over effect of CPTPP would benefit both member and

non-member economies. Given Hong Kong's close economic relationships with many of CPTPP members, and that we have reached agreement with many of them on FTAs, Hong Kong could potentially benefit from the more active regional economic and trade activities arising from CPTPP.

CPTPP entered into force for some of the member economies just

end of last year. The impact of CPTPP on the global and regional economy would depend on a complex array of factors, including the flexibility of the global supply chain and how businesses react to the new trade terms. Against the backdrop of today's dynamic and fast-evolving global trade and investment landscape, it would take time for the impact to surface.

(5) CPTPP participating economies are Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan,

Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam.


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GOVERNMENT BILL First Reading and Second Reading of Government Bill First Reading of Government Bill PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Government Bill: First Reading. APPROPRIATION BILL 2019 CLERK (in Cantonese): Appropriation Bill 2019. Bill read the First time and ordered to be set down for Second Reading pursuant to Rule 53(3) of the Rules of Procedure. Second Reading of Government Bill PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): Government Bill: Second Reading. APPROPRIATION BILL 2019 FINANCIAL SECRETARY (in Cantonese): President, Honourable Members and fellow citizens, good morning. I move that the Appropriation Bill 2019 be read a Second time. Introduction This is the second Budget of the current-term Government, my third since I became Financial Secretary. It has been prepared against the backdrop of profound changes in the global political and economic landscape, a complicated and volatile external environment and heightened uncertainties. As a small and totally open economy, Hong Kong has been susceptible to economic headwinds over the past few months, as evidenced by notable slackening growth and diminishing confidence of enterprises in the future outlook. Under such circumstances, it is all the more important for us to have a


sound judgement of the prevailing global political and economic landscape, and set the direction for Hong Kong's economic development with due regard to our own strengths. I will take this opportunity to share my views in the Budget. President, every cloud has a silver lining. Even though we are not out of the woods yet, we have every confidence in our future. Given the public and the business community's concerns about Hong Kong's economic outlook, I prepared this year's Budget along the direction of "supporting enterprises, safeguarding jobs, stabilizing the economy, strengthening livelihoods". In fact, to support the implementation of various measures, including those proposed in the Policy Address, I will provide new resources ready for use of about $150 billion in this Budget, with additional resources earmarked for various purposes. This demonstrates our determination to enhance public services, support enterprises, relieve people's burden and invest for the future. Resources will be allocated as appropriate to support these measures. I will provide details in the ensuing parts of my speech. Economic Situation in 2018 The global economy expanded throughout 2018, with stronger growth momentum during the first half of the year. The momentum was checked by brewing trade tensions and other unfavourable conditions in the second half of the year. Production and trading activities in Asia saw notable growth for most of last year, but significantly weakened towards year end. Affected by the external environment, Hong Kong's total exports of goods had an annual growth of 3.5% in real terms, but the growth in the fourth quarter decelerated, resulting in a slight year-on-year decrease of 0.2%. Exports of services also moderated in the latter half of the year, though an overall growth of 4.9% was recorded for 2018. Domestic demand remained largely stable, contributing favourably to the labour market with solid rises in wages and earnings underpinning consumption. Private consumption expenditure grew by 5.6% in real terms for the year, but slowed down through the year amid adjustments in asset prices and increasing external uncertainties. Although investment expenditure registered a growth of 2.2% in real terms for the year, a number of surveys have reflected the weakened business sentiment in Hong Kong recently.


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Under mounting external pressures, Hong Kong's economic growth moderated from 4.1% in the first half of 2018 to 2.1% in the second half of the year, with growth for the fourth quarter at a mere 1.3%, the lowest since the first quarter of 2016. Overall, Hong Kong's economy grew by 3% in 2018, at the lower end of the range projected in last year's Budget but still higher than the trend growth rate of 2.8% over the past decade. The labour market remained tight, with the unemployment rate remaining at 2.8%, the lowest level in more than 20 years. Total employment sustained growth and salaries increased continuously in real terms. As the economic growth had been above the trend growth for two consecutive years, the inflation rate rose slightly in 2018. Netting out the effects of the Government's one-off measures, the underlying inflation rate was 2.6%, up by 0.9% from 2017. Revised Estimates for 2018-2019 The 2018-2019 revised estimates on government revenue is $596.4 billion, lower than the original estimate by 1.3% or $8.1 billion. This is mainly due to lower-than-expected revenues from land premium and stamp duties, while revenues from profits tax and salaries tax are higher than the original estimate by $16.1 billion. Revenues from stamp duties and land premium have always been highly susceptible to market fluctuations and therefore volatile. The revenue from land premium is $115.9 billion, $5.1 billion less than the original estimate, mainly due to the unsuccessful tendering of two sites in the year. Stamp duty revenue is $80 billion, $20 billion less than the original estimate, attributed to smaller-than-expected trading volumes brought about by adjustments in the property and stock markets over the year. As for government expenditure, the revised estimate is $537.7 billion, 5.6% or $31.9 billion lower than the original estimate. This is mainly because the expenditures on certain policy initiatives and public works projects were lower than the original estimates. All in all, I forecast a surplus of $58.7 billion for 2018-2019. Fiscal reserves are expected to reach $1,161.6 billion by 31 March 2019.


The civil service establishment increased by 6 700 posts in this financial year, representing a growth of 3.7%, higher than the average growth of 1% to 2% over the past decade. One of the main reasons is the additional manpower requirements arising from the commissioning of several boundary control points. Economic Prospects for 2019 and Medium-term Outlook Looking ahead for 2019, the global economy, beset with considerable uncertainties and downward pressures, has abruptly turned from synchronized robust growth early last year to the current synchronized slowdown. Market sentiment has become increasingly cautious. The International Monetary Fund ("IMF") lowered its global economic growth forecast for 2019 twice in the past five months, from 3.9% down to 3.5%, an indication that the slowdown risks should not be ignored. The United States economy was affected by an array of factors, such as the escalated trade conflict since the fourth quarter of last year and the normalization of interest rates, leading to heightened financial market volatility. Economic growth is expected to slow down in 2019. The Brexit deadlock and the lingering risk of a hard Brexit have cast a dim light on the economic performance of the United Kingdom post-Brexit. The Eurozone economy has also slackened, with year-on-year growth of only 1.2% in the fourth quarter of last year and a further weakening in both economic activities and confidence indicators in recent months. In Asia, Japan's economy markedly weakened in the second half of 2018 due to natural disasters and slackened external demand, with a year-on-year growth close to zero. The growth for this year is forecast to be somewhat slow. Meanwhile, Singapore, Taiwan and Korea also saw slower growth momentum. We anticipate that the growth in these high-income economies will remain modest this year. As for India and emerging economies in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ("ASEAN"), although their exports may be constrained by external factors, domestic demand will remain steady and sustain growth in 2019. The Mainland economy is also slowing down. A 6.4% growth was recorded in the fourth quarter of last year, with the annual growth rate reducing to 6.6%, close to the full-year growth target of around 6.5%. This year, export growth may further slacken due to external uncertainties. That said, the


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Mainland has become less dependent on exports in recent years. This, coupled with a host of stimulus measures rolled out by the authorities recently, will help ensure solid economic growth. As regards interest rates, the Federal Reserve stated after its Open Market Committee meeting in January this year that it "would be patient" in determining future rate adjustments, while pointing out that subsequent rate moves would depend on economic data. Market expectations of interest rates may vary with the economic environment, resulting in greater fluctuations in the financial markets. In fact, these uncertainties have greatly affected investors' risk appetite. The stock markets in the United States, the Mainland and Hong Kong dropped significantly within a short time in the past year. The prices of investment products also saw marked fluctuations. The uncertain global economic outlook this year will restrain Hong Kong's economic performance. Having regard to the latest internal and external developments, I will make optimal use of the fiscal surplus for 2018-2019 to introduce one-off measures to support enterprises and relieve people's burden. Together with the stimulus effect of other measures in the Budget, I forecast economic growth of 2% to 3% in real terms for Hong Kong in 2019. However, should the external headwinds deteriorate, especially if the United States-China trade conflict escalates, global trade, investment and financial markets will be subject to greater shocks. This will not only affect our exports and asset markets, but also dampen local investments and private consumption. On the contrary, improving the United States-China trade relations will help eliminate external uncertainties and may drive better-than-forecast growth for Hong Kong's economy. On inflation, the moderate economic growth forecast for this year may reduce the pressure on local costs. Pressure on local rentals eased recently and may also contribute to a lower headline inflation rate. Imported inflation may also be moderated along with the strengthening of the US dollar. Taking various factors into account, I forecast that the headline inflation rate and the underlying inflation rate for 2019 will both be 2.5%.


For the medium term, the average growth rate is forecast to be 3% per annum in real terms from 2020 to 2023, slightly higher than the trend growth of 2.8% over the past decade, while the underlying inflation rate is expected to average 2.5% per annum. The above medium-term forecast is made on the assumption that there are no severe external shocks during the period. However, the external environment is still impeded by headwinds. If these headwinds persist in 2020 or beyond or even aggravate, global economic growth will be hindered, and Hong Kong's economy will in turn be affected. We have to stay vigilant. Global Political and Economic Landscape President, in last year's Budget, I mentioned three major global trends, namely rising trade protectionism, unstoppable wave of innovation and technology ("I&T"), and the shift of world economic gravity from West to East. The changes over the past year have unveiled a new situation, new landscape, and new norm of global politics and economics. We must analyse and study these to identify the positioning and future direction of Hong Kong when considering the way forward for our economic and social development. The United States-China Relations First, the United States-China trade conflict over the past year has revealed the underlying differences between the two sides, which include technology matters as well as other more deep-seated considerations. While it would be encouraging if the trade issue could be resolved to some extent, their deep-rooted differences may remain. The fluctuating United States-China relations may turn the global economy volatile for some time. Furthermore, trade conflicts will undermine multilateralism and the free trade regime, with far-reaching implications on the global governance system and international order. The future global industry setting will also be changed by the new trade regime and relationship. International Co-operation Second, the rise of nativism and populism in various countries has brought changes to their political scene, affecting their foreign and economic policies. Such development undermines the growth of multilateral free trade and affects international trade flows.


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The financial tsunami in 2008 was the most severe economic crisis since the Great Depression in the 1930s. Thanks to concerted global effort, the world successfully averted catastrophic consequences, and the global economy gradually resumed growth. However, the growth of the major advanced economies have not yet returned to the levels before the financial tsunami, and still need to rely on ultra-low interest rates or unconventional monetary policies. Given that the interest rates remain very low, there would be little room for introducing rescue measures if a major economic or financial crisis were to happen again. More importantly, the rise of nativism nowadays may make an international concerted effort and a swift response more difficult. Developing Asia Third, emerging Asian economies (including ASEAN and India) have huge growth potential and present us with enormous business opportunities. With an average annual growth of 6.3% over the past five years, they contribute about a quarter of global economic growth. Moreover, IMF forecasts that emerging Asian economies (excluding the Mainland) will still attain a growth rate of over 6% in 2019 and 2020. In the past, the economic development of Asia was primarily based on the model of "production in Asia and consumption in Europe and the United States". With the emergence of a larger and richer middle class in Asia, it will not only lead to "production in Asia and consumption in Asia", but also result in a growing demand for European and the United States consumer products from Asia in the future. In addition, due to the United States-China trade conflict and the rise of protectionism, some emerging Asian economies will benefit from the changing pattern of the global supply chain. Hong Kong must ride on these new developments, leveraging our strengths as the supply chain management centre and trade centre in Asia. National Development Fourth, China's 40 years of reform and opening up has not only transformed its economy and society, but also made it the second largest economy in the world and the main engine of global economic growth. This is a remarkable achievement. Since the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Mainland has been steering its economy from rapid growth to high-quality development. The Mainland is seeking to change its mode of


development, optimize its economic structure and identify new growth engines. We should pay particular attention to the following areas in which our nation is pushing ahead in full steam: (a) intensifying supply-side structural reform, accelerating the

development of advanced manufacturing, and promoting deeper integration of the Internet, big data and artificial intelligence with the real economy;

(b) using innovation to foster economic development, with emphasis on

scientific research and technology application; (c) building a strong domestic market with domestic consumption

remains the main engine of economic growth; (d) implementing the Greater Bay Area development and the Belt and

Road Initiative; and (e) pursuing further reforms and opening up to stabilize foreign

businesses and investments; and promoting the new direction of two-way opening up with equal emphasis on "going global" and "attracting foreign investment" to boost two-way investment and trade flows between China and other countries.

As seen from the above, although the Mainland is facing a complicated external environment and its economic development is encountering challenges, we should focus on the long-term trend and recognize that our country is at an era of the strategic opportunities which offers promising development prospects in the long run. Development of Innovation and Technology Fifth, the rapid development of I&T is ushering in a new era. Not only does it reshape production and business models, but also brings significant changes to our daily lives and consumption. For example, artificial intelligence may bring significant breakthroughs in advanced areas such as health care. However, some of our jobs may be replaced, causing a blow to the labour market. While we benefit from the convenience and opportunities brought by the rapid


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development of I&T, we should be well-prepared for the change by making corresponding adjustments in areas such as development of industries, education and vocational training. Direction of Hong Kong's Economic Development President, while we are amidst a new situation, new landscape and new norm of global politics and economies, we should maintain a clear and flexible mind, identifying the unique positioning of Hong Kong, grasping the opportunities, leveraging on and giving full play to our strengths. Developing a Diversified Economy Our economic development relies heavily on service industries. In particular, financial services, tourism, trading and logistics, and professional and business support services are the pillars of our economy and employment, collectively accounting for over 57% of our GDP in 2017. These service industries share one thing in common, that is, they are highly susceptible to changes in the external economy. Any economic downturn in the major markets will deal a direct blow to these service industries and hence Hong Kong's economic outlook. As such, I believe Hong Kong should endeavour to diversify its economy. Apart from strengthening the industries currently enjoying competitive edges, we should identify new areas of growth by vigorously developing emerging industries. This will not only broaden the foundation of our economy, but also provide a wider range of quality employment opportunities for our young people to unleash their potential. Owing to the lack of natural resources and high land and production costs, it is difficult for Hong Kong to revert to labour-intensive production industries or pursue land-demanding economic activities. We should therefore develop "talent-intensive" industries and focus on high value-added activities. A holistic strategy is needed for the development of industries. We must recognize our positioning, strengths and weaknesses, and leverage Hong Kong's edges by utilizing resources and policy measures. I will illustrate this by elaborating on two major areas, namely financial services and I&T.


Financial Services Industry Hong Kong is the third largest financial centre in the world, ranked high in areas such as stock market, asset management and banking. We have a stable and flexible capital market with ample liquidity, free flow of capital, commodities and information, a wealth of talent, a sound legal system and an independent judiciary. These are the key attributes underpinning our success. However, to cope with the increasing competition, we have set out a clear vision and blueprint for boosting the development of Hong Kong's financial services industry. Apart from deepening and widening our financial markets, we need to further strengthen Hong Kong's role as a bridge linking the Mainland with the international market. We should not only seize the opportunities brought by the Greater Bay Area development and the Belt and Road Initiative, but should also eye on the world, particularly the Asian regions with potential for development. Moreover, we have to enhance the resilience of our financial system, further improve our regulatory regime to strengthen financial security, and increase investor confidence and protection. We have been introducing reforms in various areas and made considerable progress. Aside from consolidating our strengths, we have developed new competitive edges to further enhance the overall competitiveness of our financial services sector. Stock and Bond Markets Hong Kong's capital markets are thriving. To enhance our attractiveness to the new economy sector, the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong launched a new listing regime last April, under which emerging and innovative enterprises with weighted voting rights structure, as well as pre-revenue or pre-profit biotechnology companies, are allowed to list in Hong Kong. By end 2018, seven enterprises had listed in Hong Kong under the new regime. Last year, we raised a total of $286.5 billion through initial public offerings, the highest in the world for the sixth time over the past decade. The Government has introduced a host of measures to promote the development of Hong Kong's bond market. These include launching the Pilot Bond Grant Scheme to encourage enterprises to issue bonds in Hong Kong, as well as offering tax concessions to attract more investors to our bond market.


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To improve the quality of listed companies, legislation was enacted in January this year to expand the remit of the Financial Reporting Council ("FRC"), enhance the independence of the regime for auditors of listed entities and strengthen investor protection. I have decided to increase the amount of seed capital for FRC to $400 million to help it migrate to the new regime, and exempt the levy under the new regime for the first two years. Green Finance There is now a global shift towards sustainable development. To promote the development of green finance in Hong Kong and diversification of related products, the Government rolled out the Green Bond Grant Scheme last year to attract organizations to arrange financing for their green projects through our capital markets and encourage them to make use of the green finance certification services in Hong Kong. We are glad to see that many local, Mainland and even international organizations, such as the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the European Investment Bank, have chosen to issue green bonds in Hong Kong. Last year, green bonds issued in Hong Kong amounted to some US$11 billion, more than triple that of 2017. Besides, we are gearing up for the inaugural issuance of government green bonds and will encourage the relevant sectors to incorporate green elements into corporate governance and operation in a more effective manner. Offshore Renminbi Business Hong Kong is a global offshore Renminbi ("RMB") business hub and the world's largest offshore RMB liquidity pool, processing more than 70% of RMB transactions globally. We are also one of the busiest RMB foreign exchange trading centres. With the advantages of well-established market system and financial infrastructure, close ties with the Mainland market and the support of the Central Government, Hong Kong is set to become a premier platform for international investors to access the Mainland market and allocate RMB assets. In collaboration with the industry and the Mainland authorities, we will continue to explore expansion of the channels for two-way flow of cross-boundary RMB funds. This will give us further room for excelling our distinct role in the Mainland's gradual liberalization of the capital account, internationalization of RMB and integration with global financial markets. We will continue to contribute to our country in opening up its financial market in an orderly manner.


Mutual Market Access Apart from developing Hong Kong's capital markets, we have also been actively promoting mutual access with the Mainland. This will not only benefit our financial services industry, but also contribute to the two-way opening-up of the Mainland market to the world. The Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect, the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect, the Bond Connect as well as the Mutual Recognition of Funds Arrangement are important milestones of mutual access between the capital markets of Hong Kong and the Mainland. We will continue our efforts to increase the quotas for and expand the scope of mutual access as well as extend the Bond Connect to cover southbound trading. The weighting of China A-shares in various international indices has been increasing since its inclusion into MSCI, FTSE Russell, etc. in 2018. Rising international investment inflows into the Mainland's capital markets will help enhance Hong Kong's role as an offshore intermediary risk management centre for the Mainland's capital markets, thereby promoting the development of more financial products and services. Wealth and Asset Management Industry Hong Kong has an unparalleled edge in developing asset management business. We are one of the leading international wealth and asset management centres in Asia. In 2017, the total value of asset managed by Hong Kong's asset management industry amounted to over $24 trillion. Over 2 200 public funds were approved for distribution in Hong Kong last year. The Greater Bay Area development will bring enormous business opportunities for Hong Kong. In recent years, private equity funds are developing rapidly in the global market, drawing in the capital, talent and expertise necessary for the business development of a large number of business entities, technology companies and start-ups, while driving demand for related professional services such as management, accounting and law. The related economic activities brought by the operation of private equity funds also create business opportunities in the service industry, in particular conference and exhibition, hotel, and tourism. Following the implementation of the open-ended fund company regime in July 2018, we are now studying the establishment of a limited partnership regime for private equity funds, with a view to providing the industry with more fund


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structure choices. We will also study the case of introducing a more competitive tax arrangement to attract private equity funds to set up and operate in Hong Kong. Starting from 1 April this year, different types of onshore and offshore funds meeting certain conditions will be eligible for profits tax exemption. As regards fund distribution channels, following the agreements with the Mainland, Switzerland, France, the United Kingdom and Luxembourg, we will continue our work on mutual recognition of funds arrangements with other jurisdictions to broaden the distribution network of local fund products. A Hub for Regional Headquarters Having more enterprises outside Hong Kong to establish their regional headquarters here will help consolidate Hong Kong's status as an international financial centre and expand the size of our treasury market. Last year, the total number of companies with regional headquarters in Hong Kong increased to over 1 500, representing a year-on-year growth of over 8%. Besides, more and more Mainland enterprises have chosen Hong Kong as the platform for their businesses to go global. Given that many multinational corporations co-locate their corporate treasury centres ("CTCs") with their regional headquarters, we have been offering tax concessions to qualifying CTCs since 2016. The Government will continue to enhance the relevant tax measures to strengthen our competitiveness. Insurance Industry Hong Kong's insurance industry is well-developed and is an integral part of our diversified financial businesses. We are committed to promoting Hong Kong's role as an international risk management centre and helping the industry seize the business opportunities brought by the Greater Bay Area development and the Belt and Road Initiative. In fact, businesses such as captive insurance, reinsurance and marine insurance have considerable development potentials in Hong Kong. To promote their development, we have introduced relevant taxation and regulatory measures. For example, last year we amended the legislation to extend the 50% tax concession for captive insurance companies' businesses to cover both offshore


and onshore risks, with a view to drawing more enterprises to set up captive insurance companies in Hong Kong. Moreover, the Government will propose legislative amendments to provide tax concessions for marine insurance and the underwriting of specialty risks, and allow for the formation of special purpose vehicle companies specifically for issuing insurance-linked securities. We will continue to look into measures that are conducive to the development of the industry. Financial Technologies There are currently over 550 financial technologies ("Fintech") companies in Hong Kong with wide business coverage. We have been keeping up our efforts to provide a conducive environment for Mainland and overseas Fintech companies and attract them to Hong Kong. Last year saw significant progress in the application of Fintech. The Faster Payment System ("FPS") and the Common QR Code Standard for Retail Payments launched by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority ("HKMA") in September 2018 has received overwhelming response. The Government is planning for the use of FPS to provide the public with greater convenience in paying taxes, rates and water charges. The Transport Department, the Immigration Department and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department ("LCSD") will examine the feasibility of accepting payments through FPS at their shroff counters on a pilot basis. HKMA will shortly issue virtual banking licences. Banks will also implement the Open Application Programming Interface functions in phases. These will bring more innovative banking services to the public. The Insurance Authority ("IA") also approved the first authorization of virtual insurers last December, marking a new chapter for insurance technology development in Hong Kong. On the regulatory front, the Securities and Futures Commission ("SFC") announced a new regulatory approach for virtual assets in November 2018 with a view to exploring ways for encouraging market innovation while protecting investors. Moreover, HKMA and SFC are making use of the Global Financial Innovation Network to share with other regulators the experience and knowledge in relation to the supervision of Fintech applications.


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Talent Training In last year's Budget, I announced the establishment of the Academy of Finance, which will serve to pool the strengths of tertiary institutions, the financial services sector, professional training bodies and regulators so as to attain two major goals, namely nurturing financial leadership and encouraging applied research in cross-sectoral areas. HKMA is taking the plan forward in full swing, with a view to establishing the Academy in mid-2019. Apart from grooming local talent, we also encourage financial talent from outside to pursue their careers in Hong Kong through various talent admission schemes. Innovation and Technology President, next is the I&T industry. The development of I&T will bring huge economic benefits to Hong Kong. The intellectual property so generated can be commercialized to drive ancillary economic activities, thus creating quality employment opportunities and enabling people to live comfortably by adopting new technology. The current-term Government spares no effort in promoting I&T development, focusing on four areas, namely biotechnology, artificial intelligence, smart city and Fintech. I have allocated sufficient resources, with a commitment of over $100 billion so far. To develop I&T, we need a robust ecosystem and the Government aims to establish through various I&T policy initiatives. We have stepped up support for the scientific research and I&T sectors by developing I&T infrastructure, promoting research and development ("R&D"), pooling talent, supporting enterprises and promoting re-industrialization. All these efforts have brought significant enhancements to the local I&T ecosystem. Developing Innovation and Technology Infrastructure I will first talk about developing I&T infrastructure. "One cannot make bricks without straw". We need quality infrastructure to attract I&T talent, and facilitate the operation of I&T enterprises. In last year's Budget, I allocated $3 billion to the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation


("HKSTPC") for constructing R&D infrastructure and facilities such as laboratories. The construction of some facilities has commenced and they will gradually come into operation. Meanwhile, Stage 1 of the Science Park Expansion Programme is also underway. It will provide an additional floor area of around 74 000 sq m upon its scheduled completion this year. HKSTPC is also working in full swing to develop a Data Technology Hub and an Advanced Manufacturing Centre in Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate to support and promote smart production activities and high-end manufacturing industries which have great demand for data services. The two projects are expected to be completed in 2020 and 2022 respectively. Meanwhile, Cyberport has built a digital technology ecosystem with over 1 200 companies and start-ups, and nurtured over 500 start-ups after years of growth. I will earmark $5.5 billion for the development of Cyberport 5. This will serve to attract more quality technology companies and start-ups to set up their offices in Cyberport and provide a pathway for young people to pursue a career in I&T. The expansion project is expected to provide about 66 000 sq m of floor area, and include facilities such as offices, co-working space, conference venues and data service platforms. We will proceed with the statutory town planning procedures with a view to commencing construction in 2021 for completion in 2024 at the earliest. The Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park at the Lok Ma Chau Loop will become the basecamp for I&T development in Hong Kong. In last year's Budget, I set aside $20 billion for the Park's first stage construction works, which is now in good progress. Our target is to make the first batch of land available by 2021 for Phase 1 superstructure development. The Park will provide essential infrastructure for the sustainable I&T development in Hong Kong. I will allocate additional resources to ensure timely development of the Park as a world-class R&D hub. Promoting Research and Development R&D is the foundation of the development of I&T. Hong Kong enjoys a unique edge in this area. To promote local R&D activities, we injected $10 billion into the Innovation and Technology Fund ("ITF") last year to support the continued operation of existing ITF funding schemes and introduce various


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new initiatives. Furthermore, the Policy Address announced the injection of $20 billion into the Research Endowment Fund of the Research Grants Council under the University Grants Committee ("UGC") to provide sufficient funding. The Government has provided funding of $10 billion to establish two innovative clusters in the Science Park, namely "Health@InnoHK" focusing on health care technologies and "AIR@InnoHK" focusing on artificial intelligence and robotics technologies. The two clusters give us an edge in pooling top-notch local, Mainland and overseas universities, scientific research institutions and enterprises to undertake R&D activities together. They can also seek research funding from ITF. A number of leading universities like Harvard University, Stanford University, Imperial College London, University College London and Johns Hopkins University have expressed interest in joining the two clusters and collaborating with local universities. In respect of applied R&D, funding for Technology Transfer Offices of designated universities, the Technology Start-up Support Scheme for Universities, State Key Laboratories and Hong Kong branches of the Chinese National Engineering Research Centre will be doubled to support more R&D work and the realization of R&D results. An additional sum of not less than $800 million will be provided over five years starting from 2019-2020. Technology enterprises are essential drivers of a technology-based economy. To encourage more enterprises to engage in R&D in Hong Kong, the Government has provided a two-tiered enhanced tax deduction for eligible R&D expenditure of enterprises incurred after 1 April 2018. Scientific exploration and academic research in universities lay the foundation for Hong Kong's I&T development. I will set aside a dedicated provision of $16 billion for UGC-funded universities to enhance or refurbish campus facilities, in particular the provision of additional facilities essential for R&D activities (such as laboratories), with a view to creating an optimal teaching and research environment for university students and R&D staff. I hope that universities will, in developing or enhancing hardware, give due and priority consideration to I&T needs to ensure that their teaching and research facilities can meet the objective of nurturing I&T talent.


Pooling Innovation and Technology Talent In the face of keen global competition for technology talent, we introduced the Technology Talent Admission Scheme in June last year to expedite the admission of such talent to undertake R&D activities in Hong Kong. Participating enterprises are required to employ local employees and interns concurrently. So far, over 200 places have been approved under the scheme. We will review the implementation details of the scheme in the first half of this year. The Researcher Programme has so far sponsored over 3 700 local graduates to join the I&T industry. The Postdoctoral Hub Programme launched last year has also sponsored over 350 postdoctoral talents to pursue a career in R&D. To attract more local graduates to the industry, we will increase, with immediate effect, the monthly allowance from $16,000 to $18,000 for researchers with a Bachelor's degree, and from $19,000 to $21,000 for researchers with a Master's degree. We will also extend the funding period of both the Researcher Programme and the Postdoctoral Hub Programme from two years to three years with immediate effect. This means R&D institutes or enterprises can hire relevant R&D talents for three years which give them ample time for demonstrating their professional strengths in R&D projects. Accommodation is an issue pertaining to the recruitment of researchers. HKSTPC is constructing an InnoCell, which will offer about 500 residential units with flexible design to tenants, incubatees or visiting researchers in the Science Park. This project is expected to be completed by 2021. To pave the way for nurturing local technology talents, we will also encourage the promotion of popular science education in schools. I will deploy $500 million to implement the IT Innovation Lab in Secondary Schools Programme in the coming three school years. Each secondary school benefiting will be granted $1 million to procure the necessary information technology ("IT") equipment and professional services, and organize more relevant extra-curricular activities to deepen students' knowledge of cutting-edge IT, such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing and big data, with a view to helping young people build a good IT foundation early during their secondary school years. In addition to financial support, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer ("OGCIO") will set up a one-stop professional support centre to provide assistance.


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Supporting Technology Enterprises Technology enterprises and start-ups in particular, are an integral component of the I&T ecosystem, with an important role in facilitating commercialization and application of R&D results as well as developing innovative ideas. In 2014, we launched the Technology Start-up Support Scheme for Universities, which has so far supported 188 start-ups established by university teams to venture beyond their campus. Some of the funded start-ups have secured investment exceeding $300 million. I will raise the maximum annual funding for each university from the existing $4 million to $8 million starting from 2019-2020 to better nurture university start-ups. Last year, I reserved $7 billion for HKSTPC to enhance support for its tenants and incubatees, with part of the funding dedicated to expand Incubation Programme. The programme has been well-received, with over 120 applications so far. Besides, the Corporate Venture Fund ("CVF"), launched by HKSTPC in 2015, co-invests on a matching basis with angel investors or venture capital funds in tenants and incubatees of the Science Park. CVF has already committed the entire fund of $50 million to invest in nine projects and acted as a catalyst in attracting more than $670 million from co-investors. Building on the success, HKSTPC will expand CVF to $200 million to support the growth of its tenants and incubatees. In last year's Budget, I injected $200 million into Cyberport to enhance the support for its tenants and start-ups. In this connection, Cyberport has increased the financial subsidy under its incubation programme to $500,000 and introduced the Overseas/Mainland Market Development Support Scheme to offer an additional subsidy of $200,000. Moreover, Cyberport launched the Easy Landing Scheme to attract multinational corporations to set up offices and R&D units in Cyberport through rental concessions. To encourage private investments in local I&T start-ups, the Government set up the $2 billion Innovation and Technology Venture Fund to co-invest in local I&T start-ups together with venture capital funds. We selected a total of six Co-investment Partners in mid-2018, and have been receiving co-investment proposals.


Promoting Re-industrialization The Policy Address proposed allocating an additional $2 billion for HKSTPC to build dedicated facilities required by the advanced manufacturing sector in industrial estates to facilitate more manufacturers to set up operations in Hong Kong. We plan to inject $2 billion into ITF for launching a Re-industrialization Funding Scheme to subsidize manufacturers on a matching basis to help them set up smart production lines in Hong Kong. These initiatives for developing real high-end production will help reduce our economy's over-reliance on service industries. The Innovation and Technology Bureau will seek funding approval from the Legislative Council as soon as possible, with a view to implementing these initiatives in the second half of this year. I visited five local R&D centres last year to see for myself their work on applied R&D. I am impressed with the immense potential Hong Kong has in pursuing the commercialization of R&D results and technology transfer in areas such as advanced materials, nanotechnology, microelectronics, etc. which can boost the development of industries and re-industrialization. The Committee on Innovation, Technology and Re-industrialization, which I chair, will explore appropriate measures for promoting the development in this regard. Other Supporting Measures The Government is striving to remove unnecessary constraints for I&T development and create more opportunities for the procurement of I&T products and services. We will introduce a pro-innovation government procurement policy this April so that innovative proposals stand a better chance of winning government contracts. The Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office has started reviewing existing laws which are outdated and impede I&T development. The Way Forward President, we are now in an excellent position to promote I&T development, and are presented with unprecedented opportunities arising from the Greater Bay Area development. From the perspective of regional development, with our strong R&D capabilities, world-class universities, advantages as an international and market-oriented economy and robust intellectual property protection regime, Hong Kong serves as an I&T pioneer in the region. On the other hand, with an sizeable market, the Greater Bay Area


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offers more co-operation opportunities for local I&T enterprises as well as capabilities in commercializing R&D results and advanced manufacturing. We can promote technological collaboration, interaction among industries and productization of scientific and technological achievements, thereby facilitating the development of the Greater Bay Area into an international I&T hub. Financial services and I&T aside, the Government will also roll out measures in other economic sectors to promote the development of industries. I will talk about these measures later. Expanding Market Coverage Hong Kong is a fully open economy. Diversification is the key to sustain our economic vibrancy. We also need to expand our market coverage to create more room for development. We have before us a rare opportunity arising from the two development strategies that our country is pressing ahead with, namely the Greater Bay Area development and the Belt and Road Initiative. Both strategies are at the core of the national development agenda, offering opportunities for us to contribute to our country's development and give full play to our strengths. Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area The Greater Bay Area development is an important part of the national strategy to promote co-ordinated regional development. This also creates golden opportunities for Hong Kong to explore new directions, open up new horizons, and add new impetus. With a population of 70 million and an aggregate GDP roughly the size of Korea, the Greater Bay Area presents us with enormous business opportunities in close proximity to us. The Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area ("Development Plan"), promulgated last week, is a milestone setting out the development directions for the Greater Bay Area up to 2035. The Development Plan identifies Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Macao as the four core cities as well as core engines for regional development. Hong Kong, positioned as international financial, transportation and trade centres as well as an international aviation hub in the Greater Bay Area, will strengthen its roles as a global offshore Renminbi business hub and an international asset and risk management centre; and will devote great efforts to develop I&T industries


as well as international legal and dispute resolution services. With all these advantages, we will seize the opportunity and make dedicated efforts to promote development in the Greater Bay Area to enhance its global competitiveness. Belt and Road The gradual development of the Belt and Road into an economic and trade co-operation corridor spanning Europe, Asia and Africa has resulted in strengthening ties between different regions along the route. This will create greater room for Hong Kong's economic and social development. We are seeing positive outcomes in areas such as supporting industries in exploring markets, establishing business matching platforms for enterprises and encouraging our professional services sector to participate in Belt and Road projects. Hong Kong has been serving as the premier platform for helping Mainland enterprises go global and bringing in foreign investment. Our well-developed fund-raising and insurance markets will enable us to serve as a financing and risk management centre for Belt and Road infrastructure projects. The Infrastructure Financing Facilitation Office under HKMA is committed to promoting infrastructure finance and information exchange. SFC has also set out the factors to be considered when reviewing listing applications of infrastructure companies, providing a clear guideline for them to seek listing in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is an international financial, trade, maritime and professional services centre. The Government will continue to encourage the Mainland and other Belt and Road economies to leverage on our strengths, including our professional services and talent. The Policy Address indicated support for the development of a dispute resolution online platform by non-governmental organizations ("NGOs") to enhance the development of LawTech in Hong Kong and consolidate Hong Kong's position as an international dispute resolution services centre. The NGO concerned is preparing for the development of a cross-boundary, efficient, secure and cost-effective platform for the provision of online arbitration and mediation, as well as smart contract and related services. I will provide $150 million to support the development and initial operation of the platform. The platform will benefit local micro-enterprises and small and medium enterprises ("SMEs"), as well as those in the Belt and Road economies, members of ASEAN and beyond, and facilitate deal making as well as dispute avoidance and resolution.


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The Government's Role The Government strives to expand our market coverage to create business opportunities for enterprises. In the past year, we continued to expand our Free Trade Agreement ("FTA") and Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement networks to provide protection for Hong Kong businesses to explore markets and invest in outside markets, and for foreign businesses to do the same in Hong Kong. Hong Kong has signed three FTAs with 12 economies since this term of Government took office. Our FTA negotiations with Australia and the Maldives were concluded last year. Our discussions with the United Kingdom on the proposals for closer economic ties are underway. We are exploring an FTA with the four members of the Pacific Alliance (namely Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru). We also plan to seek accession to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership after completion of negotiations between ASEAN and relevant economies. We have also been actively expanding our network of Comprehensive Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreements ("CDTAs") to enhance our business environment and draw in investment. Taking into account the CDTAs concluded with India and Finland last year, we have already signed CDTAs with 40 tax jurisdictions, of which 13 are among Hong Kong's major trading partners and are accounting for 73% of our total value of trade in 2017. Our target is to bring the total number of our CDTAs to 50 in the next few years. The Government is also committed to expanding its Economic and Trade Office ("ETO") network to strengthen external promotion, thereby exploring new business opportunities for Hong Kong enterprises. At present, the Government has two ETOs in ASEAN, one in Jakarta and the other in Singapore. With the establishment of the Bangkok ETO, we will forge stronger economic and trade ties with ASEAN. We are making good progress in our negotiations with the United Arab Emirates government to set up the Dubai ETO. We will also continue our discussion with the governments of India, Korea and Russia on the detailed arrangements for setting up ETOs in their territories. Building Capacity Looking ahead, we should be more proactive in diversifying the economy and extending market coverage so as to offer more opportunities for our young people. I believe capacity constraints are the obstacles hindering the


development of emerging industries and a diversified economy in Hong Kong. A large pool of talent with innovative capabilities will be required to develop such talent-intensive industries as I&T. Also, land will be required to support emerging economic activities. We will continue to introduce measures to overcome these obstacles and build capacity for the sustainable economic development of Hong Kong. I will elaborate on the Government's measures to develop other industries, produce land and build capacity later in my speech. Public Finances During the Budget consultation, many people told me that they are concerned about whether the Government will tighten its spending or launch stimulus measures amid the economic slowdown and uncertain outlook. I believe the Government should continue to allocate resources to improve and enhance public services. Hence, in formulating this year's Budget, I have adhered to the new fiscal philosophy of the current-term Government of adopting forward-looking and strategic financial management principles to invest for Hong Kong and relieve people's burden on the premise of ensuring healthy public finances. Since taking office, the current-term Government has launched a series of measures to improve people's livelihood. Operating expenditure for 2018-2019 increased by 17.2%, with an increase in total government expenditure by 14.2%. The operating expenditure for the new financial year will further increase by 15.4%, demonstrating the Government's determination to optimize the use of resources, develop our economy and improve people's livelihood. Public expenditure will account for about 22% of our GDP during the five-year period up to 2023-2024 in the Medium Range Forecast. Optimal Use of Fiscal Reserves As I mentioned just now, our fiscal reserves are expected to reach $1,161.6 billion at the end of this financial year. Housing Reserve The Government established the Housing Reserve in 2014 with the investment income from the fiscal reserves to support the development of public housing and related infrastructure. The current accumulated balance of the


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Housing Reserve, which is kept separately from the fiscal reserves, is $82.4 billion. On the other hand, the balance of the Hong Kong Housing Authority in the coming few years is expected to exceed $40 billion. There will be no need to draw on the Housing Reserve in the foreseeable future. I also appreciate views in the community that keeping the Housing Reserve outside of the fiscal reserve may not fully reflect the Government's financial position. Hence, I will bring back the Housing Reserve to the fiscal reserves. At the same time, I will earmark the same amount in the fiscal reserves for public housing development to demonstrate the Government's firm commitment. To avoid distorting the Government's financial position in a particular year, the money to be brought back will be spread over the current term of Government until 2022-2023, that is, over four financial years. Future Fund The Government set up the Future Fund in 2016. In its first two years of operation, the Fund achieved a composite rate of return of 4.5% and 9.6% respectively. To further optimize the use of the Fund, I will invite several experienced persons in the financial services sector to advise me on the Fund's investment strategies and portfolios to achieve more diversified investments. The objective is to enhance return, while also consolidating Hong Kong's status as an international financial, commercial and innovation centre, and raising Hong Kong's productivity and competitiveness in the long run. Tax Policy In the light of Hong Kong's robust economic performance and healthy public finances over the past few years, we have the capacity to introduce various tax measures to enhance our competitiveness and ease the tax burden, in particular for SMEs and the middle class. In the face of a diversifying economy, the Government will continue to introduce tax measures strategically to enhance our competitiveness and stabilize our revenue. I will transfer the Tax Policy Unit, currently under the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, to come directly under the Financial Secretary's Office, and provide additional resources as and when necessary.


Relieving People's Burden I am very concerned about the tax burden on salary earners. On salaries tax, apart from the one-off tax concessions proposed in my previous two Budgets, I have also raised various allowances and deduction ceilings, widened and increased the number of tax bands, and adjusted the marginal tax rates. These measures aim to relieve the long-term tax burden of citizens through a structural approach and increase taxpayers' disposable income, so that they can take better care of their personal as well as family needs. I have also proposed tax deductions for eligible voluntary health insurance products, deferred annuity premiums and Mandatory Provident Fund voluntary contributions as incentives for the public to get financially prepared for health care and retirement needs. Having regard to the economic outlook in the coming year and the Government's fiscal position, I will introduce a series of relief measures, including: (a) reducing salaries tax and tax under personal assessment for

2018-2019 by 75%, subject to a ceiling of $20,000. The reduction will be reflected in the final tax payable for 2018-2019. This will benefit 1.91 million taxpayers and reduce government revenue by $17 billion;

(b) reducing profits tax for 2018-2019 by 75%, subject to a ceiling of

$20,000. The reduction will be reflected in the final tax payable for 2018-2019. This will benefit 145 000 taxpayers and reduce government revenue by $1.9 billion;

(c) waiving rates for four quarters of 2019-2020, subject to a ceiling of

$1,500 per quarter for each rateable property. This proposal is estimated to benefit 3.29 million properties and reduce government revenue by $15 billion;

(d) providing an extra allowance to social security recipients, equal to

one month of the standard rate Comprehensive Social Security Assistance payments, Old Age Allowance, Old Age Living Allowance or Disability Allowance. This will involve an additional expenditure of about $3.84 billion. Similar arrangements will apply


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to recipients of the Working Family Allowance and Work Incentive Transport Subsidy, involving an additional expenditure of about $149 million;

(e) providing to each student in need a one-off grant of $2,500 to

support learning, involving an expenditure of about $890 million; (f) paying the examination fees for school candidates sitting for the

2020 Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination, involving an expenditure of about $160 million; and

(g) providing, on a one-off basis, an additional $1,000 worth of vouchers

to the elderly eligible for the Elderly Health Care Voucher Scheme, involving an expenditure of about $1.02 billion. The accumulation limit of vouchers will also be raised from $5,000 to $8,000 to allow users greater flexibility. The Food and Health Bureau is reviewing the Scheme to ensure that it can better serve the needs of the elderly. The findings will be announced upon completion of the review.

Support for Enterprises Recent changes in the global economic and trade environment have affected Hong Kong enterprises, especially those engaging in external trade and SMEs. I will introduce measures to support local enterprises in tiding over uncertainties in the present environment, with a view to achieving our goal of "supporting enterprises, safeguarding jobs and stabilizing the economy". They include: (a) waiving the business registration fees for 2019-2020, benefiting

1.4 million business operators. This will reduce government revenue by $2.9 billion;

(b) regularizing the Technology Voucher Programme and rolling out

enhancement measures, including doubling the funding ceiling for each enterprise from $200,000 to $400,000 to encourage the wider adoption of technology by local enterprises to improve their efficiency and services;


(c) injecting another $1 billion into the Dedicated Fund on Branding, Upgrading and Domestic Sales ("BUD Fund") this year, following the injection of $1.5 billion last year;

(d) following the extension of the geographical scope of the BUD Fund

from the Mainland to ASEAN countries in August 2018, to further extend the scope to include all economies which have entered into an FTA with Hong Kong, thereby enabling enterprises to take advantage of the FTAs to explore new markets and new business opportunities;

(e) following an increase in the funding ceiling per enterprise under the

BUD Fund from $0.5 million to $2 million last year, to further increase the ceiling to $3 million this year, including $1 million for the Mainland market and $2 million for other FTA markets; and

(f) to help SMEs facing liquidity problems, we implemented

enhancements to the special concessionary measures under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme operated by the HKMC Insurance Limited last November, including reducing the guarantee fee rates by 50%, increasing the maximum loan amount to $15 million, and lengthening the maximum loan guarantee period to seven years. We also extended the application period of the special concessionary measures. I have decided to further extend the application period of the special concessionary measures under the scheme and the three enhancement measures mentioned above to 30 June 2020.

With uncertainties prevailing in the global political and economic scenes, we need to get well prepared at all times. I will keep a close watch on the external and local economic situation and introduce appropriate measures again when necessary to support enterprises and stabilize the economy. Budget Measures for 2019-2020 Developing the Economy In addition to financial services and I&T as mentioned earlier, the Government will strive to develop other economic sectors, with a view to assisting enterprises in exploring new business opportunities, driving sustainable


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economic development and providing broader pathways for our next generation to realize their potential. International Transportation Centre In my last Budget, I put forward several measures to develop our air cargo industry. I also indicated that the Government was mapping out strategies to facilitate the development of the maritime industry. We are making good progress in these areas. Hong Kong enjoys the unique advantages of a strategic geographical location, world-class infrastructure, and various inter-modal transportation services. Moreover, the Development Plan has also affirmed the status of the Hong Kong International Airport ("HKIA") as an international aviation hub among the airports in the Greater Bay Area. We will continue to promote the development of high value-added aviation business and enhance our competitiveness. HKIA is the world's busiest cargo airport and its passenger throughput is also among the highest in the world. The adjacent Lantau Island has become a "double gateway" connecting the world and Greater Bay Area cities upon the commissioning of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge ("HZMB"). The Government has invited the Airport Authority Hong Kong to submit a proposal for the topside development at the HZMB Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities Island. It is hoped that the topside development, together with the three-runway system and other development projects and facilities at the Airport Island, will produce synergy and render Lantau an Aerotropolis connecting the Greater Bay Area and the world. In addition, the Government has offered profits tax concessions to aircraft leasing and related businesses. The measure has been well received by the market since its introduction. A number of large-scale aircraft leasing companies have negotiated or reached deals with airlines around the world through Hong Kong. On maritime transport, despite declining container throughput in recent years, we still have considerable advantages in our maritime tradition, geographical location as well as shipping registration, financial and legal services. Hong Kong has a vibrant maritime services cluster, with over 800 maritime


companies providing ship agency and management, ship brokering, marine insurance as well as maritime law and arbitration services. Hong Kong is also a ship finance centre in the region. Shipping loans and advances in Hong Kong have more than doubled in the past 10 years. In the face of keen competition, we must leverage our advantages to seize the business opportunities brought by the Greater Bay Area development and the Belt and Road Initiative for the continuous development of high value-added maritime services. Ship leasing is an emerging business model of ship finance. The Government has commissioned the Hong Kong Maritime and Port Board to set up a dedicated task force to study tax and other measures, with a view to attracting ship finance companies to establish their presence in Hong Kong and developing Hong Kong as a ship leasing centre in the Asia-Pacific region. The study is expected to be completed in the second half of this year. Moreover, to promote the development of marine insurance so that shipowners and shipping companies can enjoy better support, the Government will offer a 50% profits tax concession to eligible insurance businesses including the marine insurance industry. Tourism With the efforts of the Government, the Hong Kong Tourism Board ("HKTB") and the travel trade, the tourism industry regained growth after several years of consolidation. Full-year overnight arrivals increased by nearly 5%, and the number of visitors from long-haul markets with higher spending power also recorded a steady growth. We will strive to bring the edges of local tourism resources into full play and promote our diverse culture with Hong Kong characteristics, with a view to drawing more high-spending overnight visitors from different source markets, and promoting the healthy development of the tourism industry having regard to the receiving capacity of Hong Kong. The Government will continue to join forces with HKTB and the trade to implement the Development Blueprint for Hong Kong's Tourism Industry released in 2017. I will allocate an additional sum of around $353 million to enable HKTB to step up promotion of Hong Kong's image as a premier tourism destination, entice visitors to experience Hong Kong's local culture in different districts, and enhance publicity on Hong Kong's major festivals and events, etc. Various new initiatives will be rolled out, including:


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(a) enhancing the capability of the Ngong Ping Nature Centre in providing hiking information for visitors, improving the facilities of country trails in the vicinity, and commissioning a consultancy study for enhancing the facilities of the Hong Kong Wetland Park;

(b) allocating additional funding to the Travel Industry Council of Hong

Kong to encourage the development of more thematic tourism products, organize business forums or business co-operation and exchange activities outside Hong Kong, and provide training subsidies for practitioners to enhance service quality of the trade; and

(c) commissioning a consultancy study on strategies and initiatives to

promote smart tourism in Hong Kong and enhance visitors' travelling experience through the application of technology. We will extend the official landing page progressively to all boundary control points. The Tourism Commission will continue to work with OGCIO to provide free Wi-Fi service at tourist hotspots.

Creative Industries Hong Kong's creative industries, blessed with a wealth of talent, are emerging industries worthy of vigorous development. Following the injection of $1 billion into the CreateSmart Initiative, the Government will inject another $1 billion into the Film Development Fund in 2019-2020 to help the local film industry thrive further. This will bring the new resources we devoted to the creative industries to a total of $2 billion within two years, a manifestation of the Government's determination to developing the creative industries in Hong Kong. We will make optimal use of the funding to enhance talent grooming and support for novices, promote start-ups, tap new markets for the industries, and build local branding for relevant sectors to facilitate long-term development of the film industry. With the injection of new funds, we will upscale the sixth First Feature Film Initiative by doubling the number of winning teams to six and increasing funding by about 50%, thereby giving new impetus to the Hong Kong film market. We will also raise the production budget limit of the Film Production Financing Scheme to $60 million and the maximum subsidy for each film to $9 million to support local mid-budget film productions.


We are now collaborating with the Urban Renewal Authority ("URA") and the Hong Kong Design Centre to press ahead with the Sham Shui Po Design and Fashion Project. A five-storey commercial space within a redevelopment project in the district has been reserved for the construction of a landmark for nurturing young designers and supporting start-ups in fashion design. Construction works will commence this year for anticipated completion in 2023-2024. Construction Industry In the next few years, the annual capital works expenditure is expected to rise to over $100 billion, and the annual total construction output will increase to over $300 billion, covering the construction of public and private housing, implementation of hospital development and redevelopment projects, development and expansion of new towns and new development areas, as well as construction of a third runway for our airport. Recently, some projects have aroused public concern about the quality of works and tarnished the reputation of the construction industry gained over the years. The industry must endeavour to enhance the public's confidence in them. In order to enhance the standard and efficiency of works supervision, we will promote digitization of the supervision system. Pilot projects will be launched to motivate site supervisors and contractors to use innovative technology to collect real-time data on site environment and works progress for record, monitoring and analysis purposes. The Development Bureau will set up a task force to plan and co-ordinate inter-departmental work in this regard. We will also upgrade the Project Cost Management Office and rename it as the Project Strategy and Governance Office for implementing strategic initiatives and enhancing capabilities in cost surveillance and project governance. We will also adopt a holistic approach to strengthen cost management and uplift the performance of public works projects. Moreover, the Development Bureau is gearing up for the establishment of a Centre of Excellence for Major Project Leaders to equip public officers with more innovative minds and enhanced leadership skills for delivering public works projects. We have earmarked $40 million for the first three years of operation of the centre, and plan to offer courses starting from mid-2019.


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In view of the challenges of labour shortage and an ageing workforce in the construction industry, and the keen demand for skilled workers arising from infrastructure development projects in the short to medium term, I will allocate $200 million to expand the apprenticeship scheme for the construction industry to cover more trades with manpower shortage, and increase the allowances for new trainees pursuing one-year full time programmes to encourage and attract in-service workers to pursue continuing education. Besides, the Government will lead the construction industry to implement Construction 2.0 for improving productivity, quality, safety and environmental performance of the industry by advocating innovation, professionalization and revitalization. A Liveable City People work hard every day to enhance the quality of life. We will also strive for economic development to make Hong Kong a more ideal place for living. The Government will continue to make good use of our resources to achieve this goal and serve people's needs. Land Resources I will ensure that adequate resources are provided to support fully the short-, medium- and long-term measures to increase land and housing supply. Land for Housing Over the past two years, we increased short-term land supply through land sale, rezoning, railway property development and projects of URA, etc. Seventy-eight sites were identified, capable of providing about 93 000 units. The estimated public housing production for the next five years is about 100 400 units, including about 74 200 units for public rental housing and under the Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme, and about 26 300 other subsidized sale units. Housing land supply increased steadily in the past few years. In 2018, 21 000 private residential units were completed, a record high in 14 years. The supply of first-hand private residential units is expected to remain at a relatively high level in the coming three to four years, including 9 000 unsold units in


completed projects, 64 000 units under construction and not yet sold through pre-sale, and 20 000 units from disposed sites where construction may start anytime. Based on preliminary estimation, the private sector will, on average, complete about 18 800 residential units annually in the next five years (i.e. from 2019 to 2023), representing an increase of about 20% over the annual average of the past five years. The 2019-2020 Land Sale Programme comprises a total of 15 residential sites, including seven new sites, capable of providing 8 800 residential units in total. Together with railway property development projects, URA's projects and private development/redevelopment projects, the potential land supply for the whole year is expected to have a capacity to provide about 15 500 units. The Secretary for Development will announce the details of the Land Sale Programme for the next financial year tomorrow. On the property market, residential property transactions and prices fell in the latter half of last year, but current flat prices are still out of line with people's affordability. The Government has no intention to withdraw any demand-side management measures at this stage. The global economic slowdown, coupled with political and economic uncertainties, may affect investment sentiment and intensify the volatility in the global financial markets. Members of the public must carefully assess the risks and their own financial position before making a home purchase decision. Apart from continuing to rezone sites and increase development density, we will press ahead with a number of new development area projects this year. These include seeking funding approval respectively for the first batch of infrastructure works of Kwu Tung North/Fanling North and Hung Shui Kiu new development areas, and gradually commencing land resumption and clearance for the projects for commencing construction as soon as possible. In parallel, we will initiate the statutory planning procedures for the Yuen Long South development this year. These three development projects, together with the Tung Chung New Town Extension project of which reclamation works are in progress, will provide about 210 000 residential units in phases from 2023. Transitional Housing Transitional housing serves to alleviate the housing problem of those living in inadequate accommodation. To facilitate community-initiated transitional housing projects, the Transport and Housing Bureau has set up a task force to


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co-ordinate and provide one-stop support. The task force will work with relevant bureaux and departments to render appropriate assistance. I will set aside $2 billion to support NGOs in constructing transitional housing. The Transport and Housing Bureau will map out the detailed arrangements and seek funding approval. Industrial/Commercial Land The Government has all along strived to increase the supply of commercial floor area to meet the needs of industrial and commercial development. The Government will include seven commercial sites in the 2019-2020 Land Sale Programme, estimated to provide about 814 600 sq m of floor area, including the provision of a maximum of about 2 900 hotel rooms. Among the seven commercial sites, the one above the West Kowloon Station of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link is the largest one for sale by the Government in recent years, capable of providing a total floor area of about 294 000 sq m. A number of commercial sites will be put up for sale in the next few years, including those at the Kai Tak Development Area, the new Central Harbourfront, Caroline Hill Road and Queensway Plaza. Optimizing the Use of Government Land In last year's Budget, I set aside $1 billion to support NGOs in using vacant government sites and restoring school premises for various short-term uses that are beneficial to the community. The initiative has been well received by the community. I welcome the funding approval by Legislative Council earlier and the Development Bureau has started inviting funding applications. We will expedite the implementation of the "single site, multiple use" model in multi-storey development on Government land, so as to optimize the use of limited land resources to meet the community's demand for public services and provide more "Government, Institution or Community" ("G/IC") facilities. The Government Property Agency will take forward multi-storey projects with cross-department facilities. Moreover, the Planning Department will tighten the reservation of a government site by any single department and recommend a higher development density as appropriate to optimize the development potential of Government land. I have set aside about $22 billion to take forward the first batch of projects under the "single site, multiple use" initiative, which will


include redevelopment of Tuen Mun Clinic, development of a proposed ambulance depot near Sheung Wan Fire Station, and consolidation of several government sites in Tsuen Wan town centre. Long-term Land Development Last week, the Government announced full acceptance of the recommendations tendered by the Task Force on Land Supply to take forward eight land supply options. I will ensure that adequate resources are provided for the purposes. The Steering Committee on Land Supply, which I chair, will be re-structured to strengthen the co-ordination of land supply. Priority will be accorded to a number of strategic issues. These include using a vision-driven and forward-looking approach in realizing our vision, re-assessing our land demand and setting the target of land reserve, and adopting an infrastructure-led and capacity building mindset in planning strategic transport infrastructure. So long as we make concerted efforts and persevere in our endeavours, we can resolve the problem of undersupply and provide sufficient land for the long-term development of Hong Kong. Lantau Tomorrow Lantau Tomorrow is a grand vision. The Government will take forward the projects concerned in phases to open up more land for improving our living environment and quality as well as meeting the need for social development. Apart from providing an ample supply of land, Lantau Tomorrow entails the construction of strategic road and rail networks linking the coastal areas of Tuen Mun, North Lantau, artificial islands in the Central Waters and Hong Kong Island North. This will improve the efficiency of the traffic network in the North West New Territories and Hong Kong as a whole. The Government is financially capable of realizing the Lantau Tomorrow Vision. In formulating the implementation strategies, we will conduct a detailed financial analysis, taking into account factors like the Government's fiscal sustainability and affordability, and implement the projects in phases. Regarding the construction of the 1 000-hectare artificial islands near Kau Yi Chau and the related major transport networks, the Government will kick off studies as soon as possible. As to the study on near-shore reclamations covering Lung Kwu Tan, Sunny Bay and Siu Ho Wan, the Government plans to apply for


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funding approval within this year. Separately, we will conduct a planning study on the coastal areas of Tuen Mun, taking into account land uses and ancillary transport infrastructure in Lung Kwu Tan and the River Trade Terminal. Health care Our health care and supporting teams in the public sector have been safeguarding the health of the community with professionalism and passion. Yet, surges in demand coupled with manpower and facility constraints have added to their workload. They are no doubt hard-pressed. In last year's Budget, I proposed the second 10-year hospital development plan and measures to strengthen health care manpower training, which aim to take forward long-term planning to meet growing service demand. We have tentatively included 19 projects under the second 10-year hospital development plan, providing about 9 000 additional hospital beds. The nine projects under the first 10-year hospital development plan have already commenced and made good progress. Meanwhile, the Government will provide sufficient resources to support the operation and development of the public health care system. The estimated recurrent government expenditure on public health care services will increase by 10.9% to $80.6 billion in 2019-2020, accounting for 18.3% of the total recurrent expenditure. Hospital Authority Our public health care system comes under even greater pressure in each outbreak of influenza. The long waiting time at the accident and emergency departments and the overloaded occupancy rates of wards have given rise to wide public concern. The Hospital Authority ("HA"), our frontline public health care provider, must properly plan and manage public hospital services and take timely and effective measures to cope with influenza surge and other possible public health challenges so as to live up to the expectations of the public. The Government will provide resources to fully support the work of HA. In view of the heavy workload of frontline health care workers, I have earlier asked HA to propose ways to boost morale and retain talent. Having regard to the concrete recommendations from HA, I will provide additional recurrent funding of over $700 million for HA to introduce the following measures:


(a) increasing the rate of allowance for on-call medical officers, the rate of Special Honorarium Scheme allowance and the salary of ward supporting staff;

(b) increasing the number of Advanced Practice Nurse posts to enhance

evening ward services; (c) increasing the number of allied health professional posts to improve

promotion prospects; and (d) allocating additional resources to continue implementing the Special

Retired and Rehire Scheme. HA will strive for early implementation of the above measures in 2019-2020 to benefit its frontline staff. HA spends on average about $1 billion each year for upgrading and acquisition of medical equipment. I will earmark an additional $5 billion for HA to expedite the work in this area, so as to enhance the health care quality and efficiency. The additional resources will be used for general medical equipment, introducing advanced medical devices for treating cancer and other diseases requiring specialty services, as well as providing relevant training. To facilitate resource planning by HA, the current-term Government has adopted a triennium funding arrangement to increase progressively the recurrent funding for HA having regard to population growth and demographic changes. In view of the importance of public health care, I will earmark $10 billion to set up a public health care stabilization fund so as to prepare for any additional expenditure which may be incurred by HA in case of unexpected circumstances. Subsidizing Drug Treatments I will provide an additional recurrent subvention of $400 million for HA to expand the scope of the Drug Formulary, with a view to including more drugs for patients. HA's total expenditure on drugs will increase to $6 billion in 2019-2020. Complemented by the new measures to relax the means test mechanism for the Samaritan Fund and the Community Care Fund ("CCF"), this would alleviate the financial burden of patients' families arising from drug


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expenses. In addition, HA has increased the frequency of the exercise for including self-financed drugs in the safety net to twice a year, hence shortening the lead time for including suitable new drugs in the scope of subsidy. With these measures in place, the total subsidy under the Samaritan Fund and the CCF Medical Assistance Programmes will double to $1.5 billion in 2019-2020, benefiting more needy patients. Primary Health care The Government will allocate resources to push ahead with district-based primary health care services to enhance public awareness of disease prevention and their self-health management capability. Hong Kong's first district health centre ("DHC"), located in Kwai Tsing, is expected to commence operation from the third quarter of this year. I have earmarked $150 million to meet the operating expenditure and staff cost of the centre, and will continue to provide resources needed for the future expansion of the network of DHCs. Hong Kong Genome Project The Policy Address announced the launch of the Hong Kong Genome Project to promote the clinical application and innovative scientific research on genomic medicine. I will allocate about $1.2 billion to establish the Hong Kong Genome Institute and take forward the project, under which 40 000 to 50 000 whole genome sequencing will be performed in the next six years. Smart City The Government published the Hong Kong Smart City Blueprint in December 2017. A number of major initiatives were launched, including opening up government data, formulating a pro-innovation government procurement policy, as well as launching FPS. We will set up a Smart Government Innovation Lab this April to engage the industry and solicit their assistance in using IT to improve public services, foster public-private partnership, and create business opportunities for start-ups and SMEs in Hong Kong. Furthermore, we are preparing for three smart city infrastructure projects, including providing an electronic identity for all Hong Kong residents, installing multi-functional smart lampposts, as well as enhancing the government cloud services and building a big data analytics platform. We have allocated over


$900 million to these projects, which will be completed progressively in the coming two years. Through collecting, processing and analysing geographic information, the Government has acquired a large volume of relevant data. Accessibility of inter-connected geospatial data can facilitate policy planning and formulation by government departments. The Development Bureau is working with the Innovation and Technology Bureau and major user departments to press ahead with the setting up of the Common Spatial Data Infrastructure ("CSDI") for the consolidation, exchange and sharing of geospatial information to tie in with the development of various smart city applications by the community. I will earmark $300 million to expedite the development of digital infrastructure, with a view to facilitating the dissemination, utilization and innovative application of geospatial data. With CSDI coming into full operation by the end of 2022 and the high-quality 3D digital maps of the whole territory being made available in phases, more spatial data which are easier to search and use will be provided for organizations in the public and private sectors. Digital infrastructure is essential for a smart city to develop. All eyes are now on the development of the fifth generation mobile communications technology ("5G"). With its technical characteristics of high speed, high capacity, high reliability and low latency, 5G has immense potential for application in various business services and a smart city in the long run. The Government will assign and auction spectrums in different frequency bands in batches to prepare for the development of 5G networks and services. Arts and Culture Following the grand opening of the Xiqu Centre last month, other major facilities in the West Kowloon Cultural District will be coming on stream. The development plans for various cultural facilities put forward in my last year's Budget are also underway for the progressive commissioning of facilities in the next few years. To enrich the arts and cultural life of our city and consolidate Hong Kong's position as an international cultural metropolis, I will provide an additional funding of $176 million in total to LCSD for hosting large-scale world-class performing arts programmes and arranging telecasts of selected mega shows in different places across the territory in the coming five years. LCSD will also


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collaborate with District Councils to strengthen community arts activities in phases. To further promote the development of arts in Hong Kong, I will increase again the subvention for arts groups in 2019-2020, which will involve about $54 million. The subvention, which will benefit arts groups of various sizes, the Hong Kong Arts Development Council and the Hong Kong Arts Festival Society, can be used for improving staff remuneration, encouraging artistic creation, and organizing more cultural exchange activities outside Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Film Archive under LCSD is dedicated to preserving Hong Kong's film heritage, fostering research and bringing film art to the community. I will allocate $20 million to employ additional technicians and acquire specialist equipment for digital conversion of sole copies of films and celluloid films in urgent need of archiving. This will enable our younger generations to learn about and appreciate the invaluable film heritage of Hong Kong. Sports Hong Kong athletes made remarkable performance, and achieved outstanding and encouraging results in major international sports events last year. In 2019, our teams also excelled in cycling, table tennis, fencing, football and other events. I strongly believe that Hong Kong athletes will continue to shine and thrive. Athletes strive for excellence in the arena but most of them retire from sports before the age of 40. It is important to plan early for turning a new chapter in life. In recent years, the Government has been providing additional resources and working jointly with universities to support athletes in pursuing athletic training and academic studies at the same time. I will inject $250 million into the Hong Kong Athletes Fund to increase scholarship awards in support of the dual-track development of athletes, and will provide more cash incentives for full-time athletes when they retire from sports. LCSD is conducting a comprehensive review of the Sports Subvention Scheme. Before the outcome is available, I will allocate an additional recurrent provision of $25 million and an extra two-year subsidy of $17 million per year to enhance the financial assistance for 60 national sports associations ("NSAs").


The funds can be used to support participation in overseas competitions, offering squad training programmes and supporting under-privileged athletes, as well as other operating costs. Moreover, I will provide a one-off grant of $15 million for staff training, further studies, procurement of equipment, improvement of office facilities, etc. In other words, the additional resources to be allocated to NSAs in the coming two years will amount to almost $100 million. When concrete recommendations are available upon completion of the review, I will provide the required resources as necessary. Environmental Protection In my previous two Budgets, I set aside a total of $1 billion for departments to install renewable energy facilities at government buildings and venues and community facilities. Responses have been positive. In support of the Policy Address, I will provide another $1 billion for departments to install relevant facilities. The Government announced last month the relaxation of eligibility criteria of the "One-for-One Replacement" Scheme for electric private cars, raising the number of eligible vehicles under the scheme substantially by 30% to over 250 000. Moreover, providing corresponding charging facilities is essential to promoting wider use of electric vehicles ("EVs") in Hong Kong. We will explore ways to encourage the installation of EV charging facilities at car parks in existing buildings. In parallel, I will allocate $120 million to extend the public EV charging networks at government car parks. Over 1 000 additional public chargers are expected to be in place by 2022, bringing the total number of chargers to 1 700. We will also identify suitable on-street parking spaces to install EV chargers on a trial basis and explore suitable locations to set up pilot quick charging stations for EVs. Building the City Harbourfront Enhancement Following the gradual completion of the planning for the harbourfront areas and the commissioning of the related major infrastructure projects on both sides of the Victoria Harbour, the Government will adopt a forward-looking approach in pursuing harbourfront enhancement and vigorously seek to open up continuous and accessible harbourfront promenades. We will embrace versatile


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designs, management models and uses to make our harbourfront more vibrant. Harbourfront enhancement projects funded by a $500 million allocation in early 2017 have been rolling out one by one. I will earmark another $6 billion for developing new harbourfront promenades and open space as well as improving harbourfront facilities. It is the Government's plan to extend the length of the harbourfront promenades from the current 20-odd km to 34 km in about 10 years, and provide 35 hectares of open space on both sides of the Victoria Harbour. Urban Forestry Support Fund To strengthen public education and promotion on proper tree care and uplift the professional standards of practitioners, I propose to set up a $200 million Urban Forestry Support Fund for the implementation of various initiatives. These include encouraging students to pursue studies in arboriculture, and rolling out arboriculture and horticulture trainee programmes, as well as providing more training and internship opportunities for new recruits to tie in with the Specification of Competency Standards for the arboriculture and horticulture industry to be published by the end of this year, as a prelude to the introduction of a future registration system for tree management personnel. Moreover, we will organize international urban forestry conferences to facilitate exchanges with neighbouring regions, in a bid to upgrade the expertise and practice standards of the local industry. We will also strengthen co-operation with community organizations to provide the public with more information on tree planting and caring. Traffic Improvement Apart from constructing trunk roads, the implementation of electronic road pricing is also an effective way to tackle traffic congestion. The Transport Department is conducting a feasibility study on the Electronic Road Pricing Pilot Scheme in Central and its Adjacent Areas. It expects to consult stakeholders in the first half of this year. Electronic road pricing does not aim to increase government revenue. As such, the Government will consider providing additional recurrent resources broadly equivalent to the net revenue to be generated from the pilot scheme for implementing measures to improve public transport services and encourage wider usage.


Municipal Facilities Improvement Further to earmarking resources for the Market Modernisation Programme in last year's Budget, I will allocate more resources to the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department for refurbishing its public toilets by phases, improving ventilation and other facilities, as well as enhancing their cleanliness and hygiene. It is estimated that a total expenditure of over $600 million may be incurred, involving about 240 public toilets in the coming five years. A Caring Society I will continue to provide resources for the Government to implement support measures for the needy to build a caring society. Welfare Facilities When planning for the provision of more welfare facilities, we are often faced with a shortage of venues. This problem is particularly prevalent in densely-populated areas, where demand for welfare services is indeed acute. I will allocate $20 billion for the purchase of 60 properties for accommodating more than 130 welfare facilities, including day child care centres, neighbourhood elderly centres, on-site pre-school rehabilitation services, etc., which are expected to benefit about 86 000 people. Provision of technology products in elderly and rehabilitation facilities can facilitate service enhancement. I will allocate some $200 million for the Lotteries Fund to launch a four-year pilot project providing Wi-Fi service to 1 350 service units operated by subvented organizations under the Social Welfare Department ("SWD") to encourage them to make use of technology products to improve elderly and rehabilitation services. SWD will also provide Wi-Fi service to 180 welfare facilities which it operates. This is expected to benefit a total headcount of about 100 000 per day. Elderly Services We will continue to enhance elderly services. In the next two years, the Government expects to provide more than 500 additional residential care places and 300 subsidized day care places for the elderly. Apart from ongoing provision of visiting medical practitioner services, the Government has recently


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launched a four-year pilot scheme to provide professional outreach services, including social workers and physiotherapists, etc., for some 45 000 residents in private residential care homes for the elderly. The additional recurrent expenditure for launching the new measures in 2019-2020 is around $1.36 billion. As mentioned earlier, I will provide, on a one-off basis, an additional $1,000 worth of Elderly Health Vouchers to benefit elderly persons. Rehabilitation Services The Government will introduce measures to enhance the quality of existing rehabilitation services to step up support for persons with disabilities. Major new initiatives for 2019-2020 include increasing 835 rehabilitation service places and purchasing 300 places from private residential care homes for persons with disabilities, gradually setting up five additional District Support Centres for Persons with Disabilities and two additional Support Centres for Persons with Autism, and strengthening the rehabilitation and support services provided by the centres by increasing the manpower of social workers and therapists. These initiatives will involve a total annual recurrent expenditure of around $290 million and benefit about 9 000 service users a year. Child and Youth Services As regards child care, the Government will allocate an additional funding of about $156 million from 2019-2020 onwards to increase the level of subsidy for services provided by child care centres to alleviate parents' financial burden; improve the manning ratio of qualified child care workers in day and residential child care centres and enhance training to improve service quality; and provide in phases a total of about 400 additional aided standalone child care centre places in North District, Kwun Tong, Sha Tin, Kwai Tsing and Yuen Long to provide long full-day child care services for children aged below three. I will also allocate additional resources to increase professional and supporting manpower for the Neighbourhood Support Child Care Project to strengthen training for home-based child carers so as to enhance the quality of services. Incentive payments to these carers will also be raised. Furthermore, the Government will restructure the services of the existing Mutual Help Child Care Centres and deploy additional social workers and supporting staff. The above initiatives will involve an additional annual recurrent provision of around $52 million.


For early identification of, and to provide assistance to pre-primary children and their families with welfare needs, the Government has allocated $990 million from the Lotteries Fund to launch a three-year pilot scheme to provide social work services in phases for about 150 000 pre-primary children and their families in subsidized/aided child care centres, kindergartens and kindergarten-cum-child care centres. The first phase of services was launched in February 2019. To enhance support for divorced families and their children, the Government will set up five centres to be operated by NGOs to provide one-stop co-parenting support services from 2019-2020, and strengthen the manpower of SWD. These will involve an additional annual recurrent provision of around $69 million. To enhance teenagers' mental health and stress resilience, the Government will implement the measure of "two school social workers for each school" in more than 460 secondary schools in Hong Kong from the 2019-2020 school year, and increase supervisory manpower accordingly. The annual recurrent expenditure involved will be around $310 million. Social Enterprises Social enterprises ("SEs") in Hong Kong have developed steadily in recent years. The Enhancing Self-Reliance Through District Partnership Programme has given impetus to the development of local SEs, and delivered long-term and sustainable benefits since its launch. To render continuous support to the development of SEs and the socially disadvantaged, I will provide an additional funding of $150 million for the ongoing operation of the programme. Estimates for 2019-2020 The major policy initiatives announced in the 2018 Policy Address involve an operating expenditure of $75.3 billion and capital expenditure of $8.8 billion. I will ensure that adequate resources are provided to fully support the launch of these initiatives. Total government revenue for 2019-2020 is estimated to be $626.1 billion. Earnings and profits tax is estimated to be $235.9 billion. The revenue from land premium is estimated to be $143 billion, an increase of 23.3% compared


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with the revised estimate for 2018-2019. The revenue from stamp duties is estimated to be $76 billion, a decrease of 5% compared with the revised estimate for 2018-2019. Operating expenditure is estimated to be $501.5 billion, a year-on-year increase of 15.4% or $66.9 billion. This mainly involves an expenditure of $11.2 billion on the Caring and Sharing Scheme last year. Recurrent expenditure, which accounts for over 80% of operating expenditure, will reach $441 billion, a year-on-year increase of 9% or $36.3 billion. In 2019-2020, the estimated recurrent expenditure on education, social welfare and health care accounts for about 60% of government recurrent expenditure, exceeding $250 billion in total. Recurrent expenditure in these three areas recorded a cumulative increase of 45% over the past five years. We will increase the manpower of all departments as appropriate in 2019-2020. The civil service establishment is expected to expand by 3 481 persons to 191 816. This represents a year-on-year increase of about 1.8%, resuming the growth level of 1% to 2%. Taking all these into account, including bringing back $21.2 billion from the Housing Reserve in 2019-2020, I forecast a surplus of $16.8 billion in the Consolidated Account in the coming year. Fiscal reserves are estimated to be $1,178.4 billion by the end of March 2020, equivalent to 39.4% of GDP. Medium Range Forecast The Medium Range Forecast projects, mainly from a macro perspective, the revenue and expenditure as well as financial position of the Government from 2020-2021 to 2023-2024. During this period, annual expenditure on the Government's infrastructure projects will exceed $100 billion, while the growth of recurrent government expenditure ranges between 5% and 8.8% per annum, higher than the average annual nominal economic growth of 5% over the same period. Regarding revenue, the land premium estimate for 2019-2020 mainly makes reference to the Land Sale Programme and the land supply target of the coming year. The medium range forecast on land premium from 2020-2021


onwards is based on the average proportion of land revenue to GDP over the past decade, which is 3.9% of GDP. I also assume that the growth rate of revenue from profits tax and other taxes will be similar to the economic growth rate in the next few years. In addition, as I mentioned earlier, I will bring back the Housing Reserve, with a current accumulated balance of $82.4 billion, to the fiscal reserves over four years to better reflect the Government's financial position. Based on the above assumptions and arrangements, I forecast an annual surplus in the Operating Account every year for the coming five financial years except for 2019-2020. A small deficit would surface in the Capital Account in 2021-2022 and 2022-2023. The forecast deficit in the Operating Account in 2019-2020 is mainly due to the expenditure arising from the one-off relief measures announced in this Budget and the Caring and Sharing Scheme. There is no structural change in the Government's financial position. Moreover, ample fiscal reserves also enable us to meet foreseeable expenditure needs. I remain cautiously optimistic about the forecast for the coming five years. Fiscal reserves are estimated at $1,224.6 billion by the end of March 2024, representing 33.7% of GDP, equivalent to 19 months of government expenditure. Taking all these into account, the Government will generally have an overall surplus in the next five years. That said, the above forecast has not taken into account the tax rebate and relief measures that the Government may implement during the Medium Range Forecast period. Concluding Remarks The consultation for this Budget started earlier than that for the last. Apart from holding around 40 consultation sessions to gauge views from various sectors and groups, I spent a lot of time interacting with people in the community to understand what they expect of the Government and the Budget. I remember that one morning when I settled my bill at a cha chaan teng (Hong Kong-style café) in Hung Hom, the cashier lady told me that as the mother of a mentally-handicapped child, she was acutely aware how inadequate the


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support was and hoped that the Government would provide more care homes for people with disabilities. On another occasion, a girl from a grass-roots family attended a function in my official residence. Her mother told me that she had made use of the $2,000 school expenses allowance for needy students introduced last year to enrol her child in an interest class outside school to develop her potential. She hoped the allowance would be granted again this year. In recent months, I also exchanged ideas with public health care personnel on a number of occasions. I gained insight into the problems they faced, and heard their suggestions on how to improve health care services. From these encounters, I was greatly inspired by the aspirations and strong hopes of the people I met, and deeply moved by their sincerity and candidness. I set off from the bottom of my heart and listen with care. The opportunity to put forward measures that meet people's needs and expectations is what drives me in preparing this Budget. However, resources are not infinite and trade-offs are inevitable. The Government has to prioritize its policy initiatives by taking into account the interests of all. No matter how many resources we put into solving problems, solutions do not happen overnight. This is especially true for difficult problems that have beset our community for many years. But I firmly believe that challenges are meant to be overcome as long as we devote resources and tackle them step by step. Only with adequate resources can we improve services and enhance people's quality of life. We must continue to leverage our edges and seize opportunities to promote a diversified economy. Now that the economic environment is fraught with uncertainties and challenges, we must get ourselves well prepared. Hard-working and flexible, Hong Kong people have weathered tough times and grown tougher. With confidence, hope and concerted efforts, we will definitely be able to see the sunshine through the clouds! Thank you, President. (The Supplement and Appendices to the 2019-2020 Budget are in the Annex)


PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): I now propose the question to you and that is: That the Appropriation Bill 2019 be read the Second time. In accordance with the Rules of Procedure, the Second Reading debate is adjourned and the Estimates are referred to the Finance Committee for examination before the debate on the Bill resumes. NEXT MEETING PRESIDENT (in Cantonese): I now adjourn the Council. The Council is adjourned until 11:00 am on Wednesday, 20 March 2019 when the Chief Executive's Question Time will be held. The regular meeting of the Legislative Council will be held immediately after the Chief Executive's Question Time. Adjourned accordingly at 12:53 pm.


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Annex


Contents

Pages Rates 7359 Salaries Tax 7360 One-off Reduction of Tax 7361 Economic Performance in 2018 7362 - 7365 Economic Prospects for 2019 7366


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APPENDICES

Page A. MEDIUM RANGE FORECAST 7369 Forecast of government expenditure and revenue for the period up to 2023-24 B. ANALYSIS OF EXPENDITURE AND REVENUE 7379 Allocation of resources among policy area groups and analysis of revenue C. GLOSSARY OF TERMS 7397

Note: Expenditure figures for 2018-19 and before have been adjusted to align with the definitions and policy area group classifications adopted in the 2019-20 estimate.


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Appendix A CONTENTS Page SECTION I ― FORECASTING ASSUMPTIONS AND BUDGETARY

CRITERIA 7371

SECTION II ― MEDIUM RANGE FORECAST 7372 SECTION III ― RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GOVERNMENT

EXPENDITURE/PUBLIC EXPENDITURE AND GDP IN THE MEDIUM RANGE FORECAST

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SECTION IV ― CONTINGENT AND MAJOR UNFUNDED

LIABILITIES 7378


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Appendix B CONTENTS Page SECTION I ― THE ESTIMATES IN THE CONTEXT OF THE

ECONOMY

Relationship between Government Expenditure, Public Expenditure and GDP 7381 SECTION II ― RECURRENT PUBLIC/GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE

BY POLICY AREA GROUP

Recurrent Public Expenditure: Year-on-Year Change 7385 Recurrent Government Expenditure: Year-on-Year Change 7386 Percentage Share of Expenditure by Policy Area Group 7387

Recurrent Public Expenditure Recurrent Government Expenditure

SECTION III ― TOTAL PUBLIC/GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE BY

POLICY AREA GROUP

Total Public Expenditure: Year-on-Year Change 7388 Total Government Expenditure: Year-on-Year Change 7389 Percentage Share of Expenditure by Policy Area Group 7390

Total Public Expenditure Total Government Expenditure

SECTION IV ― MAJOR CAPITAL PROJECTS PLANNED FOR

COMMENCEMENT IN 2019-20 7391

SECTION V ― TRENDS IN PUBLIC EXPENDITURE: 2014-15 TO

2019-20 7393

SECTION VI ― ANALYSIS OF GOVERNMENT REVENUE 7395 SECTION VII ― CLASSIFICATION OF POLICY AREA GROUP 7396


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Documents

sc.legco.gov.hk...LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ― 27 February 2019 7169 . OFFICIAL RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS . Wednesday, 27 February 2019 . The Council met at Eleven o'clock . MEMBERS PRESENT: