Minutes of the 9th Meeting ofCulture, Leisure & Social Affairs Committee (2016-17)

Central and Western District Council

Date : 15 June 2017 (Thursday)Time : 2:45 pmVenue : Conference Room

14/F, Harbour Building 38 Pier Road, Central, Hong Kong

Present:ChairmanMr CHAN Chit-kwai, BBS, JP*

Vice-chairmanMr YEUNG Hoi-wing*

MembersMr CHAN Choi-hi, MH (2:58 pm – 6:49 pm)Mr CHAN Ho-lim, Joseph (2:58 pm – 3:38 pm)Mr CHAN Hok-fung, MH*Ms CHENG Lai-king*Mr CHEUNG Kwok-kwan, JP (2:58 pm – 3:25 pm)Mr HUI Chi-fung (2:58 pm – 7:49 pm)Mr KAM Nai-wai, MH (2:58 pm – 5:41pm)Mr LEE Chi-hang, Sidney (2:58 pm – 6:40 pm)Miss LO Yee-hang (2:58 pm – 8:02 pm)Mr NG Siu-hong*Ms SIU Ka-yi (2:58 pm – 3:56 pm)Mr YEUNG Hok-ming*MrYIP Wing-shing, BBS, MH, JP (2:58 pm – 7:40 pm)

Co-opted MembersMs CHEUNG Kai-yin (4:03 pm – 7:08 pm)

Mr IP Yik-nam (2:58 pm – 7:45 pm)

Mr LEE Man-sing*Mr SHAM Chi-hang, Christopher*Remarks: * Members who attended the whole meeting

( ) Time of attendance of Members

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GuestItem 5 Mr YAN Kwok-yuen, Leo Director (Operations), Post Office

Item 6 Ms SO Yim-ling, Brenda Regional Officer (Hong Kong Island),

Independent Commission Against Corruption Item 7 Mr NG Wai-lung, David Assistant District Social Welfare Officer (Central

Western, Southern and Islands) 2, Social Welfare Department

Item 8 Professor Terry LUM

Dr Jennifer TANG

Mr Matthew YEUNG

Mr Timothy TAM

Ms Nicole CHAN

Ms Agnes CHOW

Associate Director, Sau Po Centre on Ageing, HKU

Research Assistant Professor, Sau Po Centre on Ageing, HKU

Research Assistant, Sau Po Centre on Ageing, HKU

Project Manager, Charities, The Hong Kong Jockey Club

Senior Project Officer, Charities, The Hong Kong Jockey Club

Assistant Community Relations Manager, Hong Kong Jockey Club

Item 9 Ms SIU Lai-kuen, Susanna

Mr NG Chi-wo

Ms YUN Sin-wah, Sarah

Miss Katty LAWMr Charlton CHEUNG

Executive Secretary (Antiques & Monuments), Antiques and Monuments Office, Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Curator (Historical Buildings)2, Antiques and Monuments Office, Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Senior Manager, Community Development, Urban Renewal Authority

Convenor, Central and Western Concern GroupMember, Sai Wan Concern

Item 10 Ms TSANG Lai-wan, Katherine Senior Valuation Surveyor, Rating and Valuation

DepartmentItem 11 Dr CHOI Wing-kin, Sam

Ms LO Wan-ka, Kins

Mr HUI Kar-nung

Senior Environmental Protection Officer (Territorial Control)2, Environmental Protection Department

Environmental Protection Officer (Territorial Control)21, Environmental Protection Department

Chief Health Inspector 1, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department

Item 12 Dr Michael WONG Consultant, Department of Psychiatry, Queen

Mary HospitalItem 13 Ms CHAN Suk-fan, Bianca Deputy District Leisure Manager (District

Support) Central and Western, Leisure and Cultural Services Department

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Mr WONG Wai-yan, Richard

Mr MA Chi-wai

Ms LEUNG Kar-yee, Carrie

Mr KWOK Hiu-fung, Derek

Miss CHAN Kwan-lee, SilviaMr FU Chee-on

Ms WONG Kin-ching

Ms Ma Lai-ying, JessieMs WU Sai-muiMs LAU Ka-sin, CynthiaMr LUI Yat-nam

Senior Environmental Protection Officer (Metro Assessment)3, Environmental Protection Department

Environmental Protection Officer (Metro Assessment)31, Environmental Protection Department

Senior Engineer, Special Duties (Works) Division, Civil Engineering and Development Department

Engineer, Special Duties (Works) Division, Civil Engineering and Development Department

Town Planner/ HK12, Planning DepartmentChairman of Owners’ Corporation Management

Committee, Sai Wan New Apartment Owners’ Corporation Management Committee

Representative of Concern Group for Protecting Kennedy Town

Resident of Western DistrictResident of Ka Wai Man Road, Sai Wan Representative of Community AmbassadorCommunity Officer, Sai Yau Office

Item 14 Ms CHAN Suk-fan, Bianca Deputy District Leisure Manager (District

Support) Central and Western, Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Item 15 Miss HUANG Hsiao-ching, Yuki

Ms WU Hoi-ki, Ellen

Executive Officer (District Council) 2,Central and Western District Office

Executive Asistant (District Council) 4, Central and Western District Office

Item 16 Ms TO Hiu-nam, Iris

Ms LEE Ching-nga, Angela

Social Worker, Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association Kwun Lung Lau Community Work Office

Vice Chairlady, Hong Kong Central and Western District Woman Association

Item 17 Mr POON Wai-keungMs CHAN Hau-ching

Mr YUEN Hin-sing

Ms LEE Ching-nga, Angela

Discipline Master, KCOBA Primary School No.2Social Work Assistant, Caritas Jockey Club

Integrated Service for Young People – Shek Tong Tsui

Social Worker, BGCA Jockey Club Sheung Wan Children and Youth Integrated Services Centre

Secretary, Sai Ying Pun Kaifong Welfare Association

Item 18 Ms LI Mee-nar, Elina Ms CHENG Yuk-lan

Mr LEUNG Hon-yung

Ms KWONG Wai-hing

Ms Manna CHOIMr CHENG Chung-shan

Ms WONG Wai-shan

Chairlady, Elina Cantonese Opera AssociationAdministrative Assistant, Chinese Arts and

Culture AssociationChairman, The Hong Kong Youth of Chinese

Opera CollegeSecretary, The Hong Kong Youth of Chinese

Opera CollegeChairlady, Yu Sum Chinese Opera TroupeChairman, Tin Ma Music and Opera Association

Limited

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Ms LAI Yin-kitMs CHENG Shuk-man

Executive Officer, Tin Ma Music and Opera Association Limited

Chairman, Yuet Sing Chinese OperaChairlady, Cantonese Opera Art Study

AssociationItem 19 Mr LAU Kwok-wai

Ms CHAN Tik-wah

Executive Director, The Conservancy Association Centre for Heritage

Assistant Project Manager, The Conservancy Association Centre for Heritage

Absent with Apologies:Ms LAU Wai-yan, Vienna

Opening remarks

The Chairman welcomed all to the 9th Meeting of the Culture, Leisure & Social Affairs Committee (CLSAC) (2016-17) under the Central and Western District Council (C&WDC). The Chairman welcomed Dr CHUNG Hiu-wah, Medical and Health Officer (Community Liaison) 2 of the Department of Health, who attended the meeting for the first time and stood in for Dr WONG Man-ching, Senior Medical and Health Officer (Community

In Attendance:Mrs WONG HO Wing-sze, Susanne, JP District Officer (Central and Western)Ms YEUNG Wing-shan, Grace Senior Executive Officer (District Council),

Central and Western District OfficeMr NG Wai Lung, David Assistant District Social Welfare Officer (Central

Western, Southern and Islands) 2, Social Welfare Department

Mr WATT Wai-yeung, Edwin Senior Community Relations Officer (Hong Kong West/Islands), Independent Commission Against Corruption

Mrs KWOK WONG Mun-yi Senior School Development Officer (Central Western and Southern) 2, Education Bureau

Dr CHUNG Hiu-wah, Jennifer Medical and Health Officer (Community Liaison) 2, Department of Health

Ms CHOI Yi-ting, Christal Neighbourhood Police Co-ordinator, Police Community Relations Office, Central District, Hong Kong Police Force

Mr CHAN Chun-wah Neighbourhood Police Co-ordinator, Police Community Relations Office, Western District, Hong Kong Police Force

Ms CHOI Suk-kuen, Shirley Senior Manager (Cultural Services) Hong Kong West, Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Ms ZHAO Yee, Emily Manager (Hong Kong West) Marketing, Programme and District Activities, Leisure and Cultural Services Department

Ms CHAN Suk-fan, Bianca Deputy District Leisure Manager (District Support) Central and Western, Leisure and Cultural Services Department

SecretaryMiss MAN Sum-yi, Annie Executive Officer (District Council) 5

Central and Western District Office

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Liaison) 2, who was unable to attend the meeting today.

2. The Chairman said he would let the District Facilities Management Committee finish the remaining discussion items. The Chairman declared the meeting adjourned.

3. The meeting resumed at 3:18 p.m.

4. Mr LEE Chi-hang said according to the Standing Orders, if a quorum was not present within 15 minutes of a meeting, the Chairman should adjourn the meeting. However, he was not sure whether the aforesaid order was applicable to the situation that the meeting did not begin within 15 minutes of the scheduled time.

5. Mr LEE Chi-hang and Mr YEUNG Hok-ming requested the Chairman to clarify the start time of this CLSAC meeting.

6. The Chairman clarified that the start time of this CLSAC meeting was 2:45 p.m.

7. Mrs WONG HO Wing-sze , District Officer (Central and Western), said the time of meeting shown on the related paper was incorrect. She confirmed that the start time of the meeting was 2:45 p.m.

8. The Chairman asked if any Member had any objection on the start time of this meeting.

9. The Chairman said as there was no objection from Members, the meeting would proceed as usual.

Item 1 - Adoption of the agenda

10. Members had no comments on the agenda, the Chairman announced that the agenda was adopted.

Item 2 - Confirmation of the minutes of the 8th meeting of CLSAC (2016-17)

11. Members had no comments on the draft minutes of the 8th meeting of CLSAC. The minutes of the meeting were confirmed.

Item 3 - Action checklist on matters arising from the 8th CLSAC meeting (2016/2017) (C&W CLSAC Paper No. 39/2017)

12. Members noted the action checklist on matters arising from the 8th CLSAC meeting and had no further comments.

Item 4 - Chairman’s report

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13. The Chairman received a notification from the Central and Western Police Station before the meeting, stating that it would coordinate the arrangement of sending representatives to the meetings of CLSAC.

14. Regarding the agenda item “Closure of Queen’s Road Post Office” discussed at the 8th meeting of CLSAC held on 27 April, Members had different definitions for the word “resolve” in Order 20(4) of the Standing Orders. The Ad-hoc Working Group on Review of Standing Orders of Central and Western District Council (The Ad-hoc Working Group on Review of Standing Orders) held two meetings on 16 and 26 May respectively. As Members could not reach a consensus at the two meetings, the Chairman had to follow the approach stated in the Standing Orders and would invite Members to indicate their stance one by one and record it on file.

15. "Culture in the District" had been organised for 16 years by now. It was previously suggested that the details of programme arrangements should be reviewed, but examination of various fund allocation guidelines took time, so CLSAC would follow up on the aforesaid review at coming meetings, and would also review and enhance the funded programmes of local arts organisations at the same time.

Item 5 - Closure of Queen’s Road Post Office(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 17/2017)__________________________________________________(7:36 p.m. – 7:46 p.m.)

16. The Chairman introduced the paper and reported that the following motion had already been passed at the 8th meeting of CLSAC:

“As the Post Office at Queen’s Road Central is close to the community, it is an important postal facility to local residents. In view of this, the Committee requests that the existing services of the said Post Office not be disrupted and up-to-date mailing facilities and services be provided.”

17. The Chairman said he had received an email from Mr HUI Chi-fung on 15 May, in which Mr HUI asked for the continuation of the proceedings on the request made by Mr NG Siu-hong at the 8th CLSAC meeting, i.e. part of the contents of the other re-amended motion which had not been passed should be attached to the motion passed (with relevant contents underlined):

“As the Post Office at Queen’s Road Central is close to the community, it is an important postal facility to local residents. In view of this, the Committee opposes the Hongkong Post’s plan to close the Queen’s Road Post Office; and requests that the exiting services of the said Post Office not be disrupted and up-to-date mailing facilities and services be provided.”

18. In accordance with Order 20(4) of the Standing Orders, the Chairman requested Members to resolve whether or not they consented to Mr NG Siu-hong’s request. If, after Members had

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stated their opinions, over half of the Members presented at the meeting indicated consent, then the request of Mr NG Siu-hong would be passed.

19. Mr HUI Chi-fung said the main dispute at the last meeting was that Members defined “vote” and “resolve” differently. He still interpreted Order 20(4) of the Standing Orders the same way as before and opined that resolution should be sought by casting votes; but if the method of resolution proposed by the Chairman could achieve the same effect as voting, he would accept the Chairman’s method. However, he made two requests: (1) to ask for the views of all Members; and (2) if a Member could not clearly indicate his/her view, the Chairman should exercise his power as Chairman and treat that Member as not taking part in the resolution procedure, which should be reflected in the result of resolution and recorded in the minutes of meeting.

20. The Chairman explained that the method of resolution suggested at the last meeting was no different from the request made by Mr HUI today.

21. Mr CHAN Hok-fung said the Chairman’s method of resolution at the last meeting was exactly the same as Mr HUI’s requests today. He could not comprehend why Mr HUI refused to accept the Chairman’s method last time and caused the abortion of the meeting, but changed his mind now. He considered it necessary for Mr HUI to first apologise to the Chairman and the council.

22. Mr YEUNG Hok-ming concurred with Mr CHAN Hok-fung. He said the Chairman had explained the same method of resolution at least three times at the last meeting, yet Mr HUI induced an aborted meeting on that day. He asked whether Mr HUI had higher authority than other Members that could stop other Members from giving their opinions. He suspected that Mr HUI was “putting on a show” to interrupt the proceeding of the meeting.

23. The Vice- c hairman believed that Members also realised that the method of resolution suggested by the Chairman at the last meeting was exactly the same as the method suggested by Mr HUI today; that meant Mr HUI had admitted that the method suggested by the Chairman complied with the requirements of the Standing Orders. He agreed that Mr HUI should apologise.

24. The Chairman said as Members had different definitions on “resolve”, C&WDC had convened two meetings of the Ad-hoc Working Group on Review of Standing Orders to discuss the issue. Although no consensus was reached at the meetings, Order 20(2) of the Standing Orders stipulated that once a motion was passed, the remaining motion was not required to put to the meeting for voting. Therefore, even if a Member requested the attachment of part of the contents, it could not be decided by voting; so he invited Members to express their opinions one by one.

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25. Mr HUI Chi-fung opined that situation under Order 20(4) should be handled by casting votes by a show of hands, and expressing opinions one by one did not comply with the requirements of the Standing Orders; but he hoped this meeting could proceed smoothly, and thus made the aforesaid suggestion to narrow down the differences of the two sides. As he understood, at the last meeting, the Chairman requested Members to indicate their stance on whether or not to vote by a show of hands, instead of on the request made by Mr NG Siu-hong. In addition, he said that at the last meeting, the Chairman had not explained how to deal with the situation where a Member did not indicate his/her stance, and whether or not he would ask every Member for his/her opinion. If the Chairman could respond to the requests he just made, he would consider the differences had narrowed and acquiesce to the continuation of the meeting.

26. Mr YEUNG Hok-ming said Mr HUI had not responded to the questions that whether he was “putting on a show” and whether he had higher authority than other Members. Mr YEUNG said at the meeting of the Ad-hoc Working Group on Review of Standing Orders, Mr HUI had threatened to cause the abortion of this meeting and requested Mr HUI to give an explanation about it.

27. Mr HUI Chi-fung clarified that as no reporters were present on that day, there was no need to put on a show. He could not comprehend why Members of the pro-establishment camp were unwilling to vote by a show of hands. He said he conceded on this matter this time and hoped that Members of the pro-establishment camp would concede on future issues. He denied having made threats about causing the abortion of this meeting.

28. The Chairman said no further discussion should be carried on regarding what had happened previously. Nevertheless, Order 20(2) of the Standing Orders expressly provided that once a motion was passed, the remaining motion was not required to be put to the meeting for voting, so asking Members to indicate their stance one by one was an appropriate method.

29. Mr CHAN Hok-fung opined that Mr HUI had changed his claim several times, and asked whether Mr HUI accepted the handling method suggested by the Chairman. He said the issue was not about whether or not to compromise, but to handle the matter in accordance with the Standing Orders and the facts. He again requested Mr HUI to apologise to the Chairman and the council, and to explain what he meant by “could not ensure that the meeting could proceed smoothly” which he said in the Ad-hoc Working Group on Review of Standing Orders.

30. Mr HUI Chi-fung asked the Chairman how he would deal with the situation if a Member did not indicate his/her stance.

31. The Chairman replied that what the Member said would be recorded on file, but the Member could not be forced to indicate his/her stance.

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32. The Vice- c hairman concurred that Members could not be forced to indicate their stance.

33. Mr YEUNG Hok-ming said Mr HUI was evading his question and asked again whether Mr HUI had higher authority than other Members, and requested Mr HUI to apologise.

34. Mr HUI Chi-fung said if the meeting procedure was just and fair, no Member would put up a fight. He reckoned that if he were the one who had abused the power of a chairman, every Member had the right to fight against him too. He did not consider himself having done anything wrong and refused to apologise. In addition, if a Member did not indicate his/her stance regarding the resolution, he enquired whether the Chairman would agree to record in the minutes of meeting that the Member did not participate in taking the resolution.

35. The Chairman replied that the Member would be deemed as having “no comment”.

36. Mr CHAN Hok-fung remarked that according to Mr HUI’ s logic, it would be necessary to record whether or not Mr HUI was present at each and every agenda item in future. He opined that Members were directly responsible to the voters, so it was not necessary to specifically record in the minutes of meeting that which Member had not indicated their stance.

37. The Chairman proceeded with the resolution procedure and requested Members to express whether they consented, opposed, or opted to abstain regarding the request of Mr NG Siu-hong. Members gave comments as follows:

(i) The Vice- c hairman said at the last meeting, his microphone was turned off against his wish, so he was unable to give his comments. He hoped that the existing services of the said Post Office would not be disrupted, and up-to-date mailing facilities and services be provided. At the last meeting, the motion proposed by Mr YEUNG Hok-ming was already passed, and he opposed the request of Mr NG Siu-hong.

(ii) Mr CHAN Hok-fung said he had clearly indicated his stance at the second meeting of the Ad-hoc Working Group on Review of Standing Orders. Although the Standing Orders allowed part of the contents of the other motion which had not been passed to be attached to the motion passed, the fact that the attached contents might cause confusion in the logic of the motion passed had to be taken into account, and so he had proposed to amend the relevant order in the Ad-hoc Working Group on Review of Standing Orders. He considered that if the Council had to vote again on a motion concerning the attachment of additional content, then the motion that had already been passed in accordance with the Standing Orders would be rendered meaningless, so he opposed to attaching part of the contents.

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(iii) Mr CHAN Choi-hi supported the re-amended motion that was already passed and opposed to attaching the content in question.

(iv) Mr KAM Nai-wai was in favour of the attachment of the additional content proposed by Mr NG Siu-hong.

(v) Ms CHENG Lai-king said she was unable to attend the last meeting due to other commitment, and had authorised Mr KAM Nai-wai to cast an abstention vote on the re-amended motion proposed by Mr YEUNG Hok-ming. She supported the attachment of the additional content proposed by Mr NG Siu-hong. She opined that the re-amended motion passed could not convey the meaning of “opposes the closure of the Queen's Road Post Office”.

(vi) Mr LEE Chi-hang said at the last meeting, he had clearly indicated that due to financial loss recorded at the Queen’s Road Post Office and its relatively low utilization rate, he had no objection to closing the Queen’s Road Post Office on the two premises of not wasting public money and providing the same level of postal services to the residents. He was consistent in his stance and considered it unnecessary to attach any other contents.

(vii) Mr YEUNG Hok-ming opposed to attaching the content in question because the motion passed already contained what Mr NG Siu-hong requested to attach, and the scope covered was also wider, so the post office could propose different options to prevent the disruption of existing services.

(viii) Mr NG Siu-hong was in favour of attaching the additional content proposed by him.

(ix) Mr HUI Chi-fung considered that adopting the method of voting by a show of hands could save time; on the other hand, Members might evade indicating their stance if they could take turn in expressing their standpoint. He was in favour of attaching part of the contents.

(x) Miss LO Yee-hang indicated abstention.

(xi) Mr IP Yik-nam opposed the request made by Mr NG Siu-hong because the motion passed included the request not to affect the postal services enjoyed by the public; and closing the Queen’s Road Post Office did not mean the prevailing standard of postal services could not be maintained.

(xii) Mr LEE Man-sing considered that the motion passed already expressed the request for non-disruption of the existing postal services, it was unnecessary to attach the additional content.

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(xiii) Mr SHAM Chi-hang opined that the motion passed allowed Hongkong Post flexibility in dealing with the problem. At the last meeting, Hongkong Post had already explained that it was the rental problem which led to the closing of the post office. As long as it pledged that the services would not be disrupted and the quality of service would be maintained, there was no need to attach the additional content.

(xiv) Ms CHEUNG Kai-yin was in favour of attaching the content in question. She considered the word “flexibility” vague, and the public considered it necessary to keep the post office concerned and its services, so it was essential to attach the content proposed by Mr NG Siu-hong.

(xv) Mr YIP Wing-shing said taking into account the audit report and the commercial decision of the landlord, Members who were the monitors of public money had the responsibility to ensure that public funds were properly used. At the last meeting, Hongkong Post had mentioned that it would deploy manpower to other post offices. He requested Hongkong Post to provide up-to-date mailing facilities and to discuss with the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) on the feasibility of relocating the post office to the future Central Market. He considered the main point of the motion was the non-disruption of the services, so he opposed to attaching the content in question.

(xvi) The Chairman said the demand for postal services in the district was bound to increase in the future and he hoped to give Hongkong Post flexibility in tackling the problem, such as relocating the post office to the ground floor of The Center or to Central market. He opposed to amending the motion passed.

38. After resolution, the request of Mr NG Siu-hong was not endorsed. ( Members consented to the request : Ms CHENG Lai-king, Mr HUI Chi-fung, Mr KAM Nai-wai, Mr NG Siu-hong, and Ms CHEUNG Kai-yin);

(Members opposed the request : Mr CHAN Chit-kwai, Mr CHAN Choi-hi, Mr CHAN Hok-fung, Mr LEE Chi-hang, Mr YEUNG Hoi-wing, Mr YEUNG Hok-ming, Mr YIP Wing-shing, Mr IP Yik-nam, Mr LEE Man-sing, and Mr SHAM Chi-hang);

(Members abstained: Miss LO Yee-hang).

Item 6 - Work Plan 2017/2018 Regional Office (Hong Kong West/Islands) Independent Commission Against Corruption

(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 16/2017)__________________________________________________(4:09 p.m. – 4:37 p.m.)

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39. Ms SO Yim-ling , Regional Officer (Hong Kong Island) of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), introduced the work strategies and major activities for 2017/2018 of the Regional Office (Hong Kong West/Islands) (the Office) of ICAC, and said ICAC would carry on with the territory-wide “All for Integrity” programme this year. ICAC would intensify the provision of preventive education for the public and private sectors, and also citizens at grassroot levels. With regard to government departments and public bodies, in response to the public concern aroused from cases of misconduct in public office and conflicts of interest involving government officers, ICAC would organise thematic seminars for government officers at different levels (including senior government officers), attend meetings of Corruption Prevention Groups and Ethics Committees of different government departments, and upload anti-corruption information to the Web Learning Portal on Integrity Management. Following the swearing-in of the governing team for the new term of Government, plans were afoot to organise briefings for members of Executive Council (including all the Secretaries of Departments and Directors of Bureaux), principal officials of the HKSAR and officials appointed under the Political Appointment System. In addition, all the 120 public bodies in Hong Kong would be approached to promote ICAC’s corruption prevention service. For the business sector, ICAC would continue to provide intensified preventive education services to the sectors which accounted for more corruption reports, including construction, catering, finance and insurance, etc; and would roll out a three-year Ethics Promotion Programme for Listed Companies. For grassroot levels, ICAC would strengthen the dissemination of probity messages to new arrivals and ethnic minorities, including producing education and publicity packages in ethnic minority languages. ICAC would continue to liaise with owners’ corporations (OCs), property owners and building management bodies and assist them in implementing anti-corruption work targeting the maintenance and daily management of buildings. ICAC would continue to promote the anti-corruption message to teenagers, provide teaching materials on moral education of students, organise the ICAC Ambassador Programme in tertiary institutions and establish the Youth Chapter under ICAC Club. She thanked C&WDC, Central and Western District Office and Central and Western District Fight Crime Committee, which had earlier agreed to co-organise the “All for Integrity” Publicity Project in the Central and Western (C&W) District this year. ICAC would also invite the three Area Committees and the Council of School Heads of the district to co-organise the programme.

40. The Chairman invited discussion on the paper. Questions and comments raised by Members were as follows:

(i) Mr CHAN Choi-hi requested ICAC to give talks to different industries on trade practices and corruption prevention. In addition, he asked if ICAC had any definition on “deferred benefits” and any prevention measures against them. He was especially concerned about the deferred benefits offered to civil servants.

(ii) Ms CHENG Lai-king was concerned about the issue of bid-rigging in building maintenance works and enquired what measures ICAC would adopt to help property

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owners prevent bid-rigging and whether the owners could obtain advice from ICAC in respect of the preparation of tender documents.

(iii) Mr YEUNG Hok-ming suggested ICAC to fight for more resources for launching publicity campaigns on the prevention of bid-rigging in building maintenance works, with the small flat owners and the elderly as targets of the campaigns.

(iv) Mr CHAN Hok-fung enquired whether ICAC had discussed with the Competition Commission on the prevention of bid-rigging and corruption in building maintenance works, including the ways to improve the situation.

(v) Mr YIP Wing-shing said C&WDC and ICAC had cooperated over the years on fighting corruption in the district. He was very supportive of the “All for Integrity” programme of ICAC, which covered many areas, and he hoped that C&WDC could widely promote the prevention of corruption to the community and the young people in the future.

(vi) The Chairman said on page 3 of the paper, it mentioned that Hong Kong was ranked the 4th among 199 countries and territories with the least corruption risk in the “2016 TRACE Matrix”; and he requested ICAC to explain what the 4th place represented.

41. Ms SO Yim-ling , Regional Officer (Hong Kong Island) of ICAC, responded as follows:

(i) In response to the enquiry from Mr CHAN Choi-hi regarding trade practices, Section 9 of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance provided that if an agent solicited or accepted an advantage in relation to his principal's affairs or business without the permission of his principal, he shall be guilty of an offence; the person who offered the advantage shall also be guilty of an offence. According to Section 19 of the said Ordinance, customary trade practice was not a defence. ICAC would conduct seminars or use other publicity means to disseminate this message to the commercial sector. For example, ICAC had produced publicity posters and corruption prevention training package to remind the catering industry not to use the excuse of customary trade practice to solicit or accept any advantage from other people. In reply to the enquiry on deferred benefits offered to civil servants, she said in joining another organisation after retirement or taking up a post-service job in another organsiation, a civil servant must comply with the relevant guidelines of the Civil Service Bureau. The Corruption Prevention Department of ICAC would continue to give corruption prevention advice to the Bureau in this regard.

(ii) In response to Members’ concern over the issues relating to building management, she said ICAC would take the initiative to contact OCs that were newly formed or had just received Repair Orders or Fire Safety Directions, and provide them with preventive education services as soon as possible. In addition, ICAC had issued "A Guide on Corruption Prevention in Building Maintenance" and recommended OCs to include "Probity Clauses" and "Anti-collusion Clauses" in the tender documents, and had provided sample documents to OCs for reference.

(iii) She explained that as a law enforcement agency, it was inappropriate for ICAC to be

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involved in the tender procedures of OCs, such as preparing the tender document, making tender evaluation or acting as monitoring person. ICAC would use different channels to explain the corruption law to property owners and OCs in depth and advise them on corruption prevention matters. She said ICAC would send representatives to attend meetings held by the Working Group on Concern Over Building Management in the Central & Western District, and disseminate corruption prevention message through the Working Group’s newsletters and seminars. ICAC had also set up an “Integrity Building Management Enquiry Hotline” to answer queries from property owners and OCs and offer appropriate corruption prevention services to them.

(iv) She said there was a liaison and case referral mechanism between ICAC and other related organisations (including the Competition Commission), aiming to terminate all unlawful activities including bribery and bid-rigging.

(v) She said last year, ICAC successfully prosecuted a maintenance contractor who carried out bid-rigging in the renovation works for a large estate in Shatin, and this provided a deterrent to the potential offenders. At present, the Operations Department of ICAC had a permanent team of 43 persons dedicated to investigating the corruption cases involving building management. In addition, beginning from 2015, a 9-person team was set up to specially deal with corruption complaints involving bid-rigging activities. The Operations Department would institute immediate prosecutions for individual cases. For example, it would search premises and interview witnesses at an early stage to prevent the potential corruption and bid-rigging cases from happening, alert property owners of the risks of corruption and suggest that where necessary, they might consider replacing the maintenance consultant or contractor, and even re-organising the OC.

(vi) She thanked Mr YIP Wing-shing for his support to ICAC and said ICAC would continue to work on corruption prevention.

(vii) In reply to the Chairman’s enquiry, she said the survey result meant that the risk of corruption in Hong Kong was the 4th lowest amongst the 199 countries or territories in the world.

Item 7 - Social Welfare Department Central Western, Southern and Islands District Social Welfare Office – Progress Report on Provision of Welfare Services in Central and Western District

(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 28/2017)__________________________________________________(4:37 p.m. – 4:49 p.m.)

42. Mr NG Wai-lung , Assistant District Social Welfare Officer (Central Western, Southern and Islands) 2 of the Social Welfare Department (SWD), introduced the Progress Report on Provision of Welfare Services in C&W District of the SWD Central Western, Southern and Islands District Social Welfare Office (the District Social Welfare Office). He said in the past year, the District Social Welfare Office adopted the theme of “Happy Family Igniting Positive Energy in the Community” and organised a total of 49 projects with a total number of around 17 500 beneficiaries. He highlighted the Qipao Programme held last year, which was a series of Chinese qipao promotion activities for the elderly and the young people with

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the objectives of promoting trans-generational integration and harmony through culturing a sense of responsibility in young people and raising the self-esteem of the elderly. The Qipao Programme included three signature programmes: “Collector cars parade”, Catwalk show and a luncheon gathering. The Programme received active support and participation from the commercial sector and the entertainment sector. Young people could personally feel the essence of Chinese culture in qipao; even more, the Programme achieved trans-generational integration through paring up a young person with an elderly person in the qipao catwalk show. He continued that the theme of this year was "Community Arts for Social Inclusion", which aimed to connect different sectors including welfare organisations, schools, local organisations and business corporations to provide innovative and diversified programmes and activities to local residents through the promotion of community arts. Also, by taking part in the creation of community arts, enabled residents to learn mutual appreciation, respect and acceptance, and work together towards the common goals of caring and serving the disadvantaged groups and fostering a socially inclusive and caring community. He then introduced the six strategic indicators for the annual work plan of SWD for this year: (i) To enhance family support; (ii) To strengthen community network; (iii) To widen opportunity for more diversified collaboration; (iv) To promote social integration (trans-generational integration/integration of able-bodied and disabled persons/inter-cultural integration); (v) To retrieve impaired relationship; and (vi) To promote youth development. These indicators set out clear work direction for frontline service units to implement various programmes and activities. Through the five District Co-ordinating Committees, SWD was going to organise various programmes to echo the work objectives and themes, including the District Collaboration Projects, District Support Scheme for Children and Youth Development, Opportunities for the Elderly Project, and Service Quality Group (SQG) Scheme.

43. The Chairman shared his experience of participating in the Qipao Programme. He opined that the Programme enabled the young to connect with the older generation, promoted trans-generational integration and harmony, and provided knowledge on Chinese culture.

44. The Chairman invited discussion on the paper. Questions and comments raised by Members were as follows:

(a) The Vice- c hairman commended SWD for their work in the past year. In view of the Kwun Lung Lau case involving a person with suspected mental health problem, which happened earlier, he requested SWD to enhance their support for mental health services and equip residents with a better knowledge of mental illness.

(b) The Chairman said he had joined the SQG for a number of years and agreed that inspections of the residential care homes for the elderly (RCHEs) could effectively improve the service standard of the RCHEs. He suggested enacting laws to put all RCHEs under a mandatory monitoring system.

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45. Mr NG Wai-lung of SWD responded as follows:

(a) In response to the Chairman’s concern over the SQG, he said views about enforcing the mandatory participation of all RCHEs had been reflected to the headquarters, and the establishment of the SQG was an important part of raising the overall quality of RCHEs. SWD understood that the community was very concerned about the qualities of RCHEs and Residential Care Homes for Persons with Disabilities; and had enhanced the monitoring work in various aspects, including more frequent inspections, carrying out inspections strategically by deploying different teams and at different time slots, enhancing training to the staffs of RCHEs, upgrading the facilities in private RCHEs and reviewing the relevant ordinances and codes of practice. The purpose of establishing the SQG was to increase the operation transparency of the RCHEs through increased participation of the people of the community. The department was glad to see that the participating RCHEs were willing to accept the suggestions made by the SQG and made improvements. For example, a RCHE took the advice of the SQG members in changing the toilet doors into folding doors to ensure the safety of the elderly. SWD would continue its endeavour to engage more RCHEs to participate in the SQG Scheme.

(b) In response to the Vice- c hairman ’s question about support for mental health service, he said at present, the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Lok Hong Integrated Community Centre for Mental Wellness and the Fu Hong Society Sunrise Centre provided district-based mental health support, including public education, casework counselling, outreaching and referral services. Members of the public who felt emotionally disturbed could seek assistance from them.

46. The Chairman supplemented that the RCHEs would be more open-minded in taking advice if their participation in the monitoring scheme was voluntary, whereas a mandatory monitoring system could effectively raise the service standard. He hoped the department would enhance its monitoring work.

Item 8 - Discussion and confirmation of the application for joining the World Health Organization “Global Network of Age-friendly Cities and Communities”

(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 22/2017 )_________________________________________________

(4:49 p.m. – 5:24 p.m.)

47. Regarding C&W District’s application for membership in the World Health Organization (WHO) “Global Network of Age-friendly Cities and Communities” (GNAFC), t he Chairman said the Working Group on Elderly Service (WGES) led by the Vice-chairman was responsible for the task.

48. The Vice- c hairman introduced the paper. In the 2nd meeting of CLSAC, it was endorsed that application for membership in the WHO GNAFC would be submitted by C&WDC on behalf of the district. C&WDC had to submit the application form, the baseline assessment report, the action plan, and a letter of support signed by the Chairman of C&WDC through the internet, and to implement the aforesaid action plan. A baseline assessment report funded by Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) and prepared by Sau Po Centre on Ageing of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) had been completed. He thanked the professional

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team of the HKU for conducting the detailed study on age-friendliness in C&W District and for preparing the report. He said the result of the study was encouraging. The findings showed that the participants in general considered the district to have a high degree of age-friendliness, and the district scored high in “social participation” and “respect and social inclusion” domains. Most (82.6%) of the elderly participants used services or participated in activities provided by elderly centres; and nearly half (46.4%) of the participants volunteered in services in elderly centres. The report also provided suggestions on how to improve the age-friendliness in the district, which included both policy and non-policy suggestions. WGES had begun to follow up in various ways. For policy suggestions, such as the provision of barrier-free access and connection facilities through the “Universal Accessibility Programme”, C&WDC and the government departments had been following up and improving those services through the Traffic & Transport Committee and the District Facilities Management Committee. For non-policy suggestions, WGES had been following up the work through the implementation of the action plan, which included the "Jockey Club Age-friendly City Project" that had already rolled out. In addition, as there were numerous services provided for the elderly in the district, but due to inadequate information dissemination and publicity, it was difficult for the hidden elderly to learn about those services; hence one of the projects listed in the action plan was to set up an information platform so that the elderly could access the service information more easily. Furthermore, to encourage the participation of various stakeholders in the district, the first promotional event launched by the Jockey Club Age-friendly City Project, i.e. the Kick-off Ceremony cum Carnival of Jockey Club Age-friendly City in the Central and Western District, was held on 18 March this year. Another project set out in the action plan was training of elderly ambassadors, with the aim of enhancing age-friendly awareness. District Councillors, non-government organisations (NGOs) and the elderly participated in the preparation of the baseline assessment report, an overview of the elderly services provided by C&WDC and NGOs was also delivered in the report. The report had studied the age-friendliness in C&W District thoroughly and provided a solid base for the district’s application for membership in WHO GNAFC.

49. The Chairman said the baseline assessment report recognised the work of C&W District in promoting age-friendliness, in particularly in each of the past ten years, C&WDC organised a round of visit to all the elderly centres in the district and maintained close cooperation with the elderly centres and NGOs of the district.

50. Professor Terry LUM, Associate Director of Sau Po Centre on Ageing of HKU, appreciated the age-friendly work done in C&W District. He considered that joining WHO GNAFC would allow other districts in Hong Kong and other cities in the world to know about the accomplishments achieved in C&W District. He said the university played the role of a lever, and with funding from HKJC, it was hoped that the work of C&WDC would be enhanced so that the age-friendly work could persist. He said each district had its own distinguishing features. As there were less public housing estates in C&W District, it became more difficult for the hidden elderly to obtain information on elderly services. He hoped that the university, C&WDC and NGOs could co-operate in enhancing the publicity work.

51. The Chairman invited discussion on the paper. Comments made by Members were as follows:

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(a) Mr CHAN Choi-hi enquired whether the university had conducted studies on ways to further consolidate the social network. He said there were many elderly persons living alone in C&W District. He enquired what advice the university might offer to the families which had to take care of those elderly persons who had lost their self-care abilities.

(b) Mr CHAN Hok-fung thanked Professor Terry LUM and the HKU team for their contribution in preparing the baseline assessment report for C&W District. He said that in view of the high degree of social participation and inclusion of the elderly in the district but relatively unsatisfactory physical environment for provision of hardware facilities, C&WDC would continue to follow up with various departments in this respect. He said the report made less reference to family factors in the district. In the past, three generations of a family might all reside in C&W District; but now, due to reasons such as property prices, the sons and daughters had to move to distant areas, leaving elderly parents behind without care. He invited the professor to give advice in respect of ancillary facilities in the district, such as flat design, for the promotion of trans-generational integration and harmony.

(c) Mr YEUNG Hok-ming said the report had rich content. He said the Government currently advocated the ideal mode of “aging in place", which was difficult to implement in the district since the property prices were so high. He enquired about ways to empower the elderly to enjoy old age under the care of the family. He said the elderly in C&W District was unwilling to sell their properties and would rather live alone, some of them even had financial difficulties. He enquired if there were any suggestions that could assist the Government to implement "ageing in place" in the district.

(d) Mr SHAM Chi-hang enquired whether there was any indicator that could assess the probability of an elderly person becoming a hidden elderly, so that social workers or persons in the neighbourhood could identify them earlier and offer assistance.

(e) The Chairman said over the years, cooperation between C&WDC and NGOs played an important part in promoting elderly services in the district. For instance, in paying a round of visit every year, the queries and comments raised by the elderly would be collected and passed to various committees and relevant government departments for follow up.

(f) Ms CHENG Lai-king said the idea of joining WHO GNAFC was initially conveyed to her by the elderly in the district, who urged for early application for the accreditation. She thanked HKJC and HKU for their assistance. She said health issue was the main concern of the elderly in the district, many of them had to reside in RCHEs after incidence of falls, so the stakeholders should always remind the elderly to take care of their health.

52. Professor Terry LUM of HKU said he was glad that Members thoroughly understood the needs of the elderly in the community. He responded to the questions raised by Members as

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follows:

(a) He said in the analysis of the existing welfare conditions of the elderly, studying situations in sub-districts, such as Kennedy Town and Sai Ying Pun, would be more effective than studying the overall situation in C&W District. By the same token, studying the area within 2 to 3 km of the residence of an elderly person could better understand the prevailing situation about community capital, but the present study focused less on community capital. The HKU team opined that to make the best use of community capital, the young-olds had to be encouraged to switch from a service user to a service provider to take care of other elderly persons in the district. If over a hundred young-olds in a sub-district could be enlisted to receive appropriate training, it would facilitate the work of liaising neighbours in the community.

(b) The Government first mentioned the concept of "ageing in place" in 1977, but the focus of the public was on the lack of RCHEs. He pointed out that in respect of the percentage of elderly persons residing in RCHEs, Hong Kong ranked highest in the world, reaching 7%, whereas it was around 3 to 4% in other areas. The HKU team was commissioned by the Government to review the assessment tools and service-matching formula for government subsidized RCHEs and elderly services. SWD would implement improvement projects 2 years later and hopefully, by that time, more resources could be allocated to promote ageing in the community and ageing in place.

(c) In the baseline assessment, the team found that the district scored less in the housing domain. However, housing problem was a territory-wide issue that could not be solved at the District Council level. HKU was working with the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) to study ways to improve three types of elderly housing, it was hoped that HKHS and the Government could conduct a more comprehensive review on the housing policy for the elderly by the middle of next year.

(d) He suggested making reference to the experience of other districts and used the funds for district-based programmes provided by HKJC under the "Jockey Club Age-friendly City Project" to provide minor home alteration and maintenance works for the elderly.

(e) Regarding the indicator for assessing elderly persons, he said the team was developing for SWD a set of simple assessment indicators for use by the neighbours and family members of an elderly person, and for arranging referrals when necessary. He expected that the relevant work would commence at the end of this year and hoped to introduce the assessment tool by next year.

(f) Finally, he understood that elderly issues could not be solved by the District Council alone, but required territory-wide efforts to address the problem. He hoped District Council and the Government would work together to promote "ageing in place".

53. Mr Timothy TAM , Project Manager, Charities of HKJC, introduced the "Jockey Club Age-friendly City Project". He said the project would be implemented in the 18 districts of Hong Kong, with the objective to build momentum in districts to develop an age-friendly community. HKJC rolled out pilot projects in 8 districts in the third quarter of 2015, C&W

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District was one of the pilot districts. He said HKJC cooperated with C&WDC, Home Affairs Department, NGOs in the district and HKU Sau Po Centre on Ageing in conducting baseline researches and drawing up an action plan covering a period of 3 years, with the long-term objective of establishing a sustainable mechanism to build an age-friendly city. HKU would continue to provide professional support to the district and offer advice on enhancing the age-friendliness in the district until the end of 2018. HKJC would provide a total funding of $1.5 million to C&W District from 2016 to 2018 to support the implementation of the 3-year action plan. Funding for the first batch of district-based programmes in C&W District had been disbursed, and relevant projects were being implemented by 3 NGOs. Regarding Professor LUM’s earlier remark that other districts, including Tsuen Wan and Kwun Tong, had used the funds to implement district-based programmes related to housing, he said that the housing projects in the past were coordinated by NGOs, which sought the needy elderly through District Councillors, social welfare centres and elderly centres; afterwards, the relevant experts would conduct inspections in the houses of the elderly, and then the skilled workers would carry out simple home renovations, such as installing handrails, laying non-slip floor tiles and painting. He said C&W District could consider implementing similar projects in the second and third batches of the district-based programmes.

54. The Chairman said "Jockey Club Age-friendly City Project" was implemented with the help of NGOs and elderly volunteers in the district, and he hoped that continued support would be given to the age-friendly work in C&W District.

55. The Vice- c hairman supplemented that WGES had discussed the details of this year’s action plan with NGOs earlier, and he hoped that Members would support the paper and officially apply for membership in WHO GNAFC. He expected that it would take two months to process the application. Upon approval, WGES would organise publicity programme in the latter part of this year to promote the inclusion of C&W District in WHO GNAFC; and would issue press release to make known the high degree of age-friendliness in C&W District as revealed in the baseline assessment report, and introduce the improvement work carried out in the district. After that, WGES would follow up the relevant work through the Secretariat and compile a progress report for submission to WHO.

56. CLSAC endorsed the application for joining WHO GNAFC and agreed to submit the application form at Annex, baseline assessment report, action plan and letter of support to WHO.

Item 9 - Request for the Government to preserve in-situ the entire building of Wing Woo Grocery Shop at 120 Wellington Street

(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 23/2017 )_________________________________________________(5:24 p.m. – 5:59 p.m.)

57. The Chairman said the paper had invited Wing Woo Grocery Shop Concern Group to speak and give a detailed presentation at the meeting, but it did not send any representative to the meeting. He asked whether Central and Western Concern Group and Sai Wan Concern could speak on behalf of Wing Woo Grocery Shop Concern Group.

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58. Mr Charlton CHEUNG , member of Sai Wan Concern, explained that the representative of Wing Woo Concern Group could not attend today’s meeting due to other commitments, so the two concern groups attended on its behalf.

59. Miss Katty LAW , convener of Central and Western Concern Group, said that after the strenuous efforts made by the community groups, including active advocacy and submission of detailed study reports at council meetings, there was new progress in the preservation of the building of Wing Woo Grocery Shop (Wing Woo). The URA had finally agreed to preserve the entire building, and subsequently the Antiquities Advisory Board (AAB) had also proposed to accord it a Grade 1 status. The incident reflected that heritage conservation in Hong Kong relied very much on the participation of the community groups and there were numerous shortcomings in the system. She considered that in dealing with the Hollywood Road Married Police Quarters, Central Government offices (West Wing), Wing Woo and historic tenement house remains at Cochrane Street, the Government belittled the heritage value of the monuments to fit in the development projects. She said civic bodies had made substantial contributions towards the preservation of the antiquities and historical monuments in C&W District. She appealed to C&WDC for its full support to the work done by the civic bodies in the areas of heritage research and advocacy. The concern group would build a database of the heritages in the district with a view to do a real good job of conserving Central, and hoped to secure the support and cooperation from C&WDC and the Government. She also hoped that the Antiques and Monuments Office (AMO) would re-study the history of the tenement house remains at Cochrane Street. She said the tenement buildings in Central and Sheung Wan formed the backbone of the Hong Kong old town, which was worthy of preservation by the Government, and she hoped to work hand in hand with C&WDC and various departments to properly carry out conservation work in the days to come.

60. Mr Charlton CHEUNG , member of Sai Wan Concern, said C&WDC played two important roles in heritage conservation: providing the public with knowledge about the monuments in the district, and conveying the stories about the monuments and the local community. He said through advocating the proposal at many council meetings by the concern group and inducing public discussions on the topic, Wing Woo had finally been graded by AAB. So, he believed that C&WDC could help promote conservation work in the district. He also pointed out that there was a series of inter-linked monuments in the vicinity of Wing Woo that had not been graded, including a stone channel built in 1922 at Graham Street Market, and a stone channel built in 1928 at Peel Street. He hoped that public discussion and concern could be aroused through the efforts of C&WDC. He emphasized that it was a series of dots, lines and facets of monuments that needed to be preserved, instead of just individual monument. In addition, he hoped that C&WDC could play a role in enabling the public to learn more about the stories concerning the local community and the monuments, so as to enrich the histories of old town Central.

61. Ms YUN Sin-wah , Senior Manager of Community Development of URA, said a revised preservation proposal was presented earlier at the meeting of C&WDC, proposing that URA

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would consider preserving the whole building at 120 Wellington Street and revitalise it as a street-front shop with local characteristics, subject to technical feasibility, safety and approval by the relevant government departments.

62. The Chairman said URA might consider the specific suggestions made by the concern group in the course of implementing the preservation work.

63. Ms SIU Lai-kuen , Executive Secretary (Antiques & Monuments) of AMO, said that the proposed grading of No. 120 Wellington Street (i.e. former Wing Woo) was discussed at the AAB meeting held on 8 June 2017. After considering the six assessment criteria and the comments of the Assessment Panel, it was endorsed that the proposed grading of the building was Grade 1. AMO had already uploaded the proposed grading and relevant information of the building onto the AAB website and would conduct a one-month public consultation in accordance with the standard procedures. AAB would consider all the views and information received during the public consultation period before confirming the grading of the building. If necessary, AMO would provide heritage conservation advice to URA based on the confirmed grading of the building.

64. The Chairman invited discussion on the paper. Comments made by Members were as follows:

(a) Ms CHEUNG Kai-yin considered that Wing Woo and the tenement house remains at Cochrane Street represented victories won by the conservation groups in the community. Discussions in the community and C&WDC had created certain pressure and helped won the battles regarding the preservation of Wing Woo and accorded Wing Woo a Grade 1 historic building status. She reckoned that C&WDC could serve as a platform for discussions and provide support to the heritage conservation work of the community groups. Apart from the monuments related to renowned persons, she considered that importance should also be attached to monuments closely related to the livelihoods of the local residents.

(b) Mr HUI Chi-fung welcomed the grading accorded by AAB and the decision of URA to preserve the entire building of Wing Woo, but he considered the process of grading Wing Woo worth a review. The whole process of heritage grading assessment was lengthy. The paper mentioned that it was only after the public had made a request for grading assessment that AMO began to carry out a study. He considered that AMO, as a professional department that specialised in the study of historical heritages, should assume some responsibility. He said AMO and URA should also work more closely with each other to avoid causing public contention right before a historical monument was going to be demolished. He opined that C&WDC should assist in presenting the historical stories of the old town of Central District before the public with a 3-dimension approach. He said URA’s ensuing tasks were to follow up with the

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revitalisation of Wing Woo; to showcase its past history; to consider whether the future use of the building was in line with its past history; and to create the link with the community. He hoped that URA would report the progress to C&WDC after conducting a study.

(c) Mr NG Siu-hong said the voices of the residents and the concern groups finally forced URA to preserve the entire building of Wing Woo and part of the tenement house remains at Cochrane Street. He concurred with Ms CHEUNG Kai-yin that the Government should also value the historic tenement houses once resided by common people so as to present the lives of the people in the past. In addition, he opposed to increasing the plot ratio of redevelopment project H19.

(d) Ms CHENG Lai-king said the Government was promoting “Old Town Central” on the one hand; but on the other hand, it did not cherish the monuments in the district. She said Central Mid-levels was exactly the most important old town. She remembered that at the beginning of 2000, district councillors and the community groups had fought for the preservation of Kom Tong Hall and the stonewall trees at Hollywood Road outside PMQ, and it was through their efforts that Kom Tong Hall and the stonewall trees remained intact today. She said the stakeholders in C&W District should endeavour to protect the “old town” in Central District, so that the citizens and foreign tourists could have the chance to appreciate the original historical monuments in Central. She hoped that under the premise of safety, the tenement buildings in Central could be preserved as far as possible. She pointed out that at first, URA only planned to preserve the façade of Wing Woo, but now it had decided to preserve the entire building. She hoped that Wing Woo could be declared as monument in the future. She reiterated that all stakeholders played an important role in preserving the monuments in the district.

(e) The Chairman opined that conservation and development were not opposing forces. Conservation work needed inputs from all stakeholders and we should strike a balance on the basis of sustainable development. He thanked the concern groups for their unwavering commitment and active role in the conservation work.

65. Miss Katty LAW , convener of Central and Western Concern Group, spoke on behalf of Wing Woo Grocery Shop Concern Group. She reminded URA that it must follow international practice and conducted a heritage impact assessment on Wing Woo. She learnt from the news report that the whole preservation work on Wing Woo would take 6 to 7 years. She worried that since the building aged over a hundred years, the building structure might have become unstable. She requested the relevant department to commence the reinforcement and preservation work as soon as possible. She also requested URA to inform the public of the procedures and timetable of the preservation of Wing Woo as soon as possible. She said she had not seen any design drawing of Wing Woo published by URA,

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she requested URA to report on the details of the preservation project in the coming meetings of C&WDC, and carry out consultations with all stakeholders.

66. Ms YUN Sin-wah of URA responded that URA would listen to the views of all parties. Regarding the preservation timetable, she pointed out that the detailed design could only be confirmed after approval had been given by the relevant department. URA also hoped to commence the preservation work as soon as possible, the target was to begin the detailed design in the first quarter of 2018; and it would report the progress to C&WDC.

67. The Chairman requested URA to seriously consider the opinions of the concern groups and to report to C&WDC upon completion of an in-depth study.

Item 10 - Exemption of rates and related restrictions for self-occupied flat of the elderly(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 24/2017 )____________________________________________________(5:59 p.m. – 6:11 p.m.)

68. This agenda item was chaired by the Vice-chairman

69. The Vice- c hairman invited discussion on the paper. Comments made by Members were as follows:

(i) The Chairman said a retired elderly person did not have a stable income, yet his self-occupied flat often required renovation and maintenance, which imposed enormous financial pressure on him. So, he proposed exempting the rates of the self-occupied flats of the elderly, and raising the rateable value limit of the Mandatory Building Inspection Subsidy Scheme. He hoped that the relevant departments would consider the needs of the elderly.

(ii) Mr LEE Chi-hang had reservations on the exemption of rates for all self-occupied flats of the elderly. He reckoned that the across-the-board approach to the issue would generate much discussion in the community. He understood that the proposal of the Member would help alleviate the financial burden of the elderly whose only asset was a self-occupied flat; however, such demand was not common among the elderly for the time being. As compared with reduction and exemption of rates, he would rather the Government consider the overall demands of the elderly and present proposals that could more effectively help the elderly with financial needs. He opined that the proposals set out in the paper should be handled carefully.

(iii) Ms CHENG Lai-king agreed that even if the elderly owner-occupier was a recipient of Old Age Living Allowances, rates payment was still a burden for some of them. She was concerned that some of the elderly living in private flats and without any support had to secure monthly living expenses through reverse mortgages. However, she

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reckoned that exemption of rates for self-occupied flats of the elderly might lead to other complicated problems; for example, the exemption would not benefit the elderly who did not own any property, the rent for public housing already included rates, etc. Furthermore, she enquired about the usages of the rates currently collected by the Government.

(iv) Mr YEUNG Hok-ming agreed that the allocation of public resources should be considered from multiple angles and according to priorities. With limited resources, the Government should first consider the needs of those elderly persons without property and those living in subdivided flats, because they too, were faced with financial burdens in varying degrees. If resources were adequate, then he concurred with exempting the rates for the self-occupied flats of the elderly.

(v) Mr SHAM Chi-hang said in the reply from the Rating and Valuation Department, it was mentioned that one of the eligibility criteria for applying for the Mandatory Building Inspection Subsidy Scheme was that the average annual rateable value of an urban residential property could not exceed $120,000, which accounted for 40% of all the private properties in the urban areas. He enquired how the department derived that figure.

(vi) The Vice- c hairman said recent news reports mentioned that URA and HKHS would raise the average annual rateable value limit for domestic unit under the building rehabilitation schemes. For domestic unit in urban areas, the limit would be adjusted upward from $120,000 to $162,000. However, he reckoned that the adjustment was insufficient; and given the rising property prices in recent years, he hoped the department would make timely reviews and adjustments to help the flat owners. He also requested the department to reply to the question that whether rates should be exempted for all the self-occupied properties of the elderly.

70. Ms TSANG Lai-wan , Senior Valuation Surveyor of the Rating and Valuation Department, explained that the rates collected by the Government were part of the total public revenue, which was used to pay public expenditure. She said rateable value was the estimated annual rental value of a property at a designated valuation reference date, assuming that the property was then vacant and to let in the open market; for the year 2017/18, the designated valuation reference date was 1 October 2016. Under the Mandatory Building Inspection Subsidy Scheme, one of the eligibility criteria regarding private residential properties in urban areas (including Shatin, Kwai Tsing and Tsuen Wan districts) was that the rateable value for the residential property should not exceed $120,000. In 2017/18, the percentage of urban residential properties with rateable vale not exceeding that upper limit was around 40%. The percentage was derived from a computer analysis of the rateable value of the urban residential properties for that year. She said the prevailing Rating Ordinance did not have any provision for the exemption of rates for self-occupied properties of the elderly aged over 65.

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Furthermore, the rates concession measure implemented by the Government this year was to waive the rates payable for each rateable property for the concerned quarters, subject to a ceiling of $1,000 per quarter.

Item 11 - Indiscriminate disposal of syringes jeopardises the safety of pedestrians(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 32/2017 )___________________________________________________(6:11 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.)

71. This agenda item was chaired by the Vice-chairman.

72. The Vice- c hairman invited discussion on the paper. Comments made by Members were as follows:

(i) Mr YEUNG Hok-ming was concerned that recently over a hundred syringes were indiscriminately disposed of on the road side of Water Street in Sai Ying Pun, he enquired whether the relevant department had carried out any investigation. He said with the exposure of the incident, the syringes were immediately removed. The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) responded that those syringes were not found on site, and the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) said its cleaning contractor had not handled those syringes. He was worried that some practitioners had not handled clinical waste in accordance with the guidelines of EPD, thereby leading to the spreading of germs. He hoped that the department would provide more training to the frontline cleaning workers and to enhance supervision, so as to avoid jeopardising the safety of the cleaning workers and the public.

(ii) Mr LEE Chi-hang said apart from diabetic patients, the public in general rarely needed syringes. Hence, he suggested enacting laws to ban the sale of syringes in the market, and that medical appliances could only be used under the direction of doctors.

(iii) Ms CHEUNG Kai-yin said she had received complaints from the veterinary clinics near Water Street about the disposal of clinical waste at inappropriate places by waste collectors. She enquired whether EPD had monitored the work of clinical waste collectors regularly; and that when clinics prescribed syringe drugs to patients, whether the patients were told the correct way to dispose of the used syringes.

(iv) Mr CHAN Choi-hi could not understand why the waste would be missing, despite that the cleaning contractors of FEHD had not handled them. He enquired what the department could do to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents, and whether there was any monitoring system in the relevant departments at present.

(v) The Vice- c hairman said the quantity of syringes reported in the news was large, and it

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was guessed that they might be used for medical purposes. The whereabouts of the wastes were still unknown, he enquired about EPD’s monitoring system.

73. Dr CHOI Wing-kin , Senior Environmental Protection Officer (Territorial Control) 2 of EPD, said the Clinical Waste Control Scheme controlled the clinical waste generated in connection with a medical, dental, veterinary or nursing practice. All the clinical waste must be collected by licensed clinical waste collectors, or transported to the Tsing Yi Chemical Waste Treatment Centre for treatment under the supervision of healthcare professionals. All transportation records were closely monitored. The department would make surprise checks at the premises generating the clinical waste at irregular intervals. The department would investigate into offending cases and initiate prosecutions. He said in March this year, two cases of illegal disposal of clinical waste were successfully prosecuted, with imposed penalties of $10,000 and $50,000 respectively. Furthermore, every vehicle of the waste collector was installed with GPS so that the department could trace the location of the vehicle and carry out surprise checks, to ensure that the clinical waste was safely and properly delivered to a chemical treatment centre for treatment. Regarding the above incident, he responded that after the department received the report of the case, it had immediately sent staff to the location concerned to investigate, but no clinical waste was found there. The photos in the report revealed that the discarded wastes included syringes suspected to be used for insulin injection, lancets for glucometer, and syringes for feeding; so, it was guessed that those wastes came from RCHE. The department had put the RCHEs in the vicinity into a watch list and would make surprise checks at irregular intervals.

74. Mr HUI Kar-nung , Chief Health Inspector 1 of FEHD, said the department would remind the cleaning contractors to provide occupational safety and health training for the workers, and also provide the workers with personal protective equipment like gloves, masks and safety shoes to protect their personal safety. In addition, the department would remind cleaning contractors to pay particular attention to clinical waste found discarded in public places, for which the department would inform EPD to follow up.

75. The Vice- c hairman hoped the department would enhance supervision, protect the safety of frontline staff, and prevent the recurrence of similar incidents.

76. Mr YEUNG Hok-ming enquired about the number of prosecutions initiated by EPD in C&W District in the past.

77. Dr CHOI Wing-kin of EPD responded that there was no record of prosecution related to C&W District in the past. The two aforesaid cases with penalties imposed in March occurred in Jordan. The department would continue to carry out inspections, with a view to achieving deterrent effect.

Item 12 - Concern over medical treatment for mental patients in the community

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(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 33/2017)____________________________________________________(6:30 p.m. – 6:46 p.m.)

78. This agenda item was chaired by the Vice-chairman.

79. The Vice- c hairman invited discussion on the paper. Comments made by Members were as follows:

(i) Mr CHAN Choi-hi said in Hong Kong, the percentage of mental patients being treated with antipsychotic ampoules was on the low side, the Hospital Authority (HA) should allocate more resources to increase that percentage. He said the advantage of injection drugs was that patients only had to receive one injection per month, rather than taking oral drugs every day; and taking oral drugs would easily cause conflicts in a family, the patient might also forget to take it too. He reckoned that if resources were adequate, the Government should aim at gradually raising the percentage of injection treatment. In the short term, he considered that HA should provide more support to a patient’s family, so that they could help monitoring the patient’s compliance with the drug regimen.

(ii) The Chairman said HA should use long-acting drugs more often. He noticed that individual students with mental illness living alone in a hostel of the university campus had delayed treatment, causing the illness to worsen. He hoped HA would provide more effective drugs so that the patients could get appropriate treatment in time.

80. Dr Michael WONG , Consultant of Department of Psychiatry of Queen Mary Hospital, said serious mental illness was caused by problems in the brain. Taking medication would help balance the neural substances in the brain and improve the functioning of the brain. If not treated, mental illness could cause irreversible damage to the brain, so mental patients should get treatment as soon as possible. He said the present treatment for mental illness was mainly taking oral medication, and using injection drugs was a backup treatment method. With injection treatment, the patients only had to receive one injection of drugs per month; or one injection every three months if using the new generation long-acting ampoule. This could save the patients the trouble of taking oral drugs every day. For some patients, the illness had affected their brain functions and caused confusion in the number of times that they had taken the medicine. There were also patients who were reluctant to take medicine in front of others, making it difficult to control the illness. Using injection drugs would help the health care workers monitor the patients’ frequency of medication more easily and could also avoid conflicts among family members caused by medication related problem. The conventional approach of treatment was to administer injection drugs in the final stage, but many studies had revealed that the earlier the administration of injection drugs, the greater the chance of recovery. Looking at other developed countries, the percentage of using injection treatment had been rising in recent years. He said according to the Sweden medical research findings

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published in the medical journal “The Lancet” in July this year, long-acting ampoules achieved better treatment results than oral medications. He concurred with changing the concept of health care workers and patients, and promoting injection treatment to save the patients the trouble of taking oral medication every day, thereby reducing the chance of relapse.

81. Mr CHAN Choi-hi enquired about the increase in medical cost for using injection drugs instead of oral medication.

82. The Chairman suggested issuing a letter to the Food and Health Bureau and HA, so as to pass the details of the discussion on this agenda item to them for reference, and called for the increase of resources for the treatment of mental illness.

83. Mr SHAM Chi-hang enquired about the half-life of medicine. He was concerned that when nearing the end of the one month medication period, whether the patients’ condition would become less controllable due to the decrease of drug dosage in the body.

84. Dr Michael WONG of Queen Mary Hospital responded as follows:

(i) In reply to the question raised by Mr SHAM Chi-hang, he said the effect of half-life of medicine was more evident in oral drugs. At the intake of oral drugs, drug concentration in blood would rise, but as the drugs were broken down and excreted, drug concentration in blood would drop until the next intake of medicine, then drug concentration would rise again. Therefore, the level of drug concentration in blood would fluctuate several times a day, which might cause discomfort to the patient. In contrary, injection drugs would not have such side effect, because after the injection of long-acting ampoule, the drugs would be slowly released until the next injection; so the level of drug concentration in blood would remain stable.

(ii) In response to Mr CHAN Choi-hi’s concern over the price of long-acting ampoules, he answered that the old version costed around $300 to $500 per month, whereas the new generation costed around $3,000 to $5,000. Injection drugs were more expensive than oral drugs; but considering that the former was more effective in controlling patient condition and could reduce the frequency of relapse, thereby reducing the length of stay in hospital, it was more cost-effective to use injection drugs as this could save medical costs.

85. The Vice- c hairman summarised the discussion. CLSAC agreed to write to the Food and Health Bureau and HA, requesting them to review the prevailing medication strategies for treatment of mental patients and to consider offering more injection treatment to patients.

Item 13 - Concern over future development of Cadogan Street Temporary Garden in Sai Wan(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 37/2017 )____________________________________________________

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(6:46 p.m. – 7:36)

86. The Chairman invited members of the public who had applied for giving comments in the meeting to speak for two minutes each, the main points of their comments were as follows:

(i) Mr FU Chee-on , Chairman of Sai Wan New Apartment Owners’ Corporation Management Committee, said that on behalf of the residents of Kennedy Town, he welcomed C&WDC’s proposal to re-designate Cadogan Street Temporary Garden (CSTG) as a permanent garden. He said the residents of Kennedy Town needed the garden and reckoned it unnecessary for the departments to remove trees and carry out decontamination works. To avoid disturbing the residents and posing any threat to the health of the residents, it was also unnecessary to carry out decontamination works on the nearby land for complying with the decontamination standard required for developing residential buildings. Furthermore, as the Government had already confirmed that the contaminants in the soil would not pose any health hazard to the residents using the garden every day, he suggested cancelling the decontamination works. He said the Government should consult the residents on the planning of the waterfront promenade and accept the opinions of the residents. He suggested holding an open design contest to explore ways to amalgamate the two open spaces with different styles and functions.

(ii) Ms WONG Kin-ching, representative of Concern Group for Protecting Kennedy Town, said as the Town Planning Board (TPB) had already reserved CSTG as an open space, she requested the relevant department to strike out the word “temporary”. She said the public would like the Government to re-designate CSTG as a permanent garden, to preserve all the plants in the garden, and to build a toilet there if feasible. She requested the Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD) to cancel the decontamination works of the garden and change the method of decontamination, so as to avoid causing disturbances to the residents; reduce the risk associated with decontamination; and save taxpayers’ money. She requested CEDD to carry out discussions with the members of the “League for the Protection of my Home” and the experts. Regarding the idea of linking up the garden with the waterfront promenade, she said the residents favoured enlarging the garden area by converting the adjacent new driveway as a part of the garden, so that it could seamlessly connect with the waterfront promenade and solve the problem of insufficient open space in the district.

(iii) Ms Ma Lai-ying , resident of Western District, supported retaining the CSTG and re-designating it as a permanent garden. She opined that there was no need for the Government to carry out decontamination works and turn the soil. She requested the Government to preserve the trees in the garden, and consult the residents about issues related to linking the two open spaces with the waterfront promenade.

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(iv) Ms WU Sai-mui , resident of Ka Wai Man Road in Sai Wan, said she welcomed the Government’s decision to turn down the proposal of using CSTG for residential development purpose. She requested to re-designate the CSTG as a permanent garden for use by the elderly and children; and said the residents nearby were very attached to the garden.

(v) Ms LAU Ka-sin , representative of Community Ambassador, said there were insufficient gardens in Western District and concurred with re-designating CSTG as a permanent garden, so as to provide the residents with an additional open space besides Belcher Bay Park. In addition, she requested for retaining the facilities in CSTG and preserving the heritage remains of “Ng Lan” behind the garden for showcasing the history of the place to the public. She concurred with adding a toilet in the garden, and requested the Government to expand the pet garden at the back into an up-to-standard pet garden.

(vi) Mr LUI Yat-nam , Community Officer of Sai Yau Office, welcomed the decision of TPB to keep CSTG for use as an open space and opined that the efforts of the local residents over the past months paid off. However, he knew that the residents of Kennedy Town were uneasy about having several temporary open spaces in the district, including Forbes Street Temporary Playground, CSTG, and Kennedy Town Temporary Recreation Ground, as they worried that one day, they might be demolished to make way for large infrastructure developments in the district. He pointed out that the decision of TPB fully demonstrated the necessity of retaining CSTG in the community. He hoped the department would re-designate the garden as a permanent one as soon as possible, so that the residents could have a permanent open space in the district without worries of its demolition.

87. The Chairman invited discussion on this agenda item, and the comments and questions raised by Members were as follows:

(i) Ms CHEUNG Kai-yin said TPB rezoned the site from “Residential (Group A) 6” to “Open Space”, but made no promise on not to demolish the garden. According to TPB’s definition of "Open Space", garden was only one of the options; therefore, she opined that the residents were not merely fighting for an open space, but for the re-designation of CSTG as a permanent garden. The garden was the 'green lung' of the district. During the implementation of the decontamination works, the excavated soil and dust would cause damage to the living environment of the residents. She opined that what the Government preserved was not just a garden, but also a place carrying the memories of the residents.

(ii) Mr HUI Chi-fung thanked the residents for their efforts that led to TPB’s eventual acceptance of the public opinion of zoning CSTG as “Open Space”. He requested CEDD to provide details of the decontamination works. He also said recently, the

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media reported that there were many temporary facilities under the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD). He asked the department about the timetable for re-designating the garden as a permanent one, and factors considered in planning a temporary and a permanent facility. He pointed out that EPD had said in one of the DC meetings that it was safe for the residents to use the garden under normal circumstances. He enquired whether the department was still holding the same stance. In addition, he enquired whether EPD would offer advice to CEDD for its consideration when carrying out decontamination works in the future. He added that he opposed to carrying out the decontamination works.

(iii) Mr NG Siu-hong asked if the Government would promise the residents to re-designate CSTG as a permanent garden as soon as possible, so that the residents could use it without worrying about its demolition. He said the large number of temporary facilities implied that the Government did not have any long-term planning. He opined that the Government should listen to public views and consider the long-term needs of the people. He hoped that public participation element would be enhanced after re-designation of the garden as a permanent one, such as organised a garden design contest. He suggested that while adding facilities such as drinking fountain and toilet, the natural beauty of the garden should also be maintained. He also enquired whether it was possible to remove the road between the waterfront promenade and CSTG, so as to enlarge the open space by connecting the garden with the waterfront promenade.

(iv) Ms CHENG Lai-king enquired whether the decontamination works were necessary as the department had mentioned earlier that the day-to-day use of the garden would not flip up its underground contaminants. In addition, she requested LCSD to explain the timetable and procedures for re-designating CSTG as a permanent garden.

(v) Mr CHAN Hok-fung enquired whether it was necessary to keep the road between the waterfront open space and CSTG, given that now no residential development would take place. He suggested removing the road in between and amalgamating the waterfront space and CSTG, so that residents could enjoy a larger open space. He said he attached great importance to the accessibility of the two open spaces. At present, residents could not walk from CSTG to the waterfront area. Keeping the road not only caused inconvenience to the residents, but also broke the open spaces of the district into fragments. He elaborated that in the amended motion proposed by him, he had demanded for the removal of the road. He opined that the Government should carry out consultations with the residents about the long-term planning of CSTG, including the facilities that should be added and the method for amalgamating the waterfront site and the temporary garden. Finally, he enquired about the scope of the decontamination works, and whether the waterfront area and the school site adjacent to the temporary garden also had to undergo decontamination.

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(vi) The Vice- c hairman asked whether the department could confirm that the underground contaminants would not affect the health of the residents, and whether the original residential development plan was shelved permanently. As to the land in the vicinity that was originally planned for the construction of a MTR station, he enquired whether the department had other land use planning for it. In addition, he would like to know the scope, timetable and procedures of the decontamination works.

(vii) The Chairman enquired about the current shortfalls of open space in C&W District and the Draft Kennedy Town & Mount Davis Outline Zoning Plan (OZP). Regarding TPB’s decision to rezone CSTG as “Open Space”, he enquired whether it meant that the garden would be re-designated as a permanent garden. Regarding the decontamination issue, he enquired that if the underground contaminants were not disturbed, did it mean the public could continue to use the garden. He was also concerned that whether the department had any new plan for the future development of the garden.

88. Ms LEUNG Kar-yee , Senior Engineer/7 of Special Duties (Works) Division of CEDD, said according to the Environmental Assessment Report approved by EPD, the underground soil in the entire lot, including CSTG and waterfront site, did have contaminants. The most ideal and safest way was to carry out decontamination works for the entire lot in order to eliminate the potential health hazards posed to the residents by the contaminants in the soil. The statutory planning procedure of the relevant OZP was still ongoing, so the whole planning procedure was not yet completed. The Government would take into consideration the final decision of TPB regarding the land use and the views of the public. CEDD would liaise with other departments about the scope and timetable of the decontamination works for the entire lot. She said the department would be happy to explain the arrangements of the decontamination works to the DC upon finalisation of the proposal. Regarding safety of CSTG, as the department had clarified in the meeting, the day-to-day use of the garden would not pose health hazards to the residents, but the safest way was to eventually carry out decontamination works for the entire lot, in order to eliminate any potential danger to the public posed by the underground contaminants.

89. Mr WONG Wai-yan , Senior Environmental Protection Officer (Metro Assessment)3 of EPD, said facilities involving permanent open space must carry out improvement works from time to time according to public demand and safety reasons. During the improvement works, the contaminants might be disturbed. Decontamination works would help to eliminate the potential danger to the public posed by the contaminants, so the most ideal and safest way was to carry out decontamination works for the whole contaminated lot, including CSTG. He said the Environmental Assessment Report confirmed that the soil in the garden contained contaminants at a level exceeding the permissible limit. According to the “Guidance Manual for Use of Risk-based Remediation Goals for Contaminated Land Management” of EPD, different land use must conform to different remedial goals. In the long term, the department

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believed that it was necessary to eliminate the potential hazards in the permanent garden. So, carrying out the decontamination works was the safest and ideal way.

90. Miss CHAN Kwan-lee , Town Planner/HK12 of Planning Department (PlanD), said in the meeting held on 11 May this year, TPB proposed to re-zone CSTG as “Open Space”, and had published the relevant proposed amendment to the OZP on 26 May according to the Town Planning Ordinance. It was now at the public inspection stage. Members of the public could submit representations to TPB in respect of the proposed amendment by the deadline of 16 June, which would then be dealt with by TPB according to statutory procedures. She supplemented that the OZP aimed to show the broad land use zones in the district, the long-term design and operation of the garden would be referred to the relevant departments for examination.

91. The Chairman said PlanD could provide supplementary information regarding the area of open space in C&W District and the OZP after the meeting.

92. Ms CHAN Suk-fan , Deputy District Leisure Manager (District Support) Central and Western of LCSD, responded to Members’ query on the procedure of re-designating the garden as a permanent garden, and said that should LCSD be required to officially rename the garden, the procedure would be to wait for PlanD to officially zone the area as “Open Space”, then LCSD would obtain the relevant papers, complete the consultation exercise, and afterwards publish the new name of the garden in the gazette.

93. Mr YEUNG Hok-ming requested the government departments to clarify that the planning for the garden would not affect the usage of the land next to it, which had been earmarked for the construction of a school; and asked EPD whether that piece of land also required decontamination.

94. Mr HUI Chi-fung said CEDD’s answers created panic among the public as it indicated there was still a probability that the garden would be demolished. Since TPB had decided to keep the land as open space, he strongly advised the Government to re-consider whether it was necessary to demolish the garden for carrying out decontamination works, and then spent years and a lot of public money to rebuild the garden again. He said this would only arouse public resentment. He requested LCSD to commence the procedure for re-designating CSTG as a permanent garden as soon as possible.

95. The Chairman said he hoped the department would consider the views of Members and residents, and report the latest progress to C&WDC.

96. Mr CHAN Hok-fung said the re-amended motion proposed by Mr NG Siu-hong stated that “As the Government has confirmed that the underground contaminants at CSTG in Sai Wan will not pose any health hazards to the public”, he asked if the relevant government department could

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confirm the truth of the statement.

97. Ms LEUNG Kar-yee of CEDD reiterated that according to the findings of the Environmental Assessment Report, the entire lot including the CSTG and waterfront site did have contaminants, and the most ideal and safest way was to eventually carry out decontamination works for the entire lot to eliminate the potential health hazards posed to the public by the contaminants.

98. Mr HUI Chi-fung enquired whether the stance of CEDD could represent that of EPD.

99. Mr WONG Wai-yan of EPD said the stance of EPD had always been that as the surface soil of CSTG was not contaminated, it would not affect the residents’ day-to-day use of the garden; but if the garden was intended for permanent use, then improvement works would usually be carried out for safety reasons or public needs, as such ploughting works would be unavoidably, thus resulting in the underground contaminated soil posing hazards to the health of the public.

100. The Chairman asked Members to vote on the re-amended motion. After voting, the following re-amended motion was defeated .

“As the Government has confirmed that the underground contaminants at the Cadogan Street Temporary Garden (CSTG) in Sai Wan will not pose any health hazards to the public and prevent the normal use of the CSTG by the public, the Committee requests the Government to abandon the decontamination works within the CSTG; to re-designate the CSTG as a permanent garden; and to preserve the CSTG. In addition, the Committee also requests the Government to designate the CSTG and the waterfront site off the CSTG as permanent open space, and to amalgamate the two open spaces to avoid continual fragmentation of the open spaces in the district. At the same time, the residents should be allowed to participate in designing the open space, so that the entire open space can better satisfy the needs of the residents.”

(Proposed by Mr NG Siu-hong, seconded by Mr HUI Chi-fung)

(5 Members voted for the re-amended motion : Ms CHENG Lai-king, Mr HUI Chi-fung, Mr KAM Nai-wai (with Ms CHENG Lai-king being his authorised representative for voting), Mr NG Siu-hong and Ms CHEUNG Kai-yin (with Mr HUI Chi-fung being her authorised representative for voting));

(11 members voted against the re-amended motion : Mr CHAN Chit-kwai, Mr CHAN Hok-fung, Mr LEE Chi-hang (with Mr CHAN Hok-fung being his authorised representative for voting), Miss LO Yee-hang, Ms SIU Ka-yi (with Mr CHAN Hok-fung being her authorised representative for voting), Mr YEUNG Hoi-wing, Mr YEUNG Hok-ming, Mr YIP Wing-shing, Mr IP Yik-nam, Mr LEE Man-sing and Mr SHAM Chi-hang);

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(0 Member abstained).

101. The Chairman asked Members to vote on the amended motion. After voting, the following amended motion was passed .

“Request the Government to designate the Cadogan Street Temporary Garden (CSTG) and the waterfront site off the CSTG as permanent open space, and to amalgamate the two open spaces to avoid continual fragmentation of the open spaces in the district. At the same time, the residents should be allowed to participate in designing the open space, so that the entire open space can better satisfy the needs of the residents.”

(Proposed by Mr CHAN Hok-fung, seconded by Mr YEUNG Hoi-wing)

(13 Members voted for the amended motion : Mr CHAN Chit-kwai, Mr CHAN Hok-fung, Ms CHENG Lai-king, Mr KAM Nai-wai (with Ms CHENG Lai-king being his authorised representative for voting), Mr LEE Chi-hang (with Mr CHAN Hok-fung being his authorised representative for voting), Miss LO Yee-hang, Ms SIU Ka-yi (with Mr CHAN Hok-fung being her authorised representative for voting), Mr YEUNG Hoi-wing, Mr YEUNG Hok-ming, Mr YIP Wing-shing, Mr IP Yik-nam, Mr LEE Man-sing and Mr SHAM Chi-hang);

(0 Member voted against the amended motion );

(3 Members abstained: Mr HUI Chi-fung, Mr NG Siu-hong and Ms CHEUNG Kai-yin (with Mr HUI Chi-fung being her authorised representative for voting)).

Item 14 - Grave concern over the drowning accident at Kennedy Town Swimming Pool( C&W CLSAC Paper No. 38/2017 ) (7:36 p.m. – 7:46 p.m.)

102. The Chairman invited discussion on the paper. Comments raised by Members were as follows:

(i) The Vice- c hairman was concerned about the issue of lifeguard manpower, especially when this involved the lives of swimmers. He pointed out that the written reply from LCSD did not mention whether the current lifeguard manpower was sufficient to meet the operational needs of swimming pools during swimming season.

(ii) Mr CHAN Hok-fung said the reply from LCSD did not provide information on the basic establishment of lifeguards, it only provided the minimum number of lifeguards on duty. He opined that using the minimum number of lifeguards on duty as a reference basis was not the most ideal method, and worried that providing lifeguard service based on the minimum number of lifeguards on duty for prolonged period

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would jeopardise the safety of swimmers. He requested LCSD to provide information on the standard establishment of lifeguards, the current strength of lifeguards in the swimming pools in the district, and reply to the question of whether the lifeguard manpower complied with the standard requirement. He also expressed concern over the recent news report regarding lifeguards on strike and took sick leave collectively. He said it might affect the public using the swimming pool facilities.

(iii) Mr YEUNG Hok-ming said recent news reports mentioned that some lifeguards were found drinking, singing and eating “hotpot” whilst on duty. He asked LCSD how it monitored the conduct of lifeguards on duty and whether the aforesaid incidents occurred in the swimming pools in C&W District.

(iv) Mr LEE Man-sing enquired whether any public swimming pool in the district had to be closed due to a shortage of lifeguards in the past year, and whether the department would deploy backup lifeguards to cope with the shortage problem. He hoped that the department would ensure that the swimming pools in the district constantly had sufficient manpower to provide lifeguard services.

(v) Ms CHENG Lai-king asked whether the swimming pools had set a cap on the number of users.

103. Ms CHAN Suk-fan , Deputy District Leisure Manager (District Support) Central and Western of LCSD, responded that the department’s Appointments Support Services Unit was responsible for the recruitment of lifeguards. Apart from recruiting lifeguards on permanent basis, the department would also recruit seasonal lifeguards on non-civil service contracts terms during swimming season; as the number of the latter might fluctuate depending on the season and the situation, and also had a high turnover rate, the department was unable to provide an exact figure of lifeguards. She explained that “the minimum number of lifeguards on duty” mentioned in the written reply of the department referred to the basic manpower needed when all the facilities in a swimming pool were opened for use. In case of shortage of lifeguards, the department would first redeploy manpower, including asking the part-time and off-duty lifeguards to come to work or arranging for those currently on duty to take up overtime work by turns, so as to maintain the provision of service. If the manpower was still insufficient after taking the aforesaid steps, the department would temporarily close some of the swimming pool facilities for which the swimmers would be less affected, after considering the utilisation rate of the pool and the safety of the swimmers. Furthermore, she said the manager and supervisor of a swimming pool were responsible for monitoring the conduct and ethics of the on-duty lifeguards. She also pointed out that every swimming pool had its maximum capacity, which was automatically controlled by the computer system of the entry gates; when the number of entries was approaching the maximum capacity, the staff of a swimming pool would inform the swimmers.

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104. The Vice-chairman said he had received comments from a lifeguard, who cited the example of Kennedy Town Swimming Pool and pointed out that its establishment of seasonal lifeguards should be 16 persons, but at present it only had 5. He was worried that the services of the swimming pools would be affected by the shortage of manpower, and hoped the department would review the overall establishment of lifeguards and step up recruitment to improve the present situation.

(Post-meeting note: The seasonal lifeguard manpower requirement for Kennedy Town Swimming Pool from June to August should be 13 persons)

Item 15 - C&WDC Fund Application ─ Mid-autumn Lantern Carnival in the Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park, Belcher Bay Park and Hollywood Road Park (2017/2018)

(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 26/2017 ) (7:46 p.m. – 7:55 p.m.)

105. Miss HUANG Hsiao-ching , Executive Officer (District Council) 2 of the Central and Western District Office, introduced the paper.

106. The Chairman invited discussion on the paper. Questions raised by Members were as follows:

(i) Ms CHENG Lai-king enquired whether the handicraft worksheet would be distributed to the schools in the district; and suggested using colours other than blue. She also enquired if there were other more eco-friendly ways of promotion.

(ii) Mr YEUNG Hok-ming said last year, the promotional leaflets of Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park were put underneath the lanterns due to rainy weather, so not many people could get a copy. He suggested putting the leaflets at a more prominent place for distribution to the public. In addition, he was concerned that the light of the lanterns would attract a lot of insects.

(iii) Mr NG Siu-hong concurred with Ms CHENG Lai-king on the colour of the handicraft worksheet. The blue and white colours chosen last year could not bring out the ambience of the Mid-Autumn Festival, so he suggested paying more attention to the design and consulting the opinions of Members before printing.

(iv) Mr CHAN Hok-fung concurred with Mr YEUNG Hok-ming on the insect problem, and hoped LCSD would help clean the lanterns.

107. Mrs WONG HO Wing-sze , District Officer (Central and Western), agreed that there was room for improvement in the design of the handicraft worksheet and she would consider Members’ views. The handicraft worksheet of this year would be designed by young professional designers and would be uploaded to the website for downloading by the public. To increase the education element of the event, the District Office would distribute the handicraft worksheet through school heads associations, parent teacher associations and Members, and would consider organizing activities jointly with NGOs and social enterprises

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in the district regarding how to use the handicraft worksheet.

108. The Committee endorsed an allocation of $945,000 for the fund application.

Item 16 - Women’s Commission ─ Funding Scheme for Women’s Development(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 40/2017)__________________________________________________(7:55 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.)

109. Annex 1: Funding amount of $22,307 for “Brilliant Women Project” applied by the Hong Kong Young Women’s Christian Association Kwun Lung Lau Community Work Office. Ms TO Hiu-nam, Social Worker of the aforesaid organisation, introduced the paper.

110. The Committee endorsed the above application.

111. Annex 2: Funding amount of $30,693 for “Employment Training Scheme for Women” applied by the Hong Kong Central and Western District Woman Association. Ms LEE Ching-nga, Vice-chairlady of the aforesaid organisation, introduced the paper.

112. The Committee endorsed the above application.

Item 17 - C&WDC Fund Application ─ Promotion of Civic Education(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 41/2017 )_________________________________________________(8:00 p.m. – 8:08 p.m.)

113. Annex 1: Funding amount of $8,000 for “Concern Visit to Elderly Homes” applied by the KCOBA Primary School No.2. Mr POON Wai-keung, Discipline Master of the aforesaid school, introduced the paper.

114. The Committee endorsed the above application.

115. Mr YEUNG Hok-ming declared that he was a member of the district consultation committee of the Caritas Jockey Club Integrated Service for Young People – Shek Tong Tsui.

116. Annex 2: Funding amount of $10,000 for “‘I’ve Got Talent’ Closing Ceremony of Summer Activities” applied by the Caritas Jockey Club Integrated Service for Young People – Shek Tong Tsui. Ms CHAN Hau-ching, Social Work Assistant of the aforesaid organisation, introduced the paper.

117. The Committee endorsed the above application.

118. Annex 3: Funding amount of $10,000 for “Explore Children’s Talents Through Games” applied by the Caritas Jockey Club Integrated Service for Young People – Shek Tong Tsui. Ms CHAN Hau-ching, Social Work Assistant of the aforesaid organisation, introduced the paper.

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119. The Committee endorsed the above application.

120. Annex 4: Funding amount of $5,620 for “‘Cleanup ． Countryside ． Trip’ Countryside Protection Ambassador Scheme” applied by the Boys’ & Girls’ Clubs Association of Hong Kong Jockey Club Sheung Wan Children and Youth Integrated Services Centre. Mr YUEN Hin-sing, Social Worker of the aforesaid organisation, introduced the paper.

121. The Committee endorsed the above application.

122. Annex 5: Funding amount of $10,000 for “Fittest Family Parent-child Programme” applied by the Boys’ & Girls’ Clubs Association of Hong Kong Jockey Club Sheung Wan Children and Youth Integrated Services Centre. Mr YUEN Hin-sing, Social Worker of the aforesaid organisation, introduced the paper.

123. The Committee endorsed the above application.

124. Annex 6: Funding amount of $10,000 for “Let’s Play Dodgebee Together” applied by the Boys’ & Girls’ Clubs Association of Hong Kong Jockey Club Sheung Wan Children and Youth Integrated Services Centre. Mr YUEN Hin-sing, Social Worker of the aforesaid organisation, introduced the paper.

125. The Committee endorsed the above application.

126. Annex 7: Funding amount of $10,000 for “RUN to LOVE” applied by the Sai Ying Pun KaiFong Welfare Association. Ms LEE Ching-nga, Secretary of the aforesaid organisation, introduced the paper.

127. The Committee endorsed the above application.

Item 18 - C&WDC Fund Application ─ Applications from local arts organisations(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 42/2017)(8:08 p.m. – 8:14 p.m.)

128. The Chairman said some Members had expressed the views that funds should be allocated to district arts organisations for organising more diversified activities, so application matters related to district arts organisations would be enhanced later. As most of the applications this year were related to Cantonese operas, and taking into account the overall situation of fund allocation and limited funds available, he suggested reducing the funding allocated to Cantonese operas to $20,000 each. He said if the applicant organisations were willing to accept this arrangement, they might submit the amended fund applications to the Secretary later.

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129. The Chairman said due to a lack of quorum, the Secretariat would seek Members' views by circulation of paper.

Item 19 - C&WDC Fund Application─ Culture in District(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 43/2017)_________________________________________________(8:14 p.m.)

130. The Secretariat would seek Members' views by circulation of paper.

Item 20 - Enquiry on the number of residential units in the Central and Western District(C&W CLSAC Written Question No. 3/2017 )_________________________________________ (8:14 p.m.)

131. Members noted the paper and had no other comments.

Item 21 - Report on the Free Entertainment Programmes and Arts and Cultural Activities in the Central and Western District Organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department

(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 19/2017 and 34/2017)_______________________________________(8:15 p.m.)

132. Members noted the paper and had no other comments.

Item 22 - Report on the Organisation of Recreation and Sports Programmes in the Central and Western District by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department

(C&W CLSAC Paper No. 20/2017 and 35/2017)_______________________________________(8:15 p.m.)

133. Members noted the paper and had no other comments.

Item 23 - Report of the working group (8:15 p.m. – 8:20 p.m.)

134. Members noted the working group report and had no other comments.

Item 24 - Any other business (8:20 p.m.)

135. Members did not raise other matters for discussion.

Item 25 - Date of Next Meeting(8:20 p.m.)

136. The Chairman announced that the 10th meeting of CLSAC would be held on 21 September

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2017. The paper submission deadline would be 31 August 2017 for government departments and 6 September 2017 for Members.

137. The meeting was adjourned at 8:20 p.m.

The minutes were confirmed on 21 September 2017 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 Chairman: Mr CHAN Chit-kwai, BBS, JP

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 Secretary: Miss MAN Sum-yi, Annie

 Central and Western District Council SecretariatSeptember 2017

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