Author Archives: hksar gov

     Following is a question by the Hon Michael Tien and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Frank Chan Fan, in the Legislative Council today (January 30):

Question:

     It is learnt that some road sections are unsuitable for installing speed enforcement cameras (SECs). Even at those road sections installed with SECs, speeding drivers can get away without punishment by driving in such a way that makes their vehicles slow down before, and accelerate after, passing an SEC. As a result, SECs have lost deterrent effects on speeding and are virtually useless. Speeding vehicles not only pose danger to other road users, but also generate noise (which is particularly serious when a vehicle is driven at the aforesaid uneven speeds as a vehicle generates greater noise when accelerating), thereby causing great nuisance to nearby residents. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it will conduct a study on adopting the approach of detecting the average vehicular speed (i.e. calculating the average speed of a vehicle when it passes through a road section) to combat speeding, so as to provide greater flexibility in the locations for installing SECs and to eliminate drivers’ circumvention of speed limits by driving in the aforesaid manner; if so, of the details and the implementation timetable; if not, the reasons for that?

Reply:

President,

     My reply to the Hon Michael Tien’s question is as follows:

     The Government attaches great importance to road safety. To this end, the Hong Kong Police Force (the Police) have been combatting speeding offences. Apart from using fixed speed enforcement cameras for regular traffic enforcement, the Police also deploy mobile instruments such as laser guns, mobile radar and in-car video recording systems for ad hoc enforcement operations. These allow greater flexibility in anti-speeding operations and make motorists remain alert at all times, thereby reducing the risk of traffic accidents and enhancing road safety.

     As regards the average speed camera system, the Government previously consulted the Legislative Council Panel on Transport in May 2013 on a trial scheme of such system. Some Panel members were of the view that, at that juncture, such a system had not proven to be cost effective or perform better than the existing speed enforcement cameras at that time. Hence, they had reservations on the trial scheme. Given that the trial scheme was not supported by the majority of the Panel members, the Government did not pursue it then.

     In view of technological advancements, the Transport Department is currently discussing with the Police about testing cameras featuring different speed enforcement technologies so as to ascertain the technical feasibility of such camera systems and their suitability for use in Hong Kong. The Government will keep close track of technological developments, make reference to overseas experience in and examples of speed detection, and conduct timely reviews of the features of the technologies concerned and their suitability for use in Hong Kong.  read more

     The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Sydney (HKETO) is participating in the three-week-long Chatswood Year of the Pig Festival 2019 in the Chatswood district of Sydney, Australia, to share the joy of the Lunar New Year with the public in Sydney.
 
     Two giant photo walls featuring magnificent day and night views of Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour with new year greeting messages have been set up at the Golden Market in the Chatswood Mall for visitors to take photos to promote Asia’s world city.
 
     The Festival, hosted by the Willoughby City Council of Sydney from January 29 to February 19, includes a variety of cultural events and performances that will connect visitors to celebrations across China and other Asian destinations. The event brings Sydney into the Chinese New Year in true Chinese style, and its programme includes performers and musicians from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts performing the Chinese opera “Pigsy’s Wedding”, to be presented by Australasian Art and Stageworks at the Theatre at the Concourse in Chatswood on February 9.
 
     Speaking at a lunch yesterday (January 29) to launch the Festival, the Director of the HKETO, Mr Raymond Fan, said that every year Hong Kong has lots of arts and cultural activities to celebrate the Lunar New Year.
 
     “We are therefore excited that Chatswood is hosting the cultural festival so that we can continue our close connection with this community,” Mr Fan said.
 
     “Following the commissioning of mega transportation infrastructure, ie Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and Hong Kong Section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail, I am pleased to report that various cultural projects in Hong Kong will be completed one after another over the next few years.
 
     “The West Kowloon Cultural District is one of the largest cultural projects in the world. Its first landmark venue, the Xiqu Centre, was officially opened 10 days ago. This world-class venue is designed for the conservation, promotion and development of Chinese opera.
 
     “So please visit Hong Kong in the Year of the Pig. Apart from enjoying the incredible cuisine, exciting shopping, fantastic arts and culture, and photogenic skyline, please do take a ride to explore the surrounding Greater Bay Area through our well-connected new infrastructure and unlock unlimited opportunities in this year of fortune,” Mr Fan added.

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     Following is a question by the Hon Chan Hak-kan and a written reply by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Edward Yau, in the Legislative Council today (January 30):
 
Question:

     The Government put forward in the 2017 Policy Address a Subsidy Scheme to Extend Fibre-based Networks to Villages in Remote Areas (Subsidy Scheme). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the latest progress of the tendering exercise conducted for selecting fixed network operators (FNOs) to participate in the Subsidy Scheme, and the respective expected dates for commencement and completion of the works on laying fibre-based networks;
 
(2) of the villages which are now covered by the Subsidy Scheme at present and their respective populations (set out by District Council (DC) district);
 
(3) as some DC members have relayed that some villages (e.g. Hilltop Garden, Sha Po Tsai and Chung Tsai Yuen Garden in Tai Po, and Ki Lun Tsuen in the North District) are not covered by the Subsidy Scheme, whether the Government has completed consulting the relevant DCs and rural committees; whether it will let the Subsidy Scheme cover more villages; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
 
(4) as some DC members have pointed out that based on a conservative estimation, about 200 000 households are currently living in surveyed squatter structures across the territory, and that the broadband services in some squatter areas have rather low Internet access speeds, whether the Government will let the Subsidy Scheme cover squatter areas; if not, how the Government assists the residents of squatter structures in accessing high-speed broadband services;
 
(5) given that if villagers currently have access to broadband services with an Internet access speed of 25 megabits per second (Mbps) or above, the villages concerned will not be covered by the Subsidy Scheme, of the Government’s justifications for setting the threshold at that Internet access speed; in view of the Government’s ongoing initiatives of promoting the development of Hong Kong into a smart city as well as cost-effectiveness considerations, whether the Government will raise the threshold to 50 Mbps or higher so as to obviate the need to re-launch the Subsidy Scheme several years later in order to meet the actual needs of the villagers; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
 
(6) whether it will formulate performance indicators for the Subsidy Scheme, such as (i) in respect of the villages for which the works under the Subsidy Scheme have been completed, the percentage of villagers who subscribe to the high-speed broadband services provided by the relevant FNOs, and (ii) the Internet access speed and the stability of the broadband services provided by FNOs under the Subsidy Scheme; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
 
(7) as some villagers have indicated that they do not have a clear idea about the implementation of the Subsidy Scheme, of the existing means through which the Government disseminates the relevant information; whether it will consider strengthening its liaison with the villagers so as to answer their queries on the Subsidy Scheme; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
 
(8) as some members of the public have pointed out that in tandem with technological advancement, broadband services have become a daily necessity, whether the Government will amend the relevant licensing conditions to stipulate that FNOs must provide their customers with broadband services with an Internet access speed not lower than 50 Mbps; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     To take forward the subsidy scheme of extending fibre-based networks to remote villages proposed by the Chief Executive in the 2017 Policy Address (Subsidy Scheme), the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau and the Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA) consulted the nine relevant District Councils (DCs) (North, Sai Kung, Tai Po, Sha Tin, Yuen Long, Tuen Mun, Tsuen Wan, Kwai Tsing and Islands), 27 Rural Committees (RCs) and the Panel on Information Technology and Broadcasting of the Legislative Council (LegCo) in the first half of 2018. On July 13, 2018, the Finance Committee of the LegCo approved a funding of $774.4 million for the implementation of the Subsidy Scheme.
 
     My reply to the eight parts of the question is as follows:
 
(1) OFCA is actively preparing for the tender exercise. It is expected that tender documents will be issued in the first half of this year such that selected fixed network operators (FNOs) can apply for relevant permits of all departments concerned in a timely manner in order to perform different works including excavation and the laying of fibre-based networks and submarine fibre-based cables. Depending on the works progress and views of the villagers, it is expected that the subsidised lead-in connections can be extended to the villages concerned in phases from 2021 onwards.
 
(2) and (3) The Subsidy Scheme targets remote villages located far away from the existing fibre-based backbone networks of FNOs where villagers can only choose broadband services delivered over copper-based networks at a speed of 10 megabits per second (Mbps) or below. Having regard to the consideration above and based on the villages specified in the Rural Representative Election Ordinance and the List of Recognised Villages under the New Territories Small House Policy promulgated by the Lands Department, OFCA prepared the list of villages proposed to be covered under the Subsidy Scheme.

     Taking into account the comments received during the consultation with the LegCo, the relevant DCs and RCs and after verification of the latest network coverage information with FNOs, OFCA notes that fibre-based networks of FNOs have already reached the vicinity of the entrances of some villages that were initially proposed to be covered under the Subsidy Scheme, and some other initially proposed villages are no longer inhibited. In view of this, OFCA has refined the total number of villages proposed to be covered under the Subsidy Scheme to about 235 villages which are located in nine districts in the New Territories and outlying islands. It is estimated that the Subsidy Scheme can benefit about 120 000 villagers.
      
     OFCA has consulted the relevant RCs again in November 2018 regarding the refined list of villages and has been receiving comments from individual RCs. After receiving comments from all RCs, OFCA will finalise the list of villages to be covered by the Subsidy Scheme. According to the latest information, the number of villages to be covered and the estimated number of benefited villagers (by district) are as follows:
 

District	Number of villages proposed to be covered	Estimated number of villagers benefited
North	59	About 27 000
Islands	67	About 51 000
Sai Kung	44	About 13 000
Tai Po	26	About 10 000
Sha Tin	13	About 5 000
Yuen Long	12	About 5 000
Tuen Mun	7	About 5 000
Tsuen Wan	6	About 3 000
Kwai Tsing	1	Less than 1 000
Total	235	About 120 000

 
     Given that Tai Po Hilltop Garden, Sha Po Tsai, Tsung Tsai Yuen and Ki Lun Tsuen as mentioned in part (c) of the question are not recognised villages specified in the Rural Representative Election Ordinance nor the List of Recognised Villages under the New Territories Small House Policy, they are not included in the list of villages proposed to be covered under the Subsidy Scheme. Nevertheless, as these four villages are all located close to those recognised villages to be covered by the Subsidy Scheme or those recognised villages with fibre-based network coverage, it will facilitate the improvement of fixed broadband services in these four villages.
 
(4) As squatter areas are in general located close to recognised villages, following the completion of relevant works of extension of lead-in connections to villages covered under the Subsidy Scheme by the selected FNOs, the new lead-in connections will not only benefit the recognised villages concerned, but will also help improve the fixed broadband services of the squatter areas nearby.
 
     In addition, if the residents of squatter areas consider that their available fixed broadband services cannot fulfill the needs of the region, OFCA can convey their comments to FNOs and encourage them to improve their network coverage at the areas concerned.
 
(5) The current status of broadband services in remote villages can be generally classified into two categories: (a) villages with insufficient broadband speed, i.e. lower than 10 Mbps; and (b) villages with a broadband speed of at least 25 Mbps.
 
     The Subsidy Scheme targets villages with a broadband speed of 10 Mbps or below. These villages are generally located far away from the existing fibre-based backbone networks of FNOs, with a small number of subscribers and scattered houses. FNOs do not have sufficient commercial incentives to extend their fibred-based networks to these villages due to the high costs of network roll-out. Without Government subsidy, the villagers concerned may not be able to obtain fibre coverage even in the long-term future.

     In view of this, the Government hopes to provide FNOs with financial incentives through the Subsidy Scheme to encourage the extension of fibre-based networks to the vicinity of the entrances of remote villages of this category. Upon the extension of fibre-based networks to the village entrances, FNOs can provide broadband services to villagers by connecting the fibre-based networks to the existing copper-based networks within the villages. Broadband speed can then be raised from the current 10 Mbps or below to at least 25 Mbps, and stability of service will also improve. If the villagers allow FNOs to roll-out fibre-based networks within the village, the broadband speed can further increase substantially to a level comparable to that in the urban areas (e.g. 500 Mbps or 1 000 Mbps). In addition, our tender assessment criteria will include evaluation of whether the bidding FNOs will commit to providing broadband services at higher speeds within the villages. If a FNO hopes to increase the chance of winning the bid, it will need to consider committing the roll-out of fibre-based networks within the villages for the provision of high-speed broadband services.
 
(6) The villages covered under the Subsidy Scheme will be grouped into six tender projects. The selected FNOs will be required to complete the relevant works of network roll-out in accordance with the requirements stipulated in the tender documents, including the roll-out of fibre-based networks to the villages specified in the individual projects. In addition, the commitments made by the selected FNOs in their proposals (e.g. the commitment to provide higher speed broadband services to villagers) will be incorporated as terms and conditions of the agreement for the Subsidy Scheme to be entered into with the Government.
 
     Selected FNOs are also required to open up at least half of the capacity of the fibre-based networks and submarine fibre-based cables subsidised under the Subsidy Scheme for use by other FNOs for free. Such a requirement can allow other FNOs to also provide broadband services to the villages concerned by sharing the use of the subsidised facilities, thereby offering more choices to the villagers and keeping the service charges at a competitive level under the market mechanism.
 
(7) OFCA has all along been maintaining close communications with the relevant DCs and RCs for the Subsidy Scheme to ensure that the comments of the relevant stakeholders and villagers would be fully considered and the broadband networks could be extended to the relevant villages in a timely manner.
 
(8) The current universal service obligation aims to provide the public with basic telephone services, mainly covering basic fixed voice telephony services and public payphones. Its net cost is shared among telecommunications service providers. If the universal service obligation is extended to cover fixed broadband services, not only will financial burden on the telecommunications industry be substantially increased, there will also be a fundamental impact to the understanding of basic telecommunications services, and thus the matter must be considered carefully and holistically. We do not have such a plan at the moment. read more

     Following is a question by the Hon Holden Chow and a written reply by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Patrick Nip, in the Legislative Council today (January 30):   Question:       &n… read more

     Following is a question by the Hon Ip Kin-yuen and a reply by the Secretary for Education, Mr Kevin Yeung, in the Legislative Council today (January 30):

Question:

     Last year, the Education Bureau (EDB) resumed the Primary 3 Territory-wide System Assessment (TSA), which was administered by the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA). Approximately 10 per cent of Primary 3 students from each public sector and Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS) primary school are sampled to participate in TSA. In addition, schools may on their own apply to the HKEAA for all their Primary 3 students to participate in TSA (full participation in TSA), and may request for their TSA school reports under such circumstances. The Secretary for Education indicated in March last year that the EDB would not ask about the relevant information. It has been reported that in variance with the practice adopted last year, the HKEAA refuses in this year to disclose the number of schools which applied for full participation in TSA. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the respective numbers of schools that applied for full participation in TSA last year and this year to date, and the total number of students involved, together with a breakdown by school type (i.e. aided, DSS, government and private primary schools);

(2) as the Chief Executive (CE) told the media on the 8th of this month that she would “request the various policy bureaux to be more proactive and positive when making arrangements for giving an account of important issues to the media” and that she was “very respectful of the media’s function of overseeing the Government for the public”, and there are views that the number of schools applying for full participation in TSA provides important reference information for formulating primary schools’ curriculum, teaching arrangements and assessment system, whether the CE will require the EDB to gain an understanding from the HKEAA of the reasons for its refusal to disclose the relevant information, so that the EDB can give a full account of the implementation of the policy to the public; and

(3) whether it will require schools to consult all of their teachers and all of the parents of their students before they apply for full participation in TSA, so as to implement the policy objectives of “Led by Professionals” and “Listening to Views Directly” in the field of education, as advocated by the CE?

Reply:

President,

     The Coordinating Committee on Basic Competency Assessment and Assessment Literacy (the Committee) conducted over two years since 2015 a review, during which views of stakeholders, such as school sponsoring bodies, school heads, teachers and parents, were collected through various means and channels in full demonstration of the principles of “Led by Professionals” and “Listening to Views Directly”. The Committee’s report and recommendations included the arrangements for Primary 3 TSA in 2018 and beyond and the related enhancement measures. The Government accepted the recommendations in the report, and started handling Primary 3 TSA separately at the territory-wide and school levels with effect from 2018.

     At the territory-wide level, the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA) samples around 10 per cent of students from each public sector and Direct Subsidy Scheme school for Primary 3 TSA each year. Students’ assessment results are only counted as territory-wide data serving as useful information for the Education Bureau (EDB) in fine-tuning education policies and curriculum arrangements.

     If schools consider that the school-level reports can help them understand the overall strengths and weaknesses of students as well as formulate targeted measures to facilitate students’ learning, the HKEAA can arrange for full participation of their Primary 3 students in TSA. Respective schools will be provided with individual school reports. Since the EDB merely needs territory-wide data and does not see the number of schools arranging for full participation of students in Primary 3 TSA has any relationship with the primary school curriculum, learning and teaching as well as assessment system, the EDB would not request school reports of individual schools from the HKEAA, or enquire about the identities of participating schools.

     Primary 3 TSA of 2018 was conducted in May and June last year. The relevant TSA Report was also uploaded to the HKEAA’s website in mid-October last year.

     Our reply to the Hon Ip Kin-yuen’s various questions is as follows:

(1) and (2) As I pointed out earlier, Primary 3 TSA has been conducted on the basis of “no student names, no school names, no collection of reports and selection of participants by sampling” since 2018. As it is a low-stake assessment, the education sector and the public do not have to be over anxious. Schools arranging their Primary 3 students for full participation in Primary 3 TSA approach the HKEAA directly without any involvement of the EDB. Since this is entirely a school-based decision, and the number of participating schools is also not pertinent to the policy objective, the EDB has repeatedly reiterated that it will not enquire about or request school reports of individual schools from the HKEAA, or seek information about the identities of participating schools, and does not hold the information about the number and type of schools opted for full participation of their Primary 3 students in TSA in order to avoid being misconstrued as exerting pressure on schools. We feel rather helpless about being sometimes alleged of refusing to disclose data that we do not possess and are not pertinent to policy implementation.

     In the same vein, the HKEAA is solely adhering to the policy intent of the new arrangements for Primary 3 TSA in taking a prudent approach to handle the information of schools which opted for full participation of their Primary 3 students in TSA. If the number of such schools is disclosed, we cannot rule out that persons holding different views may come up with their own interpretations, thereby exerting undue pressure on schools (irrespective of whether the schools have participated in Primary 3 TSA by sampling or have opted for full participation), as was the case last year in which the government primary schools were accused as “taking the lead” when the majority of government primary schools had been reported for having opted for full participation in Primary 3 TSA.

     We understand that the new arrangements for Primary 3 TSA adopted since 2018 are a matter of concern to Members of this Council, parents, the public and the media, and the Government has the responsibility to explain its policies to the public. Therefore, in last year, shortly after accepting the Committee’s recommendations set out in the review report on Primary 3 TSA, the EDB arranged a briefing session for the media on the same day, and gave an account on the new arrangements to the Legislative Council as quickly as possible, with a view to enabling the public to apprehend that the sampling requirement for Primary 3 TSA and school-based decisions would be handled separately. This was done purely out of respect for the communication with Members of this Council and the media.

     We will continue to strengthen communication with Members of this Council and the media on important matters of concern, strive to explain in detail the related policies and their operation, and make our best efforts to provide the information requested and respond to the questions raised as far as practicable.

(3) At present, under the school-based management principle, the School Management Committees (SMC)/Incorporated Management Committees (IMC) of government or public sector schools have put in place a well-established mechanism to communicate with stakeholders and seek their views on the handling of daily school matters of various scales, as well as riding on the backgrounds and experience of SMC/IMC members in the education sector, to make decisions that are in the best interests of students. Whether individual schools will arrange for all their Primary 3 students to participate in TSA is a school-based decision, and that should be deliberated professionally by SMCs/IMCs in accordance with their well-established decision-making mechanism.

     If individual parents or teachers have any concerns, as in other matters under the purview of school-based management, they could approach the school to express their views. We will continue to keep in view the implementation of school-based assessment through various channels, including inspections, school visits and daily contacts with schools, etc.

     The arrangements for Primary 3 TSA have been greatly enhanced. While we do not request schools to opt for full participation in Primary 3 TSA, we neither endorse any measures which would negatively label schools opting for full participation in Primary 3 TSA. I appeal to members of the community to refrain from exerting pressure on schools on this matter, but to allow room for schools to make school-based decisions professionally to cater for the learning needs of students.

     The EDB will, as always, closely monitor the implementation of Primary 3 TSA, maintain communication with schools and stakeholders at hand, explore further room for continued enhancement, and inform the public of the implementation of our policies in a timely manner.

     Thank you, President. read more