Author Archives: hksar gov

     Following is a question by the Hon Frankie Yick and a written reply by the Acting Secretary for Transport and Housing, Dr Raymond So Wai-man, in the Legislative Council today (July 11):

Question:

     Under section 93 of the Road Traffic Ordinance (Cap 374), the Commissioner for Transport (the Commissioner) may suspend the licence of a motor vehicle concerned in respect of the offences specified in Schedule 4 (including section 52 (in contravention of the restriction on the use of vehicles)). The period of suspension for the first offence is three months and that for subsequent offence in respect of the same motor vehicle is six months. Any person who uses a private car without a valid hire car permit to carry passengers for reward (commonly known as “white licence cars’ service”) is in breach of section 52. Some members of the public have pointed out that as white licence cars’ service has become rampant in recent years, the authorities should amend the legislation to lengthen the period of suspension of the licences of white licence cars or even cancel their licences permanently to enhance the deterrent effect. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the number of vehicles the licence of which was suspended under the aforesaid provision in each of the past three years and the periods of suspension concerned, together with a breakdown by vehicle class and the offence involved;

(2) of the respective numbers of cases in each of the past three years in which the registered owners of vehicles, under section 90 of Cap 374, (i) made representations in writing to the Commissioner and (ii) applied in writing to the Commissioner for a hearing before a Transport Tribunal (Tribunal) to show cause why the vehicle licences should not be suspended; among such cases, the respective numbers of cases ruled by the Tribunal that the owners concerned had shown the cause, with a breakdown by vehicle class and the offence involved; and

(3) given that in reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council in May this year in respect of the permanent cancellation of licences of white licence cars, the authorities indicated that the Transport Department was then reviewing the need to raise the penalty for the relevant offences and would consult the trade concerned, of the details and timetables of the review and the consultation exercise?

Reply:

President,

     The Government has all along been concerned about the situation on illegal carriage of passengers for hire or reward by private cars and light goods vehicles (LGV). The Government has been taking stern enforcement actions against illegal carriage of passengers for reward and will not condone such activities. Sections 52(3) and 93 and Schedule 4 of the Road Traffic Ordinance (Cap 374) stipulate that an offender who uses a private car or LGV for the illegal carriage of passengers for reward, or who solicits or attempts to solicit any person to travel in such vehicles, is liable to a fine of $5,000 and three months’ imprisonment on the first conviction. The licence of the subject vehicle may also be suspended for three months. On the second or subsequent conviction, the offender is liable to a fine of $10,000 and six months’ imprisonment. For a subsequent offence in respect of the same motor vehicle, the licence of that vehicle may be suspended for six months. Besides, according to section 69 of Cap 374, if a person is convicted of any offence under Cap 374 in connection with the driving of a motor vehicle (including illegal carriage of passengers for reward), the court may disqualify him from driving for such period as it thinks fit.

     In accordance with section 90(2)(c)(i) of Cap 374, the registered owner whose vehicle licence was suspended may make representations in writing to the Commissioner showing cause why the vehicle licence should not be suspended within 14 days after the receipt of the notice issued by the Commissioner; or by virtue of section 90(2)(c)(ii) of Cap 374, he may apply in writing to the Commissioner for a hearing before a Transport Tribunal to show cause why the vehicle licence should not be suspended. The Transport Tribunal is a statutory organisation independent of the Government, comprising non-official members appointed by the Government, including persons from the legal sector, District Council members and other professionals. Every case hearing of the Transport Tribunal is conducted by a chairman and two panel members.

     My reply to the various parts of the Hon Frankie Yick’s question is as follows.

(1) The breakdown of cases involving the suspension of motor vehicle licences by the Transport Department (TD) from 2015 to 2017 in accordance with the section 93 of Cap 374 is tabulated below. In all these cases, the drivers have breached section 52(3) of Cap 374 by driving or using a motor vehicle, or suffering or permitting a motor vehicle to be driven or used, for the carriage of passengers for hire or reward without obtaining a valid hire car permit. As all cases are first offences, the licences were suspended for three months.
 

Year	Number of vehicles with their licences suspended
	Private car	LGV	Private light bus	Total
2015	1	16	1	18
2016	6	2	1	9
2017	7	2	0	9

(2) During the same period, the TD has not received any representations made in writing to the Commissioner in accordance with section 90(2)(c)(i) of Cap 374 showing cause why the vehicle licences concerned should not be suspended.

     As for applications made under section 90(2)(ii) of Cap 374 to the Commissioner for a hearing before a Transport Tribunal to show cause why the vehicle licences should not be suspended, the drivers of all these cases have contravened section 52(3) of Cap 374. The number of cases by vehicle types is tabulated below.
 

Year	Number of cases applying for a hearing before a Tribunal
	Private car	LGV	Private light bus	Total
2015	0	1	1	2
2016	3	0	0	3
2017	2	0	0	2

     All the judgments handed down by the Transport Tribunal in respect of the cases in the last three years upheld the decision that the vehicle licences concerned should be suspended.

(3) The Government is currently reviewing the need to raise the penalties for offences related to illegal carriage of passengers for hire or reward by motor vehicles so as to enhance the deterrent effects. We aim to report specific proposals to the Panel on Transport of the Legislative Council and consult Members in the 2018-19 legislative year. read more

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (July 11) announced the results of a recently completed targeted food surveillance project on coagulase-positive staphylococci organisms (i… read more

     Following is a question by Hon Vincent Cheng and a reply by the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Lau Kong-wah, in the Legislative Council today (July 11):

     It has been reported that 13 “rocking chairs”, play equipment for children located in a public housing estate, were in a dilapidated state, but the Government merely replaced them with the same number of new “rocking chairs”. Some members of the public have criticised that such play equipment was monotonous and uninteresting, and the spending of $210,000 on such equipment appeared to be a waste of public money. On the other hand, one of the tasks of the Commission on Children, which was established by the Government in May this year, is to review the designs of children’s playgrounds throughout the territory with a view to making playgrounds more interesting. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it will comprehensively review and improve the designs and play equipment of the existing and the newly built playgrounds; if so, of the details and the implementation timetable;
 
(2) whether it will change the current standardised designs for children’s playgrounds under the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Housing Department by collecting ideas of creative designs through design competitions or public engagement exercises, so as to introduce in various playgrounds more thematic designs and special features, add play equipment which makes use of various natural materials such as water and sand for provision of sensory experience, as well as introduce play equipment which offers more challenges to children while complying with safety standards; and
 
(3) as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child stipulates that a child has the right to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child, and as the findings of an opinion survey conducted by a local group have shown that parents generally consider that the designs of the existing public playgrounds for children have failed to cater for the intellectual and physical development needs of children of different ages, whether the authorities or the Commission on Children will examine if the existing facilities in children’s playgrounds are able to cater for this right of the child, and whether they will revise the guidelines for designing playgrounds; if they will, of the details?

Reply:

President,

(1)&(2) The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) manages 640 leisure venues with outdoor children’s playgrounds.  A “universal play” concept is adopted by LCSD in planning for play equipment with a view to providing inclusive, interesting and innovative play equipment to cater for the needs of children of different ages and abilities and their parents.  To strengthen the appeal to children, themes and popular play facilities such as climbing frames, slides and swings, etc. will also be included in the playgrounds as far as possible.  All the facilities have to meet internationally recognised safety standards.  In designing facilities for individual venues, LCSD and the relevant works departments will consider topographic features, site area and circumstances and views of the District Councils concerned, etc. 

     LCSD has been liaising with concern groups on children’s play equipment and consulting them and the District Councils concerned on the design and play equipment in children’s playgrounds for continuous improvement.  To usher in brand new design concepts, LCSD, in collaboration with the relevant works departments, adopted the winning design of the Inclusive Play Space Design Ideas Competition as a prototype to build an innovative inclusive playground in Tuen Mun Park as part of a pilot scheme with inclusion of two natural elements of water and sand in the design.  Through sand, water, light and shadow, play equipment that sways and spins, climbing frames and movable parts for knocking and touching, etc., children can enjoy the fun while acquiring different skills which will enhance their physical and psychological development.  The inclusive playground in Tuen Mun is expected to open for public use in the third quarter of 2018. 

     In addition, as a pilot plan, workshops will be held to bring community involvement into the Kai Tak Avenue Park project in Kowloon City to gauge views from children and residents of the area on the provision of play equipment in the project.  Suggestions received from the public will be put into practice as far as possible in accordance with government procurement regulations and procedures. 

     LCSD and the relevant works departments will summarise and draw reference from experiences gained from the above-mentioned pilot scheme and community involvement.  Concern groups and organisations, as well as District Councils will be further consulted with a view to considering adopting the same approach in other suitable locations and projects.

     In addition to focusing on the hardware of playgrounds, LCSD also organises themed fun days in playgrounds with various organisations to encourage active participation by families in games and activities, thereby energising public parks.  Activities organised last year included “Storm the Park Days” featuring frisbee, painting, water play, model car, etc. and Orienteering@Park in large public parks.

     According to information provided by the Transport and Housing Bureau, the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) will provide recreational facilities for users of different age groups, including children’s playground facilities, in its public rental housing (PRH) estates under the concept of “communal play areas”.  For example, HA will try to integrate children’s playground facilities with other facilities, such as elderly fitness facilities, Tai Chi gardens, pavilions, etc., in the same recreational area to enable adults who need to take care of their accompanying children to use the recreational facilities together in the same area.

     HA has all along been adopting a pragmatic approach and fulfilling international safety standards when designing children’s playground, and has been selecting materials that are durable and easy to maintain. Whenever feasible, HA will also conduct public engagement activities to collect stakeholders’ views on individual proposals of playground facilities.  HA will also conduct reviews and opinion surveys one year after flats intake of new PRH estates.

     Furthermore, in order to maintain a comfortable, healthy and safe living environment for the residents of PRH estates, HA and the Estate Management Advisory Committees (EMACs) will, from time to time, gauge the views and needs of the residents and stakeholders in order to continuously improve the children’s playgrounds and other estate facilities.  Where possible, HA will also replace or upgrade various kinds of playground facilities at appropriate locations.

     Through meetings of the EMACs, resident representatives and other stakeholders, including local District Council members, can participate in reviewing the need for replacing the playground facilities in the estates.  HA will consider various factors when replacing the playground facilities, including changes in the demographic structure of individual estate, conditions of the existing facilities, environmental limitations, future maintenance and repair issues, etc., in order to install suitable facilities to address the needs of the residents.

(3) As mentioned above, LCSD is committed to providing diversified play equipment at its playgrounds for children of different ages and abilities to help them attain a balanced development of mind and body, enhance their interaction with others and stimulate exploration of the surroundings through acquiring different skills by the play equipment.

     Most of the children’s playgrounds under LCSD provide play equipment for groups of children aged between two and five as well as five and 12.  In addition, play facilities of inclusive design are available at a number of children’s playgrounds (e.g. Quarry Bay Park and Sha Tin Park) for the enjoyment of children with or without disabilities.  Diverse types of play equipment are installed at the venues, including tactile play panels and movable parts in different shapes suitable for visually-impaired children, movable parts that produce sounds when knocked, as well as transfer platforms or ramps that help children using wheelchairs to use facilities and allow them to join other children in playing with these facilities.  These facilities enable children with or without disabilities to play and grow up in a harmonious and happy environment and promote their physical and psychological development.

     LCSD will draw reference from overseas examples, bring in more community involvement and work in close collaboration with the relevant works departments with a view to providing more innovative, challenging and inclusive play equipment in planning children’s playgrounds in large public park projects and renovating the play equipment at children’s playgrounds in major public parks to meet the needs of children. read more

     Following is a question by the Hon Dennis Kwok and a written reply by the Secretary for Education, Mr Kevin Yeung, in the Legislative Council today (July 11):
 
Question:
 
     It has been learnt that educational psychologists (EPs) play a rather important role under the policy on integrated education. Their tasks include conducting psycho-educational assessments for children suspected to have special educational needs, as well as providing counselling services and accommodation arrangements for them. At present, the University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University take turn each year to run local master degree programmes for training EPs, which are funded by the University Grants Committee (UGC). Meanwhile, the Government announced in the 2016 Policy Address that it would enhance the School-based Educational Psychology Service by progressively improving the ratio of EP to school to 1:4 in respect of public sector primary and secondary schools which admit a large number of students with special educational needs. As a result, the demand for EPs will increase gradually. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
 
(1) (i) the number of places, (ii) the number of graduates, (iii) the unit cost and (iv) the amount of subsidy, in respect of UGC-funded educational psychology pragrammes in each of the past five years;
 
(2) the criteria adopted by UGC for vetting and approval of funding applications from tertiary institutions for (i) running new master degree programmes and (ii) increasing the number of places of those programmes, as well as the procedures concerned; and
 
(3) whether UGC has received funding applications from the two aforesaid institutions for increasing the number of funded places of their master degree pragrammes in educational psychology; if UGC has, of the details; whether UGC will invite and provide funding to other tertiary institutions to run similar programmes; if UGC will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     Our reply to the question raised by the Hon Kwok is as follows:
 
(1) The approved student intake and the number of graduates of the University Grants Committee (UGC)-funded educational psychology programmes for 2012/13 to 2016/17 academic years are tabulated as follows:
 

Academic year	Approved student intake
2012/13	25
2013/14	15
2014/15	25
2015/16	15
2016/17	25

 

Year of graduation	Number of graduates
2013	12
2014	26
2015	15
2016	19
2017	12

Note: The above figures cover Master of Educational & Child Psychology programme offered by the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and Master of Social Sciences (Educational Psychology) programme offered by the University of Hong Kong.
 
     Funding for individual UGC-funded programmes is subsumed under the block grant to universities without precise requirements by the UGC as to how it should be spent. Universities may allocate funds internally to programmes of various disciplines at different levels as they see fit. The UGC is therefore unable to identify or provide information about the actual subvention on specific programmes.
 
     That said, the UGC has derived the average student unit cost of UGC-funded Taught Postgraduate (TPg) places, which are based on the actual costs incurred on UGC-funded expenditure items and reported by universities. The said average unit cost is not equivalent to the actual subvention or expenditure on specific TPg programmes. The average student unit costs of UGC-funded TPg places for the 2013/14 to 2017/18 academic years are as follows:
 

Academic year	2013/14	2014/15	2015/16	2016/17	2017/18
Average student unit cost ($)	202,000	215,000	230,000	232,000	Not yet available

Note: The bulk of the student unit cost of a TPg place is subsidised by Government subvention with the remainder funded by income from tuition fees (i.e. $42,100 per student per year).
     
(2) and (3) The UGC and the UGC-funded universities conduct a planning exercise and recurrent grant assessment on a triennial basis. Proposals of launching new UGC-funded programmes or making changes to the number of intake places of existing programmes are usually raised by the UGC-funded universities in the context of the triennial planning exercise.
 
     The planning exercise for 2019/20 to 2021/22 triennium is currently underway. Pursuant to the Government’s advice on manpower requirements, the UGC-funded universities have submitted planning exercise proposals (PEPs) to the UGC. The UGC Sub-Group on Planning Exercise met with individual universities in May 2018 to exchange views on the PEP. Before making relevant recommendations to the Government, the UGC will fully consider the needs of society and the government’s advice on manpower requirements. Later this year, the UGC will submit its recommendations on allocation of student places and the associated funding for the 2019/20 to 2021/22 triennium to the Government. The Government will announce the indicative student number targets of the 2019/20 to 2021/22 triennium as and when appropriate. read more

     Following is a question by the Hon Au Nok-hin and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr John Lee, in the Legislative Council today (July 11): Question:        Reuters reported… read more