Following is the speech by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, at the Announcement Reception of Lumieres Hong Kong 2018 today (May 28): Mrs Paule Ignatio (Acting Consul General of … read more
The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat: The 2018 internship programme organised by the Legislative Council Secretariat (the Secretariat) for local tertiary students commenced today (May 28),… read more
The Department of Justice (DoJ) today (May 28) gave notice to the Legislative Council (LegCo) that it will move a resolution to increase the statutory sum to be awarded as damages for bereavement (bereavement sum) under the Fatal Accidents Ordinance (Cap 22) to $220,000.
The increased sum will be capable of reflecting the cumulative impact of inflation over the period from March 1997 to March 2018.
The DoJ also proposed a review of the bereavement sum to reflect inflation by making reference to the Consumer Price Index (A) (CPI(A)) every two years.
A spokesman for the DoJ said, “The Ordinance was enacted in 1986. It allows an action for damages to be brought against a person for the benefit of the dependants of the deceased in respect of that person’s wrongful act, neglect or default which has caused the death of the deceased. An action under the Ordinance may include a claim for damages for bereavement in the sum as prescribed in section 4(3). Section 4(5) of the Ordinance provides that the LegCo may by resolution vary the sum.
“Since the enactment of the Ordinance, the bereavement sum was adjusted in 1991 and 1997. The current sum is set at $150,000.”
In mid-2014, the DoJ reviewed the bereavement sum and proposed to increase the sum to $190,000, having made reference to the cumulative inflation as measured by the CPI(A), and consulted the Law Society of Hong Kong (LawSoc) and the Hong Kong Bar Association (the Bar).
In response, the LawSoc and the Bar proposed that the amount be adjusted to $250,000. The reason is that the increase should take into account not only inflation but also “changing social and economic conditions of Hong Kong”.
“The DoJ then thoroughly considered the issues and studied the methodology adopted in other common law jurisdictions. The Census and Statistics Department and the Government Economist were consulted. It was concluded that the ‘social and economic conditions’ of an economy could embrace many different aspects, including a host of factors such as population growth and structure, housing and economic growth. Therefore, there is no single indicator that can serve the purpose of manifesting the changing social and economic conditions in a nutshell,” the spokesman explained.
In the DoJ’s view, an adjustment based on inflation by making reference to the CPI(A) could provide a simple and objective methodology for the coming and future reviews of the bereavement sum.
The DoJ proposed to move a resolution to increase the bereavement sum to $220,000 which would be more than sufficient to cover the cumulative inflation reckoned from March 1997 to March 2018 after making reference to the CPI(A).
The DoJ today gave notice to the LegCo that it would move the related resolution under section 4(5) of the Ordinance at the LegCo sitting on June 13. read more
Police today (May 28) laid a holding charge against a 30-year-old man with one count of attempted murder.
The man was arrested on May 26 in suspected connection with an attempted murder case in Tin Shui Wai on May 16, in which he put suspected poison into the soup for his 60-year-old mother’s consumption.
The case will be mentioned at Tuen Mun Magistrates’ Courts tomorrow (May 29).
read more
The award ceremony of the Design Idea Competition for Wan Chai Community Green Station organised by the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) was held today (May 28) at Leighton Hill Community Hall in Wan Chai. The competition received a total of more than 70 design concept entries for the professional and open groups. The jury panel selected the winning, commendation and finalist entries from each group.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, said the entries were of high quality and the designs both practicable and innovative. They could also bring out the green image of the community green station (CGS) in supporting community recycling and environmental education. In addition, the designs could integrate the CGS into the surrounding environment, and facilitate the development of a green culture.
The Wan Chai CGS will be located at Wan Shing Street near Hung Hing Road in Wan Chai, in the vicinity of the Wan Chai promenade. The winner of the first prize in the professional group will be invited to collaborate with the Architectural Services Department to implement the design of the Wan Chai CGS (please see the Annex for the design). All entries of the competition will be exhibited from May 30 to June 8 at the Queensway Government Offices and members of the public are welcome to visit the exhibition. For information about the competition and exhibition, please visit the competition website at www.CGSdesigncompetition.hk.
Mr Wong also announced that Yan Oi Tong and the New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association had been appointed through open tender to operate the Tuen Mun CGS and the Kwai Tsing CGS respectively. The contracts are of a term of three years and both CGSs are expected to commence operation in the second half of this year. According to the operation contracts, Yan Oi Tong and the New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association will provide the local communities with collection services for different recyclables, such as waste paper, waste plastics, waste metals, electrical appliances, glass containers, compact fluorescent lamps and tubes and rechargeable batteries. The operators are also expected to organise a wide range of environmental education programmes to promote the messages of “Use Less, Waste Less” and “Clean Recycling”, and to instil a green living culture in the community.
Yan Oi Tong has its roots in Tuen Mun and has long-term community service experience in the district, while the New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association has an extensive community service network in Kwai Tsing. Both operators possess the ability and experience required to enable the Tuen Mun CGS and the Kwai Tsing CGS to provide recycling support and environmental education programmes at the community level.
The Tuen Mun CGS is located at 9 Tuen Yi Street in Tuen Mun, while the Kwai Tsing CGS is located at 12 Tam Kon Shan Road in Tsing Yi. In addition, there are five CGSs in operation, namely the Sha Tin CGS, the Eastern CGS, the Kwun Tong CGS, the Yuen Long CGS and the Sham Shui Po CGS. With more CGSs coming into operation, the relevant communities will be better able to establish a recycling and environmental education network for the promotion and implementation of various waste reduction initiatives. For information about CGSs and their latest developments, please visit the EPD’s website at www.wastereduction.gov.hk/en/community/cgs_intro.htm. read more