The Transport Department (TD) today (November 27) announced that special arrangements will be implemented for reserving the Shenzhen Bay Ad Hoc Quota for Cross Boundary Private Cars in relation to the suspension of operation of… read more
The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority: Result of the tenders of RMB Sovereign Bonds held on November 27, 2019: Tender Result ***************************************… read more
​Due to the latest situation in various districts and the possibility of traffic disruption, the Customs and Excise Department today (November 27) announced that the Hong Kong Customs College open days originally scheduled for November 30 and December 1 will be postponed. Ticket holders should keep the admission tickets. The rescheduling arrangements will be announced on the department’s website (www.customs.gov.hk) later. read more
Following is a question by the Hon Jimmy Ng and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Frank Chan Fan, in the Legislative Council today (November 27):
Question:
The number of private cars in Hong Kong increased from 402 000 in 2006 to 626 000 in September 2019 (representing a 56 per cent increase). However, the ratio of parking spaces for private cars to such vehicles dropped from 1.51 in 2006 to 1.1 in 2019, reflecting that the shortage of car parking spaces has aggravated. Regarding parking spaces for private cars, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the numbers, projected for the coming three years, of new car parking spaces to be provided by the Government and private developers, and among such car parking spaces, the number of those for private cars (with a tabulated breakdown by District Council district);
(2) of the numbers, projected for the coming three years, of (i) public multi-storey car parks to be newly completed and commissioned, and the total number of car parking spaces to be provided therein, as well as (ii) government sites to be let by way of short-term tenancies for use as temporary car parks, and set out the location and the number of car parking spaces to be provided therein for each of such sites;
(3) whether, in order to alleviate the shortage of car parking spaces, it will expeditiously (i) amend the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines to raise the standards on the provision of parking spaces for private cars in housing development projects (e.g. changing the current standard of one car parking space per six to nine residential flats to one car parking space per four to five residential flats), and review the demand adjustment ratio, the accessibility adjustment ratio and the development intensity adjustment ratio, as well as (ii) take measures to encourage developers to provide more car parking spaces, so that more parking spaces can be provided in newly completed housing development/redevelopment projects; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that;
(4) given that the continued increase in size of the private cars manufactured in recent years has made it increasingly frequent that the body of a vehicle crosses the boundary lines of a car parking space and the space between vehicles parked adjacently is insufficient for the vehicle doors to be opened for boarding and alighting, whether the Government will review the size standard for parking spaces; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
(5) as the Transport Department is taking forward pilot projects of automated parking systems involving six sites with a view to providing more car parking spaces, of the projected numbers of parking spaces to be provided by such projects in the coming three years?
Reply:
President,
The Government’s current policy on the provision of parking spaces is to accord priority to considering and meeting the parking demand of commercial vehicles (CVs), and to provide an appropriate number of private car parking spaces if the overall development permits, but at the same time not to attract passengers to opt for private cars in lieu of public transport, so as to avoid aggravating the road traffic. The Government is pursuing a host of measures to increase parking spaces as appropriate, including following the principle of “single site, multiple uses” to provide public parking spaces in suitable “Government, Institution or Community” facilities and public open space projects, as well as taking forward pilot projects on automated parking systems (APSs).
My reply to the various parts of the Hon Jimmy Ng’s question is as follows:
(1) and (2) The Transport Department (TD) has been closely monitoring the parking needs of different districts, and will continue to take forward various measures to increase the provision of parking spaces. Since the number and progress in the provision of new parking spaces through the various measures hinge on a host of factors, including the views of stakeholders as well as the progress of seeking funding approval for and the actual implementation of the works projects, etc, TD is not in a position to make a precise projection on the number of parking spaces to be provided in the coming three years.
As regards fee-paying car parks at government sites let by way of short-term tenancies (STTs), according to the Tender Forecast published by the Lands Department (last modified on October 8, 2019), the proposed sites to be let by way of STTs under the Abbreviated Tender System for use as fee-paying car parks from November 2019 to March 2020 and the numbers of parking spaces involved under the respective District Lands Offices’ purview are tabulated below:
| District Lands Office | Proposed sites to be let by way of STTs under the Abbreviated Tender System for use as fee-paying car parks | Estimated number of parking spaces |
| Hong Kong East | 1 | 176 |
| Tsuen Wan and Kwai Tsing |
7 | 1 342 |
| Sha Tin | 1 | 99 |
| North | 1 | 207 |
Following is a question by the Hon Regina Ip (Hon Yung Hoi-yan to ask on her behalf) and a reply by the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Joshua Law, in the Legislative Council today (November 27):
Question:
At its meeting on November 4 this year, the Panel on Public Service of this Council passed a motion moved by me, urging the Chief Executive (CE) to issue an executive order under Article 48(4) of the Basic Law to require all civil servants to swear to uphold the Basic Law and swear allegiance to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (HKSAR). In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether CE will exercise the executive powers conferred on her by Article 48(4) of the Basic Law, and formulate a policy and issue an executive order with reference to the Oaths and Declarations Ordinance to require all civil servants (including new appointees) to swear to uphold the Basic Law and swear allegiance to the HKSAR, so as to ensure that civil servants of all ranks and grades will work in solidarity towards common goals, and safeguard the core values of “one country, two systems”, “Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong” and a high degree of autonomy?
Reply:
President,
The civil service is the backbone of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). It is responsible to the Chief Executive (CE). It supports the CE and the Government of the day in formulating, explaining and implementing policies; conducting administrative affairs; delivering public services; and undertaking law enforcement and regulatory functions. Article 99 of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (the Basic Law) states that public servants must be dedicated to their duties and be responsible to the Government of the HKSAR. Civil servants, being a key component of the public service, have a constitutional role to give their best in serving the CE and the Government of the day.
According to the Civil Service Code (Code), civil servants must be law-abiding, dedicated, impartial and politically neutral. Political neutrality means that civil servants shall serve the CE and the Government of the day with total loyalty and to the best of their ability, no matter what their own political beliefs are. They shall not allow their own personal political beliefs to determine or influence the discharge of their official duties and responsibilities. When civil servants express their views, they should ensure that their views would not give rise to any conflict of interest with their official duties or possibly be seen to compromise the important principle of maintaining impartiality and political neutrality when discharging their duties. All civil servants, regardless of rank, must observe the Code. The HKSAR Government will, in accordance with the established mechanism, seriously follow up any violations of regulations by civil servants.
At the meeting of the Legislative Council Panel on Public Service on November 4, there were views that the recent arrest of some civil servants for participation in unlawful assemblies and the “disharmony” among members of the disciplined services when performing frontline duties showed that the 180 000-strong civil servants have not acted in concert.
At this difficult time of Hong Kong, I cannot agree more that the civil service should stand in solidarity and work together to end the chaos and violence as their priority task. It is thus deeply regrettable that some civil servants were arrested for suspected involvement in unlawful activities. This is especially so since these very few incidents have led people to cast doubt on the solidarity of the civil service in tackling the crisis, and by focusing on a few negative incidents, the community will easily ignore the hard work and effort of the 180 000-strong civil service. That said, I believe that our colleagues will not be disheartened, and instead, will continue to do their part and strive to help Hong Kong restore order as soon as possible.
I have stressed repeatedly that the Government adopts a zero-tolerance attitude towards civil servants who violate the law, and civil servants have been cautioned against taking part in any unlawful activities and actions. A civil servant arrested for participating in illegal activities would be interdicted in the public interest. Civil servants convicted of criminal offence would not only be penalised under the law; the Government would also take disciplinary action against them in accordance with the established mechanism without toleration.
Regarding the incidents of lack of coordination between individual officers of departments, the relevant departments had immediately issued joint statements to clarify and reiterate their continued support for and cooperation with each other. But I admit it is not desirable that there has been coverage about the incidents. I have reminded all departments that they must quickly respond to and handle misunderstandings involving departmental staff so as to avoid such from affecting public perception.
President, I entirely share the view that civil servants must uphold the Basic Law and be loyal to the HKSAR. Please allow me to emphasise once again that Article 99 of the Basic Law stipulates that public servants must be dedicated to their duties and be responsible to the HKSAR Government. The Code also clearly requires that civil servants must serve the HKSAR Government with total loyalty, be committed to the rule of law and abide by the law, etc. Under the framework of the Basic Law and the Code, it has consistently been the duty of civil servants to uphold the Basic Law and be loyal to the HKSAR.
Under the Oaths and Declarations Ordinance, designated officers, including the CE, principal officials, judicial officers, etc., shall take the oath after their appointment. This requirement does not apply to civil servants and is consistent with Article 104 of the Basic Law.
Regarding the motion passed by the Panel on Public Service on November 4 as mentioned in the question, we have started to look into the issue and will report the progress to the Panel in due course as required.
Thank you, President. read more