Following is a question by the Hon Tony Tse and a written reply by the Secretary for Education, Dr Choi Yuk-lin, in the Legislative Council today (July 10):
 
Question:
 
     There are views that, in comparison with school education, family education is equally or even more important for the learning and growth of school children, but not every parent knows how to properly and effectively teach their children. In addition, it is learnt that while at present the Government relies primarily on the Education Bureau (EDB) to promote parent education, and EDB has adopted the approach of regarding "schools as a primary platform and the community as a complementary" in implementing parent education, schools differ in terms of motivation, effectiveness and content focus in the promotion of parent education. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the policy measures introduced and amount of resources allocated by the Government in recent years for the promotion of parent education; among such policy measures, of the respective numbers of those implemented through schools, other non-school organisations, and directly by government departments;
 
(2) regarding the implementation of parent education by primary and secondary schools, how the authorities monitor the relevant quantity, quality, and effectiveness;
 
(3) whether it has compiled statistics on the participation rates in parent education provided by primary and secondary schools across the territory, and the number of parents of school-age students who have never taken part in any parent education in the past five years; of its plans in place to increase the participation rates of such parents;
 
(4) apart from written circulars and the Parents' Day normally held once every academic year, whether the Government will encourage schools to maintain communication and contact with parents through more frequent and diversified modes in respect of the learning and growth of students, including making good use of communication technologies such as video conferencing; and
 
(5) as it is learnt that some primary and secondary schools have provided national security education to parents through talks and other means in recent years, of the number of such activities and the participation rates of parents; whether the Government will further step up the relevant work, including enhancing the contents, frequencies and participation rates of such activities, as well as providing more assistance to schools and related organisations, so as to raise parents' sense of national identity and awareness of patriotism?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     Parents are the pivotal figures in nurturing, safeguarding and educating children, playing crucial roles in supporting children's development and learning as well as fostering their proper values, positive attitude and behaviour. Therefore, the Government has long been promoting parent education through the Education Bureau (EDB) and other government bureaux.
 
     Having consulted the Health Bureau, the consolidated reply to the question raised by the Hon Tony Tse is as follows:
 
(1) The EDB has all along been adopting the approaches of "parent-based" and "schools as a primary platform and the community as a complementary" to promote parent education through diversified means. To enable parents to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills for nurturing their children in a more systematic manner, the EDB commissioned a post-secondary institution to develop the curriculum frameworks on parent education for parents of students at different learning stages. The EDB introduced the Curriculum Frameworks on Parent Education for kindergarten (KG), primary school and secondary school in 2021, 2022 and May 2024 respectively (collaboratively named as the "Curriculum Frameworks"). All the Curriculum Frameworks have been uploaded onto the EDB's website for schools' and relevant organisations' reference.   
 
     At school level, the EDB provided KGs joining the Kindergarten Education Scheme with an additional one-off subsidy of $90,000 to $100,000 in the 2021/22 school year, and a one-off grant on parent education of $200,000 for all publicly-funded primary and secondary schools in the 2022/23 and 2023/24 school years respectively to support schools to embark on structured school-based parent education programmes or activities having regard to the Curriculum Frameworks and the needs of parents and students. Besides, all public-sector schools have set up Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs), and the Committee on Home-School Co-operation has been assisting the Government in providing the "Subsidy for Home-School Co-operation Activities" and the "Subsidy for Joint Home-School Co-operation Project" for PTAs, encouraging PTAs to organise diversified school-based home-school co-operation and parent education activities or programmes with reference to the Curriculum Frameworks. To further enhance the support for schools, starting from the 2023/24 school year, the EDB has developed resource packages for primary and secondary schools based on the Curriculum Frameworks in phases to facilitate teachers, social workers and guidance personnel of schools in mastering the relevant knowledge and skills. 
 
     At territory level, starting from the 2018/19 school year, the EDB has commissioned post-secondary institutions and non-governmental organisations to organise territory-wide or district-based parent education courses and talks for parents and grandparents of KG and primary students with reference to the Curriculum Frameworks, and produce electronic learning resources to facilitate parents' self-learning. The EDB has also been implementing the territory-wide Positive Parent Campaign (the Campaign) since 2020 to promote parent education through extensive and diversified channels, with a view to fostering positive thinking, strategies and attitudes in nurturing children among parents. In recent years, we have organised various parent education activities and produced a theme song for the Campaign, Announcements in the Public Interest on television and radio as well as animations and short videos on parent education to further enhance public awareness on positive parent education. We have also reached out to parents of different backgrounds in the communities to promote the messages of positive parenting through a moving showroom, parent-oriented websites, advertisements at MTR stations and on bus body, online platforms, etc.
 
     Besides, the EDB has been making use of the one-stop parent education website "Smart Parent Net" (www.parent.edu.hk/en), "Smart Parent Net" Facebook, Instagram pages and YouTube channel to disseminate important information on supporting the physical and psychological development of students, which includes information on parent-child relationship, parenting skills and emotional management of parents.
 
     From the 2020-21 to 2023-24 financial years, the EDB's expenditure on promoting home-school co-operation and parent education is about $550 million.
 
     Apart from the EDB, the Maternal and Child Health Centres (MCHCs) administered by the Family Health Service of the Department of Health also provide a Parenting Programme for parents of children up to five years old, which aims to enhance parents' understanding of their children's growth and development. The Parenting Programme consists of two components – a universal Parenting Programme and an intensive Positive Parenting Programme (Triple P Programme). The universal Parenting Programme provides individual counselling as well as public health talks and workshops on parenting. During the above individual parenting counselling, healthcare professionals will encourage parents to participate in the Triple P Programme if they notice that the child has early signs of behavioural problems or if the parents encounter difficulties in parenting. The Triple P Programme is a structured parenting programme which aims to increase parents' confidence in parenting and improve their parenting skills. The programme is conducted by accredited facilitators and offered in the MCHCs in various districts. The programme covers the principles of positive parenting and helps parents to use positive communication skills and effective parenting methods to handle children's behavioural problems in a way that does not harm the child's self-esteem.
 
(2) to (3) Currently, all public-sector schools have set up PTAs. The EDB also encourages schools to plan and organise systematic school-based parent education programmes with reference to the Curriculum Frameworks and constantly evaluate the effectiveness of the programmes. The EDB have all along been regularly reviewing the implementation and effectiveness of the work of schools (including home-school co-operation and parent education) through inspections, school visits, etc, and providing feedback to schools in a timely manner to facilitate continuous development of schools. Publicly-funded schools are also required to draw up an implementation plan and report on the use of the One-off Grant on Parent Education, setting out the details of the subsidised items or activities, relevant expenses and the evaluations for submission to the School Management Committee/ Management Committee/ Incorporated Management Committee for endorsement. 
 
     Besides, the EDB has been requesting the PTAs of schools and the Federations of Parent-Teacher Associations (FPTAs) to submit an assessment report for evaluation of each activity supported by the relevant subsidies on home-school co-operation activities. The EDB also collects opinions from schools and parents through different means to continuously review the effectiveness of the measures implemented. In the 2023/24 school year, about 1 650 schools applied for these subsidies and approval was granted for subsidising around 3 690 activities.
 
(4) The EDB has been encouraging schools to maintain communication and collaboration with parents through diversified modes and channels so as to facilitate students' learning and development. In general, schools would assist parents to support the whole-person development of children through the PTA activities, Parents' Day, Parents' Night, school publications, e-circulars, school website, groups of the mobile messaging applications, etc. Besides, some schools would make flexible arrangements for meeting and communicating with parents, such as online meetings, to cater for the needs of working parents. Schools may also provide online portals where parents can easily access information to keep track of their children's academic progress and school activities at their convenience. Schools would in general encourage parents' participation through activities related to students' development and learning at school level, grade/form level or class level.
 
(5) The EDB has been encouraging parents to learn more about the National Security Law, proactively partner with schools and strengthen their collaboration with teachers, with a view to enhancing students' awareness of safeguarding national security and abiding by the law. To strengthen national education, all publicly-funded schools are required to organise one or more activities relating to national education for parents every year from the 2022/23 school year onwards. The EDB continuously monitors and supports schools on the implementation of related measures through channels such as school visits and daily communications with schools, and makes suggestions for enhancement and improvement in accordance with school-based circumstances. Primary and secondary schools continue to organise different kinds of parent-child activities related to Chinese culture and national security education regularly, such as Chinese Culture Day, visits to the Hong Kong Palace Museum, Jao Tsung-I Academy and the Patriotic Education Centre, publications for parents and related exhibition boards in the school campuses, to help parents understand the importance of safeguarding national security. In addition, schools would invite guest speakers, such as representatives of the Hong Kong deputies to the National People's Congress, to give talks in the parent seminars at schools with a view to deepening parents' understanding of national security education and their role in supporting schools' implementation of national security education.
 
     Apart from the above, the EDB provides subsidies for PTAs of schools and FPTAs, encouraging them to organise activities on national education and national security education. From the 2021/22 to 2023/24 school years, the EDB has approved more than 2 390 applications from PTAs and 14 applications from FPTAs to support the provision of programmes or activities related to national education, national security education and values education, including school cultural exchange tours to the Mainland and local parent-child national education tours. About 64 000 parents have participated in such activities. 

     â€‹As the Heat Stress at Work Warning is now in effect, the Labour Department (LD) reminds employers and employees to take appropriate measures during the effective period of the warning to prevent heat stroke when working in hot weather or hot environments.
      
     Employees who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned indoor environments face high levels of heat stress and are at a relatively higher risk of heat stroke. Employers should assess the risk factors of heat stress for employees at work and, based on the identified risk factors, take necessary preventive and control measures, including rescheduling work periods, setting up shading covers, providing ventilation and heat dissipation equipment, and reminding employees to replenish water and rest in a timely manner.
      
     The Heat Stress at Work Warning is formulated by the LD based on the Hong Kong Heat Index. There are three levels of the warning: Amber, Red and Black, which help employers and employees better understand the level of heat stress while working outdoors or indoors without air-conditioning systems.
      
     A spokesman for the LD said that when the department issues the Heat Stress at Work Warning, employers must refer to the criteria and recommendations provided in the "Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work" to conduct risk assessments, according to the workloads and other relevant heat stress risk factors, for employees who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned indoor workplaces. Appropriate rest breaks should be arranged every hour, as far as reasonably practicable, based on various levels of the Heat Stress at Work Warning, to reduce employees' risk of heat stroke.
      
     Employees must also follow instructions to rest on time. Whenever there are any symptoms of heat-related illnesses, such as headache, dizziness, thirst, and nausea, they should rest in a cool and shady place, drink water, and inform employers/supervisors to take appropriate action immediately.
      
     The LD issued the "Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work", detailing the various risk factors that should be considered when conducting heat stress risk assessments and recommending corresponding control measures for identified risk factors for employers' and employees' reference. For the Heat Stress at Work Warning and related guidelines, please refer to the department's thematic webpage: www.labour.gov.hk/eng/news/prevention_of_heat_stroke_at_work.htm.

     Following is a question by Dr the Hon Tik Chi-yuen and a written reply by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Erick Tsang Kwok-wai, in the Legislative Council today (July 10):
 
Question:
 
     There are views pointing out that a seat of the current-term Legislative Council (LegCo) has been left vacant for over 18 months, which has inevitably affected this Council's work in monitoring the Government's policy implementation and expressing social aspirations. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the number of seats left vacant in the course of the term of LegCo since the first LegCo and the period for which each of the seats was left vacant;
 
(2) of the number of LegCo by-elections held by the Government since the first LegCo, and the number of seats involved and the expenditures incurred in each by-election; the considerations or criteria based on which the Government decided to hold such by‍-‍elections; and
 
(3) given that in the reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on the Estimates of Expenditure 2024-2025, the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs has indicated that the Government will maintain close communication with the Electoral Affairs Commission and will consider matters related to the by‍-‍election of the current-term LegCo based on the actual situation, of the latest progress of the relevant work and the considerations or criteria for deciding whether or not to hold the by-election?

Reply:

President,

     Our reply to Dr the Hon Tik's question is as follows:

(1) Since the establishment of the first term of the Legislative Council (LegCo) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (the first term of LegCo), a total of 51 seats have been left vacant during the term of office. In view that by-elections must be arranged in accordance with the law and the actual situation, by-elections for filling previous vacancies were not necessarily conducted within a short period of time. Statistics show that 58 per cent (30 seats) of the aforesaid 51 vacancies were left vacant for over 1 year.
 
(2) and (3) The Government has held a total of 10 LegCo by-elections involving 20 seats since the first term of LegCo. The expenditure of by-election is affected by multiple factors, including the number of seats involved, the constituency concerned, the number of electors, the number of polling stations, the booking situation of venues, and the required manpower, etc. Therefore, the total expenditure of different by-elections varies. We will continue the principle of enhancing the efficiency and managing our finances prudently, so as to enable future public elections to be conducted successfully while achieving cost effectiveness.

     Regarding the current vacancy of the LegCo, the Government will continue to maintain close communication with the Electoral Affairs Commission, and will consider the relevant arrangements as appropriate and as practicable based on the actual situation.

     â€‹The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan, will depart for Beijing this afternoon (July 10) to attend the second High-level Conference of the Forum on Global Action for Shared Development.
 
     During his stay in Beijing, Mr Tse will call on the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and the National Energy Administration to continue strengthening co-operation and exchanges. He will also visit the Earth System Science Numerical Simulator Facility of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to learn about the latest developments of the country in areas such as combating climate change and atmospheric environment management.
 
     ​The Permanent Secretary for Environment and Ecology (Environment), Miss Janice Tse, the Commissioner for Climate Change, Mr Wong Chuen-fai, and officers from the Environment and Ecology Bureau, the Environmental Protection Department and the Hong Kong Observatory will also join the visit.
 
      Mr Tse will return to Hong Kong in the evening on July 13. During his absence, the Under Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Miss Diane Wong, will be the Acting Secretary for Environment and Ecology.

     Marking the fourth anniversary of the implementation of the Hong Kong National Security Law (NSL), the Security Bureau (SB) today (July 10) launched the updated NSL online virtual exhibition with enriched content to introduce the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (SNSO) which took effect upon gazettal in March this year. Other new additions include the mascot Security Bear as well as comics and animations with national security as the theme to promote national security education in an interesting and lively way.
      
     In addition to the content related to the NSL in the updated exhibition, a new virtual exhibition hall has been added to introduce the features and main offences of the SNSO. Supplemented with simple and easy-to-understand questions and answers, information in the hall will enable members of the public to understand more fully the legal system and enforcement mechanisms of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in safeguarding national security.
      
     The updated exhibition continues to use the Hong Kong Palace Museum embellished with Chinese cultural elements as its virtual background, with the Security Bureau's mascot Security Bear joining to accompany visitors during the tour to enhance their enjoyment. In addition, the virtual exhibition has launched for the first time serialised national security-themed comics and animations, illustrating the importance of safeguarding national security and law-abiding awareness in an easy-to-understand manner. Visitors, especially youth, can also gain more relevant knowledge through mini-games featuring the Security Bear.
      
     There are nine zones in the updated virtual exhibition. Apart from the new content mentioned above, the exhibition covers information on the importance of the NSL, the legal system and enforcement mechanisms, major provisions and effectiveness, the work of various disciplined forces in safeguarding national security, reference materials and the winning entries of the Let's Join Hands in Safeguarding National Security Programme.
      
     To enhance the understanding of members of the public regarding the legislative background, importance and significance of the NSL, the SB launched the NSL online virtual exhibition in July 2021, which has registered more than 580 000 visits thus far. The public is welcome to visit nslexhibition.hk.