Tag Archives: China

     Following is a question by the Hon Wong Kwok-kin and a written reply by the Secretary for Development, Mr Michael Wong, in the Legislative Council today (June 24):
 
Question:
 
     The Anderson Road Development (ARD) Area comprises the Development of Anderson Road Quarry Site project which will provide 11 housing sites with a total area of about 12 hectares. Among such sites, there are eight sites and three sites designated respectively for the development of public housing and private housing/Starter Homes for Hong Kong Residents pilot project. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the latest projected intake dates for the residential developments on each of the 11 aforesaid sites;

(2) of the latest progress of the East Kowloon Line railway project proposed in the Railway Development Strategy 2014, whose catchment area includes ARD Area; and

(3) of the latest progress of the road improvement works and traffic arrangements implemented to tie in with the development of the ARD Area?

Reply:
 
President,
 
     Having consulted the Transport and Housing Bureau, our reply to the various parts of the question is as follows:
 
(1) The Development of Anderson Road Quarry (ARQ) Site project covers 11 housing sites in total. Of these, eight are for public housing development with completion in phases from 2023/24 to 2025/26, and five of these sites will be completed in 2023/24 and 2024/25. As for the remaining three housing sites, one was successfully sold for private housing development, which is required to be completed within the building covenant under lease by December 31, 2023.  The other two sites have been sold for private housing and Starter Homes for Hong Kong Residents (Starter Homes) pilot project development, which are required to be completed within the building covenant under lease by March 31, 2026. The actual date of assignment of the private housing/Starter Homes units at the above-mentioned three development projects are subject to the developers’ decisions.

(2) In respect of the East Kowloon Line project recommended under the Railway Development Strategy 2014, the Government had offered comments on the proposal submitted by The MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) and asked MTRCL to improve the technical design contained in the proposal. MTRCL is considering these comments and will explore feasible options to improve the design for the project. Upon firming up the details of the proposed railway scheme such as alignment, location of station(s) and implementation timetable, the Government will consult the public including the Legislative Council (LegCo) and relevant District Councils (DCs) in accordance with the established procedures.

(3) To tie in with the population intakes of the ARQ housing development, the Civil Engineering and Development Department (CEDD) is carrying out construction works of a series of traffic and transport facilities, including an underpass at the southern end and a public transport terminus at the northern end of the ARQ site. These works are expected to be substantially completed by early 2022. CEDD is also constructing a new bus-to-bus interchange at Tseung Kwan O Tunnel Toll Plaza for gradual completion by the end of 2020.
 
     Besides, to meet the traffic demand generated by the additional population moving into the ARQ development, CEDD is implementing the necessary road/junction improvement works which are estimated to be completed in phases by the end of 2023. These works include:

(i) improvement works at the junction of Lin Tak Road and Sau Mau Ping Road, including the construction of a new vehicular flyover of about 390 metres long from Lin Tak Road to Sau Mau Ping Road, and lengthening of laybys at Lin Tak Road near Hong Wah Court and Hing Tin Estate in Lam Tin;

(ii) improvement works at the junction of Clear Water Bay Road and On Sau Road, including the provision of a U-turn facility at Clear Water Bay Road near Fei Ngo Shan Road; and

(iii) widening of a section of New Clear Water Bay Road (Kowloon bound) near Shun Lee Tsuen Road from a single-lane to two-lane carriageway.
 
     In respect of the public transport service arrangements, subject to the progress and date of completion of the new development projects, the Transport Department (TD) will plan and implement in time relevant public transport arrangements to meet the passengers’ demand in the new development area. When drawing up these arrangements, TD will take into account various factors such as the traffic impact assessment, proposals from the public transport operators, traffic conditions of the roads nearby, and views from the local community. TD will consult the Traffic and Transport Committee of relevant DCs on the proposed arrangements.

     In addition, to relieve the road traffic and reduce residents’ demand for short road trips, CEDD will construct a series of pedestrian connectivity facilities as part of the ARQ Site project. These facilities are equipped with covered escalator links and footbridges with lift towers, forming a continuous pedestrian network that provides a safe, convenient and barrier-free walking environment round-the-clock. These will enhance connectivity between the ARQ site and the nearby area including the Kwun Tong MTR Station, thereby providing an option to residents for short road trips in addition to taking public transport.  Funding for part of the pedestrian connectivity works were approved by the LegCo Finance Committee in 2016 and 2018 respectively for gradual completion from early 2021. We will seek funding approval from LegCo in the next legislative session, with a view to commencing construction works of the remaining facilities to tie in with the schedule of population intake of the ARQ Site project. read more

     Following is a question by the Hon Steven Ho and a written reply by the Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Sophia Chan, in the Legislative Council today (June 24):   Question:        Under the… read more

     The Electrical and Mechanical Services Department today (June 24) announced an adjustment to the auto-LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) ceiling prices for dedicated LPG filling stations from July 1 to July 31, 2020, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the contracts of the dedicated LPG filling stations.
 
     A department spokesman said that the adjustment on July 1, 2020, reflects the movement of the LPG international price in June 2020. The adjusted auto-LPG ceiling prices for dedicated LPG filling stations will range from $2.55 to $3.11 per litre, representing a decrease of $0.02 per litre.
 
     The spokesman said that the auto-LPG ceiling prices were adjusted according to a specified pricing formula. The formula comprises two elements – the LPG international price and the LPG operating price. The LPG international price is the LPG international price of the preceding month. The LPG operating price is adjusted on the first day of February every year according to the movement in the Composite Consumer Price Index in the previous year.
      
     The auto-LPG ceiling prices for respective dedicated LPG filling stations in July 2020 are as follows:
 

Location of Dedicated LPG Filling Station	Auto-LPG Ceiling Price in  July 2020 (HK$/litre)	Auto-LPG Ceiling Price in June 2020 (HK$/litre)
Fung Yip Street, Chai Wan	3.11	3.13
Ngo Cheung Road, West Kowloon	3.11	3.13
Sham Mong Road, Mei Foo	2.77	2.79
Yip Wong Road, Tuen Mun	2.77	2.79
Marsh Road, Wan Chai	2.76	2.78
Fung Mat Road, Sheung Wan	2.69	2.71
Wai Lok Street, Kwun Tong	2.69	2.71
Yuen Chau Tsai, Tai Po	2.69	2.71
Cheung Yip Street, Kowloon Bay	2.74	2.76
Kwai On Road, Kwai Chung	2.74	2.76
Hang Yiu Street, Ma On Shan	2.55	2.57
Tak Yip Street, Yuen Long	2.55	2.57

     The spokesman said that the details of the LPG international price and the auto-LPG ceiling price of each dedicated LPG filling station have been uploaded to the department website www.emsd.gov.hk. They are also posted at dedicated LPG filling stations to enable the trades to monitor the price adjustment.
      
     Details of the pricing adjustment mechanism for dedicated LPG filling stations can also be viewed under the “What’s New” section of the department website at www.emsd.gov.hk/en/what_s_new/current/index.html. read more

     Following is a question by Hon Jeremy Tam and a reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr John Lee, in the Legislative Council today (June 24):
    
Question:
 
     It has been reported that some police officers who were on duty at the scenes of public events behaved erratically, including swearing at and violently assaulting members of the public, as well as grinning hideously while pointing arms at crowds, which had aroused suspicion as to whether they were under the influence of alcohol or drugs. In addition, some police officers were arrested in recent months for allegedly stealing methamphetamine exhibits or assaulting their colleagues after drink. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1)  of the number of cases in the past five years in which police officers were convicted of drug-related offences, as well as the details of such cases, including the offence dates, case summaries, types and quantities of the drugs involved, as well as the convicted offence(s);
 
(2)  as it has been reported that the Police intend to implement a scheme for conducting drug tests on those police officers who may be transferred to sensitive positions or be promoted, but the scheme is only voluntary in nature, whether the Police will conduct surprise and mandatory drug tests on police officers randomly selected among all of them, and specify the punishments for refusal to take the tests, so as to enhance the deterrent effect; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
 
(3)  whether the Police have prescribed an alcohol concentration limit for on-duty police officers; if so, of the limit; whether it has conducted surprise and mandatory alcohol breath tests on randomly selected on-duty police officers; if so, of the details, including the respective numbers of person-times of police officers taking and refusing to take the tests, the number of person-times of police officers whose alcohol concentration exceeded the limit and the average magnitude by which the limit was exceeded, as well as the disciplinary actions that the police officers concerned were subjected to, in each of the past five years; if it has not conducted tests, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President:
 
     The Police attach great importance to the conduct and behaviour of officers. Police officers must meet requirements on behaviour and discipline, and must uphold the Police’s values in such areas as impartiality and professionalism.
 
     The behaviour of police officers is strictly regulated by the Police (Discipline) Regulations (Cap 232A) and the Police General Orders. In addition, the Hong Kong Police Force manages officers’ discipline and conduct through administrative measures, by rebuking officers for their inappropriate behaviour. Rebuke is an administrative measure which aims to immediately intervene in, stop and rectify the inappropriate behaviour of officers, and to let other officers know that such behaviour is inappropriate. If it is found upon further investigations by the Police that other actions are required, disciplinary or criminal investigations and procedures will be carried out.
 
     The Police will follow up on any act of breach of law or discipline in a serious manner and require supervisors to strictly discharge their supervisory duties. The Police will investigate all cases of breach of law or discipline in a serious manner, handling them fairly and impartially.
 
     My reply to various parts of the question is as follows:
 
(1) In the past five years (i.e. from 2015 to 2019), a total of six regular police officers were arrested for drug-related offences, which included possession of dangerous drugs. Among them, three were convicted, including:
 
(i) In 2016, a police officer was sentenced to imprisonment for two months, suspended for two years, for possession of dangerous drugs. The officer was dismissed in the same year;
 
(ii) In 2018, a police officer was sentenced to imprisonment for eight months for possession of dangerous drugs. The officer was dismissed in 2019; and
 
(iii) In 2019, a police officer was sentenced to 18-month probation order and a fine of $5,000 for possession of dangerous drugs and other offences. The officer also had to receive drug treatment. The relevant disciplinary proceedings are ongoing.
 
     During the same period, two officers were released unconditionally after investigation. The remaining one is awaiting trial, and it is thus inappropriate to discuss the case details at the current stage. 

(2) The Police have always attached great importance to the integrity management of police officers. The Police have put in place the Integrated Integrity Management Framework (the Framework) to promote integrity and honesty among officers, as well as to monitor their discipline and integrity. The Framework is implemented through a four-pronged approach, namely: –

(i) “education and culture-building of integrity”;
(ii) “governance and control”;
(iii) “enforcement and deterrence”;and
(iv) “rehabilitation and support”.
 
     Currently, the Police have three standing committees implementing integrity management. The Force Committee on Integrity Management, with the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Management) as Chairman and three Assistant Directors of the Independent Commission Against Corruption as members, is responsible for formulating and assessing integrity management strategies. The Integrity Management Co-ordinating Committee and the Formation Integrity Committees are responsible for co-ordinating related work and implementing relevant measures in Headquarters formations and various Police Districts respectively.
 
     To further strengthen integrity management, the Police established the Integrity Audit Action Group (IAAG) last month. The objectives of IAAG are as follows:
 
(i) to proactively investigate cases of suspected serious breach of discipline or even illegal acts of officers;
(ii) to identify work procedures with potential risks for rectification as early as possible; and
(iii) to enhance the monitoring and supervision regime on the behaviour and conduct of officers.
 
     At present, IAAG, under the command of the Assistant Commissioner of Police (Service Quality), comprises 15 members and reports its work directly to the Commissioner of Police. IAAG is conducting feasibility studies on various initiatives, including arranging for officers to undergo voluntary drug tests before appointment or transfer to sensitive positions. These initiatives aim to establish a healthy departmental culture, enhance prevention of misconduct, step up deterrence and maintain public confidence. The Police’s management is collecting the views of officers in order to strike a balance between the protection of officers’ privacy and the prevention of illegal acts. The scheme is currently under study.
 
(3) The behaviour of police officers is strictly regulated by the Police (Discipline) Regulations, which specify 13 disciplinary offences, such as “absence from duty without leave or good cause”, “conduct to the prejudice of good order and discipline”, “contravention of police regulations, or any police orders, whether written or verbal”, “conduct calculated to bring the public service into disrepute”, etc.;  “being unfit for duty through intoxication” is one of the specified disciplinary offences. If officers have committed any one of these specified offences, the Police will take disciplinary actions in accordance with established procedures. If officers are found guilty of a breach of discipline, the Police will award punishment according to the gravity of the offences, including awarding punishment of compulsory retirement, ordered resignation or other punishment for serious offences.
 
     Over the past five years (i.e. from 2015 to 2019), no police officer was found guilty of breaching the disciplinary offence of “being unfit for duty through intoxication”.
 
     Regarding mandatory alcohol breath tests, at present there is only such a legal power for drink-driving in Hong Kong, and no such power under other situations. However, the Force will ensure good conduct and discipline of officers in its routine management. Supervisors will brief officers under their command before the latter carry out duty, and will pay attention to officers’ mental condition while checking on their dress and appearance. If there is any sign of officers being influenced by alcohol, supervisors will take appropriate follow-up actions including disciplinary investigation.
 
     The HKSAR Government understands that members of the public have very high expectations of the conduct and discipline of the disciplined services. As a professional disciplined force, the Police have rigorous discipline and regime to manage the conduct and behavior of officers. The breach of discipline or illegal act of individual officers does not represent the values of the Police, and we also should not, due to the extremely small number of isolated cases, obliterate the contribution and efforts of other police officers who remain dedicated to their duties. Officers who have committed a breach of law or discipline shall take personal responsibility. If any officer is suspected to have committed a breach of law or discipline, the Police will follow up the matter seriously in accordance with the mechanism, conduct investigations and take appropriate actions.
 
     Thank you President. 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 (June 24):

Question:

     In view of the coronavirus disease 2019 (commonly known as “Wuhan pneumonia”) epidemic, classes of primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong were suspended for almost four months, and it was only until last month that the schools started to resume classes by phases. Some parents of children with special educational needs (SEN) have relayed that their children were not provided with the necessary support and regular training during the period of class suspension, and that their children have demonstrated anxiety over class resumption. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether the Government provided support services for SEN children during the period of class suspension; if so, of the details, including (i) a breakdown, by service type, of the number of children who received such services, (ii) content of the services, (iii) the government department(s) and the number of personnel involved, as well as (iv) the amount of expenditure incurred; if not, the reasons for that;

(2) whether it has formulated measures to assist SEN children in adapting to learning and school life upon class resumption; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(3) given that while the Education Bureau (EDB) wrote to all schools in Hong Kong on April 3 this year indicating that Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) at schools should review afresh and adjust the content of the plans for supporting SEN children as well as provide them with support through various means, there have been comments that quite a number of schools have just created the position of SENCO in this school year, and that the training received by SENCOs is insufficient for them to cope with the special circumstances that the schools currently face, whether EDB has taken measures to assist SENCOs in carrying out the relevant work; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(4) whether it knows if all on-site training services (including services provided under “On-site Pre-school Rehabilitation Services”) were suspended during the period of class suspension; if the services were not all suspended, of the types of services affected; of the number of service organisations whose service contracts were terminated due to prolonged class suspension, and whether the Government will provide support for these organisations; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(5) whether it knows the number of organisations mentioned in (4) which have decided that they will no longer provide on-site training services for schools in the next school year?

Reply:

President,

     In light of the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and to safeguard the health of students, all students have not been able to return to schools to take classes from the Chinese New Year holidays till late May. During class suspension, the Education Bureau (EDB) has maintained contact with schools to understand their operation and needs, joined hands with them to tackle related problems, of which include the support provided in accordance with the situation of students with special educational needs (SEN). After class resumption, the EDB has continued to remind schools to suitably adjust their teaching and support arrangements, and provide support services for students with SEN according to school-specific circumstances and students’ needs. Our reply to the question raised by the Hon Dennis Kwok is as follows:

(1), (4) and (5) The EDB, on top of regular subvention, has been providing public sector ordinary schools with additional resources, professional support and teacher training to help them implement the Whole School Approach (WSA) to integrated education (IE). Schools may deploy internal resources flexibly to employ additional teachers and teaching assistants or procure professional services, with a view to adopting the school-based mode of support to cater for students with SEN.

     During class suspension, some students (including those with SEN) may feel disturbed. The EDB has been maintaining communication with the Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) of the schools, suggesting that they should lead the Student Support Teams (SSTs) to review and adjust the support strategies and content of support plans for students with SEN as circumstances arise. Furthermore, the EDB has reminded SENCOs to keep regular communication with parents to understand the students’ learning and emotional needs and changes, so as to provide appropriate learning materials, adapt the learning tasks for students and review their performance in learning and emotion jointly with their parents. During class suspension, SENCOs also collaborate with professionals (such as school-based educational psychologists (EPs), school-based speech therapists (STs) and school social workers) to provide targeted support for individual students with special difficulties and their parents.

     In addition, the EDB has developed teaching resources to support students with SEN, namely the anti-epidemic tips for students with autism spectrum disorders in adjusting to class suspension and resumption, tips for parents of students with attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder, and tips for parents of students with specific learning difficulties, for reference and use of school-based EPs, teachers and parents. A series of psychoeducational videos titled “Suspending Classes without Suspending Love in the Epidemic” have also been produced in collaboration with a non-government organisation. These videos, which were uploaded to the EDB YouTube channel in April and May this year, explain to teachers and parents how to help their students and children cope with emotions and mental stress, so that they can maintain their mental well-being during the outbreak of the epidemic and class suspension and stay positive when facing class resumption.

     As for the professional services procured by schools to support students with SEN, schools in general would discuss with the organisations concerned and continue to support these students through alternative modes (e.g. using electronic platforms or online video conferencing). Schools have also negotiated with the service providers the arrangements of providing support services to students after class resumption. According to the established practice, schools have to keep clear records of relevant contract terms and support arrangements relating to the outsourced services. At the end of the school year, schools should evaluate the effectiveness of the policy, measures and resource utilisation in support of students with SEN through the self-evaluation mechanism and submit a self-evaluation report on the implementation of the WSA to IE to the EDB. The EDB officers will look into their situation and offer professional advice accordingly during school visits. As schools have to face various challenges and pressure when dealing with the epidemic and class suspension, we have not specifically requested them to provide relevant figures on the above-mentioned matters, so as not to unnecessarily increase the workload and pressure on schools.

     Regarding On-site Pre-school Rehabilitation Services, according to the information provided by the Social Welfare Department, although service organisations temporarily suspended the provision of on-site services during class suspension, they continued to provide support for children and parents in need through different modes of individual training services, such as centre-based training with appropriate social distancing measures in place, e-learning and home training. In response to class resumption in upper kindergarten from June 15, the service organisations have resumed on-site training services for service users.

(2) To assist schools to prepare for class resumption and provide support to students (including those with SEN) to adjust to school life after class resumption, the EDB issued the Guidelines to Schools on Class Resumption in May this year. The Guidelines on Emotional Support for Students on Class Resumption which has been attached therein helps schools assist students in managing emotions that may arise from the epidemic and reintegrating into school life. The Guidelines have been uploaded onto the EDB’s website for school reference. We urge teachers to pay due attention to the learning, emotion and behaviour of students with SEN and maintain communication with their parents to understand their latest condition so that continued support can be provided where appropriate. SENCOs will also work with other professionals such as school-based EPs, school-based STs and school social workers to provide targeted support services to individual students in need and their parents.

(3) Starting from the 2017/18 school year, the EDB has, by phases, provided each public sector ordinary school with an additional teaching post to facilitate school’s assignment of a designated teacher to take up the role of SENCO to support IE. In the 2019/20 school year, all public sector ordinary schools have each been provided with a SENCO. When assigning a teacher to take up the role of SENCO, schools have to follow the EDB’s requirements and give thorough consideration to teachers’ experience in teaching and in promoting IE as well as their qualifications in special education. Basically, teachers assuming the role of SENCO should have at least three years’ experience in teaching and in promoting IE respectively and should have completed the training courses pitched at basic, advanced and thematic levels (BAT Courses) on supporting students with SEN.

     Over the years, the EDB has been encouraging ordinary schools to implement the WSA to IE and set up SSTs to motivate all teachers to adopt the 3-Tier Intervention Model to support students with SEN. Regarding teacher training, starting from the 2007/08 school year, the EDB has been providing serving teachers with BAT Courses and training targets have been set to equip more teachers with the professional capacity in catering for students with SEN, in order to enhance the effectiveness of the implementation of IE in schools. As such, all ordinary schools have aggregated a critical mass of teachers having received relevant training and acquired the knowledge of how to support students with SEN.

     SENCO leads the SST and works in collaboration with other subject panels and functional groups to support students with SEN in different aspects. Under the principle of the WSA, the IE support in the school is not solely taken up by SENCO. All school staff should be responsible for supporting students with SEN, and SENCO and a significant number of teachers have already received relevant training.

     Indeed, all teachers and the whole education sector do not have the experience of handling prolonged class suspension arising from an epidemic. During class suspension, the EDB issued a letter to schools in early April this year to appeal to school principals to continue supporting SENCOs by reviewing and adjusting the content of support plans as well as providing various kinds of support for students with SEN and their parents. Furthermore, the EDB has maintained close contact with SENCOs to better understand the situation in the flexible use of the Learning Support Grant, diversified modes of support, students’ daily learning, adaptation of learning tasks, social and emotional needs of students, etc. The EDB has also provided SENCOs with professional advice according to the challenges faced by schools. Following class resumption, we will continue to organise professional network activities for experience sharing and professional exchanges (including how to provide different modes of support through diversified strategies during an epidemic or under other special circumstances) amongst SENCOs, with a view to continuously enhancing their professional competence in the co-ordination, promotion and development of support for students with SEN. read more