The Demand-led Redevelopment Project Pilot Scheme (the Scheme) launched by the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) in 2011 has so far received three rounds of applications involving 110 project proposals, but less than one-tenth of such applications have been selected by URA. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council…
Speeches & Questions of the Council
Following is a question by Ir Dr Hon Lo Wai-kwok and a written reply by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, in the Legislative Council on April 30: Question: It has been reported that on February 22 this year, the extended crane of a heavy-duty crane lorry at a construction site
The Chief Executive has stated in the 2014 Policy Address that the Government will explore ways to further develop the eastern waters off Lantau Island and neighbouring areas, with a view to developing an East Lantau Metropolis, which will become a new core business district. Also, to dovetail with the completion of the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities (HKBCF) Island of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB), the Government will explore the feasibility of developing commercial facilities at HKBCF so as to develop its potential for a “bridgehead economy”.
Quite a number of employers have relayed to me that industries such as the construction, retail and catering, care services, etc., have all along been plagued with the problem of insufficient labour supply, resulting in an increase in their operating costs. They have also pointed out that the application procedures of the Supplementary Labour Scheme (the Scheme) under which employers may apply for labour importation are not only complicated but also very time-consuming.
President, first of all, I am very grateful to Mr CHUNG Kwok-pan for proposing this motion, which gives Members a chance to discuss the industrial development of Hong Kong. I have proposed an amendment to Mr CHUNG’s motion mainly because it has not stressed the development of high value-added industries.
The Fire Safety (Buildings) Ordinance stipulates that the fire safety of composite and domestic buildings constructed on or before March 1, 1987 must be enhanced to better meet the requirements of the day. The Fire Services Department and the Buildings Department issue Fire Safety Directions (Directions) to owners and/or occupiers with regard to fire service installations and fire safety constructions in those buildings, with a view to enhancing the basic fire protection measures in those buildings.Quite a number of owners and residents of old buildings in Mong Kok (including Fa Yuen Street) have relayed to me that they have recently received one after another the Directions issued by the authorities.
It has been reported that train services were disrupted for several times last year due to malfunctioning, and quite a number of passengers were late for school or work due to delay in their journeys. Recently, such failure incidents have occurred more frequently. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council whether it has considered appointing an independent committee or rail transport consultant to conduct a comprehensive study on the operational problems of the railways in Hong Kong, including…
It has been reported that according to the Survey on Opinions of Employers on Major Aspects of Performance of Sub-degree Graduates in Year 2010 released recently by the Education Bureau, the score for the overall performance of those graduates as assessed by employers has hit a record low among the same surveys over the past decade. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council…
Some members of the construction industry have pointed out that the Construction Industry Council (CIC) received an annual income of several hundred million dollars, including levies and government funding, in each of the past few years, but the programmes offered by CIC only train students to become semi-skilled workers, without training up a sufficient number of semi-skilled workers for the job types with keen manpower demand.
It has been reported that on the Christmas Day just past, five luxurious apartments on Hong Kong Island were found within a period less than two hours to have been burgled, with properties valued over two million dollars in total stolen from four of them…