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The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:
The Legislative Council (LegCo) will hold a meeting this Wednesday (January 12) at 11am in the Chamber of the Legislative Council Building. During the meeting, Members will debate a proposed resolution under Rule 78(1) of the Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).
The proposed resolution, to be moved by Hon James To, states: "That this Council appoints a select committee to inquire into the collection and transfer of customers' personal data to third parties for monetary gains by Octopus Holdings Limited and its subsidiaries, including the roles of the Board of Octopus Holdings Limited and the Board of MTR Corporation Limited as the biggest shareholder of Octopus Holdings Limited in the above matter, the process of decision making and execution of such collection and transfer of data, the possibility of further disclosure of those personal data by the third parties, and the duties and roles of related government bureaux, departments and public agencies in the above matter, and based on the results of the above inquiry, to look into whether any related legislation and monitoring and regulatory mechanism should be improved and if necessary make recommendations to enhance protection of the privacy of members of the public; and that in the performance of its duties the committee be authorised under section 9(2) of the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance (Cap. 382) to exercise the powers conferred by section 9(1)."
Meanwhile, Members will debate a motion on legislating for regulating allied health staff to protect public health. The motion, to be moved by Dr Hon Joseph Lee, states: "That in recent years, the Government has striven to promote healthcare reform, advocated stepping up primary healthcare services, community rehabilitation services and the policy of ageing in place, etc., and emphasised the provision of appropriate primary healthcare services to members of the public, the elderly and chronic patients, etc. through multi-disciplinary healthcare services teams; however, under the Government's policy over the years, no legislation has been enacted to regulate the registration and practice of allied health staff, such as dieticians, audiologists, psychologists, speech therapists, podiatrists, prosthetists and ancillary dental workers, etc., resulting in some people in the market falsely claiming themselves as and impersonating various types of allied health staff to provide non-professional primary healthcare services for members of the public, thus posing dangers to the health of members of the public; in this connection, this Council urges the authorities to immediately put in place a statutory registration system for the relevant allied health staff and enact legislation to regulate their practice, with a view to promoting primary healthcare services and protecting the health of members of the public."
Hon Cheung Man-kwong and Hon Alan Leong will move separate amendments to Dr Hon Joseph Lee's motion.
Dr Hon Margaret Ng will move a motion on post-office employment arrangements for politically appointed officials. The motion, states: "That, as politically appointed officials have greater access to sensitive information and stronger influence on policy formulation than directorate civil servants, the control over the post-office employment of politically appointed officials should correspondingly be more stringent than that of directorate civil servants; however, under the existing Code for Principal Officials under the Accountability System, the control over the post-office employment of politically appointed officials is very loose; in this connection, this Council urges the Government to review the vetting system for the post-office employment of politically appointed officials, including introducing a sanitation period, extending the control period, and setting up an independent and highly transparent vetting and approving committee to vet politically appointed officials' applications for post-office employment, so as to allay public concern about any possible conflicts between accountability officials' exercise of powers and responsibilities and their pursuit of private interests, and to maintain public confidence in the governance of the HKSAR Government."
Dr Hon Philip Wong will move an amendment to Dr Hon Margaret Ng's motion.
Meanwhile, Hon Leung Kwok-hung will move a motion on Adjournment under Rule 16(4) of the Rules of Procedure. The motion, states: "That this Council do now adjourn for the purpose of debating the following issue: the HKSAR Government's handling on humanitarian grounds of matters relating to overseas pro-democracy figures' entry into Hong Kong for mourning the death of Mr Szeto Wah."
During the meeting, Members will also ask the Administration 20 questions on various policy areas, six of which require oral replies.
The agenda of the above meeting can be obtained via the LegCo InfoFax Service (Tel: 2869 9568) or the LegCo website (www.legco.gov.hk). Please note that the agenda is subject to change, and the latest information about the agenda could be found in the LegCo website.
Members of the public are welcome to observe the proceedings of the meeting from the public galleries of the Legislative Council Chamber. They may reserve seats by calling 2869 9399 during office hours. Seats will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Members of the public can also listen to the meeting via the web broadcast system on the Legislative Council homepage.
Ends/Monday, January 10, 2011
Issued at HKT 18:26
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