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The six official members of the council are the Director of Urban Services (chairman), Deputy Director of Medical and Health Services (vice-chairman), Secretary for Home Affairs, Director of Public Works, Director of Social Welfare and Commissioner for Resettlement.
The powers and functions of the Urban Council extend to the island of Hong Kong, together with a number of small adjacent islands, Kowloon and the part of the New Territories known as New Kowloon.
The council meets once a month in public session and more often if necessary. It also meets in private as a whole in standing committee, but most of its work is carried out by 17 select committees.
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All members of the council serve on the Housing Authority. addition the Urban Council exercises the management functions of granting and terminating tenancies and the issue and revocation of occupation permits in resettlement areas and estates and in resettlement factory
areas.
In October 1971 a government white paper was issued on the future of the Urban Council. This recommends that the council should be given its own finance, in the form of a proportion of the rates.
It also recommends that the council should be solely made up of unofficial members, should be allowed to elect its own chairman and should be given additional licensing responsibilities.
The Urban Services Department would continue to act as the council's
executive arm and carry out the directions of the council.
The white paper recommends that these recommendations should be implemented in April, 1973.
Note to Editors:
Further articles spotlighting various services for which the Urban Council is responsible will be issued throughout the current electoral registration campaign.