RESTRICTED
¡
G.S. 84
2
XCR (80)10
(e) Section 104A of the Public Health and Urban Services
Ordinance (Chapter 132), which empowers the Urban Council in the urban areas and the Director of Urban Services in the New Territories to remove any unsightly bill or poster from any building, hoarding or other structure.
4
In
Experience has shown that these provisions are not effective in controlling the indiscriminate posting of bills and posters. particular there are the following limitations:-
(a)
(b)
(c)
action can only be taken against the person who actually puts up the bill or poster. This restraint severely limits "effective control, since it means that the offender must be
caught in the act;
there is no positive requirement on the part of those exhibiting bills or posters, even with permission, to ensure that they are maintained in a clean and tidy condition.
no provision is made for the recovery of removal costs. Removal (or obliteration) can be a lengthy process.
Moreover, bills, posters and placards are at present removed by the Public Works Department, the New Territories Administration and the Urban Services Department on an ad hoc basis or whenever they are brought to the attention of these Departments through complaints.
5
It
To remedy the situation and to institute proper control over the display of bills and posters, the proposed Bill will make it an offence for any person (i. e. the bill-poster, his employer and the person who seeks to benefit from the display of the poster) to display or affix any bill or poster on Crown land or private land without the written permission of the Authority (see paragraph 8) or the owner or occupier of the land (proposed new section 104A and sub-section (1) of proposed new section 104D), also provides that any posters which are displayed on private or Crown land must be maintained in a clean and tidy condition to the reasonable satisfaction of the Authority (proposed new section 104B). Failure to do so constitutes an offence under the provisions of the Bill and, by virtue of proposed new section 104 C, the Authority can remove any such posters and recover the cost of removal from the offenders. The offenders in this regard will be either the owner or occupier of the land or the person who seeks to benefit from the display of the poster.
Where a person is convicted of an offence under section 104A or 104B, the court may order that person to pay, in addition to any fine, the cost of removing the bill or poster.
RESTRICTED