Saving of Ordinances Nos. 10 of 1899, 1 of 1903, 9 of 1911, 19 of 1915, and 30 of 1915.
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8. Nothing in this Ordinance shall limit the opera- tion of any of the following Ordinances or of any Ordi- nance amending or substituted for any of the said Ordinances :-
(a) The Merchant Shipping Ordinance, 1899;
(6) The Public Health and Buildings Ordinance,
1903;
(e) The Liquors Consolidation Ordinance, 1911: (d) The Travellers Restriction Ordinance, 1915; (e) The Asiatic Emigration Ordinance, 1915.
Objects and Reasons.
The general object of the hill is to provide powers for the licensing and better control of hotels, boarding houses and all places where persons are lodged for hire. These are all included in the bill under the generic term "boarding house".
The various kinds of boarding house", as defined in the bill, over which a certain amount of control is exercised at present may be classified as follows:---
(1.) European hotels.
(2.) European restaurants.
(3.) Chinese hotels.
(4.) Chinese restaurants.
(5.) Chinese eating houses.
(6.) Boarding houses where assisted emigrants
may be lodged.
(7.) Seamen's boarding houses for non-Chinese. (8.) Common lodging houses.
The 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th classes are licensed under the Liquors Consolidation Ordinance, 1911, the objects of the provisions under which they are licensed being (a) the control of the trade in liquor and (b) revenue considerations. The 6th class is licensed under the Asiatic Emigration Ordinance, 1915, and the object is to secure compliance with the law relating to emigra tion. The 3rd class is licensed under the latter Ordi- nance and also sometimes under the Liquors Consolida- tion Ordinance, 1911. The 7th class is licensed under the Merchant Shipping Ordinance, 1899, the object being to secure the welfare of seamen. The 8th class is registered under the Public Health and Buildings Ordi- nance, 1903, and the object is to ensure proper sanitary conditions.
An examination of the above statement of the existing machinery discloses at least two defects in the system.
One is that there is no really appropriate form of licence or registration for Chinese hotels and boarding houses which neither sell liquors nor supply meals to non-residents, though as a matter of fact Chinese restau- rant licences have been issued to such places.
The other is that licensing under the Asiatic Emigra- tion Ordinance, 1915, is not wholly suitable for the better class of Chinese hotel, as the objects of that Ordinance are confined to preventing abuses with regard to the treatment of emigrants.
The draft rules published with this bill deal with the above points and will place on a more satisfactory foot- ing the control of such Chinese boarding houses as fall within the scope of the rules.
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Other classes of “boarding house" may be dealt with under subsequent rules if it appears desirable to do so.
J. H. KEMP,
Attorney General.
10th September, 1917.
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