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against raising the fees for playing squash or any other game in the Colony.
MR. FORSGATE:-Mr. Chairman, as squash is raised, possibly Dr. BELL missed a rather salient point that the leading squash players in the Colony at the moment are non-males. They licked all the best squash players in the Colony quite recently. But on the point of making available squash facilities on the mainland side, could we get the jump in Hong Kong and have a double squash court? That is great fun actually. It is a much greater spectator, as well as a player sport. I beg to support the Motion.
MR. SALES: -Sir, may I say, on a point of clarification as Dr. BELL was away at the time this matter was considered, it is not a question of raising the fees, but rather a question of adjusting the hours in which such fees are applicable. Having explained that point to Dr. BELL, I trust that she will withdraw her objections. It isn't at all raising the fees, it is adjusting the times at which fees are applied.
DR. BELL: Mr. Chairman, I would require further clarification than that. From what I have read in the papers I understand that the fees will be very much higher in the hours in which the courts are in high demand than they are in other hours, and therefore I take that as meaning an increase in fees in those times.
MR. SALES: Those are the hours which the plutocrats use the courts; the students will be using the courts at the other hours when the fees are considerably lower.
MR. BERNACCHI:-Is my friend, Mr. SALES, right on that statement "$1.50 and then $2.50 on every such general holiday."? So is it not on every public holiday the fees are $2.50? I myself was unable to attend the Standing Committee of the whole, so I shall not be voting on this motion, but I would want further conviction than I listened to to-day to really give my support to this, but I do not think it is fair to vote against it as I was regretfully absent from the meeting at which it was approved in principle.
MR. CHEONG-LEEN:-Sir, in clarification of the point raised by Mr. BERNACCHI, was this discussed merely at a Standing Committee of the Whole Council?
MR. SALES: -Sir, this was discussed at the Select Committee and I believe that a paper was issued to the Standing Committee of the Whole Council. This is merely following the same procedure for squash as applicable for other facilities. For example, in the use of the swimming pools, the hours have a direct bearing on the charges which are made for the use of both for Victoria Park and Kowloon Tsai. I know that from actual experience that at certain times of the day and at certain months of the year the charges for the private hire of the swimming pools are much higher than for other hours of the day, and this again is an attempt to rationalize the charges for the use of the squash courts which I think to be eminently fair so that school children and others, who may wish to do so, could use the courts to full advantage at cheaper rates while others pay higher in order to help cover the costs. This is a serious attempt to rationalize the charges, as I said earlier, in keeping with the practice applicable to other facilities available at Victoria Park.
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certain months of the year the charges for the private hire of the swimming pools are much higher than for other hours of the day, and this again is an attempt to rationalize the charges for the use of the squash courts which I think to be eminently fair so that school children and others, who may wish to do so, could use the courts to full advantage at cheaper rates while others pay higher in order to help cover the costs. This is a serious attempt to rationalize the charges, as I said earlier, in keeping with the practice applicable to other facilities available at Victoria Park.
CHAIRMAN: -Sir, I moved a resolution in the Legislative Council only a few weeks ago on this subject, concerning the squash courts, and the explanation given was that the charges should be raised at certain times of the day and the purpose as explained to the Legislative Council was to effect a more economical running of the squash courts. But I support you in what you say regarding the hours; it was the intention that people who could afford to pay more at certain hours when they were likely to go there should pay more, but for the greater part of the day charges should be kept low in order that the less affluent members of the community should not pay so much.
MR. SALES: -I should like to emphasize again that this is the system we follow with other recreation facilities. Why should members of the Council suddenly balk when it comes to squash courts when it should be just the other way around?
DR. BELL:-I do not think that I have been aware of being a member of the Council when fees have been raised before and I still think, despite your explanations regarding the raising of the fees during these busy hours, there is no justification in it because you may well be getting people who are unable to play at any other time because they are not students but are equally well not able to afford the higher fees, and I think it is quite wrong to have two sets of fees for a thing of this sort. Yes, I agree with you, you can have a fee for a child or a young student, perhaps making it under the age of 18 or something of that sort, and over the age of 18 that you pay a higher fee, but I think that to have two sets of fees is quite wrong and I have never been aware when I was a member of this Council of having supported any resolution to increase fees in any way on these facilities. Admittedly, I do remember talking against it when it was a question of the tennis courts at Victoria Park, and I will still say at this time to the public that I do not support anything that tends to increase the fees of any recreation that we have in this Colony. We are desperately short of recreational facilities and I think to raise the fees of these is quite the wrong policy.
MR. SALES: Sir, may I say that if we were to pursue that thinking to its logical conclusion we should revise downward all the fees
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