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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
That has come to be known in the Urban Council as the Sales' formula because it was first put up by Mr. SALES. We as a Council do not want Resettlement accommodation to become worse than the slums or shacks from which a lot of our tenants come. Yet this is what is happening. When a person comes, he is assigned 24 square feet per adult, children under 10 counting as half. The accommodation is already 11 square feet under authorized accommodation in the Building Ordinance and for this reason a specific law has been made that the density in the Building Ordinance shall not apply to Resettlement accommodation. But worse is to come. Very soon by natural increase and other factors, the accommodation which was 24 square feet is reduced sometimes to as little as 12 or 13 square feet. On existing priorities, allocation to larger accommodation cannot be affected on densities lower than 16 square feet. The Resettlement Policy Select Committee is desperately anxious to increase this to at least 18 square feet and we think that it cannot be done unless Government does adopt the policy set out in paragraph 47. Then it would leave in future a breathing space of four years and indeed children of 6 going to school do require as much space as an adult. The Resettlement Department has undertaken to review last year's figure to ascertain what effect the introduction of this policy would make on the overall total of persons resettled per year. I know that the only answer to Hong Kong's problem of people is to go on building as fast as possible but buildings take time to be built and when they are built, in my view, it is up to the Urban Council as the Authority, not only for Resettlement but in another capacity, the Housing Authority, to ensure that they do not provide accommodation worse than the accommodation from which the people are in many cases forced to come.
As to hawking, the Hawkers Select Committee has also held regular meetings twice a month and on several occasions extra or emergency meetings. We have been very concerned with the number of young people now seeming to make hawking their living and I would refer members to paragraph 34 of the proposed Aims and Objects
"In conjunction with other departments to give full support to measures aimed at providing vocational training for hawkers with a view to their taking up other occupations."
The Hawker Control Force has come in for a lot of criticism towards the end of this year and it does need more good men of understanding and common sense to make the Force efficient. I would again refer not only members of the Council but all the members who have to control hawkers to paragraph 31
"To achieve the compliance of hawkers with the law by means of education and persuasion in preference to legal action, and to work closely with the Police towards this end."
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
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Nevertheless the hawkers sometimes think that they are entitled to preferential treatment over other members of the community. Their position in life, unfortunately, makes them live from hand to mouth and very often they are unable to break into the future and see that bazaars which it is the policy of the Committee to concentrate the hawkers in, will do good business if there is no competition from other hawkers in the nearby streets. At one joint meeting of the Hawkers Select Committee and the two Resettlements Committees, it was agreed that wherever possible hawkers in Resettlement Estates should also be concentrated in bazaars and the Resettlement Department has been good enough to erect covering in these bazaars. It is a very narrow edge to ensure that justice is done to the hawkers, to the shop keepers, to the public, when indeed, such further things as consideration of fire risks, traffic problems etc. have to be taken into account. Finally I would like to refer to paragraph 33:-
"To improve the structure of the Hawker Control Force with a view to providing a solid and experienced foundation for future expansion."
In my opinion, and I think, in the opinion of the whole Hawker Select Committee the standard of men that we get into the Hawker Control Force depends upon the terms of service that we can offer them. The pay of a constable is inadequate and I for one would prefer to see a weeding out of the unsuitable members of the Force by making the rank of constable, only a training rank, and giving those who pass their training the rank of corporal with resulting increases both in pay and in status. It is time also that we have our own sergeants and the sergeants on secondment from the Police Force are dispensed with. After all, a member of the Hawker Control Force duties are far different from that of a member of the Police Force, and obviously a member of the Police Force who has reached the rank of sergeant has police force duties so ingrained upon him that I do not see how he can possibly treat the Hawker Control Force constables other than police constables. Having said all these, I must say that the Hawker Control Force has a very difficult job to do, and I hope all members will agree with me in giving them our support, always remembering that their duty is primary to achieving compliance of hawkers with the law by means of education and persuasion in preference to legal action.
May I complete my review by expressing an entirely personal opinion, namely, that in some places pedlar licences should be issued for musicians. I am disturbed at the case of a blind musician coming repeatedly before the Courts, presumably, because he cannot get a licence. His music is pleasing to the ear and I ask why should he be made to make baskets or something like that, when he has this musical talent. After all, I do not know under what provisions, but I have seen
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