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with no less than thirty occasions for recreation and entertainment. There were these three popular concerts, fourteen band concerts, thirteen youth recreational activities and also one opening ceremony, in addition to which ten television sets were installed. It is not without reason that I draw Council's attention to this very impressive record on the part of the Urban Council as a whole. The reason is simple. I would like to warn Council, and through Council the public, that this very impressive record of activities without precedent in Hong Kong and perhaps also without parallel in cities of our size elsewhere in the world--this programme cannot be maintained unless Government gives Council the staff that is required for this purpose. Without properly trained and fully qualified staff, the Council cannot continue to carry out such an active programme. We have succeeded so far because members of your Department and other departments who work with us have been prepared to put in a tremendous amount of overtime, but we cannot expect that a public programme of such importance should be carried out without proper staffing. The Council asked the Government to consider this matter before but it has now become urgent. I hope that the Government will pay heed to the need for better qualified and more properly trained staff to carry out this ambitious programme on the part of the Urban Council: one particularly designed to serve the public at this time.
MRS. ELLIOTT: Mr. Chairman, may I also make reference to the Wards. I agree with what Dr. BELL says about the report in the press and I would just like to mention that as the Government has been encouraging people to register to vote it seems that the press, or a certain section of the press, has been denigrating the Council and trying to discourage people from having any confidence in Councillors. I hope, Sir, that you will contradict these reports when you know them to be absolutely false.
REPORT BY CHAIRMAN.
On 7th May, 1968, this Council passed a motion in the following terms:
"RESOLVED that when feasible, the Urban Council sponsor a Hong Kong Festival of the Arts and that the matter be referred to the relevant City Hall Select Committee for further study."
2.
The matter was subsequently fully discussed at a joint meeting of the City Hall and the Museum and Art Gallery Select Committees. The general feeling was that it would be difficult and even impractical to organize a festival every year, but if feasible, an Arts Festival should be held to mark the occasion of City Hall special anniversaries. In
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October or November next year, it is likely that there will be some centennial celebration of the opening of the Old City Hall, possibly similar to the festival held in 1967 to mark the Fifth Anniversary of the opening of the present City Hall. The Committee therefore decided that a Festival of Arts along the lines suggested in the motion would best be held in 1972 to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the present
City Hall.
3. Regarding the scope of the proposed festival, it is anticipated that before 1972, a pattern will have evolved from the existing programmes conducted by the Urban Council at the City Hall, which might form the basis for further discussion by the relevant Select Committees.
QUESTIONS.
(1) MR. HENRY H. L. Hu asked the following question:-
Could the Chairman inform the Council what measures have been taken to ensure the hygienic and safety standard for swimmers at our beaches? Is this Council responsible for looking after the beaches in the New Territories and the islands?
MR. A. de O. SALES, CHAIRMAN of the RECREATION AND AMENITIES SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows:
Sir, this question concerns the health and safety of bathers
using Urban Council controlled beaches.
Although beaches situated in the New Territories lie outside this Council's jurisdiction, a Sub-Committee of the Recreation and Amenities Select Committee which was appointed in recent years to propose ways of improving urban beaches also advised on the development of New Territories beaches where many of its recommendations have since been adopted.
There are thirteen beaches under this Council's control and 103 beach attendants are employed on them. These men carry out various duties but their main task is to act as life-guards. They man the lookout posts to watch for bathers in distress and operate catamarans which patrol all beach areas. Each one of them is a qualified life-saver and is knowledgeable in first aid. They also undergo periodic refresher training in life-saving techniques. This Council has a Medical Officer who acts as adviser to its life-saving service and whose recommendations in recent years have led to the purchase of the most modern life-saving equipment for our beaches.
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