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should be a secondary consideration to the need of the people. It is to be regretted that when building activities were at a low level a year or 18 months ago, the Government did not press ahead with the construction of such facilities. I am pleased that the Government is making progress on the football stadium, the indoor stadium and even the civic centre for Kowloon. The great success of the Festival of Hong Kong itself has shown that what this Council has always said namely, that there is a tremendous demand for more physical facilities in which to stage public spectacles for mass entertainment particularly in the densely populated areas of Kowloon. In the united opinion of the Unofficials of this Council there is a deficiency here that the Government should lose no time in making good.
over.
The Director of Public Works has referred to mass transport feasibility study by consultants. I do not need to remind Members that the consultants' report was published a considerable time ago, the Director of Public Works says that investigation of their report will be completed by next August. In other words almost a year away. Then he says if the Government approves the project, the first stage of the system, mind you, the first stage only, could be running 51⁄2 years after and then he adds after approval to commence. I would enquire the length of time between completion of the study of the report and the approval to commence and when it will be finally completed? This as I said before is not a thing which Government can dilly-dally
The Commissioner for Resettlement draws attention to the point that resettlement estates in outlying districts are not popular and one of the reasons obviously the most for its unpopularity is the lack of and the cost of public transport facilities. We are told that work has already been begun on a large resettlement estate in the Castle Peak area, although that area will have a dual carriage way road in the foreseeable future, at present there is nothing in the way of public transport other than buses and light buses. When is it contemplated for instance putting an underground or above the ground railway to serve this district? Again I must say that despite the assurance given by the Director of Public Works the Government is dragging its feet over slum clearance, now called urban renewal. When I made this remark last year, the then Director of Public Works vehemently denied it and said in effect that he anticipated very definite progress would be made at least in the pilot scheme in 1969. Now the present Director of Public Works anticipates very definite progress in the Pilot Scheme area will be made in the latter part of 1970. In other words, in one year, the very big progress has been adjourned from 1969 to the latter part of 1970. Now, with the increase in value of properties in the urban renewal districts, the compulsory acquisition of land will be very much more expensive to the Government than it would have been a year ago. In my view the error of the Government is that it is too bureaucratic therefore it takes too long to put recommendations into practice. A very high powered committee sat on the whole subject of slum clearance several years ago, their report was by and large accepted by the Urban Council and by the Housing Authority, it was drowned or nearly drowned in the overwhelming bureaucracy of the present laissez faire Government.
I am pleased to hear that the problems of multi-storey buildings including the joint ownership of a lot of crown tenants of renewal or non-renewable crown leases. I am also pleased to hear that legislation together with the management of the buildings under multi-ownership will be largely on the lines proposed by Mr. Woo Po-shing and also go far to avoid the need, for instance to disconnect the water supply for non-payment of bills. I have, however, already made my point clear that this management scheme is to be voluntary. In the end I say clearly that the Urban Council will have to go into communal parts of multi-storey buildings and keep them tidy as part and parcel of their duties to the rate paying tenants of these buildings.
Dr. BROWNE, the Deputy Director of the Medical and Health Services, made a short and entertaining maiden speech in this Council. I think that one of the reasons for Members complaints in the delay of the licensing system is the suspicion that the delay is not uniform. Big influential firms can perhaps bring pressure to bear to lessen this delay and in other cases there is a suspicion, perhaps entirely unfounded, that the delay can be lessened with corrupt money paid to the right persons on the ground. I think therefore that the answer is to ensure that as little delay as possible is caused in giving the decision to issue or to issue a licence. I do not agree with Mr. Kenneth Lo in his suggestion of minimum fines, nor do I agree with Dr. BROWNE in his suggestion that magistrates be requested to impose heavier and even daily fines. I consider that any attempt out of court either officially by legislation or unofficially by request is an interference with the administration of justice.
If and I agree it is the case the fines are not sufficient then the department should arrange for a Crown Counsel of experience to attend before the magistrate and put this Council's view officially in open court before the magistrate in certain selected cases.
I would go further and say that even deprecate the Council taking on the duty of a magistrate by imposing in some cases an extra penalty itself in the way of suspending the licence for a certain time. Again I think that legislation should be introduced to give the magistrate jurisdiction at his discretion to make a closure order, as for instance in Canada where the legislation provides that the closure order shall be posted in the restaurant for the general public to see. I agree with another suggestion made by Mr. Lo and referred to by Dr. BROWNE that cooked food stalls should be set up in localities where there is a genuine need
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