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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
MR. SALES: -Mr. Chairman, may I ask on a point of clarification, why is Mr. Peter C. K. CHAN exercising his right to speak as a seconder, an amendment having been introduced and accepted by you? (Laughter).
MR. C. K. CHAN:-In case Mr. SALES and his colleagues defeat the amendment and let the original Motion stand I will exercise my right of reply.
CHAIRMAN: I will take a vote on the Motion as amended.
MR. SALES-No, no, you have to do the amendments first.
MR. LO TAK-SHING: -Mr. Chairman, I have a further amendment.
CHAIRMAN: --One at a time please. I have to take a vote that the Motion be amended, first of all.
MR. Lo:-I only got up to suggest a second amendment because you were going to vote on the Motion as amended. As the appropriate Select Committee, Mr. Chairman, is asked through Mr. KAN's amendment to study the matter, might I suggest that they do not have their authority limited in studying merely the "feasibility", but also perhaps to study the "desirability" as this matter may not be indeed as desirable as we see it. So my proposed amendment is simply "explore the desirability and feasibility". The addition, therefore, of the words "desirability and" before the word "feasibility".
MR. SALES: Mr. Chairman, I would like to clarify a point of order first. You can only accept one amendment at a time. The amendment introduced by Mr. KAN and Mr. WONG has to be put and then when it is passed, Mr. T. S. Lo's amendment will be in order. But you have not yet put the amendment and I think we would be agreeable to accepting that amendment in order that Mr. T. S. Lo might be able to introduce his amendment which I will second.
MR. HU:-Mr. Chairman, may I speak a few words. I remember that when there was a Motion debated there was first an amendment and secondly an amendment at the same time and it was the second amendment that was put to the Vote first.
CHAIRMAN:-I think Mr. Hu that we will clear the first proposal and come on to Mr. Lo's suggestion later. The proposal is to amend the original Motion as already stated and I won't bore you with the details again. Would all those in favour of adopting the proposed amendment by Mr. KAN please raise their hands.
The question was put.
The amendment was carried with 17 votes for and 2 abstentions.
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
MR. CHEONG-LEEN:-Mr. Chairman, may I, with your permission, very briefly explain this little ritual we have just had. I was very conscious of the need to show the Chairman of the Recreation and Amenities Select Committee how equally co-operative I am on this other side of the table with all the activities of his Committee, and I did very much want to indicate in this Motion that the Select Committee concerned, which is the Recreation and Amenities Select Committee, should carefully study this particular proposal. When I did request that these words be included through the Secretary, I was advised that the original text had already gone out to Members and it would cause certain difficulties and, therefore, in order to save Mr. SALES the trouble of amending the Motion himself, we decided to do it ourselves, which is a simpler way.
MR. SALES: But Mr. Hu's question has not been answered. Might I with your permission, Mr. Chairman? First the amendments are voted on, and after the amendments when there are no more amendments then the original Motion, as finally amended, will be debated by this Council again. At that time, Mr. Henry Hu can say his piece and anybody else, as I intend to do myself.
MR. CHEONG-LEEN: I would like to assure Mr. Hu that I am agreeable to the amendment raised by Mr. KAN.
CHAIRMAN:---Then, ladies and gentlemen, the result of the voting is that the amendment is carried. It should now be "Resolved that the Urban Council through its appropriate Select Committee explore the feasibility of acquiring space in multi-storey buildings in order to provide recreational facilities for youth living in the more heavily populated urban districts." Now we have another amendment proposed by Mr. T. S. Lo that we add between the words "the" and "feasibility" "desirability and," and this is another proposed amendment. Will those in favour of the amendment raise their hands.
The question was put.
The amendment was carried with 15 votes for and 4 abstentions.
MR. SALES: May I now speak on the Motion as amended? Sir, I would like to say that I support Mr. CHEONG-LEEN to the hilt in the sentiments which he has expressed today. In point of fact, I would like to emphasize the words in his concluding paragraph "The Urban Council has done much for the youth of Hong Kong by way of expansion of recreation facilities, but it can do so much more to enrich the lives of our young people and make them more responsive to the call to community service if only the Council is given additional resources to do so" and I would like to add "by the Government”. The Hong Kong Government is the only instrument for effective action
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