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MR. HU: Mr. Chairman, may I ask you, do you know, if their pay is not to be improved, they would stick to their decision to "work
to rule"?
CHAIRMAN:-That is hardly in the context of the original question, Mr. Hu. They are the only ones who can decide it.
MR. HU: Do you know or do you not know?
CHAIRMAN: ---I have no authoritative information at the moment.
MR. HU:-Very well, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, the last part of your answer to my question, you said that they do not take their holiday and this is the reason why you cut from 42 days to 30 days. Could it be also true that because of the heavy load of their work that you will cut down 12 days in their accumulative leave?
CHAIRMAN:-No, that is not the reason. We encourage people all the time to take any leave to which they are entitled.
MR. SALES: -Mr. Chairman, does any Civil Servant need any encouragement to take holidays?
CHAIRMAN: Certainly, there is much attraction in their job.
MR. HILTON CHEONG-LEEN:-Mr. Chairman, I wrote a letter to you on the subject encompassed by this particular question a few weeks ago. Would you care to look into the possibility of an early reply?
CHAIRMAN:-I am sorry if you haven't had a reply to something you have sent me. I will look into it.
MR. CHEONG-LEEN:-Would you please send a follow-up to Government about it?
CHAIRMAN:-It depends on what is holding it up.
MR. HU:-Mr. Chairman, can I ask you is it correct that we are understaffed with regard to cleansing labourers in your department?
CHAIRMAN:-We have a shortage of labour at the moment coming up to about 300 I think.
MR. HU: Yes, this is what I understand to be the case from your answer. Is it also true, Mr. Chairman, if all the labourers take their accumulative leave, which you said they do not, would that aggravate the position in your department?
CHAIRMAN:-It would as we are at present understaffed. Obvi ously, we cannot let people take long periods of leave at present.
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MR. HU:-But if you encourage them to take accumulative leave would that make the situation worse?
CHAIRMAN:-Yes, it would Mr. Hu, as I have said.
MR. HU: Mr. Chairman, I would ask a supplementary. Would it be better in your department if their pay was re-adjusted so that we could have sufficient labourers to cope with the situation?
CHAIRMAN:-This is not possible, Mr. Hu. This is a general Government salary scale for labourers. It can only be adjusted by
Government.
MR. HU:-Will you do something about it?
CHAIRMAN:-I have, as I have said, done so and I am about to do something else.
MR. HU:-Thank you.
MR. T. S. Lo:-Is this a relaxation of the Standing Orders that opinions will now be answered, or is it only particularly applicable in this one case?
CHAIRMAN: -You know what members are like, Mr. Lo, I do my best to help them to get answers to questions when I can.
(5) MR. HILTON CHEONG-LEEN asked the following question:-
Suggestions have been made in the past that the Urban Council should plan to set up a planetarium; can the Chairman advise to what extent this has been considered in the past, and whether it is a suitable project for the Urban Council to realize within the next 2 to 5 years?
MR. A. de O. SALES, CHAIRMAN OF THE RECREATION AND AMENITIES SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows:
This suggestion was last considered in 1966. The Select Committee was then of the opinion that the cost of con- structing and operating a planetarium could not be justi- fied against the other more basic and urgent educational or amenity needs, and was accordingly not prepared to "consider allocating public funds or land under its control for the purpose of constructing a planetarium”.
Members may now wish to consider whether the position has changed sufficiently since 1966 to justify asking the Select
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