1993

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The Society is indebted to the Ladies Committee for their financial support, also the donors and, particularly, the Urban Council, without whose help an Orchestra of outstanding ability would simply not be possible in Hong Kong.

It is essential for the future of the Hong Kong Philharmonic that it has a secure and adequate source of funding, whatever political changes Hong Kong may experience in the next few years. I would like to take this opportunity, therefore, to urge my fellow Councillors to consider ways of securing the long-term funding of the Orchestra, including the possibility of building up the endowment fund to a level where the income from the fund can support the majority of the basic operating costs of the Orchestra. It is our duty to the people of Hong Kong to do what we can now to ensure the future of our Orchestra whatever political developments there may be.

I would like to talk now about the Statement of Aims which is formulated annually by each of our Select Committees and adopted by the Urban Council in this debate. I feel that Statements of Aims should be much more than a list of overall policies which is blandly repeated year after year. They should contain, at least, an element of an undertaking to deal with certain outstanding matters which are identified from year to year and which, once the aim has been achieved, will be replaced by other priorities.

In fact, most of the Statements of Aims covering the years 1991 to 1995 have remained virtually unchanged. In my opinion, the exercise is in danger of being discredited. I think it is time that the Council and each of the Select Committees took a long hard look at Statements of Aims, critically examining them each year rather than carrying out a mere boiler plate exercise. I would like to suggest a few ways in which I think we might do this.

Of course, there will always be some fundamental 'motherhood' aims such as, for example, the provision of basic services, although these should not be confused with Performance Pledges.

The point is that some aims deserve specific action and should be singled out for special attention. It is a matter of setting priorities. The problem at present seems to me to be two-fold: first, there is no distinction between recurring items and new initiatives and second, there is no assessment of performance against aims.

For example, an item in the Public Health Committee's Statement of Aims undertakes to 'streamline licensing procedures whenever possible to ensure that licenses are granted as expeditiously as possible'. This is surely an important policy initiative and a major priority, and yet the statement has appeared unchanged over the last four years alongside such relatively routine and obvious items as promoting food hygiene and enforcing legislation.

Likewise, the Keep Hong Kong Clean campaign. This has been in existence for over 15 years and though it began as an exciting new initiative, it appears to have got bogged down in the annually repeated Statement of Aims. Would it not be much more effective if the Keep Hong Kong Clean campaign were given a new priority against the background of an assessment of the success of the campaign to date?

I remember that the upgrading of our crematoria was declared a priority some years ago. However, this aim also has re-appeared unchanged since 1991/92 which begs the question: are there signs that the aim to encourage and promote cremation is bearing fruit, that facilities and amenities in crematoria are improving and that the stated drive for allocation of land and construction of adequate columbaria in the urban area is successful? If the answer is 'yes', perhaps it is time to replace this priority with another, if 'no', to assess the means by which the aim is to be achieved and 're-launch' it if necessary.

What I am suggesting will, obviously, require a re-think of the way in which Select Committee approve Statements of Aims. Each item on the list should be subjected to careful analysis and detailed discussion in order to identify new initiatives and set priorities and separate action plans from on-going policies. Statements of Aims should be backed by strategies and forward plans and targets so that they are not mere statements but plans of action. Finally, before the Statement of Aims for the following year is set, the performance of the current year should be assessed against the original target and explanations obtained for any deviation therefrom. I believe that, by making our Statements of Aims more positive and dynamic, we in the Urban Council can enhance our service to the community of Hong Kong.

Mr. Chairman, with these words, I support the motion.

THE HON. MAN SAI-CHEONG (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman,

I.

Introduction

Hong Kong has all along been described as a place where a foot of land is worth an inch of gold. Now, with the upsurge of property prices in recent years, I think it might be more appropriately described as a place where an inch of land is worth a foot of gold. Since the 1960s, Hong Kong has experienced rapid economic growth. In order to meet the pressing demand for land and housing arising from the fast growing population and the rapid growth of trade and industry, the Government used nearly every inch of land to build high-rise buildings in the early days, without giving any thought to urban planning, and no spaces were reserved for recreation and sitting-out purposes. No wonder, therefore, that Hong Kong has acquired the nickname of 'Concrete Jungle'. At that time, people might regard the provision of recreation and open spaces in the urban area as an extravagant hope.

However, with the takeoff of local economy over the past decade, the Hong Kong people in general expect and demand higher and higher quality of life. Now they not only pay great attention to the quality of their homes, but also demand a better surrounding environment. This is reflected in their considerations in choosing their dwelling places and in the current property prices. Large private housing estates are now the first choice of many home...

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