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housing committee to arrange for resettlement. It is necessary for us to compile a complete book of the Council's history so that we may understand the Council's past better and base on it to offer fresh perspectives for the future.
I feel that such a compilation should be made under a fair and open mechanism. We should commission experts or an academic institution to do the task instead of undertaking it ourselves. This ensures an objective approach. Experts and scholars can then give their views and comments in reviewing the Council's history objectively. Maybe we can set up a working group under the Standing Committee of the Whole Council to take this up. As to why we do not propose to discuss this in one of our Select Committees, I think the Council's history is obviously something for the whole Council, not just one Select Committee. I therefore propose for the SCWC to set up a working group directly under it for planning and commission through certain fair procedures some history experts or a local academic institution to compile the Council's history. I am sure we have in hand a lot of material from official records. The question is that historians may need other additional information such as personal reminiscences of individuals to accomplish the task.
As for expenditure, I have already discussed with relevant experts and learnt that it would not be very large. The budget should be within $1 million for us to compile a very good history book of the Council.
Compilation of the Council's history is a serious task. There should be no room for frills and trills and it should not be for publicity. The aim is to leave to our future generations a valuable heritage for review. Whatever the Urban Council will become, be it One Council One Department or replacement by another establishment, our history will be a valuable heritage and an important testimony to the overall development of Hong Kong society. As such, I support commissioning experts or scholars to compile the history of the Urban Council.
MR. JOSEPH Lai Chi-keong (in Cantonese): Mr. Chairman, I second the motion by Mr. LAI Hok-lim.
Chairman (in Cantonese):—Does anyone else want to speak? If not, I would like to speak on this motion.
I very much support this motion. In fact, there is an exhibition hall in our Council chambers to display the Council's past history, present work and services planned for the next five years. I think that if we do not go about compiling our history, no one will know of it. So, I very much support the proposal and I also support commissioning an academic institution or experts to do the job instead of assigning ordinary people or the staff members of the Council's Public Information Unit on it.
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