Wednesday, March 28, 1973
EXPANSION OF SOCIAL WELFARE SERVICES
Government Moving As Fast As Practicable
**
The Director of Social Welfare, Mr. F.K. Li, said today that
government is determined that the social welfare services in Hong Kong
should match up to the various needs of the community.
He stressed that the government is moving forward in the social
welfare field as quickly as practicable.
"But there is a limit to how fast we can expand," Mr. Li added,
"and once we went beyond that limit the services as a whole would suffer.
"I believe the same is broadly true both of the Social Welfare
Department and of the voluntary agencies."
Mr. Li was speaking at today's resumed Legislative Council
budget debate in reply to points raised by Mr. Roger Lobo, an unofficial
member of the council.
He noted that Mr. Lobo had wondered whether the estimate for
social welfare expenditure in the budget was on the low side.
Mr. Li said the reason for this was that the draft estimates
did not reflect a number of the proposals made in the draft white paper
on the social services. Once these had been approved, necessary provision
would be made.
This was