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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 9, 1985
+ELECTIONS WILL BE HELD, IN SEPTEMBER 1985, FOR 24 UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL WHO WILL HOLD OFFICE FOR THREE YEARS. TWELVE MEMBERS WILL BE ELECTED BY AN ELECTORAL COLLEGE COMPOSED OF ALL MEMBERS OF DISTRICT BOARDS, THE URBAN COUNCIL AND THE REGIONAL COUNCIL AND TWELVE MEMBERS BY SPECIAL FUNCTIONAL CONSTITUENCIES.
+WITHIN THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE, DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS WILL BE GROUPED INTO TEN GEOGRAPHICAL CONSTITUENCIES REPRESENTING ROUGHLY 500 000 PEOPLE EACH, WHILE MEMBERS OF THE URBAN COUNCIL AND THE REGIONAL COUNCIL WILL FORM TWO SPECIAL CONSTITUENCIES. EACH OF THESE CONSTITUENCIES WILL RETURN ONE MEMBER TO THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. THUS, THERE WILL BE 12 MEMBERS IN ALL ELECTED BY THESE +POPULIST+ CONSTITUENCIES.
+THERE WILL BE NINE FUNCTIONAL CONSTITUENCIES REPRESENTING THE COMMERCIAL, INDUSTRIAL, FINANCIAL, LABOUR AND SOCIAL SERVICES SECTORS OF THE COMMUNITY AND THE TEACHING, LEGAL AND MEDICAL AND THE COMBINED ENGINEERING, ARCHITECTURAL, PLANNING AND SURVEYING PROFESSIONS.
+THE COMMERCIAL CONSTITUENCY WILL BE REPRESENTED BY THE HONG KONG GENERAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND THE CHINESE GENERAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, WHILE THE INDUSTRIAL CONSTITUENCY WILL BE REPRESENTED BY THE FEDERATION OF HONG KONG INDUSTRIES AND THE CHINESE MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION. EACH OF THESE FOUR ORGANISATIONS WILL RETURN ONE MEMBER EACH TO THE COUNCIL. THE LABOUR CONSTITUENCY, MADE UP OF ALL REGISTERED TRADE UNIONS. WILL RETURN TWO MEMBERS WHILE THE OTHER CONSTITUENCIES WILL EACH RETURN ONE MEMBER. THUS, 12 MEMBERS IN ALL WILL BE ELECTED TO THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL BY THESE FUNCTIONAL CONSTITUENCIES.
+AT THE SAME TIME, THE NUMBER OF APPOINTED UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL WILL BE REDUCED FROM THE PRESENT 30 TO 22; WHILE THE NUMBER OF OFFICIAL MEMBERS WILL BE REDUCED FROM 16 TO 10, INCLUDING THE THREE EX-OFFICIO MEMBERS.
+IN SUMMARY, THE TOTAL MEMBERSHIP OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL AT THE BEGINNING OF THE NEW SESSION WILL BE INCREASED FROM THE PRESENT 46 TO 56: THERE WILL BE TWO CATEGORIES OF ELECTED UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS, 'POPULIST' AND FUNCTIONAL, AND THERE WILL BE TWELVE IN EACH CATEGORY THE RATIO OF ELECTED UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS TO APPOINTED UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS WILL BE 24:22; AND THE RATIO OF UNOFFICIAL MEMBERS TO OFFICIAL MEMBERS WILL BE 46:10, COMPARED WITH 30:16 AT PRESENT. THUS, THE THIRD OBJECTIVE OF BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS IN THE COMPOSITION AND METHOD OF SELECTION OF THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL HAS BEEN MET.
THE 1987 REIVEW
+THE WHITE PAPER ALSO ANNOUNCED THE GOVERNMENT'S INTENTION TO CONDUCT A REVIEW IN 1987 OF OUR EXPERIENCE DURING THE FIRST COUPLE OF YEARS OF THE LIFE OF THE NEW COUNCIL. AS PERCEIVED AT THIS TIME, THE REVIEW WILL ADDRESS AT LEAST FOUR QUESTIONS.
/+FIRST, THE