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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 1994
OUR DOOR IS NEVER CLOSED, AND WE WANT TO TALK ON A WHOLE RANGE OF ISSUES, AND TALK CONSTRUCTIVELY AND CREATIVELY. WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE CONSTRUCTIVE AND CREATIVE TALKS IN THE JOINT LIAISON GROUP. WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE AN EARLY MEETING OF THE AIRPORT COMMITTEE TO RESOLVE AN ISSUE WHICH I THINK, THE WHOLE COMMUNITY THINKS HAS DRAGGED ON FOR TOO LONG. SO AS FAR AS WE'RE CONCERNED CO-OPERATION REMAINS SOMETHING ON WHICH WE ARE PARTICULARLY KEEN.
BUT I DO HAVE TO POINT OUT THAT WE HAD SEVENTEEN ROUNDS OF TALKS AND I THINK WHEN HONOURABLE MEMBERS, INCLUDING THE DISTINGUISHED HONOURABLE MEMBER WHO HAS JUST SPOKEN, SEE THE ACCOUNT OF THOSE SEVENTEEN ROUNDS OF TALKS IN THE WHITE PAPER THEY WILL BE SURPRISED AT HOW MUCH TIME WAS SPENT DISCUSSING SO LITTLE AGREEMENT. UNFORTUNATELY, THE ONLY THING WE REALLY AGREED ON WAS THE FIRST OF ALL LOWERING THE VOTING AGE WHICH SHOULDN'T BE TOO BIG A PROBLEM BECAUSE THE VOTING AGE IS 18 IN CHINA AND 18 IN THE UNITED KINGDOM AND SECOND THE "SINGLE SEAT, SINGLE VOTE" VOTING METHOD FOR DISTRICT BOARDS AND MUNICIPAL COUNCILS. BUT SINCE MOST SEATS IN DISTRICT BOARDS AND MUNICIPAL COUNCILS ARE ALREADY ELECTED IN THAT WAY, THAT DIDN'T REPRESENT A HUGE BREAKTHROUGH EITHER. SO IF WE WERE TO LOOK FOR YET ANOTHER BASIS FOR AGREEMENT I AM NOT SURE WHAT IT WOULD BE THAT WE HAVEN'T ALREADY MANAGED TO DISCOVER IN SEVENTEEN ROUNDS OF TALKS. IF THERE WAS AN EASY SOLUTION TO THESE MATTERS I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHAT IS AND I GUESS THAT TO BE FAIR TO THEM CHINESE OFFICIALS WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT T WAS AS WELL. BUT I THINK THE HONOURABLE MEMBER WILL SEE FROM THE WHITE PAPER HOW FAR WE WERE PREPARED TO GO AND I THINK HE WILL ALSO SEE THAT, ALAS, OUR EFFORTS WEREN'T RECIPROCATED.
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THE COUNCIL HAS VOTED PRETTY DECISIVELY. NOW ON AT LEAST A COUPLE OF OCCASIONS, ON THE QUESTION OF THE VOTING METHOD FOR GEOGRAPHICAL CONSTITUENCIES AND I THINK THE ARGUMENTS FOR PROPORTIONALITY, IF I MAY SAY SO, ARE SOMEWHAT LESSENED WHEN YOU SEEK ACHIEVE PROPORTIONALITY OR YOU SEEK TO ACHIEVE BALANCE BY HAVING THREE DIFFERENT SORTS OF ELECTORAL PROCESS. IF EVERY MEMBER OF THIS LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL WAS TO BE ELECTED DIRECTLY AS SOME HONOURABLE MEMBERS WOULD LIKE AND AS I AM SURE SOME HONOURABLE MEMBERS WILL PRESS FOR DURING THE DEBATES THAT LIE AHEAD, IF EVERY MEMBER WAS DIRECTLY ELECTED THEN I THINK THE ARGUMENT FOR A PROPORTIONAL VOTING SYSTEM WOULD BE THAT MUCH STRONGER. BUT SINCE WE TRY TO ACHIEVE BALANCE THROUGH THE FUNCTIONAL CONSTITUENCIES, THROUGH THE ELECTION COMMITTEE, THINK THE ARGUMENTS FOR PR ARE MUCH LESS CONSIDERABLE AND SO I NOTICE DOES THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. IF THE HONOURABLE MEMBER WAS ABLE WITH HIS POWERS OF ELOQUENCE TO PERSUADE HIS COLLEAGUES DIFFERENTLY THEN T WOULD REQUIRE OF COURSE OVERTURNING SEVERAL VOTES WHICH THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL HAVE ALREADY TAKEN. I HOPE I HAVE RESPONDED IN SOME DETAIL TO THE HONOURABLE MEMBER'S QUESTION.
MR TIMOTHY HA (THROUGH INTERPRETATION):
THANK YOU
MR
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PRESIDENT. MR GOVERNOR, NOW, AFTER THE RELEASE OF THE WHITE PAPER, WE READ THE WHITE PAPER AND FEEL THAT THE BRITISH SIDE SHOULD SCORE HIGHER MARK, WELL IT DOESN'T HELP US TO SOLVE THE QUESTION AND THAT IS: IN 1995 THERE MAY BE A NEW LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL BUT BY 1997 ALL THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCILLORS RETURNED IN 1995 MAY HAVE TO CLIMB DOWN (FROM) THE TRAIN. MR GOVERNOR, CAN YOU SOLVE THIS PROBLEM FOR US?
/GOVERNOR: