10.
Governor: I think the proposals that we've put forward on unemployment are extremely sensible and the proposals in particular that we've put forward on the importation of labour make considerable sense. Joseph Wong will be saying more about them tomorrow and giving an account of the findings of the review that we did into the importation of labour scheme.
But perhaps I can just put it in a slightly broader context which I hope you won't find too academic. In the last three years the size of the work force in Hong Kong has increased by 11%. It's increased by just over 300,000. That's a result of returning former emigrants from Hong Kong, it's a result of the increase in the number of immigrants coming into Hong Kong from China as well, of course, as a result of the, in comparison with those figures, relatively small number of people coming in via the importation of labour scheme. At the same time as there's been an 11% increase in the number of people in our work force, and there are demographic reasons for that as well, there's been about a 10% increase in the number of jobs that we've created. Hong Kong is still creating jobs. It's created 270,000 jobs in the last three years but the difference between a 10% increase in jobs and an 11% increase in the work force is the most substantial reason for the increase that we've seen in unemployment in Hong Kong. Plainly there is some relationship between the importation of labour and unemployment. Particularly because, as Joseph will be making clear tomorrow, in a number of sectors where people are bringing in labour, there are local would-be employees in Hong Kong who'd be happy to take up jobs in those sectors. But the most important thing we have to do in Hong Kong is to go on being competitive and to go on creating jobs as we have in the last three years and were we simply to ban all labour from anywhere coming into Hong Kong we'd become less competitive. I mean, you shouldn't be, whether in the Catholic Church or elsewhere, holier than the Pope. I've had a number of delegations come to see me to talk about unemployment or to talk about unemployment and labour importation. I don't think anyone when challenged actually proposes that there should be no importation of labour into Hong Kong at all. But the question is how much and how it should be controlled and I hope that we'll be able to convince a majority of the community that we've got the answer about right. But don't expect those proposals on their own to answer all the problems about job creation in Hong Kong because there are a lot of other things, which I was mentioning this afternoon, which are arguably more important.
Question: (Asian Wall Street Journal) Can you tell us what specific examples of administrative and practical support your Government is willing to offer the future Chief Executive (Designate) and the team designate?