383
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HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
prices land which until the roads were the whole of their service, certain offices constructed was almost valueless, so that who, under the present scheme, only come much of our capital returns to us in under the obligation to contribute to the this form while the increased receipts Fund at a later stage in their service. from Crown Rents and assessed taxes The reason is that it is the contributions provide us with a permanent addition to during bachelerhood which count most our income. Some of the expenditure in the calculations of pensions payable on roads is recouped almost at once-Ito widows and orphans, and it is pro- need only refer to the recent sale of land posed to bring these particular officers on the new Peak Road, which I have under the scheme of the Fund in order already mentioned.
to ensure that the pensions which m❖ be- In other cases, we may have to wait orphans may be as large
come payable to their widows and little longer as the sales of land will not The persons who at present come under begin until the development which the the scheme of the Fund are:
as possible roads are intended to assist catches up persons in the permanent employment of with the work.
(1) all Some roads are in the the Government, and (2) European police nature of lock-up investments which will officers of the rank of sergeant certainly bring in good interest in the
1 any future though the exact date when they meners of the police force whose mar- Digner rank, or any other European will begin to do so depends upon circum-riage is approved by the Captain Super- stances,
It is I submit essential to take a long view of the future position especially in the Kowloon Peninsula, and our plans are laid with this object, Wide roads. good drainage, an adequate water supply and cheap and efficient means of tran- sport are some of the ends in view. It is only by providing such facilities that the housing problem can he solved, and with the return of general trade pro- sperity our best efforts will be required to keep pace with the needs of a rapidly growing population.
Having regard to these considerations I submit that, as I said last year and the year before, the policy of devoting our balances to works of development up to the fullest extent which the resources of the Public Works Department enable us to undertake is the best which it is pos- sible to adopt in the interests of the Colony, and I have. therefore, no hesita- tion whatever in commending these Es- timates to your approval.-(Applause.) The first reading of the Bill agreed to.
Widows' and Orphans' Pension Ordinance
was
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL--I beg to move the first reading of a Bill intituled, An Ordinance to amend the Widows' and Orphans Pensions Ordinances, 1908 and 1921. The object of this Bill is to in- elude within the scheme of the Widows' and Orphans' Pension Fund, throughout
who
intendent of Police. The Bill proposes to extend the scheme of the Fund to those European officers of the police force who at present are outside it and to other servants of the Government who are not members of the police force but are appointed on agreements for terms exceeding two years. There are two classes of these officers: first of all, officers appoint- ed on what I may call probationary agreements, generally for three years. many of whom come at the end of three desirable that they should contribute to years on the permanent staff. It seems
form the beginning of their service-during the Widows' and Orphans' Pension Fund the time of their probationary agreement. The other class of officers who will now come under the scheme of the Fund are certain officers throughout the whole of their service for are appointed successive terms of five years. But for the fact that their agreements are for five years at a time they are, for all practical purposes, on the permanent staff. The Bill will only apply to officers appointed or reappointed after the Ordinance comes into force but an option is given to officers at present in Government service, who would have come under the scheme had they been appointed after the commencement of the Ordinance, to come into the Fund. They are given a certain time to declare their. election. The Bill puts that down as a period of one month after return from leave to those who are on leave at the commencement of the Ordinance, and one month after the commencement of the
HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
of the
Ordinance in the case of officers not on leave. It is proposed to alter the period to three months in each case. Power is given to the Governor in Council to exclude from the operation Widows' and Orphans Pensions Ordin. ance any officers who are appointed to work of a special or temporary character. I beg to move the first reading.
THE COLONIAL SECRETARY-I beg to second.
The Bill passed the first reading. The "Objects and Reasons" attached to the Bill state:-
1. The object of this bill is to include within the scheme of the Widows' and Orphans' Pension Fund all European mem- bers of the police force, and all officers of the Government, other than police officers, who are appointed, either permanently, or on agreement for periods exceeding two years, and who receive at least $420 per
annum.
141
Council to exclude from the operation of the 5. Power is given to the Governor in Ordinance officers appointed for work of a special or temporary character, and pro- Vision is made for the return of any con- tributions made to the fund by any such officers before the date of exclusion.
6. Clause 4 of the bill gives to persons in the service of the Government at the commencement of the Ordinance, who are not liable to contribute to the Fund, but who would have been liable if they had been appointed after the commencement of the Ordinance, the right to elect to join the Fund.
Legal Practitioners Ordinance
THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL-I beg to Ordinance to amend further the Legal move the first reading of a Bill intituled, An Practitioners Ordinance, 1871. This Bill proposes to make certain alterations in the law relating to the preliminary and final examinations which have passed by solicitors' clerks who articled here. It also slightly alters the &unction
to
be
are
2. At present, apart from the case of the police force which is dealt with below, an officer who is appointed on an agreement for a term of years does not come within the qualification as barrister or solicitor. provided for acting without scope of the principal Ordinance, because he is not a person "permanently employed
Clause deals with the preliminary ex- in the service of the Government. This amination. I should explain that all adversely affects the prospects of the officer clerks articled here must pass, before inthe Fund, as it is the contributions during they are articled, a certain examination bacherlorhood which are of the greatest im-called a preliminary examination unless portance in determining the amount of pen- sion payable under the Fund to the officer's widow and children.
they have already passed some examina- tion which is to be taken as a substitute for that examination or received a special exemption from the Chief Justice. Clause 2 proposes to make the Hongkong Uni- versity matriculation
are
examination one
3. The officers of the police force are ap- pointed and reappointed on agreements for five years, but European members of the force of the rank of sergeant or higher of the examinations which is to be a rank, and certain married European mem-ground for exemption from the pre- bers of the force below the rank of sergeant.liminary examination. have been included in the scheme of the matriculation examinations
Most of the Fund. It is now proposed to make all
In England European members of the police force con-
rounds of exemption t ere, and as tribute to the Fund. This will considerably matriculation examination is as high as that the standard of the Hongkong University increase the amount of the pensions payable of any matriculation examination in Eng- to the widows and children of police officers, land there seems no reason why that exain- as it will provide for contributions from the ination should not be a ground of exemption officers during bacherlorhood, and for the here. The clause also provides that any ex- whole of their service.
amination that would in England be a ground for exemption from the pre- liminary examination there shall be a ground for exemption from the prelimin- ary examination here, and a ground for exemption without any special order by the Chief Justice. At present an order is
4. Subject to what is stated in paragraph 6 below, this Ordinace will refer only to per- sons appointd or reappointed after the com- mencement of the Ordinance, and, as is the case with the existing Ordinances, it will not apply to any person whose salary is less than $120 per annum.
necessary.
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