XN000022-1980-01-10 — Page 8

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 10, 1980

+SIMILARLY POPULATION INCREASES OF THE SIZE WHICH WE MUST CONTEMPLATE REQUIRE SUBSTANTIAL QUANTITIES OF WATER AND THE QUESTION OF WATER DISTRIBUTION HAS ALSO TO BE SOLVED,

+CLEARLY WE CAN'T STOP DEVELOPING, BUT CLEARLY THE SORT OF

PROBLEMS I HAVE HINTED AT MUST BE EVALUATED,

+SO LET ME RE-ASSURE TODAY THAT THERE IS A LOT OF WORK GOING ON NOW WITHIN THE GOVERNMENT TO FIND AN ANSWER AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE TO THE QUESTION OF HOW TO DISTRIBUTE THE FUTURE INCREASE IN

POPULATION, WHAT THE SIZE OF THE HOUSING REQUIREMENT IS LIKELY TO BE IN THE YEARS AHEAD AND HOW SUCH BASIC INFRASTRUCTURE QUESTIONS AS TRANSPORT AND WATER SUPPLY AFFECT THE SOLUTION,

+MY OWN FEELING IS THAT WE WILL EVENTUALLY END UP, NOT WITH A PARTICULAR EMPHASIS ON ANY SINGLE PLACE THE OPPORTUNITY FOR THAT IS LARGELY PAST - BUT WITH EXPANSION OF THE URBAN AREAS THAT HAVE GROWN UP IN THE LAST TEN YEARS OR SO.

+ HAVE NOT HAD TIME TO MENTION OTHER EFFECTS OF THIS URBANISATION OF THE NEW TERRITORIES, BUT QUITE OBVIOUSLY EACH OF THESE NEW TOWNS IS GOING TO AFFECT ALL THE FLAT LAND SURROUNDING IT AND WE MIGHT AS WELL PREPARE FOR THIS AND DECIDE HOW WE ARE GOING TO CONTAIN AND CONTROL THE INEVITABLE CHANGES WHICH WE WILL HAVE TO ACCEPT WILL COME TO THE NEW TERRITORIES IN THE 1980S.+

WORKMEN'S COMPENSATION LAW TO BE AMENDED

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THE LABOUR DEPARTMENT RECOGNISES THE NEED TO RAISE THE EXISTING LEVELS OF COMPENSATION PROVIDED UNDER THE WORKMEN'S COMPENSATION ORDINANCE.

AMENDMENTS TO THE LAW ARE BEING DRAFTED AND THEY ARE EXPECTED TO BE INTRODUCED INTO THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL THIS YEAR.

THIS WAS STATED BY ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER FOR LABOUR, MR. DAVID LIN, IN A REPLY TO REPRESENTATIONS MADE BY THE HONG KONG CHRISTIAN INDUSTRIAL COMMITTEE, THE HONG KONG AND KOWLOON CEMENT AND CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION TRADE WORKERS UNION AND THE RELATIVES OF TWO WORKERS KILLED IN A RECENT ACCIDENT AT A TSUEN WAN CONSTRUCTION SITE.

HE POINTED OUT THAT THE DEPARTMENT IS NOW EXPANDING ITS FACTORY INSPECTORATE UNDER A FIVE-YEAR PROGRAMME AS ONE OF THE MAJOR EFFORTS TO PROMOTE AND ACHIEVE INDUSTRIAL SAFETY.

THE REPLY ALSO TOUCHED ON EXISTING LEGISLATION ON SAFETY AT CONSTRUCTION SITES, THE DEPARTMENT'S INVESTIGATIONS OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS AND THE ROLES MANAGEMENT AND WORKERS CAN PLAY IN REDUCING THESE ACCIDENTS.

ON WORKERS' SAFETY, MR. LIN EMPHASISED THAT THIS HAD ALWAYS BEEN THE PRIMARY CONCERN OF THE FACTORY INSPECTORATE WHICH INVESTIGATED EVERY ACCIDENT CAUSING DEATH OR SERIOUS INJURY.

/THE INSPICICRATE