XN000022-1985-12-11 — Page 18

ONE DAY, DECEMBER 11, 1985

HE GAVE ASSURANCE THAT EVERY EFFORT WOULD BE MADE TO ENSURE THAT THE TUEN MUN HOSPITAL WAS READY BY THE SCHEDULED COMPLETION DATE OF 1988.

AS REGARDS SUBVENTED HOSPITALS IN THE NEW TERRITORIES, MR CHAMBERS SAID THEY WERE BUILT MANY YEARS AGO TO SERVE AS DISTRICT HOSPITALS FOR A LARGELY RURAL COMMUNITY.

+ THE GOVERNMENT HAS RECOGNISED THE NEED TO EXPAND THE SCOPE OF THESE HOSPITALS AND MORE THAN $350 MILLION ARE TO BE SPENT TO EXPAND AND UPGRADE THE POK OI AND YAN CHAI HOSPITALS.

ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF MEDICAL INSURANCE SCHEMES AS A MEANS OF IMPROVING MEDICAL SERVICES FOR MIDDLE-INCOME FAMILIES,

MR CHAMBERS SAID PROPOSALS FOR A SCHEME LINKED TO TAX CONCESSIONS WOULD BE CONSIDERED FURTHER IN THE LIGHT OF THE CONSULTANTS'

OWN RECOMMENDATIONS ON MEDICAL INSURANCE AND THE PUBLIC'S RESPONSE TO THESE IDEAS.

AS FOR THE NEED FOR AN ACADEMY OF MEDICINE, HE SAID THE RESPONSE TO THE GOVERNMENT'S INQUIRIES FOR A SUITABLE OVERSEAS CHAIRMAN FOR A WORKING PARTY ON POSTGRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING WAS NOW MORE ENCOURAGING,

+I NOW HOPE IT WILL BE POSSIBLE TO SET UP THE WORKING PARTY IN THE EARLY MONTHS OF 1986; INTEND IN THE NEAR FUTURE TO WRITE TO THE VARIOUS ORGANISATIONS WHICH ARE TO BE REPRESENTED ON THE WORK ING PARTY, INVITING THEM TO FORWARD NOMINATIONS TO ME, SO THAT THERE WOULD BE NO DELAY ON THIS ACCOUNT WHEN A SUITABLE CHAIRMAN IS FOUND, HE SAID.

TURNING TO SOCIAL WELFARE MATTERS, MR CHAMBERS SAID WHILE HE WOULD ADMIT THAT THERE WERE NO VERY RADICALLY NEW PROPOSALS IN THIS YEAR'S PROGRAMME, IN HIS VIEW THIS WAS BECAUSE THERE ALREADY WAS A COMPREHENSIVE LONG-TERM PLAN FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF WELFARE SERVICES IN THE 1979 WHITE PAPER: SOCIAL WELFARE INTO THE 1980'S.

+THIS DOCUMENT WHICH WAS PRODUCED AFTER EXTENSIVE PUBLIC CONSULTATION ON THE BASIS OF THREE GREEN PAPERS, CONTAINS A BLUEPRINT FOR DEVELOPMENT IN ALL THE MAIN AREAS OF SOCIAL WELFARE AND SOCIAL SECURITY.

*THE POLICIES SET OUT IN THE WHITE PAPER ARE IMPLEMENTED THROUGH THE FIVE YEAR PLAN FOR SOCIAL WELFARE DEVELOPMENT, WHICH IS REGULARLY UPDATED IN CONSULTATION WITH THE VOLUNTARY WELFARE SECTORS.+

ON A SUGGESTION THAT THE SOCIAL WELFARE ADVISORY COMMITTEE SHOULD INCLUDE NOMINATED MEMBERS FROM THE VOLUNTARY SECTOR MR CHAMBERS SAID HE AGREED THAT THE TIME WAS NOW RIPE TO TAKE A NEW LOOK AT THE WAY IN WHICH THIS IMPORTANT COMMITTEE WAS CONSTITUTED.

/ CHANSERE