XN000022-1994-10-06 — Page 20

18

TIRSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 1994

EDUCATION.

TEN YEARS AGO, 3% OF YOUR AGE GROUP WENT INTO TERTIARY WE ARE ALMOST AT THE POSITION WHERE ABOUT 24% OF THE AGE GROUP WILL GO INTO TERTIARY EDUCATION EITHER TO DO DEGREES IN THE CASE OF ABOUT 18% OR TO DO DIPLOMAS IN THE CASE OF THE OTHER 6%. IT'S AN EXTRAORDINARY EXPANSION AND ONE THAT'S BEEN EXTREMELY COSTLY AND PART OF THE COST OF THAT EXPANSION HAS BEEN PAID FOR BY FEES FOR TUITION AND FEES IN GENERAL FOR TERTIARY EDUCATION. THAT PLACES HONG KONG TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN VERY MUCH THE SAME SITUATION AS UNIVERSITIES OR POLYTECHNICS EVERYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD. BUT IT IS IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE THAT EVEN THOUGH YOU ARE HAVING TO PAY FEES, FEES WHICH WILL IN DUE COURSE RECOUP ABOUT 18% OF THE COST OF TERTIARY EDUCATION BUT AT PRESENT RECOUP ABOUT 13% OF THE COST, IT IS IMPORTANT TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE AS ADEQUATE AS POSSIBLE LOANS AND GRANTS FOR THOSE WHO CAN'T AFFORD THE FEES. ABOUT 40% OF TERTIARY EDUCATION STUDENTS AT PRESENT RECEIVE LOANS AND GRANTS AND THE LEVEL OF LOANS AND GRANTS, EVEN ALLOWING FOR THE INCREASE IN FEES, HAS RUN 25% AHEAD OF THE RATE OF INFLATION OVER THE LAST THREE OR FOUR YEARS. WE HAVE DECIDED THIS YEAR THAT WE NEED TO BE MORE GENEROUS IN THE PROVISION OF BOTH LOANS AND GRANTS AND WE ARE PROPOSING FIRST OF ALL TO INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF FUNDING THAT WE MAKE AVAILABLE TO GRANTS, SECONDLY TO MAKE AVAILABLE MORE MONEY FOR LOANS. THE TOTAL COST OF THAT IS JUST OVER $300 MILLION AND IT SHOULD BENEFIT ABOUT 4,800 PEOPLE WHO ARE AT PRESENT RECEIVING LOANS OF GRANTS AND IT SHOULD BRING ABOUT ANOTHER 1,400 OR SO INTO THE NET WHO WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ABLE TO RECEIVE LOANS GRANTS BEFORE. SO OVER 6,000 PEOPLE IN TERTIARY EDUCATION BENEFIT FROM THAT. I RECOGNISE THAT PAYING FEES OR HAVING TO PAY ANYTHING IS RARELY POPULAR BUT I THINK THAT THE LEVEL OF FEES IN TERTIARY SECTOR IN HONG KONG IS JUSTIFIED (A) BY THE RAPID EXPANSION THAT WE'VE HAD IN THE TERTIARY SECTOR AND (B) BY THE FACT THAT IT'S USUALLY THE CASE THAT AFTER GETTING A DEGREE OR A DIPLOMA YOU ARE LIKELY TO GET TO MAKE MORE MONEY IN THE MARKETPLACE THAN YOU WOULD OTHERWISE HAVE DONE.

-

AND

WILL

FOR

THE

I REPEAT THAT THERE IS I THINK THERE IS HARDLY A COMMUNITY IN THE WORLD WHERE STUDENTS AREN'T HAVING TO PAY A CONTRIBUTION TOWARDS THEIR EDUCATION, BUT IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THERE SHOULD BE ADEQUATE AND GENEROUS LOANS AND GRANTS TO HELP THOSE WHO CAN'T PAY.

QUESTION:

MR GOVERNOR, JUST ONE QUESTION FOR YOU. CABLE TV WILL GIVE THREE CHANNELS TO THE GOVERNMENT, WOULD YOU DESIGNATE ONE AS A PUBLIC ACCESS CHANNEL SO THAT THERE WILL BE FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND SPEECH?

GOVERNOR:

IT IS A SUBJECT THAT WE'RE, I THINK, HOPING TO DISCUSS IN THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL AND IN THE LEGISLATURE BEFORE LONG AND THE PROPOSAL IS, I BELIEVE, THAT AT LEAST ONE OF THOSE CHANNELS SHOULD BE AVAILABLE FOR WHAT I THINK THE AMERICANS WOULD CALL PUBLIC EDUCATION PROGRAMMES, SO THAT PEOPLE CAN SEE THE SORT OF PROGRAMMES WHICH THEY MIGHT BE DENIED IF THEIR PROGRAMMING WAS DEPENDING ON PURELY COMMERCIAL FACTORS. SO I THINK THE ANSWER IS THAT, YES, WE DO WANT TO SEE MORE ACCESS TO PUBLIC EDUCATION TELEVISION CHANNELS AND THE PROVISION OF CABLE PROVIDES AN ADMIRABLE WAY OF DOING THAT.

QUESTION:

MR GOVERNOR, NOW FOR THE ELDERLY PEOPLE IN PUBLIC HOUSING, THEY ARE SUFFERING. THEY HAVE MADE A NUMBER OF REQUESTS AND FOR SOME WORKERS THEY ARE UNABLE TO EARN ENOUGH WAGE. AND THE SECOND QUESTION I WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS RETIREMENT BENEFITS FOR THE ELDERLY. AFTER 1997, WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO? DO WE HAVE ENOUGH PENSION? THANK YOU.

/GOVERNOR:

Page 20Page 21