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Social auditing key to healthy development of social services
The Governor, the Rt Hon Christopher Patten, today (Tuesday) underlined the need to make social auditing a key component in the planning and delivering of services if Hong Kong was to maintain its healthy development of social services.
"Such auditing is a duty for the Government, so as to give account for its use of public funds. It is a necessity for Government if we are to keep our focus on the areas of real need.
"It is no less a duty and a necessity for the subvented organisations that receive so much from the public purse and which do so much to deliver services," he said.
Social auditing means the rigorous and regular review of objectives, priorities and the programmes for achieving them, to give assurance that resources are being deployed and redeployed to best effect.
Speaking at the spring reception of the Hong Kong Council of Social Service, Mr Patten said it was the mark of a sensible community that it reflected on how it was changing, and adapted its systems to suit the changes.
It is sensible for a community to think prudently about its expenses and its liabilities before serious problems emerge, he added.
Pointing out that social auditing was not a new idea, Mr Patten said a start had already been made in the areas of social welfare, education, housing and medical and health services.
On social welfare, he said a thorough review of the Comprehensive Social Security Allowance system had begun.
The Household Expenditure Survey begun last October, covering households on Comprehensive Social Security Assistance, will by the end of September this year give data on which to base an informed review of needs and rates of allowance.
The Social Welfare Advisory Committee is being consulted on these issues as the review progresses.
"I expect to start receiving recommendations by the end of this year," he said.
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