(excluding the Criminal
and Law Enforcement Injuries Compensation Scheme and Emergency Relief Fund payments)
case to be reviewed by the Director of Social
Welfare, ask UMELCO to intervene or petition the
Governor. It would be much better for there to be
an independent appeal system, which would provide a
speedy means of redress for the person dissatisfied
with the Social Welfare Department's decision. It
is proposed to establish a social security appeal
board which would consider appeals on any social
security decision not just tolic-assistance).
The board would have an official Chairman (possibly
a City District Commissioner) with 2 unofficial
members (selected from a panel of members). The
board would reach a decision on the individual case
on the basis of the facts presented to them; but
their decision on that case would not constitute
a precedent either for the Director of Social
Welfare or for other cases coming to the board.
The aim would be to deal with appeals quickly and
to this end the board would meet each week. An
appellant could put his case personally if he
wished. A friend or representative could speak on
behalf of the appellant: but there would be no
legal representation.
Such hearings would be
informal and conducted in Cantonese.
d) Exercise of discretion
Where possible, discretionary grants within the
public assistance scheme, e.g. for school expenses
will be standardised. This will help to secure
more consistent decision-taking, to improve control
over the evercise of discretion, and to make the
system more understandable to the public. But
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.