TNAG-1362-FCO40-1808-Hong-Kong-Hansard-reports-and-minutes-of-the-meetings-of-the-1985 — Page 187

}

3

6.

Mr Andrew So has again turned to the public

utilities and the Schemes of Control complaining that he

still suffers from a feeling of unease. He says that the

public is faced with higher charges and refers to price.

increases taking place almost everyday.

Mr So, of course,

realises that public utilities have to ad just their prices

in order to recover the cost of providing the particular

over But he should remember that

a

service in question.

two-year period some

increases have been so modest

that

Other

there has in fact been a decrease in real terms in the

prices charged by certain public utilities.

increases, whilst they may be large in percentage terms,

are very small in nominal terms because the base is

comparatively low. One cannot generalise.

7.

Mr So has suggested that there are no criteria

for the Government's decision as to which public utility

should be brought under a scheme of control or be granted

a franchise. In fact, I touched upon this in my answer to

his question in this Council on 6 February 1985 when I

pointed out that whilst some

A

utilities are not subject to

there is adequate

formal profit control schemes, there is

regulation through other methods.

Even where there is no

formal scheme of control, the Government can regulate

charges through a provision requiring that charges or

imposed by the public utility in question be approved by

the appropriate authority or, indeed, by this Council.

18.

Mr So