TNAG-1363-FCO40-1809-Hong-Kong-Hansard-reports-and-minutes-of-the-meetings-of-the-1985 — Page 39

Question No. 8

REPLY BY THE SECRETARY FOR HEALTH & WELFARE

TO A QUESTION ASKED BY THE HON. HUI YIN-FAT

IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ON WEDNESDAY 20 NOVEMBER 1985

Question:

il

Many agreed improvements in standards of social welfare programmes have been delayed due to unavailability of manpower resources, e.g, the agreed ratio of 1 social worker to 2,000 instead of 4,000 students has still not been implemented "pending available manpower resources", but according to a recent survey conducted by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service last month, a total of 28 fresh social work graduates this year were still unemployed. Does Government have any plans, like the one intelligently implemented last September to improve the quality of education in government and aided schools by the provision of additional teachers due to available manpower, to place these fresh social work graduates in relevant gainful employment?

Sir,

Improvements to social welfare services, like all

other projects in the public sector, depend on the availability

both of manpower resources and of funds. It is for these

reasons that the proposed improvements in the manning ratio

for school social work, which have figured in the Five Year

Plan since 1982 have not yet been implemented.

current financial year, on the advice of the Subvention and

Lotteries Fund Advisory Committee, it has been decided

For the

that new projects and expansion of services should be accorded

a higher priority than improvements to existing services.

2.

Mr. Hui informs us that 28 of this year's social

work graduates were still unemployed last month. I do not

/know....