TNAG-1367-FCO40-1813-Hong-Kong-Legislative-Council-(Powers-and-Privileges)-Bill-1-1985 — Page 32

Enclosure No.

2

HONG KONG

LEGAL REPORT

THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL (POWERS AND PRIVILEGES)

ORDINANCE 1985

(No. 35 of 1985)

This Ordinance is designed to set out in legislative form the law that has applied historically to the Legislative Council as a colonial legislature.

2. The Ordinance is divided in 5 Parts as follows

Part I

Part II

Part III :

Part IV

Part V

-

this Part comprises sections 1 and 2, and provides for its commencement and interpretation.

this Part comprises sections 3 to 8, and declares and defines the "parliamentary" privileges and immunities of the Council and its members.

this Part comprises sections 9 to 16, and defines the powers of the Council and its committees to call witnesses and to hear evidence. It provides also for the protection of witnesses and certain confidential material.

this Part comprises sections 17 to 20, and provides for offences including contempts.

this Part comprises sections 21 to 27, and deals with the matters referred to in 2(f) above.

3. The Ordinance, in common with other colonial legislation of the same nature, provides that breaches of privilege shall be justiciable by the courts (as offences carrying specific penalties) and repeals the power conferred on the Council by section 4 of the Oaths and Declarations Ordinance (Cap. 11) to deal with such breaches itself. the principle laid down in the decision of the Privy Council in Kielly v. Carson (see Erskine May (20th Ed.), p. 71) relating to the inability of colonial legislatures to punish for contempts is restored.

Thus