TNAG-1731-FCO40-2444-Minutes-and-Hansards-of-the-Legislative-Council-of-Hong-Kong-1988 — Page 162

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Speech by the Secretary for Education and Manpower

in the Legislative Council on 25 May 1988

Motion on the

Pneumoconiosis (Compensation) Ordinance (Cap 360)

SECRETARY FOR EDUCATION AND MANPOWER:

Sir,

comments.

I would like to thank Mr. Ho and Mr. Tam for their

I fully share their enthusiasm for prevention. It

is obviously much better to prevent someone falling ill than

to compensate him afterwards. I will therefore be very

Consider happy to study their specific proposals for further

measures.

I do not myself think it is likely that the

incidence of the disease will increase in future. The

preventive measures we have already taken have met with most

encouraging success and all the available evidence suggests

that the incidence of the disease is likely to continue

fall.

to

Even with the reduction in levy we are likely to

have ample funds for any worthwhile preventive measures we

can devise. However, if our forecasts do turn out to be too

optimistic, I do not myself see any problem in reviewing the

levy and, if necessary, increasing it later. The fact that

we have been able to show that levies can go down as well as

up actually makes employers more willing to pay rather than

less.