TNAG-1750-FCO40-2470-Future-of-Hong-Kong-Parliamentary-debates-1988 — Page 133

Urban Councillors and the Chairmen of Rural Committees are ex-officio members of urban and New Territories District Boards respectively.

43. Most District Board members expressed support for retaining appointed members, in the interests of continuity and of achieving a balance' local knowledge and experience on the Board. Some, however, felt that the propor- tion of appointed members should be reduced. Members of New Territories District Boards were also strongly in favour of Rural Committee Chairmen continuing to be ex-officio Board members as a means of ensuring that the interests of residents of rural areas are adequately represented. On the other hand, most members of urban District Boards were not in favour of Urban Councillors continuing to be ex-officio District Board members for reasons which are discussed more fully in paragraphs 59 and 60 below.

44. In the light of the foregoing, the options for change in the composition of the District Boards in 1988 would seem to be:

(i) to make no change to the present proportions of appointed and

elected members;

(ii) to reduce the proportion of appointed members;

(iii) to withdraw Urban Councillors from ex-officio membership of urban

District Boards.

45. As regards options (i) and (ii), the present ratio of elected and appointed District Board members was introduced following the 1984 Review of the District Administration Scheme. The changes introduced in 1985 to the composition of the District Boards, namely the withdrawal of all official members (including the Chairmen) and a doubling in the number of elected members, were regarded by some as premature in the light of the short time the Boards had existed. This would tend to argue against further change to the relative proportions of elected and appointed District Board members in 1988. 46. Option (iii) raises the wider question of the relationship between the Urban Council and the urban District Boards, which is discussed more fully in paragraphs 59-65 below.

The Municipal Councils

47. The Municipal Councils are statutory bodies responsible for providing the following three main categories of services:

(a) Public health services: street cleansing and refuse collection; food hygiene, including the licensing and inspection of restaurants; pest control; the management of hawkers and markets, abattoirs, cemeteries and crematoria.

(b) Cultural services: the construction and management of performing

arts centres, public libraries and museums.

(c) Recreation services: the construction and management of parks, swim-

ming pools, gardens and recreational open spaces; the management of public beaches and a wide range of indoor and outdoor sports facilities.

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