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living conditions in the urban areas, and unless Government re-develops the undeveloped areas these health hazards are bound to remain that is to be understood. But the Council has to deal with the present reality which is our administrative headache. We fully realize that there are certain anomalies and contradictions in some of the Council's policies such as basements and cubicles. They are largely the results of inadequate housing and sewage. The Health Education Select Committee has recognized these deficiencies, and put forward a comprehensive programme to ameliorate it. We appreciate that it takes time and persuasion to correct such dangerous habits as throwing things into the street, and allowing refuse and dirt to collect unswept in the tenements. We realize that the success of health campaigns will depend largely on the Health Staff. At present the Council has only enough Health Inspectors to carry out one visit to each tenement floor once every quarter: in another word, Mr. Chairman, visiting 1,400 floors or more for each quarter.
In my opinion, this is far too much for one Inspector to undertake, and if we are to expect improvement in the urban health standards to any appreciable degree, we must aim for regular visits by Health Inspectors once every month. I appreciate that it takes time to train the necessary personnel. But if we know what we want, more attention would be directed towards the expansion of training facilities so that we could be certain of getting the numbers required. Furthermore, the standard of training needs to be improved.
Having said so much, Mr. Chairman, with regard to the need for more Health Inspectors, I think it is important that more supervision of their work should be exercised to ensure that they are in fact doing their job as well as to be expected. We, Mr. Chairman, in the Restaurant Select Committee have discovered a number of cases in which the standard of supervision has left much to be desired, and certain inspectors have been reprimanded. To combat the repetition of such cases, the Select Committee has adopted a system of signing a card kept on the premises when a visit has been made, and I feel just as strongly that a system of check should be devised for house inspection as well because the condition of a large number of tenements that I have recently visited was really appalling.
Sir, paying due regard to Parkinson's law in respect to the dangers of overstaffing, I think the time has come for us to give serious consideration to the question of mechanizing some of the
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operations rendered by the Urban Services Department. If we don't, we may well land ourselves with an enormous staff. As it is, the Urban Services Department is already the biggest employer of labour in the Colony. With the Council's ever increasing desire to improve urban sanitation and amenities, the need for more staff will be bound to increase rather than decrease unless we mechanize some of these services. The two operations I have in mind, Mr. Chairman, which could be mechanized with advantage are street cleansing and nightsoil removal. If the Department is going to use street washing vehicles on a large scale I would draw attention to the fact that the question of using sea water must be solved first. Well or nullah water tapping has been found to be uneconomical because the number of journeys that can be undertaken is small. I therefore urge the Department to take this up with a sense of urgency.
It is with regret, Mr. Chairman, that I haven't seen the pilot scheme for a new mode of nightsoil removal in operation. To my knowledge the experiment was approved by the relevant Select Committee some five years ago, and the pilot scheme to test public reaction to the new method was sanctioned by the Committee of the Whole over a year ago. If it be the question of delivery date, Sir, I think a cable to the Crown Agents to hustle them up is highly indicated. If the scheme can be adopted generally for the Colony I am sure it would mean not only substantial savings to the public but also less objectionable smell to its operation. When we consider that the present Conservancy Service is said to be running at a loss I think, Sir, the time is ripe to press on for its trial.
With these comments, Mr. Chairman, I give my approval to the paper now laid before Council.
DR. P. F. Woo:—Mr. Chairman, whilst I agree that the increase of Health Staff, especially in the Health Inspectorate, should be a gradual process, nevertheless the increase must be in proportion to the increase in the scope of the work of the Urban Services Department. A definite number of staff must be aimed at and recruited each year so that spacing it out in a few years, we could provide the required strength in the Health Inspectorate within a limited time. The Department since 1952 aimed at providing one District Inspector for 1,200 floors for houses and licensed premises inspection instead of 1,800, but in 1956 the figure remained at 1,870, and in 1958 (this year) the figure is still 1,730.
Page 91 of 115
Page 91 of 115
166
:
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
living conditions in the urban areas, and unless Government re- develops the undeveloped areas these health hazards are bound to remain that is to be understood. But the Council has to deal with the present reality which is our administrative headache. We fully realize that there are certain anomalies and contradictions in some of the Council's policies such as basements and cubicles. They are largely the results of inadequate housing and sewage. The Health Education Select Committee has recognized these deficiencies, and put forward a comprehensive programme to ameliorate it. We appreciate that it takes time and persuasion to correct such dangerous habits as throwing things into the street, and allowing refuse and dirt to collect unswept in the tenements. We realize that the success of health campaigns will depend largely on the Health Staff. At present the Council has only enough Health Inspectors to carry out one visit to each tenement floor once every quarter: in another word, Mr. Chair- man, visiting 1,400 floors or more for each quarter.
In my opinion, this is far too much for one Inspector to undertake, and if we are to expect improvement in the urban health standards to any appreciable degree, we must aim for regular visits by Health Inspectors once every month. I appreciate that it takes time to train the necessary personnel. But if we know what we want, more attention would be directed towards the expansion of training facilities so that we could be certain of getting the numbers required. Furthermore, the standard of training needs to be improved.
Having said so much, Mr. Chairman, with regard to the need for more Health Inspectors, I think it is important that more supervision of their work should be exercised to ensure that they are in fact doing their job as well as to be expected. We, Mr. Chairman, in the Restaurant Select Committee have discovered a number of cases in which the standard of supervision has left much to be desired, and certain inspectors have been reprimand- ed. To combat the repetition of such cases, the Select Committee has adopted a system of signing a card kept on the premises when a visit has been made, and I feel just as strongly that a system of check should be devised for house inspection as well because the condition of a large number of tenements that I have recently visited was really appalling.
Sir, paying due regard to Parkinson's law in respect to the dangers of overstaffing, I think the time has come for us to give serious consideration to the question of mechanizing some of the
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
167
operations rendered by the Urban Services Department. If we don't, we may well land ourselves with an enormous staff. As it is, the Urban Services Department is already the biggest employer of labour in the Colony. With the Council's ever increasing desire to improve urban sanitation and amenities, the need for more staff will be bound to increase rather than decrease unless we mechanize some of these services. The two operations I have in mind, Mr. Chairman, which could be mechanized with advantage are street cleansing and nightsoil removal. If the Department is going to use street washing vehicles on a large scale I would draw attention to the fact that the question of using sea water must be solved first. Well or nullah water tapping has been found to be uneconomical because the number of
journeys that can be undertaken is small. I therefore urge the Department to take this up with a sense of urgency.
It is with regret, Mr. Chairman, that I haven't seen the pilot scheme for a new mode of nightsoil removal in operation. To my knowledge the experiment was approved by the relevant Select Committee some five years ago, and the pilot scheme to test public reaction to the new method was sanctioned by the Committee of the Whole over a year ago. If it be the question of delivery date, Sir, I think a cable to the Crown Agents to hustle them up is highly indicated. If the scheme can be adopted generally for the Colony I am sure it would mean not only substantial savings to the public but also less objectionable smell to its operation. When we consider that the present Conservancy Service is said to be running at a loss I think, Sir, the time is ripe to press on for its trial.
With these comments, Mr. Chairman, I give my approval to the paper now laid before Council.
DR. P. F. Woo:—Mr. Chairman, whilst I agree that the increase of Health Staff, especially in the Health Inspectorate, should be a gradual process, nevertheless the increase must be in proportion to the increase in the scope of the work of the Urban Services Department. A definite number of staff must be aimed at and recruited each year so that spacing it out in a few years, we could provide the required strength in the Health Inspectorate within a limited time. The Department since 1952 aimed at providing one District Inspector for 1,200 floors for houses and licensed premises inspection instead of 1,800, but in 1956 the figure remained at 1,870, and in 1958 (this year) the figure is still 1,730.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.