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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

MINUTES.

The Minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 2nd January,

1962, were confirmed.

PAPERS.

THE CHAIRMAN laid upon the table the following papers:

(1) Report on the work of the Urban Council and Urban

Services Department for the month of January 1962. (2) Urban Council and Urban Services Department Statistical Report for the period 1st October, 1961, to 31st December,

1961.

(3) Report by the Commissioner for Resettlement on the progress of clearance and resettlement operations during the period 1st October, 1961, to 31st December, 1961. (4) Analyses of Urban Services Department and Resettlement Department Staff Increases proposed in the draft Estimates 1962-63.

He said: Included in the papers laid on the table today are analyses of staff increases for the Urban Services Department and the Resettlement Department for 1962-63. These are given in the form of comparison tables.

In accordance with the procedure of the Council in previous years, any Member who wishes to do so is free to speak on general questions related directly to the establishments of the two departments. There is no formal motion and no vote will be taken.

When the revised staff increases were put before the Standing Committee of the Whole Council for adoption at the meeting on 2nd January, I was not aware that they would be subject to revision or that any of the posts provisionally approved by the Colonial Secretariat might be deleted. Consideration of staff increases by a Staff Increases Sub-Committee of Finance Committee, with a majority of Unofficial Members of Legislative Council, is a new departure. As advised in the Committee Papers already in the hands of Members, officers of the Urban Services Department and of the Resettlement Department appeared before the Staff Increases Sub-Committee and were questioned closely and at length on various aspects of the staffing of their depart- ments; it was subsequent to these meetings that advice was received that certain posts had been deleted on financial grounds.

Although the overall staff increases provisionally approved to meet normal expansion in the commitments of the Urban Services Department are now approximately 17% less than the total originally proposed to

were

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Government, instead of approximately 13% when the staff estimates adopted by the Standing Committee of the Whole Council in January, the department should not be unduly inconvenienced, provi- ding a good standard of supervision is maintained. The majority of the posts which have been deleted are for minor staff and the reductions are, in fact, much less this year than on previous occasions. Also, as the main reason for making reductions is financial, I think they must be accepted.

With regard to the staff increases for the Resettlement Department, the grounds given for further reductions following consideration by the Staff Increases Sub-Committee are given in the Committee Paper on this subject.

Members are now welcome to address the Council.

MR. WATSON: Mr. Chairman, there is just one question I would like to ask: What is the use of us serving on the Estimates Committee of the Urban Council?

CHAIRMAN: ----Sir, I would like to say that I think your services on the Estimates Committee of the Urban Council are most valuable. The department is greatly dependent on the advice of Members of this Council in preparing and putting forward its estimates each year.

MR. SALES: ---Mr. Chairman, with your permission, I believe that we all appreciate the reason that has been advanced, that on grounds of economy, the estimates which have been submitted by this Council were greatly reduced, particularly in respect of the number of labourers which have been cut down in the case of the Resettlement Department, with which we are concerned, by no less than 465. Nevertheless, we think that if economy is to be pursued as an exercise regardless of other factors, it can well impair the efficiency of the Urban Services Department and the Resettlement Department. The responsibilities of these two departments bear directly on the well-being of the people and, if economy is to be pursued, as I said, merely as an exercise and the services which we render are impaired as a result, then not un- naturally the health and well-being of the people will be affected.

With these remarks, I support the paper which has been put before us.

QUESTIONS.

CHAIRMAN:-The next item on the Agenda is two questions by Mr. CHAN Shu-woon who is, however, unavoidably absent to-day.

The first question is the concern of my friend, the Commissioner for Resettlement, and I will ask him to reply to it.

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