1972 — Page 63

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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

CHAIRMAN:-This sounds very easy Mr. BERNACCHI, and very com- mendable, but in fact the people who have to do the major drafting are probably English speaking and English writing, at the moment.

(13) MR. PETER P. K. NG asked the following question:-

(a) Can the Chairman advise the Council what steps has be taken to recruit Female Health Inspectors, in order to strengthen the staff situation in the Urban Services Department?

(b) If the answer to (a) above is negative, can the Chairman

explain why?

(c) If the answer to (a) is positive, when will the first Female Health Inspector be reporting for duty, and how many Female Inspectors will there be?

(d) How many female applicants have we accepted for train-

ing to date?

THE CHAIRMAN, URBAN COUNCIL, replied as follows:-

Four Female Student Health Inspectors were appointed in October last year and three in March this year. All are now undergoing a three-year training course leading to the professional diploma of the Royal Society of Health for Public Health Inspectors. All future advertisements for Health Inspectors will include females, who will be selected in competition with their male counterparts.

MR. NG:-Mr. Chairman, we have accepted seven female public health inspectors out of how many applicants?

CHAIRMAN:-I cannot say off hand, Mr. NG.

MR. SALES: -Mr. Chairman, if they are to be selected in competi- tion with their male counterparts, what chance have their male counter- parts got for ultimate selection? (Laughter).

MR. CHEONG-LEEN:-Mr. Chairman, isn't it understood that competition will take place on fair grounds on intellectual and func- tional ability? Mr. Chairman, why did it take the department so long to come around to recruiting female health inspectors?

CHAIRMAN:-I am not clear on that Mr. CHEONG-LEEN. Certainly I have advocated it since I came.

MRS. SYMONS:-Mr. Chairman, may I ask whether the word "female" is used statutorily? Why not call them women inspectors?

HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL

CHAIRMAN:-They work on male and female salary-scales.

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MR. SALES: Mr. Chairman, you will have noticed that at the beginning of the meeting I used the term "lady hawkers" and "lady lifeguards". That is now the accepted usage in this Council.

(14) DR. DENNY M. H. HUANG asked the following question:-

(a) What is the number of unlicenced restaurants operating in urban area on 31.5. 1972 and how many of them are in resettlement estates?

(b) How many unlicenced restaurants were operating in

resettlement estates a year ago?

(c) Was there an agreement between the Urban Services Department and the Resettlement Department that evic- tion order should be issued to restaurant applicants who failed to meet licensing requirements for a certain specified period? If there is such an agreement, how many eviction orders have been issued since that agreement?

MR. PETER P. K. NG, CHAIRMAN OF THE FOOD AND FOOD PREMISES SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows:

There were 299 unlicensed restaurants operating in the urban area at the end of May this year. Ten were in resettle- ment estates. At the same time last year there were 37 unlicensed restaurants operating in resettlement estates.

In July 1970 it was agreed at a joint meeting of the Resettle- ment Management and Food & Food Premises Select Committees that all applicants for restaurant licences in resettlement estates would be warned that if they did not comply with the Council's requirements for a restaurant within six months from the date of the letter of require- ments their tenancies would be terminated. No termina- tion of tenancy has been issued to-date.

DR. HUANG:--Mr. Chairman, I am very grateful, indeed happy to learn there is good progress in reducing the number of unlicensed restaurants in Hong Kong and also resettlement estates. Now I want to ask one question, of those ten existing unlicensed restaurants in resettlement estates, I am pretty sure many of them are more than six months from the letter of requirement, at least I know one case for sure which has been there for ten months. It has already been brought to the attention of the Resettlement Department, Urban Services Depart-