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also planning to organize a local course on the management of swimming pools and beaches so that more Amenities Officers and Amenities Assistants can be trained at one time. In this way, the Department will have the benefit of not suffering from staff shortages at any given time.
In short, I wish to point out that the Council, as well as the department, will continue to emphasize the importance of training departmental staff both locally and overseas.
MR. LAWRENCE FUNG (in English):—Mr. Chairman, what is the Council's annual expenditure on overseas staff training?
MR. KIM CHAM (in English):—Mr. Chairman, although I do not have this specific figure, I vividly recall that this year's budget is around $650,000. In the past, at one point, I remember that about 1974-75 the budget was over $1 million, mainly because of training for our Health Inspectors. Now that the training of Health Inspectors is being done locally, this results in savings to the Council.
MR. LAWRENCE FUNG (in English): Mr. Chairman, is it intended to include Council Members on future study missions?
MR. KIM CHAM (in English):—Mr. Chairman, there is no provision against Members joining study tours and missions. In the future, if the relevant select committees consider it appropriate and the Council so approves, it could certainly be done.
MR. FORSGATE (in English):—Mr. Chairman, following up that point, may I suggest that the Vice-Chairman of that particular select committee consider putting certain Urban Councillors' names forward to the Outward Bound Executive Training Course. I am sure this will do us a lot of good. On the subject of training generally, may I ask whether more use could not be made of local training establishments? I may have to declare an interest in this as the Chairman of the Hong Kong Management Association, but I see from a cursory glance of the appendices there is little indication that, for example, Mr. Chairman's own organization the Hong Kong University, or the Chinese University or the Polytechnic, or, for that matter, the Hong Kong Management Association's facilities are being used for training our own officers. After all, exposure to the non-Government section of the community would seem to be a very good thing for our staff to be made aware of at an early stage of their career.
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
41
CHAIRMAN (in English):—That was also a supplementary question Mr. CHAM, (laughter); would you like to answer it?
MR. KIM CHAM (in English):—Mr. Chairman, I must declare my interest in management education just as MR. FORSGATE did. Secondly, as was included in my statement, increasing emphasis is being placed on local training where and whenever possible. In fact, courses have been conducted in conjunction with the Extra-Mural Department of the University, the Polytechnic and, if I recall correctly, the Hong Kong Productivity Council. This would certainly be looked into in the future in terms of expanding our future training needs.
(4) MRS. E. ELLIOTT asked the following question (in English):—
A large number of appeals cases awaits action by the Hawkers' Appeals Sub-Committee. What is preventing this committee meeting to clear the backlog?
MR. B. A. BERNACCHI, CHAIRMAN OF THE HAWKERS SUB-COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):
The Hawkers Sub-Committee has not been able to meet for
the past seven weeks because:
(1) Mr. F. K. Hu and myself were away from Hong Kong on Council's business namely a delegation to the Westminster City Council in England;
(2) It is sometimes difficult to arrange a meeting because 3 of the members, namely, you Mrs. ELLIOTT, Mr. Hu and myself, not only have other Urban Council Commitments, but also Housing Authority commitments, which very often clash;
(3) I personally had to go back to UK for professional reasons a second time shortly after coming back to Hong Kong with Mr. Hu in May.
However, there are only 4 actual appeals outstanding. In addition, there are 11 applications for issue of a new licence on exceptional welfare or medical grounds. Action has now been taken to arrange a series of meetings in the near future to clear this backlog of cases generally, although the issue of new licences on welfare grounds may have to be referred back to the Hawkers Committee, in some cases, to clear points of procedure on which I have
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also planning to organize a local course on the manage- ment of swimming pools and beaches so that more Amenities Officers and Amenities Assistants can be trained at one time. In this way, the Department will have the benefit of not suffering from staff shortages at any given time.
In short, I wish to point out that the Council, as well as the department, will continue to emphasize the importance of training departmental staff both locally and overseas.
MR. LAWRENCE FUNG (in English):-Mr. Chairman, what is the Council's annual expenditure on overseas staff training?
MR. KIM CHAM (in English):—Mr. Chairman, although I do not have this specific figure, I vividly recall that this year's budget is around $650,000. In the past, at one point, I remember that about 1974-75 the budget was over $1 million, mainly because of training for our Health Inspectors. Now that the training of Health Inspectors is being done locally, this results in savings to the Council.
MR. LAWRENCE FUNG (in English): Mr. Chairman, is it intended to include Council Members on future study missions?
MR. KIM CHAM (in English):---Mr. Chairman, there is no provision against Members joining study tours and missions. In the future, if the relevant select committees consider it appropriate and the Council so approves, it could certainly be done.
MR. FORSGATE (in English):-Mr. Chairman, following up that point, may I suggest that the Vice-Chairman of that particular select committee consider putting certain Urban Councillors' names forward to the Outward Bound Executive Training Course. I am sure this will do us a lot of good. On the subject of training generally, may I ask whether more use could not be made of local training establishments? I may have to declare an interest in this as the Chairman of the Hong Kong Management Association, but I see from a cursory glance of the appendices there is little indication that, for example, Mr. Chairman's own organization the Hong Kong University, or the Chinese University or the Polytechnic, or, for that matter, the Hong Kong Management Association's facilities are being used for training our own officers. After all, exposure to the non-Government section of the community would seem to be a very good thing for our staff to be made aware of at an early stage of their career.
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
41
CHAIRMAN (in English):-That was also a supplementary question Mr. CHAM, (laughter); would you like to answer it?
MR. KIM CHAM (in English):-Mr. Chairman, I must declare my interest in management education just as Mr. FORSGATE did. Secondly, as was included in my statement, increasing emphasis is being placed on local training where and whenever possible. In fact, courses have been conducted in conjunction with the Extra-Mural Department of the University, the Polytechnic and, if I recall correctly, the Hong Kong Productivity Council. This would certainly be looked into in the future in terms of expanding our future training needs.
(4) MRS. E. ELLIOTT asked the following question (in English):-
A large number of appeals cases awaits action by the Haw- kers' Appeals Sub-Committee. What is preventing this committee meeting to clear the backlog?
MR. B. A. BERNACCHI, CHAIRMAN OF THE HAWKERS SUB-COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):
The Hawkers Sub-Committee has not been able to meet for
the past seven weeks because:
(1) Mr. F. K. Hu and myself were away from Hong Kong on Council's business namely a delegation to the Westminster City Council in England;
(2) It is sometimes difficult to arrange a meeting because 3 of the members, namely, you Mrs. ELLIOTT, Mr. Hu and myself, not only have other Urban Council Commitments, but also Housing Authority commit- ments, which very often clash;
(3) I personally had to go back to UK for professional reasons a second time shortly after coming back to Hong Kong with Mr. Hu in May.
However, there are only 4 actual appeals outstanding. In addition, there are 11 applications for issue of a new licence on exceptional welfare or medical grounds. Ac- tion has now been taken to arrange a series of meetings in the near future to clear this backlog of cases generally, although the issue of new licences on welfare grounds may have to be referred back to the Hawkers Committee, in some cases, to clear points of procedure on which I have
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