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HONG KONG PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL
471
Although staff of the Urban Services Department have the intention to raid these hawkers, they have been restricted by their sphere of authority. I, nevertheless, think that the Department can take other appropriate measures to tackle these grey areas. For instance, the Environmental Hygiene Section of the Department can consider stepping up operation and prosecute illegal hawkers selling cooked food in private premises for 'illegal hawking' or 'selling cooked food without a license'. In this way, we can make up for the constraints in the Hawker Control Force's functions, which actually render them powerless to raid illegal hawkers on private lots.
The ground floor premises of many residential buildings in Hong Kong are used as shops for commercial purpose. Owners of these shops often place their goods on the pavement, giving a lot of inconvenience to residents. Furthermore, if a large number of these ground floor shops are food establishments, silting up of sewage pipes will often occur. The emission of oily fumes from food premises also affects the living environment of nearby areas. Although all these are the buildings' management problems which can be handled by their management bodies, in most cases both the management bodies and the owners of the buildings simply can do nothing about them. In that event, the Urban Services Department, as the government department responsible for the administration and promotion of environmental health, should assist in tackling the problems, despite the fact that they are the management problems of private buildings. For instance, to solve the emission of oily fumes from food premises in private buildings and the sewerage problem, the Environmental Health Section of the Department can strengthen cooperation with the management bodies of the buildings and step up control on food premises. As regards obstructions caused by goods placing on the pavements, the Hawkers Section of the Department should improve communication with the Lands Department and the Highways Department and cooperate with the police to bring prosecution against those shops which have caused serious obstruction to the pavement. I am sure that the Department certainly can help private buildings solve the management problems caused by these shops and food premises.
Apart from the aforesaid building management problems which are related to the work of the Urban Services Department, there are some other areas deserving public concern, including rear lane cleansing, environmental hygiene problems caused by the refuse collection points in public housing estates and collection of refuse for private premises etc. We need the help of the Lands Department to take the lead to urge residents and building management bodies to take the most effective measures to address these problems. The hygiene conditions of private rear lanes, for example, have posed a problem to many private buildings. The piling up of refuse in those rear lanes, apart from giving a foul smell, would lead to the breeding of pests and rodents and the spread of diseases, thus affecting the residents' health. As these lanes are private properties, the Urban Services Department is not in a position to intervene;
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HONG KONG PROVISIONAL URBAN COUNCIL
471
Although staff of the Urban Services Department have the intention to raid these hawkers, they have been restricted by their sphere of authority. I, nevertheless, think that the Department can take other appropriate measures to tackle these grey areas. For instance, the Environmental Hygiene Section of the Department can consider stepping up operation and prosecute illegal hawkers selling cooked food in private premises for 'illegal hawking' or 'selling cooked food without a license'. In this way, we can make up for the constraints in the Hawker Control Force's functions, which actually render them powerless to raid illegal hawkers on private lots.
The ground floor premises of many residential buildings in Hong Kong are used as shops for commercial purpose. Owners of these shops often place their goods on the pavement, giving a lot of inconvenience to residents. Furthermore, if a large number of these ground floor shops are food establishments, silting up of sewage pipes will often occur. The emission of oily fumes from food premises also affects the living environment of nearby areas. Although all these are the buildings' management problems which can be handled by their management bodies, in most cases both the management bodies and the owners of the buildings simply can do nothing about them. In that event, the Urban Services Department, as the government department responsible for the administration and promotion of environmental health. should assist in tackling the problems, despite the fact that they are the management problems of private buildings. For instance, to solve the emission of oily fumes from food premises in private buildings and the sewerage problem, the Environmental Health Section of the Department can strengthen cooperation with the management bodies of the buildings and step up control on food premises. As regards obstructions caused by goods placing on the pavements. the Hawkers Section of the Department should improve communication with the Lands Department and the Highways Department and cooperate with the police to bring prosecution against those shops which have caused serious obstruction to the pavement. I am sure that the Department certainly can help private buildings solve the management problems caused by these shops and food premises.
Apart from the aforesaid building management problems which are related to the work of the Urban Services Department, there are some other areas deserving public concern, including rear lane cleansing, environmental hygiene problems caused by the refuse collection points in public housing estates and collection of refuse for private premises etc. We need the help of the Lands Department to take the lead to urge residents and building management bodies to take the most effective measures to address these problems. The hygiene conditions of private rear lanes, for example, have posed a problem to many private buildings. The piling up of refuse in those rear lancs, apart from giving a foul smell, would lead to the breeding of pests and rodents and the spread of diseases, thus affecting the residents' health. As these lanes are private properties, the Urban Services Department is not in a position to intervene;
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