ENG-1980 — Page 139

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Markets

HEALTH

In the urban areas of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon, the Urban Council runs 48 public markets containing more than 4,300 stalls. These markets provide the public with a wide range of retail outlets at convenient locations.

It is the Urban Council's policy to reprovision old market buildings in these areas, and where possible, to build new market buildings with modern facilities. Because suitable sites for new markets are limited, it has been decided that multi-purpose buildings should be built to accommodate cultural, recreational and other municipal services in addition to market facilities. This is enabling the maximum use to be made of land available while, at the same time, providing a variety of services at one location.

The $11 million Bowrington Road Market, opened in Wan Chai in early 1980, is one of the Urban Council's most modern multi-purpose market complexes. In replacing the Canal Road Temporary Market the new building provides sufficient stalls for tenants of the temporary market, hawkers from the Canal Road Market Bazaar, and on-street licensed and unlicensed hawkers in the vicinity.

Three new temporary markets - Tai Shing Street Temporary Market, Sze Shan Street Temporary Market and Tong Mei Road Temporary Market - were also opened during the year.

In the New Territories, the government provides a total of 28 markets with 2,339 stalls. In addition, there are approximately 2,800 market stalls being provided in various public housing estates in the New Territories.

Hawkers

The number of hawkers operating in the urban areas of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon is estimated to be about 42,000, comprising 31,000 licensed and 11,000 unlicensed operators. In addition, about 10,000 people engage in hawking in the urban public housing estates.

It seems unlikely that this number will diminish significantly until more markets are provided and hawkers become market stall-holders. In the meantime, the Urban Council intends to confine hawking to specified areas for environmental reasons. The long-term policy is to re-site as many hawkers as possible in public markets and allow them to hold market stall leases on a monthly rental basis.

In the urban areas, enforcement of the law in relation to hawking is shared between the Urban Council and the Royal Hong Kong Police Force, with the Urban Council controlling the Hawker Permitted Areas and other hawker concentration areas, and the police keeping major thoroughfares clear of obstruction and providing a constabulary presence during special operations, such as major clearances. The Urban Council runs 12 General Duties teams which were formed to control hawkers. Hawker control duties in the New Territories are performed by six General Duties teams under the management of the New Territories Services Department.

During the year, hawker surveys were carried out in a number of urdan districts and itinerant and unlicensed hawkers registered in the surveys were issued with fixed-pitch licences and allowed to hawk in Hawker Permitted Places.

The Urban Council's policy is that hawking should be regarded as a business and that welfare considerations should not influence the granting of hawker licences. Needy families are being encouraged to seek help through public assistance and other services provided by the government and voluntary welfare agencies.