ENG-1987 — Page 36

CONSTITUTION AND ADMINISTRATION

Legislative Council

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The Legislative Council is constituted by virtue of the Letters Patent, and its primary function is the enactment of legislation, including legislation for the appropriation of public funds. A Bill passed by the Legislative Council does not become law until the Governor gives his assent to it; after the Governor's assent a Bill becomes an ordinance without being subject to external approval, although the Queen has reserve powers to disallow an ordinance. The power of disallowance has not been used for many years.

The Legislative Council has a maximum membership of 57, comprising the Governor, who is the President; three ex-officio members, namely the Chief Secretary, the Financial Secretary and the Attorney General, seven official members, 22 appointed members and 24 elected members.

The official and appointed members are appointed by the Governor with the approval of the Secretary of State. Official members normally remain appointed for as long as they hold office under the Crown in Hong Kong. Appointed members can be appointed for up to three years and may be re-appointed for further periods of not more than three years each. Elected members are elected by nine functional constituencies and by an electoral college comprising the members of the district boards, the Urban Council and the Regional Council.

Each functional constituency represents an occupational or professional group: com- mercial; industrial; financial; labour; social services; medical; teaching; legal; and engineer- ing and associated professions. Of these, the commercial, industrial and labour functional constituencies elect two members each while the other six elect one member each.

For the electoral college, the 19 district boards are grouped into 10 geographical constituencies, each consisting of between one and four district boards, and representing roughly 500 000 people. The members of the Urban Council and the Regional Council form two additional constituencies.

Elections are normally held at three-year intervals. The Governor has power to dissolve the council; on dissolution all elected members shall vacate their seats and an election shall be held within three months. A by-election is held should a casual vacancy arise.

The Legislative Council meets in public once a week, but takes a recess of about two months in August and September. Proceedings are bilingual; members may address the council in Chinese and English, and simultaneous interpretation is provided.

Legislation is enacted in the form of Bills, which go through three readings and a committee stage. Most business, including Bills, is transacted by way of motions, which are decided by the majority of votes. If a clear majority either for or against any motion is not apparent from a voice vote, the President may order the council or the committee to proceed to a division, when votes will be taken from members individually and recorded by the Clerk to the Council. Official members are expected to vote with the government on all issues, except those where a 'free vote' is expressly permitted. Private Bills, not representing government measures and intended to benefit particular persons, associations or corporate bodies, are introduced from time to time and enacted in the same way. All Bills after passing through the Legislative Council receive the assent of the Governor and are then gazetted as ordinances.

Apart from the enactment of legislation, the business of the council includes two major debates in each legislative session: a wide-ranging debate on government policy which follows the Governor's address at the opening of the new session of the council in October each year, and the budget debate on financial and economic affairs which takes place in February and March during the second reading of the annual Appropriation Bill.