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Following is a question by the Hon Sin Chung-kai and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Lai Tung-kwok, in the Legislative Council today (November 13):
Question:
It has been reported that some political parties have recently called for sanctions against the Philippines to press the Philippine Government to accept the four requests made by the injured persons and families of the deceased of the Manila hostage-taking incident. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the expenditure incurred by the Government on procuring goods from the Philippines in each of the past three years;
(b) of the total value of goods imported from the Philippines in each of the past three years, with a breakdown by goods category at Annex 1;
(c) whether it knows the number of invitations to the relevant organisations from the Philippines made by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, statutory bodies and government-subvented performing arts groups to participate in cultural exchange activities in Hong Kong in the past three years, with a breakdown by inviting body and year at Annex 2; and
(d) of the number of Filipino domestic helpers who were permitted to work in Hong Kong for the first time in each of the past five years?
Reply:
President,
The reply is as follows:
(a) According to the records of the Government Logistics Department, among government bulk procurement in the past three years, there was one item in a contract awarded in 2011 involving goods from the Philippines with an amount of about $130,000. In another contract awarded in 2012 for the supply of liquefied petroleum gas to government vehicles with a total value of $700,000, the goods came from three different places of origin including the Philippines. However, the actual amount of goods from the Philippines is not known. For the goods procured directly by various departments, as the value and quantity involved are relatively small, suppliers are normally only required to provide information such as the brand and the model of the goods. There is no relevant information on the place of origin of the goods for such procurements.
(b) The value of goods imported from the Philippines into Hong Kong in the past three years is at Annex 3.
(c) The number of invitations to the relevant organisations from the Philippines made by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, statutory bodies and government-subvented performing arts groups to participate in cultural exchange activities in Hong Kong in the past three years is at Annex 4.
(d) From 2008 to 2012, the number of visa applications as domestic helper from abroad approved to Filipinos is at Annex 5.
The Immigration Department does not maintain statistics on the number of Filipino domestic helpers who were permitted to work in Hong Kong for the first time.
Ends/Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Issued at HKT 17:25
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