LCQ10: Appointment of representatives from trade unions or employee bodies to advisory and statutory bodies
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Question:
Regarding the appointment of representatives of trade unions or employee bodies as non-official members of advisory and statutory bodies (ASBs), will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the current respective numbers and proportions of representatives of trade unions or employee bodies in the non-official members of various ASBs (set out in the table below);
| Name of ASB | Representatives of trade unions or employee bodies | |
| Number | Proportion | |
(2) of the details of the invitations extended in the past five years by the authorities to representatives of the relevant trade unions or employee bodies to join various ASBs (set out in the table below); and
| Name of ASB | Name of trade union or employee body | Number of persons accepting invitation | Number of persons declining invitation |
(3) whether it has stipulated any criteria for appointing representatives of the relevant trade unions or employee bodies to ASBs; if it has, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; for those ASBs whose non-official members do not include representatives of such type, how they gauge the views of the employees in the relevant industries when performing their functions; whether it will require that among the non-official members of various ASBs, a certain number and proportion of the members must be representatives of such type; if it will, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
A consolidated reply to the Hon Wong Kwok-hing’s question is provided below.
Advisory and statutory bodies (ASBs) are an integral part of public administration and play an important role in assisting the Government in the formulation of policy objectives and performance of statutory functions. Through these bodies, various sectors of the community and relevant organisations may express their views at various stages in the formulation of policies and planning of public services by the Government and participate in public affairs.
At present, there are about 470 ASBs in Hong Kong. The system of ASBs is multi-faceted, including various advisory boards and committees, public bodies, appeal boards, regulatory bodies. Based on the information provided by various bureaux, the particulars of those ASBs which have appointed representatives of trade unions or employee bodies as members are at Annex. We do not keep statistics on the number of invitations extended to representatives of trade unions or employee bodies to join ASBs and their responses to such invitations.
Appointments of individuals by the Government as non-official members of ASBs are based on merits. When appointing a member to serve on an ASB, the relevant bureau or department takes into account the candidate’s ability, expertise, experience, integrity and commitment to public service. Taking account of the functions and nature of business of ASBs, the authorities concerned may appoint persons from certain sectors or of certain professional background, such as representatives of trade unions or employee bodies, professionals, academics, businessmen and representatives from districts or related sectors as members to cater for the needs of the relevant ASBs.
Government bureaux and departments will consider the membership size and composition of ASBs in accordance with their functions and operational needs. As there are different functions and nature among ASBs, it would not be appropriate for us to mandate the appointment of representatives of trade unions or employee bodies as ASB members.
Ends/Wednesday, July 13, 2016
Issued at HKT 12:40
Issued at HKT 12:40
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