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Following is the speech (English translation) by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Raymond Tam, in moving the resumption of the second reading of the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2011 in the Legislative Council today (February 22):
Acting Madam President,
In January 2010, five Legislative Council (LegCo) Members returned by geographical constituencies (GCs) resigned and stood in the by-elections. The incident led to considerable concern in the community. Following that incident, there was a large body of public opinion that the Government should examine ways to plug the loophole in order to prevent similar incidents to occur.
Against the above background, in May 2011 the Government proposed a replacement arrangement to fill any vacancy of a LegCo GC and the new District Council (second) functional constituency (DC (second) FC), and subsequently introduced the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2011 (the Bill). The Bill sought to amend the Legislative Council Ordinance (LCO) to provide for the filling of any vacancy in the membership of the LegCo in any GC or the DC (second) FC by a replacement mechanism.
In examining the Bill, there was a large body of opinion that the Government should conduct a comprehensive public consultation on this important issue. The Bills Committee was also of the view that the Administration should provide more time to consider suggestions of the Members. In response to the above, the Government decided not to resume the second reading debate of the Bill for voting at that time and published the Consultation Paper on Arrangements for Filling Vacancies in the Legislative Council on July 22, 2011 for a two-month public consultation. Subsequently, the Government published the Consultation Report on Arrangements for Filling Vacancies in the Legislative Council, which provides a summary of the views received during the public consultation period on January 20, 2012.
Having considered the views of LegCo Members and different sectors of the community expressed through various channels and means during the public consultation, we have proposed a latest proposal. A vacancy arising mid-term in a GC, the DC (second) FC or any other functional constituency (FC) under section 15 or section 72 of the LCO or Article 79 of the Basic Law would continue to be filled by a by-election. Electors could continue to exercise their right to vote. A Member who has voluntarily resigned from office under section 13 or section 14 of the LCO would be prohibited from standing in any by-elections in the same LegCo term within six months of his resignation.
We introduced the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2012 into the LegCo to implement the above latest proposal on February 8 this year.
Since we have introduced the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2012 to address the mischief arising from Members resigning at will in order to trigger by-elections in which they seek to stand, we will not further pursue the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2011. In accordance with the relevant procedures, I now withdraw the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2011. The withdrawal, as I would like to emphasise, is based on the following considerations:
(a) the Government has introduced the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2012 to address the relevant mischief;
(b) the sole purpose of withdrawing the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2011 is to adhere to the relevant technical procedures; and
(c) the Bill is withdrawn in response to its unique circumstances and the withdrawal should not be regarded as a precedent.
I take this opportunity to thank Members, in particular Members of the Bills Committee on Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2011, for their work in examining the Bill.
I move to resume the second reading debate on the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill 2011 for the withdrawal of the Bill. Thank you, President.
Ends/Wednesday, February 22, 2012
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