Remarks by Ir Dr the Honourable Raymond Ho Chung-tai, MBE, JP on the motion on
“Motion of Thanks
– Enlightened People with a Rich Culture”
at the Legislative Council meeting
on 26 January 2005

Madam President,

Hong Kong is in a transition to a knowledge-based economy, the government's pledge of substantial investment in education in the 2005 Policy Address is appreciated. I hope that, with the persistence of the government in education, all people in Hong Kong will have equal opportunities to receive education.

In the 2000 Policy Address, the government had a target of providing, within 10 years, 60% of our senior secondary school leavers with an opportunity to receive higher education. I am glad to learn that the overall participation rate of the relevant age group in tertiary education has increased from 30% in 2000 to 53% today. This fact reflects two things: first, the government has kept its promise of promoting higher education; second, people in Hong Kong are aware of the importance of education and they are willing to devote efforts to upgrade themselves. Both of these deserve our appreciation.

As I have mentioned in the past, it is good to extend the coverage of our higher education as far as possible, but quantity should not be achieved at the expense of quality. I would like to remind the government of two points:

First, based on the estimated job market demand, the government needs to plan ahead the types of programmes to be offered to students in the coming years and provide spaces accordingly. Over supply of graduates of disciplines not much needed by the job market will only lead to an undesirable mismatch of human resources and social problems such as unemployment.

Second, quality of education programmes, graduates and lecturers must be ensured. The principle of life-long learning should apply not only to people engaged in the commercial but also educational field. Therefore, lecturers, professors, and primary as well as secondary school teachers are expected to upgrade themselves from time to time. On the other hand, there is an increasing trend of plagiarism. This problem should be dealt with properly.

Last year, the proposal of “3+3+4” academic structure reform was introduced. I personally hold a positive attitude towards this proposal. In my opinion, the current 3-year duration for a first degree is insufficient for some disciplines, especially those leading to professional qualifications such as engineering. The proposed 4-year system will enable students to acquire more knowledge making them more competitive with their overseas counterparts. Moreover, this new system works more in line with other universities overseas. This can facilitate students to achieve credit transfer and further education.

Undeniably, the 4-year university system will put a heavier financial burden on the government; but as I have raised with the government before, this problem can be partly solved by raising the current overseas student ratio and charging them higher tuition fees. In the U.K. , foreign students are required to pay fees several times higher than their local counterparts. Responding to my repeated request, the government has increased the ratio from 4% to 8%, but it is still very low compared with universities in other countries. As we are suffering from fiscal deficit, why doesn't the government follow the same?

Apart from education, the 2005 Policy Address also covers some issues relating to home affairs. On 12 January 2005 , the Chief Executive announced that 25 projects of the former Municipal Councils had been identified for implementation. While I appreciate the government's efforts, I must emphasize that most of these projects will only have their construction work started after 2008 and some even after 2010. This is most disappointing and even ridiculous! I strongly suggest that, to cope with the citizens' demand more fully, particularly because these municipal projects are very much to do with the citizens' quality of life, Mr. Tung should personally look into this critically.

Hong Kong is a place where stress is often found in people and it is reported from time to time that citizens do not have enough physical exercise. To ensure that our workforce is healthy mentally and physically, it is necessary for the government to provide citizens with sufficient relevant facilities such as sports centers and stadia to encourage them to do more exercise. However, currently the facilities of some sports centres are inadequate, outdated and found to be poorly maintained. I hope that the government will improve on it and make sure that the management of these sports centers is up to the desired standards.

Lunar New Year is coming. I hope that all people in Hong Kong will enjoy a prosperous year and good health conditions. Hong Kong is undergoing an economic restructuring. An educational reform is needed to cope with this change. The “3+3+4” academic structure reform proposal has been introduced and since it will have a great impact on our children and Hong Kong 's future, a thorough and extensive consultation is necessary. Hopefully, under the new educational system, we will have an efficient and a high quality workforce to work for the future of Hong Kong .

Madam President, I so submit. Thank you.