Miss Alice Mak Advances Youth Development Initiatives During Laos Visit

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs visits Laos to learn about youth development work

The Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Miss Alice Mak, continued her visit to Vientiane, Laos, today (December 11).

Miss Mak met with the Secretary General of the Lao Youth Union, Mr Monexay Laomoaxong, in the morning, and shared work and experiences in nurturing the new generation of young people and promoting youth development with the Youth Union.

Miss Mak then visited the Minister of Education and Sports, Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR), Dr Phout Simmalavong. During the meeting, Miss Mak expressed her gratitude for Laos' support to the youth development work of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government. The Home and Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB) held the inaugural Youth Development Summit in August this year, which featured officials responsible for youth policies from various countries as guest speakers, including the Deputy Minister of Education and Sports, Lao PDR, Mr Kingmano Phommahaxay. The Summit attracted over 2 400 young people to register to participate, and about 500 of them came from the Mainland and other overseas locations such as Laos, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand. Miss Mak and Dr Phout Simmalavong also exchanged views on the youth development work of the two places and explored possibilities for strengthening bilateral cooperation to provide Hong Kong youth with more opportunities to broaden their international perspectives.

In the afternoon, Miss Mak visited the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme in Laos, where she met with representatives from the agencies and volunteer interns to learn about the operation of the United Nations Volunteers - Hong Kong Universities Volunteer Internship Programme and the working environment of the interns. The HYAB promulgated the Youth Development Blueprint at the end of 2022, which proposed further strengthening of the breadth and depth of the Mainland and international internship and exchange programmes with a view to enhancing young people's understanding of the development of the country and the world. In 2024, the HYAB collaborated with the United Nations Volunteers, the Agency for Volunteer Service, the Hong Kong Volunteers Association and the Peace and Development Foundation to launch a new round of the United Nations Volunteers - Hong Kong Universities Volunteer Internship Programme, offering a total of 25 internship positions under various United Nations agencies and expanding to more countries along the Belt and Road region. Hong Kong university students participating in the programme will have the opportunity to undertake six-month voluntary internships at United Nations field units located overseas, which will enable them to develop their personal capabilities while contributing to the international community as Chinese youth volunteers.

Miss Mak said that 130 Hong Kong university students have participated in the programme so far. They had the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in the country's involvement in international affairs and understand China's contributions and influences on the global landscape, thereby deepening their understanding of Hong Kong's role and positioning. The HYAB will continue to leverage Hong Kong's unique advantages to actively promote exchanges among young people in Hong Kong, the Mainland, and overseas.

Miss Mak will arrive in Hanoi, Vietnam, in the evening, and will continue her visit tomorrow (December 12).

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs visits Laos to learn about youth development work Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs visits Laos to learn about youth development work Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs visits Laos to learn about youth development work Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs visits Laos to learn about youth development work Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs visits Laos to learn about youth development work Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs visits Laos to learn about youth development work Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

LC: Speech by CS for proposed resolutions moved under Legal Aid Ordinance and Criminal Procedure Ordinance

Following is the speech (translated from Chinese) by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, for the proposed resolutions under the Legal Aid Ordinance (LAO) and the Criminal Procedure Ordinance in the Legislative Council (LegCo) today (December 11):

Mr President,

I move that my first motion, as printed on the Agenda, be passed to adjust the financial eligibility limits (FELs) for legal aid applicants. Later, I will sequentially move that the other two legal aid-related motions as printed on the Agenda be passed, seeking to adjust the Director of Legal Aid (DLA)'s First Charge and make the Legal Aid in Criminal Cases (Amendment) Rules 2024 to adjust the criminal legal aid fees respectively.

First, I introduce the first Resolution.

Legal aid services form an integral part of the legal system in Hong Kong. The policy objective of legal aid is to ensure that all those who comply with the regulations of the LAO and have reasonable grounds for pursuing or defending a legal action in the courts of Hong Kong will not be denied access to justice due to a lack of means. All legal aid applicants must satisfy both the means test and merits test as provided for in the LAO.

Currently, there are two legal aid schemes under the Legal Aid Department (LAD), namely the Ordinary Legal Aid Scheme (OLAS) and the Supplementary Legal Aid Scheme (SLAS). Different FELs are set for the two schemes in accordance with sections 5 and 5A of the LAO respectively. Pursuant to section 7(a) of the LAO, the LegCo may by resolution amend the relevant FELs.

Pursuant to the mechanism established in 1999, FELs are subject to review annually by making reference to the Consumer Price Index (C) (CPI(C)). According to the latest round of review, for the reference period from July 2023 to July 2024, the CPI(C) has increased by two per cent. Hence, we propose to adjust the FELs upwards by two per cent, namely:

(a) from $440,800 to $449,620 for OLAS; and

(b) from $2,204,030 to $2,248,110 for SLAS.

Mr President, I now introduce the second Resolution.

If a legally aided person is successful in recovering or preserving any money or property in the proceedings concerned, DLA has the right to retain thereunder such sums required for recovering the costs and other expenses incurred by LAD for the legally aided person under section 18A(1) of the LAO. Such right is called the DLA's first charge. However, according to section 18A(5) of the LAO, the DLA's first charge does not apply to the first $9,540 of each monthly payment of maintenance payment. Separately, when DLA is satisfied that the exercise of the DLA's first charge would cause serious hardship to the legally aided person, DLA may in accordance with the principles of fairness and justice exercise discretion to reduce the amount to be retained, provided that the sum to be reduced does not exceed the cap as specified in section 19B(1)(a) of the LAO.

Pursuant to section 22A of the LAO, LegCo may, by resolution, amend the rate of maintenance payments that is exempted from the DLA's first charge, as well as the cap on the amount by which may be reduced in cases of serious hardship.

In response to the increase in CPI(C) by two per cent for the reference period from July 2023 to July 2024 as mentioned above, we propose to accordingly adjust the two above-mentioned specific amounts upwards by two per cent, namely:

(a) the amount specified in section 18A(5) upwards from $9,540 to $9,730, and

(b) the cap on the amount specified in section 19B(1)(a) upwards from $114,140 to $116,420.

Mr President, my third Resolution seeks to make the Legal Aid in Criminal Cases (Amendment) Rules 2024 (Amendment Rules) to adjust the criminal legal aid fees.

At present, LAD pays fees to counsel and solicitors in private practice engaged to undertake litigation work for criminal cases on its behalf (i.e. criminal legal aid fees). The fees are stipulated in the Legal Aid in Criminal Cases Rules (the Rules). Pursuant to section 9A(1) of the Criminal Procedure Ordinance, any amendment to the Rules for adjusting the criminal legal aid fees are subject to the approval of the LegCo.

On the other hand, to ensure that neither LAD nor the Department of Justice (DoJ) would have unfair advantage in competing for the same pool of lawyers, DoJ draws reference to the same scale of fees to engage counsel and solicitors in private practice to appear for the prosecution in criminal cases (i.e. prosecution fees). Duty lawyer fees will be paid to lawyers who provide legal representation to defendants in Magistrates' Courts and Juvenile Courts through the Duty Lawyer Service.

Pursuant to the mechanism established in 1992, the fees mentioned above (i.e. criminal legal aid fees, prosecution fees and duty lawyer fees) are subject to review on a biennial basis to take into account changes in CPI(C) during the reference period.

According to the latest biennial review, the CPI(C) for the reference period (i.e. July 2022 to July 2024) increased by 3.9 per cent. As such, we propose to adjust the Fees upwards by 3.9 per cent accordingly.

We have informed the LegCo Panel on Administration of Justice and Legal Services of the outcome of the reviews regarding the proposed adjustments in the three resolutions mentioned above via an information paper in October 2024. Members raised no objection to the proposed increase. Subject to LegCo's approval of the Resolution, we will implement the proposal upon gazettal of the Resolution.

Separately, when LAD implements the increased criminal legal aid fees, the Government will accordingly adjust the scale of prosecution fees and duty lawyer fees administratively.

I appeal for Members' support for the above three Resolutions. Thank you, Mr President.