HC Deb 04 December 1974 vol 882 cc491-3W
Mr. Clemitson

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the average wage in 1973 of the indigenous work force in the Crown Colony of Hong Kong, and in the textile and electronics industries in particular.

Mr. Ennals

Excluding fringe benefits, average daily wages for industrial workers in March 1973 were:

Textiles … … … HK$21.35
Electronics … … … HK$18.62
Overall … … … HK$21.00

Including fringe benefits—e.g. New Year, good attendance and efficiency bonuses—they were:

Textiles … … … HK$24.58
Electronics … … … HK$22.82
Overall … … … HK$24.35

Mr. Clemitson

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth

1965 1970 1973
5–11 age group
Numbers in age group … 694,200 747,500 694,000
Enrolment (full-time) … 484,858 642,587 654,155
Percentage of age group enrolled … 69.84 % 85.96 % 94.26 %
12–15 age group
Numbers in age group … 312,900 391,900 444,800
Enrolment (full-time) … 200,101 288,362 334,683
Percentage of age group enrolled … 63.95% 73.58% 75.24%
5–15 age group
Numbers in age group … 1,007,100 1,139,400 1,138,800
Enrolment (full-time) … 684,959 930,949 979,838
Percentage of age group enrolled … 68.01% 81.71% 86.04%

Mr. Clemitson

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the ratio of hospital beds available free of charge to the patient per 1,000 of the population in the Crown Colony of Hong Kong.

Mr. Ennals

There are a total of 16,848 beds in all hospitals in Hong Kong—ratio of 41 beds per 1,000 population. The Government make a maintenance charge, which includes medicine and treatment of HK$2 a day per patient for the 6,402 of these beds in Government hospitals. This is waived in full or in part in cases of hardship. About 3,500

Year … … 1965 1970 1973
Population … … 3,597,900 3,959,000 4,159,900
Universities … … 3,912 5,225 6,352
Polytechnics … … 1,800 1,800 2,419
Colleges of Education … … 931 1,166 1,190
Other Post-Secondary Colleges … … 2,431 4,401 5,773
Total Students … … 9,074 12,592 15,734
Percentage of Students to Population … … 0.25% 0.32% 0.38%

Affairs what was the rate of infant mortality in the Crown Colony of Hong Kong in the years 1965, 1970 and 1973.

Mr. Ennals

The rate of infant mortality per 1,000 live births in Hong Kong for these three years was as follows:

1965 … … … … … 23.7
1970 … … … … … 19.6
1973 … … … … … 16.8

Mr. Clemitson

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the percentage of children between the ages of 5 years and 15 years receiving full-time education in the Crown Colony of Hong Kong in the years 1965, 1970 and 1973.

Mr. Ennals

The table below shows the percentage of children between the ages of 5 and 15 years who were receiving full-time education during the years indicated. It is divided into three sections to show primary and post-primary distribution in this age range.

beds in Government-assisted hospitals are completely free. The hospital beds provided in Armed Services establishments are not included.

Mr. Clemitson

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what percentage of the indigenous population of the Crown Colony of Hong Kong were receiving full-time higher education after the age of 16 years in 1965, 1970 and 1973.

Mr. Ennals

The following table shows the percentage of the indigenous population receiving full-time higher education during the years indicated:

Mr. Clemitson

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what was the total expenditure on each of the following services in 1973–74 in the Crown Colony of Hong Kong, namely, education, health, social services, and police; and what was the proportion of the total gross domestic product represented by each of these items of expenditure.

Mr. Ennals

The total expenditure in the financial year 1973–74 on the services named was:

  1. (i) Education—HK$789 million, comprising HK$178 million recurrent and capital and HK$611 million on recurrent and capital subventions.
  2. (ii) Medical and Health—HK$456 million, comprising HK$322 million recurrent and capital, and HK$134 million on recurrent and capital subventions.
  3. (iii) Social Welfare—HK$147 million, comprising HK$112.8 million recurrent and capital, and HK$34.2 million on subventions, lotteries fund grants and loans.
  4. (iv) Police—HK$330 million, comprising HK$307 million recurrent and capital, and HK$23 million recurrent and capital on the Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Police Force.

The proportion of the total gross domestic product represented by each of these items is:

(i) Education, 2.52 per cent.; (ii) Medical and Health, 1.46 per cent.; (iii) Social Welfare, 0.47 per cent.; (iv) Police, 1.05 per cent.