Doing our utmost to meet challenges head-on

This week, the Government took another step forward by setting up two committees on free kindergarten education and standard working hours.

On Monday, the Secretary for Education, Mr Eddie Ng Hak-kim, announced the setting up of the Committee on Free Kindergarten Education, which will make practicable recommendations to the Government on the implementation of free kindergarten education. During my election campaign, many members of the education sector and parents expressed to me their hopes for better early childhood education, including the provision of 15-year free education. The formation of the Committee signifies a further step in honouring my election pledges. Indeed, introducing free kindergarten education is no simple task since there are major differences among kindergartens in teacher qualifications, as well as in the scale, cost and mode of operation. We need time to discuss in detail and in depth a host of topics of concern to the education sector and parents. These include the operation and different needs of whole-day and half-day kindergartens, subvention modes, teacher-to-student ratio, and monitoring and governance framework.

On Tuesday, the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, announced the establishment of the Standard Working Hours Committee, as proposed in my Manifesto. The Committee comprises members from the labour, business and academic sectors and others. I believe that they will conduct discussions on standard working hours in an objective and holistic manner with a view to building consensus and identifying the way forward. Although the standard working hours issue is also a complex one, we will not shrink from it. Instead, we have taken the first step to tackle it. We hope the whole community can thoroughly discuss this controversial issue and then reach a fair decision.

Less than a year into its current term, the new Government has already put in place a number of pragmatic measures for the people, fulfilling my election pledges in a progressive and systematic manner. The establishment of the Committee on Free Kindergarten Education and the Standard Working Hours Committee once again demonstrates the HKSAR Government's commitment to meeting challenges head-on and doing real work. Even in the face of controversial issues, we will still work together with the whole community as one to seek consensus.

April 11, 2013