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The Regional Council (RegCo; ) was a
municipal council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counci ...
in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
responsible for
municipal services
Municipal services or city services refer to basic services that residents of a city expect to the city government to provide in exchange for the taxes which citizens pay. Basic city services may include sanitation (both sewer and refuse), wate ...
in the
New Territories
The New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory, and contains around half of the population of Hong Kong. Historically, it ...
(excluding
New Kowloon
New Kowloon is an area in Hong Kong, bounded in the south by Boundary Street, and in the north by the ranges of the Eagle's Nest, Beacon Hill, Lion Rock, Tate's Cairn and Kowloon Peak. It covers the present-day Kwun Tong District and Wong Tai S ...
). Its services were provided by the
Regional Services Department
Regional Services Department () was a government department in Hong Kong, under the Broadcasting, Culture and Sport Branch. It carried out the policies and managed the facilities of the former Regional Council. After being abolished with the ...
, the executive arm of the Regional Council. Its headquarters were located near
Sha Tin station
Sha Tin station, formerly known as Sha Tin railway station ( or ) is a List of MTR stations, station on the of Hong Kong's MTR, Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system. The station is located in the town centre of Sha Tin.
The station was formerly o ...
.
History
Technically, only Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and New Kowloon were within the purview of the Urban Council. But the
Urban Services Department
Urban Services Department () was a government department in Hong Kong. It carried out the policies and managed the facilities of the former Urban Council. After being abolished with the Urban Council in 1999, its functions were inherited by the ...
, the executive arm of the Urban Council, began servicing the New Territories with its establishment in 1953.
Following public consultation, a Provisional Regional Council was established on 1 April 1985 under the auspices of the colonial
Hong Kong Government
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government, refers to the Executive (government), executive authorities of Hong Kong Special administrative regions of China, ...
, to provide for the New Territories what the
Urban Council
The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Services ...
did for
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...
,
New Kowloon
New Kowloon is an area in Hong Kong, bounded in the south by Boundary Street, and in the north by the ranges of the Eagle's Nest, Beacon Hill, Lion Rock, Tate's Cairn and Kowloon Peak. It covers the present-day Kwun Tong District and Wong Tai S ...
and
Kowloon
Kowloon () is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. With a population of 2,019,533 and a population density of in 2006, it is the most populous area in Hong Kong, compared with Hong Kong Island and t ...
. Like the Urban Council, the Regional Council was created in 1986 as an elected body comprising representatives from
constituencies
An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...
and
district boards.
In 1986, planning began for the council's headquarters building. Until permanent premises were built, departments of the Regional Council were scattered around various buildings in
Tsim Sha Tsui
Tsim Sha Tsui, often abbreviated as TST, is an list of areas of Hong Kong, urban area in southern Kowloon, Hong Kong. The area is administratively part of the Yau Tsim Mong District. Tsim Sha Tsui East is a piece of land reclaimed from the Hu ...
.
A site was selected near
Sha Tin
Sha Tin, also spelt Shatin, is a neighbourhood along Shing Mun River in the eastern New Territories, Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the Sha Tin District. Sha Tin is one of the neighbourhoods of the Sha Tin New Town project.
The ne ...
Town Centre and construction began in April 1989.
It was opened on 27 September 1991 by governor
David Wilson and Lady Wilson.
[ The building consisted of a low block, housing the council chambers, alongside a 20-storey tower home to the various units of the Regional Services Department. The building was designed by Peter Keeping, a senior architect of the ]Architectural Services Department
The Architectural Services Department is a department of the Government of Hong Kong responsible for the design and construction of many public facilities throughout the territory. It is subordinate to the Works Branch of the Development Bu ...
, and cost $200 million.[ The entrance is guarded by two marble lions made in Beijing. Today the building is the headquarters of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department.
Elections to the Regional Council were held since ]1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
**Spain and Portugal ente ...
with first-past-the-post voting
In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...
. The composition of the Regional Council is as follows:
Function and structure
The Regional Council structure comprised the full Regional Council, functional select committees, district committees, and sub-committees.
Initially, three functional select committees were planned: the Ways and Means Select Committee, the Environmental Hygiene Select Committee, and the Recreation and Culture Select Committee. They were joined by the Liquor Licensing Board at the founding of the council in 1986, and in 1987 the Ways and Means Select Committee was split into two committees: the Capital Works Select Committee and the Finance and Administration Select Committee. From 4 July 1997, the Recreation and Culture Select Committee was separated into the Culture and Arts Select Committee and the Recreation and Sports Committee, forming an eventual six select committees by the time the council was dissolved.
The nine district committees were as follows: Islands; Kwai Chung and Tsing Yi; North District; Sai Kung; Sha Tin; Tai Po; Tsuen Wan; Tuen Mun; and Yuen Long District Committee.
Demise
After the transfer of sovereignty in 1997, the name was once again changed to Provisional Regional Council, consisting of members of the pre-handover RegCo, and new members appointed by the Chief Executive
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
. The council was dissolved on 31 December 1999 together with the Provisional Urban Council
The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Services ...
under the then-Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa
Tung Chee-hwa (; born 7 July 1937) is a Hong Kong businessman and politician who served as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong between 1997 and 2005, upon the transfer of sovereignty on 1 July. He is currently a vice-chairman of the Chine ...
's plan to streamline and centralise municipal services as part of his government policy reforms. The Regional Council and Urban Council had, since 1998, jointly objected to this plan, putting forward an alternative merger proposal entitled "One Council, One Department", which was not accepted by the government. The final chairman commented:
The functions of the councils were replaced by two newly established government departments, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department
The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) is a department of the Hong Kong Government, reporting to the Environment and Ecology Bureau. It is responsible for food hygiene and environmental hygiene. It replaced part of the role of ...
and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department
The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD), is a department in the Government of Hong Kong. It reports to the Culture, Sports & Tourism Bureau, headed by the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism. It provides leisure and cultural ...
. The former Regional Council Headquarters is now home to the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. The archives of the two municipal councils are held by the Hong Kong Public Libraries
The Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL; ) is a system of 70 static and 12 mobile public libraries in Hong Kong. Offering a total collection of 14.35 million items, the system is managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. The ne ...
, and are available online in digitised form.
Lists of Chairmen
* Cheung Yan-lung
Benton Cheung Yan-lung, CBE, OStJ, JP (18 April 1922 – 19 September 2021) was a Hong Kong businessman and politician with New Territories rural background. He was a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong from 1981 to 1991 and cha ...
(1986-1995)
* Lam Wai-keung
Daniel Lam Wai-keung () SBS, JP is the former Chairman of the Hong Kong Regional Council (se as well as a former member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong.
He is currently vice-chairman of the Heung Yee Kuk, an organisation representing ...
(1995-1997)
* Lau Wong-fat
Lau Wong-fat, GBM, GBS, OBE, JP (; 15 October 1936 – 23 July 2017) was a Hong Kong businessman and politician. He had been the long-time chairman of the Rural Council, the most powerful organ representing the interests of the New Territo ...
(1997-1999)
See also
* Urban Council
The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Services ...
* Taiwan Provincial Council
The Taiwan Provincial Consultative Council (TPCC) was the council of the streamlined Taiwan Province of the Republic of China. In July 2018, all duties of the Taiwan Provincial Government and TPCC were transferred to the National Development Co ...
Notes
Bibliography
*
External links
Food and Environmental Hygiene Department
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050828185134/http://www.fehd.gov.hk/indexe.html , date=28 August 2005
Leisure and Cultural Services Department
Politics of Hong Kong
History of Hong Kong
Waste management in Hong Kong