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Scope and Content
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Most records and papers in this series relate to the business of the Provisional Legislative Council and its operation in Shenzhen before 1 July 1997.
a. The Provisional Legislative Council
The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) stipulates that the HKSAR shall be vested with legislative power and the Legislative Council shall be the legislature of the HKSAR. As the original intention of the Basic Law and the decision of the National People’s Congress made on 4 April 1990 for Members of the last Legislative Council under British rule to sit on the first Legislative Council of HKSAR did not materialize due to incompatibility of requirements, the “through-train” arrangement was abandoned with the term of the 1995 legislature ended on 30 June 1997.
By resolution of the Preparatory Committee for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (“Preparatory Committee”) on 24 March 1996, the Provisional Legislative Council (“PLC”) was established as the interim legislature before the formation of the first Legislative Council. On 21 December 1996, 60 Members of the PLC were elected by the Selection Committee for the First Government of the Special Administrative Region, which also elected the first Chief Executive.
Out of respect for the former British Hong Kong government that there would not be two legislative bodies operating in parallel in Hong Kong before 1 July 1997, the PLC conducted its business in Shenzhen before 1 July 1997. The PLC convened its first meeting on 25 January 1997 and Mrs. Rita FAN, former Member of the Legislative Council, was elected President of the PLC.
The first regular Council meeting of the PLC was held on 22 February 1997 at the Huaxia Art Centre which continued to be the venue for the meetings of the PLC and of its committees and working groups until 21 June 1997. During this period, two Working Groups including the Working Group on Administrative Matters and the Working Group on Rules of Procedure were set up by resolution to supervise the operation of a secretariat to service the Council, and to draw up the Rules of Procedure, the House Rules and the Finance Committee Procedure respectively. The House Committee, Finance Committee and Committee on Members’ Interests were also established after adoption of the Rules of Procedure of the PLC on 12 April 1997.
Following the establishment of the HKSAR on 1 July 1997, the PLC moved back to Hong Kong and held its first meeting in Hong Kong on the same day at 2:45 am at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre Extension. It passed the Hong Kong Reunification Bill to confirm the bills passed and certain motions adopted by the PLC before 1 July 1997. PLC ceased to operate after the first Legislative Council of HKSAR was formed on 1 July 1998.
b. Provisional Legislative Council Secretariat
The Provisional Legislative Council Secretariat (“PLC Secretariat”) provided support services for the PLC. Before it was set up, the Preparatory Committee Secretariat had temporarily serviced the Council. On 10 February 1997, a team of 10 staff members deployed from the Legislative Council Secretariat was engaged by the Chief Executive to service the PLC as an interim arrangement. The arrangement for these staff members to resign from the LegCo Secretariat to join the PLC Secretariat was made under the consensus that they would be integrated into the future secretariat comprising also the existing staff of the LegCo Secretariat from 1 July 1997 onwards.
During the Council’s operation in Shenzhen, the PLC Secretariat was under the supervision of the Working Group on Administrative Matters. In view that meetings of the Council were to be held in Shenzhen, the office of the Secretariat was placed in Shenzhen. As Members were based in Hong Kong, communication between Members and the Secretariat was facilitated through the Office of Mrs. Rita FAN.
c. Scope and content
This series compromises records and papers created and received by Mr. Arthur CHEUNG in his role as the Legal Adviser to the PLC from February to June 1997. He was responsible for serving as Counsel to the Council and Finance Committee and providing legal advice and support to other PLC committees and working groups.
Materials in this series include original records, and copies and drafts of documents on a wide range of subjects, such as Council meetings, meetings of the committees and working groups as well as the administrative and logistical arrangements for servicing the PLC, procedures of the PLC, office administration and staffing of the Secretariat and communications with the Cheif Executive’s Office regarding the procedural and other miscellaneous matters. Majority of the records relate to the business conducted in Shenzhen from February to June 1997, save for deposit LAS62/9 which contains records of the Committee on Rules of Procedure formed in September 1997.
The types of records and papers in the files include notice of meeting, agenda, minutes, papers, memoranda, reports including Legal Adviser’s reports, correspondence among Members, the PLC Secretariat and the Chief Executive’s Office, chairman’s brief, PLC briefs, motions and resolutions, rules and procedures, speeches and speaking notes, newspaper clippings, extracts of publications, personal notes, etc. Handwritten comments and remarks by Mr. CHEUNG were found in some papers.
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Material Type
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Agendas, Bills, Correspondence Files, Hansard, Minutes of Meeting, Motions, Reports, Rules and Procedures, Sessional Papers
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CorrespondenceFiles
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Correspondence Files
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MinutesOfMeeting
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Minutes of Meeting
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Procedures
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Rules and Procedures
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SessionalPapers
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Sessional Papers
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Others (
Press Cuttings, Publications
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Physical Description
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Record items comprise bound volumes and loose papers.
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