July 2014 Issue No. 213 Establishment of the Independent Insurance Authority (IIA) Through the kind assistance of the Hon K P Chan, the Task Force on IIA has met most of the members of the Legislative Council's Bills Committee during the past month. We are pleased to note that Legco members acknowledged the issues we raised, recognised what the key concerns are and taken on board our proposed solutions. It was duly reflected at the Bills Committee meeting held on 21 July where members raised concerns and questions on those key issues including industry's representation, disciplinary procedure, appeals mechanism, etc. With the summer recess of the Legislative Council, we will make use of this break to review our position, fine tune our proposals and strengthen our communications with stakeholders. We will continue to do our best endeavours to get the Bill right and fit for purpose. Health Protection Scheme (HPS)
We had a very fruitful meeting with Secretary for Food and Health Dr Ko Wing Man on 16 July 2014. During the meeting, Dr Ko invited us to come up with concrete counter-proposal to address the deficiencies of HPS as identified by the industry before the Administration issues a public consultation document in the last quarter of 2014. The Task Force on Health Care Reform will meet very shortly to put together a full response to the Food and Health Bureau. Hong Kong Insurance Awards 2014 The response from Member Companies and industry practitioners has been most positive and encouraging. Please be reminded that the deadline for submitting entries is 8 August 2014. Visit our official website now at www.metroradio.com.hk/Campaign/2014/104/HKIA/ and compete for excellence! Greater China Affairs We had an extremely busy time last week. On 22 July 2014, together with representatives from the banking and securities industries, I joined a meeting at the Trade and Industry Department and met a Mainland delegation led by the Ministry of Commerce. I presented the insurance industry's wish list to Mr Liu Zhifu (劉智夫), Director of the China Insurance Regulatory Commission's (CIRC) International Department, on the implementation of CEPA, in particular allowing insurers to set up customer service centre in designated cities in the Guangdong Province and establish an anti-fraud platform across the border. I am pleased to report that Mr Liu was very supportive of our proposals.