### Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance 《立法會(權力及特權)條例》

8. Regulation of admittance to precincts of the Chamber
(1) Subject to this section, sittings of the Council shall be open to the public.
(2) The right of persons other than members or officers of the Council to enter or remain within the precincts of the Chamber shall be subject to the Rules of Procedure or any resolution of the Council limiting or prohibiting the enjoyment of such right. (Amended 71 of 2000 s. 3)
(3) The President may from time to time, for the purpose of maintaining the security of the precincts of the Chamber, ensuring the proper behaviour and decorum of persons therein and for other administrative purposes, issue such administrative instructions as he may deem necessary or expedient for regulating the admittance of persons (other than members or officers of the Council) to, and the conduct of such persons within, the Chamber and the precincts of the Chamber.
(4) Copies of administrative instructions issued by the President under subsection (3) shall be duly authenticated by the Clerk and exhibited in a conspicuous position in the precincts of the Chamber; and such copies when so authenticated and exhibited shall be deemed to be sufficient notice to all persons affected thereby.

8A. Extension of privileges and immunities
(1) The persons specified in subsection (2) shall, in the relevant circumstances described in that subsection, enjoy the same privileges or immunities as those provided in or conferred on the members by section 3, 4 or 5.
(2) The persons and circumstances referred to in subsection (1) are—
(a) the Chief Executive when present at a sitting of the Council or a committee; and
(b) any public officer designated by the Chief Executive for the purpose of attending sittings of the Council or any committee, while so designated and attending any such sitting. (Amended 71 of 2000 s. 3)
(Added 11 of 1994 s. 5)

9. Power to order attendance of witnesses
(1) The Council or a standing committee thereof may, subject to sections 13 and 14, order any person to attend before the Council or before such committee and to give evidence or to produce any paper, book, record or document in the possession or under the control of such person.
(2) The powers conferred by subsection (1) on a standing committee may be exercised by any other committee which is specially authorized by a resolution of the Council to exercise such powers in respect of any matter or question specified in the resolution.

### Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance 《立法會(權力及特權)條例》

10. Attendance to be notified by summons
(1) Where any person is lawfully ordered to attend to give evidence or to produce documents before the Council or a committee, he shall be notified by a summons issued under the hand of the Clerk by direction of the President.
(2) In every summons issued to any person under subsection (1) there shall be stated the name of that person and the time when and the place where he is required to attend and the particular documents (if any) he is required to produce, and the summons shall be served on him either by delivering to him a copy thereof or by leaving a copy thereof at his usual or last known place of abode in Hong Kong with some adult person.
(3) A summons issued under this section may be served by an officer of the Council or by a police officer or any public officer.

11. Witnesses may be examined on oath
(1) The Council or a committee may require that any facts, matters and things relating to the subject of inquiry before the Council or such committee be verified or otherwise ascertained by the oral examination of witnesses, and may cause any such witnesses to be examined upon oath.
(2) An oath required to be taken under this section may be administered by the Clerk or by any other person appointed by the Council for that purpose or, in the case of a witness before a committee, by the chairman of the committee or by the member presiding in the absence of the chairman.

### Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance 《立法會(權力及特權)條例》

12. Power to issue warrant to compel attendance
(1) Where a person to whom a summons is issued under section 10 does not attend before the Council or the committee at the time and place stated therein, the President may, if satisfied that the summons has been duly served or that such person has wilfully avoided service, direct the Clerk to issue a warrant in the prescribed form to apprehend him and bring him, at a time and place stated in the warrant, before the Council or committee, as the case may be.
(2) Where a warrant is issued under this section, the President may, by ordering an appropriate endorsement on the warrant, direct that the person named in the warrant be brought before a magistrate after arrest and released on entering into such recognizance for his appearance before the Council or committee as may be specified in the endorsement.
(3) A warrant issued under this section shall be executed by a police officer.
(4) A magistrate may, when a person is brought before him under subsection (2), release that person upon his entering into such recognizance as may be specified in the endorsement on the warrant.
(5) Every warrant and every endorsement on such warrant purporting to bear the signature of the Clerk under this section shall be deemed, unless the contrary is proved, to have been issued or made under the direction or order of the President under this section.
(6) The Chief Executive may, by order in the Gazette, prescribe a form of warrant for the purposes of this section. (Amended 71 of 2000 s. 3)

### Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) Ordinance 《立法會(權力及特權)條例》

13. Objection to answer question or produce papers
(1) Subject to section 14, where any person lawfully ordered to attend to give evidence or to produce any paper, book, record or document before the Council refuses to answer any question that may be put to him or to produce any such paper, book, record or document on the ground that the same is of a private nature and does not affect the subject of inquiry, the President may (and shall if such question or the production of such paper, book, record or document is not relevant) excuse the answering of such question or the production of such paper, book, record or document, or may order the answering or production thereof.
(2) Subject to section 14, where any person lawfully ordered to attend to give evidence or to produce any paper, book, record or document before any committee refuses to answer any question that may be put to him or to produce any such paper, book, record or document on the ground that the same is of a private nature and does not affect the subject of inquiry, the chairman of the committee may report such refusal to the President with the reasons therefor; and the President may (and shall if such question or the production of such paper, book, record or document is not relevant) thereupon excuse the answering of such question or the production of such paper, book, record or document or may order the answering or production thereof.

14. Privileges of witnesses
(1) Every person lawfully ordered to attend to give evidence or to produce any paper, book, record or document before the Council or a committee shall, subject to section 16, be entitled, in respect of such evidence or the disclosure of any communication or the production of any such paper, book, record or document, to the same right or privilege as before a court of law.
(2) No person, other than a public officer acting with the consent of the Chief Executive, shall before the Council or a committee— (Amended 71 of 2000 s. 3)
(a) give any evidence; or
(b) produce any paper, book, record or document,
relating to the correspondence concerning—
(i) any naval, military or air force matter or of any other matter relating to the security of Hong Kong; or
(ii) the responsibilities of the Central People’s Government otherwise than with respect to the administration of Hong Kong by its Government, (Amended 71 of 2000 s. 3)
nor shall secondary evidence be received by or produced before the Council or a committee of the contents of any such paper, book, record or document.