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Cost row on hawker control

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Funding to be allocated for control of unlicensed hawkers in the coming year is unreasonably high, legislators said yesterday.

The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department has set aside $770 million for the control of unlicensed hawkers for 2000-2001, and $330 million for licensed ones.

The number of unlicensed hawkers in Hong Kong is estimated to be around 4,000, meaning an average of $192,500 will be spent on each hawker.

'I'm stunned by the amount of money that the department has set aside, and I think everyone else will be, too,' said Democrat Fred Li Wah-ming at a special Legco Finance Committee meeting yesterday.

Rita Lau Ng Wai-lan, Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene, said: 'One must also look at the number of prosecutions we make, and the impact of these hawkers' activities on environmental hygiene.'

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