政壇：睇社論學英文：綜援申領起風波 終院裁決惹爭議

這宗案件纏訟多時，原訴人先後在原訟庭及上訴庭敗訴，上訴至終院才推翻裁決，可見案件本身就存在重大爭議。由於今次裁決已是最後定讞，港府除了提請全國人大常委會釋法，已不可能推翻裁決。可惜在目前的社會和政治氣氛下，港府根本不敢提請釋法，勞工及福利局局長張建宗更聲言會盡力配合裁決，顯示港府已無奈接受現實。

這次裁決極可能引起連鎖反應，如果其他社福政策例如公屋申請也跟隨撤限，公共資源將不勝負荷。正如當年莊豐源案裁決，港府中門大開，雙非孕婦持續湧港產子，時至今日雙非兒童已累積逾二十萬人，對香港的社福、醫療、教育及房屋資源構成沉重負擔。終院的裁決猶如打開潘朵拉盒子，港人被迫吞下惡果，雙非問題殷鑑不遠，不能不令人擔憂今次撤銷申領綜援限制資格的裁決，不僅將成為港府另一管治炸彈，也將成為香港人的一個噩夢。

CFA's ruling on the seven-year residence requirement for CSSA application sparks controversy

The Court of Final Appeal (CFA) made the ultimate decision on Tuesday. It ruled unconstitutional the administrative regulation of limiting eligibility for Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) to those who have lived in Hong Kong for at least seven years. The CFA hence ordered that the practice before 2004 be restored: new immigrants only need to have resided in the city for one year before they are allowed to apply for CSSA.

The court battle has lasted for years. The plaintiff's case was thrown out consecutively by the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal. The overturning of these two previous verdicts by the CFA shows how controversial the case is. As the CFA's ruling is final, it is impossible for this verdict to be reversed unless the Hong Kong government asks the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for interpretation of the Basic Law. Unfortunately, under the present social and political atmosphere, the government dares not go down that path. Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, even said his bureau would try its best to act in concert with the ruling, demonstrating that the government has no choice but to accept the reality.

The ruling may cause a chain reaction. If other social welfare policies, such as the application for public housing, are to follow suit and rescind the seven-year rule, public resources will be put under huge pressure. It is just like the Zhuang Feng-yuan case a number of years ago, which opened the floodgate and loads of Mainland pregnant women rushed to Hong Kong to give birth. As a result, the cumulative number of children whose parents are not Hong Kong residents has increased to over 200,000, putting heavy burdens on the city's resources for social welfare, healthcare, education and housing. The CFA's ruling has opened Pandora's box and Hong Kong people are forced to take the disastrous consequence. With the lesson of the Zhuang Feng-yuan case close at hand, one cannot help but worry that the CFA's ruling may not just be another governance bomb for the administration, but indeed a nightmare for Hong Kong people.

重要生字

Court of First Instance 原訟法庭

Court of Appeal 上訴法庭

Court of Final Appeal 終審法院