I am pleased to inform you of the results of the election of Council Members for 2005. These were announced at the 32nd Annual General Meeting ("AGM") on Friday, 17 December 2004. For details, please visit the Institute's website at www.hkicpa.org.hk.

The following eight members have been elected to serve on the Council for a term of two years:

Under section 12 of the Professional Accountants Ordinance, the following six elected Council Members will hold office for one more year:

The Council also includes two ex-officio Council Members, namely, the representative of the Financial Secretary and the Director of Accounting Services, who are Mr. Gordon W.E. Jones and Ms. Lucia Li.

For the first time, under section 10(2)(d) & (e) of the Professional Accountants Ordinance, immediate Past President Mr. Roger Best will continue to serve on the Council for one more year and the Chief Executive of the HKSAR has appointed four non-accountants to the Council:

Section 10(4) of the Professional Accountants Ordinance provides for the co-option of not more than two Council members. At a special Council meeting on 17 December, the Council co-opted the following two members as members of the Council for the new term:

New President and Vice Presidents

At a special Council meeting held immediately after the AGM, Mr. Edward K.F. Chow was elected as the President of the Institute for 2005, and Mr. Paul M.P. Chan and Mr. Mark C. Fong were elected as the two Vice Presidents.

Mr. Edward K.F. Chow, 52, Executive Chairman of China Infrastructure Group Holdings PLC, has been a member of the Council since December 1996 and served as a Vice President in 2002 and 2004. In the last five years, he has been Chairman, Deputy Chairman or member of a number of committees and working groups, including:

		Administration, Finance & Remuneration Committee
		Advisory Committee on Listing and Takeover Regulations
		Corporate Communications Strategy Steering Committee
		Corporate Governance Committee
		Current Issues Committee
		Editorial Board
		Ethics Committee
		Expert Panel on Listing
		Financial Accounting Standards Committee
		Mainland Affairs Committee
		Member Innovation & Technology Steering Board
		Professional Accountants in Business Committee
		Professional Standards Monitoring Committee
		Registration and Practising Committee
		Research and Survey Committee
		Securities Industry Committee
		Standard-setting Steering Board
		Accountants' Report Task Force
		International Recognition Task Force
		Membership Needs Survey Task Force
		Organizing Committee of World Congress of Accountants 2002
		Regulatory Framework Review Task Force
		Self-regulation & Re-branding Legislative Amendment Task Force
		Standard-setting Strategy Task Force
		Task Force on the Review of Regulation of Members by HKSA

Mr. Paul M.P. Chan, 49, Managing Partner of Paul Chan & Partners, has been a member of the Council since January 2000 and served as Vice President in 2003 and 2004. In the last five years, he has been Chairman, Deputy Chairman or member of a number of committees and working groups, including:

		Expert Panel on Insolvency
		Expert Panel on Legal Matters
		Financial Accounting Standards Committee
		Insolvency Practitioners Committee
		Legal Committee
		Mainland Affairs Committee
		Member Innovation and Technology Steering Board
		PR Strategy Steering Committee
		Small and Medium Practitioners Committee
		Taxation Committee
		Fourth Long Range Plan Working Group
		GAAP for Small Businesses Working Group
		International Recognition Task Force
		Membership Needs Survey Task Force
		Membership Review Task Force
		Regulatory Framework Review Task Force
		Self-regulation & Re-branding Legislative Amendment Task Force
		Task Force on Promotion of Professional Services in China
		Task Force on the Review of Regulation of Members by HKSA

Mr. Mark C. Fong, 53, Senior Partner of Moores Rowland Mazars, has served on the Council since December 1998. In the last five years, he has been Chairman, Deputy Chairman or member of a number of committees and working groups, including:

		Continuing Professional Development Committee
		Corporate Communications Strategy Steering Committee
		Ethics Committee
		Mainland Affairs Committee
		Registration and Practising Committee
		Research and Survey Committee
		Self-regulation & Re-branding Legislative Amendment Task Force
		Small and Medium Practitioners Committee
		Standard-setting Steering Board

We look forward to working with our new Council members next year and towards improving services to our members.

Taking this opportunity, I would like to thank you for your support of the Institute and its activities in the past year and wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.