Sun said the changes also meant the process of registering social workers was back on the right track, as operations and decision-making were now aligned with the public interest and ensuring national security.
The original ordinance empowers the board to oversee the registration of social workers, as well as disciplinary matters.
The amendments passed by the Legislative Council will increase the size of the body from 15 members to 27, boosting the proportion of government appointees.
The board, which oversees 27,000 people in the industry, has also received the power to quickly deregister those convicted of certain crimes and permanently disqualify anyone involved in serious offences such as endangering national security.
The amended ordinance will take effect on Friday.
The changes were submitted to the legislature for scrutiny after Sun earlier accused the board of failing to stop national security offenders from becoming registered professionals.
Critics previously expressed concerns that the overhaul would have a huge impact on the industry in the long run, such as undermining its professional autonomy, the right to speak on social issues and the sector’s morale.
The passage of the amendments follows a wave of resignations involving seven of the board’s eight elected members, including former chairman Ng Yut-ming.
The move has been seen as a protest against the revamp.
The overhaul keeps the number of elected board members at eight, while the number of appointed seats will increase from six to 17.
The new board also includes a public officer appointed by the chief executive, while the director of the Social Welfare Department remains an ex officio member.
Hong Kong’s leader will also appoint the board’s chairman and deputy chairman, a break from the past practice of having members choose the two positions.
Any professionals convicted of serious offences such as endangering national security, ill-treating a child, rape or murder, will have their names permanently struck from the register, unless all board members decide otherwise.
No written representation will be allowed in such cases.
The board can also deregister social workers for up to five years if they are convicted of other imprisonable offences that might hurt the reputation of the profession, or permanently in severe cases.
Those facing such disciplinary actions will have 28 days to make a written representation.
Nearly all of the 30 lawmakers who spoke at Legco on Wednesday argued the amendments would not impair the board’s autonomy or its professionalism.
Lawmaker Martin Liao Cheung-kong said social workers would still have the greatest say in the board’s operations, since five of the 17 appointees must be registered members of the profession.
“Alongside the eight elected members, social workers still occupy the largest part of the board’s composition, which guarantees the board’s professionalism and credibility,” he said.
Fellow legislator Gary Chan Hak-kan said the amendments would help “get the sector back in order”, as anyone convicted of national security offences would be effectively barred from joining or remaining in the profession.
During the months-long anti-government protests in 2019, social workers featured prominently among those taking in demonstrations against the later-shelved extradition bill.
Some industry members who took part were later imprisoned for offences that included unlawful assembly and assaulting police officers.
Lawmaker Tik Chi-yuen, who represents the sector and is also a registered social worker, said on Wednesday that some members of the profession felt uneasy about the amendments.
“I hope the government will provide more explanations and increase communication with the industry afterward, to clarify that the amendments aim to further professionalise social workers,” he said.
Welfare minister Sun argued in May that the board needed to enhance its governance to better safeguard national security and public interests, accusing the body of failing to take concrete action to prevent people convicted of national security offences from registering as social workers.
The board had rejected the claims as “having no factual basis” and calling the remarks “unfair”.
Oscar Lai Man-lok, the last remaining elected member of the current board, earlier said he would attend Friday’s oath-taking ceremony for new members.
