The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council (LegCo) Committees will hold 20 open meetings and two closed meetings during the week from April 29 to May 3 in the LegCo Complex. Details of the meetings are available in the meeting schedule attached.
 
     The information in the meeting schedule is subject to change. Please refer to the "LegCo Calendar" on the LegCo Website (www.legco.gov.hk) for the latest details of meetings.
 
     Members of the public are welcome to observe open meetings of LegCo Committees. Interested individuals and groups are advised to make advance booking of seats by calling the LegCo Secretariat at 3919 3399 during office hours. Members of the public can also listen to or watch all open meetings via the "Webcast" system on the LegCo Website.

     A red tide was sighted over the past week, an inter-departmental red tide working group reported today (April 26).
 
     The red tide was spotted by staff of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department on April 19 at Silver Mine Bay Beach, Lantau Island.
 
     The red tide has dissipated and no associated death of fish has been reported.
 
     A spokesman for the working group said, "The red tide was formed by Noctiluca scintillans, which is commonly found in Hong Kong waters and is non-toxic."
 
     The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) urged mariculturists at Cheung Sha Wan fish culture zone to monitor the situation closely and increase aeration where necessary.
 
     Red tide is a natural phenomenon. The AFCD's proactive phytoplankton monitoring programme will continue monitoring red tide occurrences to minimise the impact on the mariculture industry and the public.

     Police today (April 26) appealed to the public for information on a woman who went missing in Tsing Yi.

     Yeung Pui-fun, aged 56, went missing after she left her residence in Cheung Wang Estate in the small hours of today. Her family made a report to Police on the same day.        

     She is about 1.5 metres tall, 80 kilograms in weight and of fat build. She has a round face with yellow complexion and long black hair. She was last seen wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and white shorts.

     Anyone who knows the whereabouts of the missing woman or may have seen her is urged to contact the Regional Missing Person Unit of New Territories South on 3661 1173 or 5962 7223 or email to rmpu-nts-2@police.gov.hk, or contact any police station.

  

     The Government announced today (April 26) that the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, under the authority delegated by the Chief Executive pursuant to the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571), has re-appointed Mr Thomas Atkinson as the Executive Director (Enforcement) of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) for a term of three years from May 3, 2019, to May 2, 2022.
 
     Mr Chan said, "Mr Atkinson has made valuable contributions to the work of the SFC. I look forward to his continued service to the SFC in the new term."

     Mr Atkinson was first appointed as the Executive Director (Enforcement) of the SFC in 2016. He assumes management responsibility for the Enforcement Division of the SFC, including the surveillance of the securities and futures markets to identify market misconduct, investigation of statutory offences and breaches of the Securities and Futures Ordinance, and imposition of disciplinary actions on licensed persons and initiation of prosecutions where appropriate. 
 

     The Government announced today (April 26) that the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, under the authority delegated by the Chief Executive, has appointed five new members and re-appointed seven serving members to the Advisory Committee of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). All appointments are for a term of two years, from June 1, 2019, to May 31, 2021.
 
     The membership of the SFC Advisory Committee of the new term is as follows –
 
New appointees
——————
Mr Freeman Chan Yuk-sing
Ms Winnie Pun Wing-nin
Ms June Wong Wai-man
Ms Catherine Yien Yu-yu
Mr Yim Lok-kui
 
Re-appointed members
————————–
Professor Chan Ka-lok
Mr Jeffrey Chan
Ms Ding Chen
Mr David Graham
Mrs Ann Kung Yeung Yun-chi
Dr Tan Yue-heng
Mr Yin Ke
 
     A government spokesman said, "The Advisory Committee of the SFC comprises practitioners from different professions. They possess operational experience and professional knowledge about the financial markets. We are confident that they will provide independent and professional advice to the SFC on matters related to the SFC's policy and market regulation."
 
     The spokesman also paid tribute to the outgoing members, namely Dr Au King-lun, Ms Prudence Ann Bennett, Ms Wei Sun Christianson, Mr Mark Graham Shipman and Mr Richard David Winter, for their valuable contribution.
 
     The Advisory Committee of the SFC was established under Section 7 of the Securities and Futures Ordinance to advise the SFC on policy matters regarding its regulatory objectives and functions.
 
     In addition to the 12 appointed members, the Advisory Committee of the SFC comprises the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and two Executive Directors of the SFC.