The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, today (March 28) attended the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2019 in Hainan and met with central ministry, province and city leaders.

     Mrs Lam, together with the Director of the Chief Executive's Office, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, in the morning attended the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2019, which has "Shared Future, Concerted Action, Common Development" as its theme. Mrs Lam listened to the keynote speech delivered at the opening ceremony by the Premier of the State Council, Mr Li Keqiang. The Premier said that the country would broaden market access for investment from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan; open sectors such as finance, professional services and high-end manufacturing wider; and continue to roll out policy initiatives to facilitate the movement of Hong Kong, Macao and Mainland people as well as the flow of factors of production. Mrs Lam said these measures will be welcomed by Hong Kong enterprises and various professional sectors and show once again the Central Government's support for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). She also said she believed that these measures will further enhance Hong Kong's integration into the overall development of the country.
 
     After the opening ceremony, Mrs Lam met with the Chairman of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) of the State Council, Mr Xiao Yaqing. Mrs Lam expressed her gratitude to the SASAC for its staunch support for Hong Kong to participate in the Belt and Road Initiative, which includes the co-organisation with HKSAR Government of various activities regularly to foster establishment of partnership between different trades, the state-owned enterprises (SoEs) and the professional services sector of Hong Kong; its encouragement of participation by SoEs in the capacity building initiatives of the HKSAR Government for countries along the Belt and Road; and its proactive participation in the annual Belt and Road Summit organised by the HKSAR Government. She expressed the hope to maintain close co-operation with the SASAC to make contributions in promoting the Belt and Road Initiative.
 
     In the afternoon, Mrs Lam met with the Governor of Hebei Province, Mr Xu Qin. Mrs Lam said she visited Hebei last October and was deeply impressed by the Xiongan New Area, which is designed to be developed as an international city with high-tech industries. She said she hopes that Hong Kong may participate in the Xiongan New Area’s development and contribute to it. She welcomed the news that Mr Xu will lead a delegation to visit Hong Kong next month, and said she believes the visit would help explore more areas for co-operation between the two places.
 
     Mrs Lam also met with the Deputy Party Secretary of the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee, Mr Ren Xuefeng. Mrs Lam said ties between Hong Kong and Chongqing have always been close and that the Chongqing Liaison Unit of the HKSAR Government was established in 2012. Hong Kong is also the largest source of external investment in Chongqing as well as the best platform for Chongqing’s enterprises to “go global”. Pointing out that Chongqing is a vital strategic place in the Western Development Programme and a main connecting point of the Belt and Road and the Yangtze River economic zone, she said Hong Kong, an international maritime centre and a regional logistics hub, is able to provide professional support services to link up the maritime and logistics networks of the two places to seize together the opportunities brought about by the Belt and Road Initiative. She said she hopes to visit Chongqing in the future to know more about the latest developments there.
 
     After the meeting, Mrs Lam joined the Women Roundtable themed “The Power of Women and the Value of Balance” to discuss with outstanding women leaders from around the world women's potential and the promotion of women’s development. Mrs Lam said to the participants that she, as the first female Chief Executive of the HKSAR, has a huge and important responsibility in advancing women's development. She briefed the participants on the Government’s measures to foster women's development, including efforts to unleash the female labour force, allowing them to give full play to their potential.
 
     In the evening, Mrs Lam joined “The Night of Hainan”, a thematic dinner hosted by the Boao Forum for Asia. After arriving in Boao yesterday afternoon, Mrs Lam also attended a dinner hosted by the Premier for major guests of the Forum, and met with the Hong Kong student volunteers at the annual conference.
 
     Mrs Lam will continue to attend events of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2019 tomorrow (March 29).

                  

     A residential unit agent, who did not comply with the requirements of an asbestos abatement notice (AAN) to hire a registered asbestos contractor to carry out asbestos demolition works, and a renovation contractor involved in the same case, who failed to notify the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) prior to the commencement of the demolition works, were convicted for contravening the Air Pollution Control Ordinance (APCO) at Kwun Tong Magistrates' Courts today (March 28). The two persons were fined a total of $5,000.

     An EPD spokesman said a complaint was received from a member of the public in August 2018 that the demolition of an asbestos roof of a unit in Shui Ning House, 50 Shui Ning Street, Kwun Tong, was suspected of being carried out without segregation, expressing concern that the release of asbestos fibres may affect the health of residents nearby. EPD staff confirmed that asbestos demolition works were being conducted without giving not less than 28 days' written notice to the EPD prior to the commencement of the works in accordance with section 73 (1) of the APCO. In addition to ordering to suspend the works with immediate effect and segregate the place, the EPD also issued an AAN to the residential unit agent, ordering the agent to hire a registered asbestos contractor and complete demolishing and handling the asbestos materials by a deadline. EPD staff found that the residential unit agent still did not comply with the requirements of the AAN in a follow-up inspection. The EPD instigated prosecutions against the residential unit agent and the renovation contractor under the APCO after gathering evidence.

     The EPD spokesman reminded residential unit owners and agents that refurbishment and renovation at buildings containing asbestos must be carried out by registered asbestos contractors in accordance with the statutory requirements and the code of practice on asbestos control. Contractors to carry out works involving asbestos must give not less than 28 days' written notice to the EPD prior to the commencement of such works. Otherwise, they are liable to a maximum fine of $200,000. The EPD spokesman reiterated that members of the public must comply with the requirements of an AAN issued by the EPD and hire registered professionals to complete the demolishing and handling of asbestos-containing materials. Otherwise, they may commit an offence. Offenders are liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and six months' imprisonment.

     Members of the public can help combat illegal asbestos works and safeguard the health of the public by calling the EPD departmental hotline at 2838 3111 to make a report if they witness any illegal asbestos demolition works.

     A Hong Kong resident was jailed by Shatin Magistrates' Courts today (March 28) for contracting bogus marriage and illegal transfer of his passport.

     During an investigation conducted by the Immigration Department (ImmD) on a case of illegal transfer of a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport, a man aged 43 admitted under caution that he sold his passport and that he had arranged to contract a bogus marriage with a Mainland resident through a middleman for monetary remuneration in December 2007. Immigration officers then contacted the Mainland woman concerned, aged 44, for further investigation.

     The Mainland woman was charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud on March 19. After trial, she was convicted and was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment. The man was charged at Shatin Magistrates' Courts today with one count of conspiracy to defraud and one count of transferring a travel document to another without reasonable excuse. He pleaded guilty to all charges and was sentenced to nine months' imprisonment on each charge. All charges are to run concurrently.

     "Under the laws of Hong Kong, it is an offence to transfer any travel document to another person without reasonable excuse. Offenders are liable to prosecution and, upon conviction, the maximum penalty will be a fine of $150,000 and imprisonment for 14 years," the ImmD spokesman said.

     "The Immigration Department will continue to spare no effort in combating bogus marriages and other related illicit activities. For people who have obtained their residence in Hong Kong by fraudulent means, their Hong Kong identity card and residence status will be invalidated according to the laws of Hong Kong. They will also be subject to removal back to their place of origin," the spokesman said.

     The spokesman urged the public not to defy the law by participating in activities related to bogus marriage and not to make a false oath before immigration officers for the purpose of procuring a marriage in Hong Kong. Those directing others to contract a bogus marriage may also be guilty of the offence of conspiracy to defraud. Anyone who commits the offence of conspiracy to defraud is liable to prosecution and, upon conviction, the maximum penalty is imprisonment for 14 years.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     The Hospital Authority (HA) Administrative Operational Meeting today (March 28) endorsed the establishment of a special task group to review and streamline the HA's administrative efficiency. The HA Chairman, Professor John Leong, said that the special task group aims at reviewing the decision-making process of the HA Board and the involvement of clinicians in management processes at the Head Office and cluster levels.
 
     The special task group will focus on simplifying the resource bidding process, streamlining meetings of co-ordinating committees and central committees and other management meetings at cluster or hospital levels, and the scope for delegation or streamlining in the decision-making processes of the HA Board and its committees.
 
     "The HA, as a public organisation, has to ensure effective corporate governance and prudent utilisation of public funds. Meetings are arranged to deliberate strategic and policy discussions and inter-departmental co-ordination. In view of recent concerns expressed by various stakeholders, we hope the review can consolidate some feasible recommendations to streamline the meeting involvements where practicable," Professor Leong said.
 
     A total of eight HA Board Members have agreed to join the special task group (the full membership list is attached) to be chaired by Professor Leong. The special task group will report progress to the HA Board's Executive Committee.
 
     HA executives will be in attendance, and staff input will be invited as and when appropriate. The target is to complete the review and submit recommendations to the Board in six to nine months.
 

     The Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, today (March 28) visited Macao, where he attended the 2019 Macao International Environmental Co-operation Forum & Exhibition (MIECF) and the launching ceremony for the Hong Kong/Macao Special Report under the Fourth National Assessment Report on Climate Change. He also exchanged views with officials responsible for environmental protection and energy policy of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR).

     Upon his arrival in the morning, Mr Wong first officiated alongside officials of the Macao SAR Government and other guests at the opening ceremony of the MIECF, and also took the opportunity to tour booths set up by Hong Kong exhibitors at the MIECF. Afterwards, he paid a courtesy call on the Secretary for Transport and Public Works of the Macao SAR, Mr Raimundo Arrais do Rosário, to discuss issues of mutual concern.

     After participating in the official luncheon hosted by the Macao SAR Government for MIECF guests, Mr Wong, together with other officiating guests including the Minister of Science and Technology, Mr Wang Zhigang, attended the launching ceremony for the Hong Kong/Macao Special Report under the Fourth National Assessment Report on Climate Change. The compilation of the National Assessment Report on Climate Change, first published in 2006, has been jointly organised by the Ministry of Science and Technology and related branches of the Central People's Government. A special report for Hong Kong and Macao has been newly added in the Fourth National Assessment Report on Climate Change. Afterwards, Mr Wong delivered a speech at a Green Forum under the MIECF on its theme "New Opportunities in the Eco Bay Area – Creating Green Energy Cities", illustrating Hong Kong's energy policy.

     Mr Wong then departed for the Macao Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau, where he exchanged views with officials on decarbonisation policies and experience in combating climate change as well as visited the Aerosol Lidar and Radiometer. Mr Wong also called on the Office for the Development of the Energy Sector of the Macao SAR and discussed matters related to the Feed-in Tariff and promotion of renewable energy with Macao SAR officials.

     After joining a green dinner to be hosted by the Macao SAR Government in the evening, Mr Wong will conclude his visit and return to Hong Kong.