The Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Patrick Nip, will depart for Conghua, Guangzhou, in the afternoon on March 22 (Friday) to accompany the Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, in attending the opening ceremony of the Exhibition Raceday at Conghua Racecourse the next day (March 23) to be held by the Hong Kong Jockey Club in collaboration with the Conghua District Government.

     Mr Nip will return to Hong Kong in the evening on March 23. During his absence, the Under Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Andy Chan, will be the Acting Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs.

     The effective exchange rate index for the Hong Kong dollar on Tuesday, March 19, 2019 is 103.2 (same as yesterday's index).

     ​The Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Lau Kong-wah, today (March 19) was deeply saddened and expressed his sorrow over the passing of Hong Kong swimming athlete Mr Kenneth To. He extended his condolences to Mr To's family.

     Mr Lau said, "Representing Hong Kong, Mr To had repeatedly achieved extraordinary results in multiple swimming events and was the holder of a number of Hong Kong records. His achievements were remarkable and Mr To's passing at such a young age is a great loss to Hong Kong sports. He will be remembered fondly."

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

Exchange Fund Bills Tender Results
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     Hong Kong Monetary Authority tenders to be held in the week beginning March 25:
 

     The additional office for the Legal Advice Scheme for Unrepresented Litigants on Civil Procedures (Procedural Advice Scheme), located at Wanchai Tower, will commence operation tomorrow (March 20).
 
     The Procedural Advice Scheme provides free legal advice on civil procedural matters to unrepresented litigants who satisfy the income eligibility limit and have not engaged lawyers nor been granted legal aid, and are parties to civil legal proceedings (including commencement of proceedings) in the Lands Tribunal, Family Court, District Court or the courts above. Since its launch in 2013, the Scheme has conducted over 13 000 advice sessions for about 4 200 eligible litigants.
 
     The additional office at Wanchai Tower can meet increasing service needs and provide more accessible service to litigants involved in District Court and Family Court cases. The current office at High Court Building will continue to provide service to litigants in need. The addresses and opening hours of the two offices are as follows:
 

     All applications must be submitted in person at the Scheme Office. Also, applicants who are parties or wish to join as parties to civil proceedings must provide relevant and recent court documents.
 
     For details, please call 2259 5017 or visit the dedicated webpage of the Procedural Advice Scheme at www.admwing.gov.hk/eng/public_service/paso.htm.