Author Archives: hksar gov

     The Social Welfare Department (SWD) announced today (January 28) that, in accordance with the movement of the Social Security Assistance Index of Prices, the annual adjustment to the standard payment rates under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) Scheme and the rates of allowances under the Social Security Allowance (SSA) Scheme, namely Old Age Allowance (OAA) (including OAA under the Guangdong (GD) Scheme and the Fujian (FJ) Scheme), Old Age Living Allowance (OALA) (including OALA under the GD Scheme and the FJ Scheme) and Disability Allowance, will be implemented as soon as possible after the relevant proposals have been approved by the Finance Committee (FC) of the Legislative Council.
 
     Under the established mechanism, subject to the FC’s approval, the Government adjusts the social security payment rates on February 1 every year. The above-mentioned rates have room for a 2.6 per cent upward adjustment from February 1, 2022. The Government will consult the new-term FC on the proposed adjustment as early as possible. Subject to the FC’s approval, the new rates will take retrospective effect from February 1, 2022. By then, the maximum rent allowance and asset limits under the CSSA Scheme, as well as the asset and monthly income limits for OALA (including OALA under the GD Scheme and the FJ Scheme), will also be adjusted in accordance with the relevant mechanisms.
 
     CSSA and SSA recipients who have enquiries may contact their respective social security field units or call the SWD hotline at 2343 2255. read more

     The Government exercised the power under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Compulsory Testing for Certain Persons) Regulation (Cap. 599J) to make a “restriction-testing declaration” on January 26 with effect from 8.30pm, under which people (hereafter referred to as “persons subject to compulsory testing”) within the specified “restricted area” in Wong Tai Sin (i.e. Cheung Bor House, Choi Wan (I) Estate) were required to stay in their premises and undergo compulsory testing. The Government yesterday (January 27) extended the period of operation to today (January 28). Persons subject to compulsory testing were required to stay in their premises and they had to undergo two tests under the designated arrangement until all such persons identified in the “restricted area” had undergone testing and the test results were mostly ascertained. For those who have visited Cheung Bor House in the past two weeks for more than two hours, they should undergo testing on (1) January 26 to 28; (2) January 29; and (3) February 1 in accordance with the compulsory testing notice issued earlier. The Government finished the compulsory testing exercise at around 8am today and carried out enforcement action in the “restricted area” afterwards to verify that all people in the “restricted area” had undergone compulsory testing in accordance with the requirements of the relevant declaration and compulsory testing notice. The Government announced that the enforcement operation ended at around 10am today.
 
     In this exercise, the Housing Department, the Wong Tai Sin District Office, the Hong Kong Police Force, the Social Welfare Department and the Tobacco and Alcohol Control Office of the Department of Health mobilised around 298 staff to arrange for implementation of the declaration and enforcement actions for breaches of the compulsory testing notice issued earlier.
 
     The Government delivered breakfast, lunch and dinner boxes to persons subject to compulsory testing and provided simple food for them, including canned food, instant noodles and corn kernels, so as to facilitate the meal arrangements of persons subject to compulsory testing. One box of masks was also provided to each person subject to compulsory testing to help them fight against the virus.
 
     The Housing Department set up a hotline 2751 4428 for people restricted by the declaration to make enquiries and seek assistance.
 
     The Government thanks persons subject to compulsory testing for their support and understanding. With everyone’s co-operation and efforts, coupled with the tireless efforts of the testing contractors, residents have been informed about their testing results by SMS notification. After finishing the compulsory testing exercise at around 8am today, the Government took enforcement action in the “restricted area” immediately to verify that all people in the “restricted area” had undergone testing according to the requirements of the declaration and the compulsory testing notice. Persons who could present an SMS notification containing a negative test result or wore a wristband as proof of having undergone the compulsory testing could leave the “restricted area” through the designated exit after providing personal information to a prescribed officer. The enforcement operation was completed at around 10am. Test records of 87 persons subject to compulsory testing were checked. No person was found to have not undergone compulsory testing. Taking into account the above situation, the Secretary for Food and Health revoked the “restriction-testing declaration” in accordance with Cap. 599J (see attachment).
 
     The Government reminded the households who have not answered the door to contact the Government for arrangement of testing as soon as possible after reading the notices put up by the Government, in the hope of eliminating the possible risk of further spread of the virus in the community.
 
     The Government thanks all participating government staff and the testing agencies for their hard work. The Government is also grateful to those subject to compulsory testing for their support and understanding, and their full co-operation during this period in undergoing testing and waiting for the results at home.
 
     The Government will seriously follow up on the compliance situation of the compulsory testing notices and the “restriction-testing declaration” by persons subject to compulsory testing. Any person who fails to comply with the compulsory testing notices commits an offence and may be liable to a fixed penalty of $5,000. The person will also be issued with a compulsory testing order, requiring him or her to undergo testing within a specified time frame. Failure to comply with the order or the “restriction-testing declaration” is an offence and the offender may be liable to a fine of level 4 ($25,000) and imprisonment for six months.

  

     The Government said today (January 28) that in order to fight the COVID-19 epidemic, the Environmental Protection Department and the Drainage Services Department, in collaboration with the cross-disciplinary team of the University o… read more

     Police today (January 28) appealed to the public for information on a man who went missing in Wong Tai Sin.             Tse King-wa, aged 25, went missing after he l… read more

     In view of the latest situation of COVID-19, the Government has announced that tightened social distancing measures will be extended until February 17. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) announced today (January 28) that most of the leisure and cultural venues/facilities will continue to be temporarily closed. Except for the Online Interactive Sports Training Programmes and online cultural programmes, all recreational, sports and cultural programmes to be held in the above period will also be cancelled.
          
Leisure and sports venues

     Outdoor leisure venues/facilities will continue to be temporarily closed, including tennis courts, bowling greens, sports grounds, Ngau Chi Wan Park Archery Range, Shek O Obstacle Golf Course, Tuen Mun Recreation and Sports Centre, hard-surface/sand/grass pitches, gateball courts, table tennis tables, skateparks, roller skating rinks, roller hockey grounds, skateboard grounds, outdoor fitness equipment, model car play areas, model boat pools, cycling facilities (except for cycle paths), outdoor children’s play facilities (including tricycling areas, outdoor children’s playgrounds and road safety towns), pebble walking trails, chess tables, amphitheatres, public swimming pools, water sports centres, barbecue sites, holiday camps and Pui O Campsite. Lifeguard services at the gazetted beaches that were originally open during the winter period, namely Deep Water Bay Beach, Clear Water Bay Second Beach, Silverstrand Beach and Golden Beach, will continue to be suspended.
     
     All indoor sports facilities including sports centres, squash centres and badminton centres will also continue to be closed.

     Passive/amenity areas at the LCSD’s parks (such as lawns and benches in parks) and outdoor jogging tracks at parks will continue to remain open.

     Application for use of amphitheatres and non-fee charging leisure venues for non-designated use/sales activities, application from schools or organisations on road safety towns, as well as the standby arrangement for non-fee charging land recreation and sports facilities will continue to be suspended until further notice.

     For refund arrangements in relation to venue closures, the hirer may submit a completed refund application form together with the original booking permit to the LCSD booking office at a District Leisure Services Office or to relevant leisure venues by post. The application form can be downloaded from www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/aboutlcsd/forms/refund.html. Due to the closure of fee-charging facilities in relation to the situation of COVID-19, the number of refund cases will increase tremendously. The LCSD has adopted measures to handle these refund cases as soon as possible but a prolonged processing time for refunds is expected. Members of the public are advised to note the longer time required for refunds. The department apologises for any inconvenience caused.

Cultural venues
      
     All public libraries and their students’ study rooms will continue to be temporarily closed. All book drop services of the Hong Kong Public Libraries and those located at MTR Central, Kowloon Tong and Nam Cheong Stations as well as the self-service library stations at Island East Sports Centre Sitting-out Area, the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and Tsuen Nam Road, Tai Wai, will maintain services. Public libraries will continue to provide online services such as e-Books and e-Databases. Please visit www.hkpl.gov.hk/en/index.html for details.
     
     All performance venues, music centres of the Music Office and museums will continue to be temporarily closed. All onsite programmes and activities will be suspended while online programmes will be continued. During the period, all applications for Museum Passes and the Hong Kong Film Archive Resource Centre’s Audiovisual Materials Viewing Cards will be suspended. Admission arrangements for holders of Museum Passes will be announced in due course.

     The URBTIX outlets and ticket dispensing machines at the LCSD performance venues will continue to be closed. URBTIX will maintain Internet and mobile app ticketing and hotline services.

     Refund arrangements in relation to the closure of cultural facilities will be announced in due course.

     During the venue closure period, members of the public can visit the LCSD’s Edutainment Channel (www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/edutainment-channel.html), a one-stop online platform offering informative and educational materials on aspects of culture and leisure, to participate in the online programmes of the “vis-a-vis +01” series and access its videos in various fields including culture, arts and sports. read more