Author Archives: hksar gov

     Following is a question by the Hon Frankie Yick and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Frank Chan Fan, in the Legislative Council today (September 8):

Question:

     Some operators of public transport (PT) services have relayed that against a backdrop of continuous expansion of the railway network, various PT services other than heavy rail (i.e. franchised buses (FBs), Light Rail, public light buses, non-FBs, taxis, trams and ferries) have seen a continuous drop in patronage in recent years, with their room for survival diminishing gradually. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) how the distribution forecast of average daily PT patronage in 2021 set out in the Public Transport Strategy Study (PTSS) published in 2017 compares with the actual distribution at present; if there are discrepancies, whether it has assessed the causes for that;

(2) given that PTSS put forward a number of improvement measures to enhance the strategic arrangements of PT services and promote the sustainable development of PT services other than heavy rail, of the (i) latest implementation situation and (ii) effectiveness of such measures, and whether such measures have improved the business environment of PT services other than heavy rail;

(3) whether it will consider entrusting the provision of feeder bus services in Northwest New Territories, currently operated by the MTR Corporation Limited, to operators of FBs and green minibuses instead, so as to increase the room for survival of the latter; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(4) given that the Government recently gave approval for FB operators to introduce long-haul bus services featuring no space for standees and plying routes similar to those of the existing residents’ buses, which has resulted in vicious competition and an increase in the number of buses on roads, whether the Government has changed its policy of avoiding duplication of transport resources and maintaining a balance in the PT services ecology; if so, of the details and reasons for that; if not, whether it will review the aforesaid arrangement;

(5) given that the Government has given approval in recent years for FB operators to operate short-haul shuttle bus routes between districts in the New Territories with relatively low population densities and transport nodes using mid-sized single-deck buses, but such type of routes has all along been plied by green minibuses, of the Government’s latest positioning for the latter; and

(6) whether it will review afresh the demand for as well as the role and positioning of PT services other than heavy rail, and formulate policies on promoting the sustainable development of such services; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Reply:

President,

​     The Government published the Public Transport Strategy Study report (the Study Report) in June 2017, which examined the roles and positioning of various public transport services, including franchised buses, Light Rail, public light buses (PLBs), non-franchised buses (NFBs), taxis, trams and ferries, under further expansion of the heavy rail network. The Study Report affirmed that the prevailing roles and positioning of various public transport services remain valid, i.e. heavy rail is the backbone of the public transport system; franchised buses are road-based mass carriers; Light Rail is an important road-based and at-grade transport mode in Northwest New Territories; while the remaining public transport services play an important supplementary role, in particular serving areas inaccessible by railway and providing feeder services to railway.

​     My reply to the various parts of the question raised by the Hon Frankie Yick is as follows:

(1) Based on the data available at the time of the Study Report, it was estimated that the overall public transport passenger trips would increase from 12.6 million per day in 2016 to around 13.2 million per day in 2021. According to the latest provisional figures from the Transport Department (TD), the average daily patronage on public transport services in the first half of 2021 was much lower than the forecast in the Study Report due to the significant drop in the number of visitors to Hong Kong as a result of the COVID-19 and decrease in the number of commuters owing to various anti-epidemic and social distancing measures. The January 2021 figure was 8.5 million passenger trips while the June 2021 figure was 10.8 million passenger trips. As the epidemic situation stabilises in Hong Kong, we anticipate that demand for local public transport services will gradually increase and resume to near pre-epidemic level.

​     The distribution of passenger trips among different public transport services in the first half of 2021 is set out in the table below.
 

Public Transport Services	Distribution forecast of average daily patronage in 2021 under the Study Report (%)	Actual distribution of average daily patronage in the first half of 2021 (%)
Heavy Rail	39%	36%
Franchised buses (Note)	30%	35%
PLBs	15%	14%
Taxis	8%	7%
Light Rail	4%	4%
Trams	1%	1%
Ferries	1%	1%
NFBs providing residents’ services	2%	2%
Total	100%	100%

Note: For the purpose of the above table, the average daily patronage of franchised buses includes passengers of Mass Transit Railway (MTR) bus services.

(2) The Study Report set out 67 recommended measures to enhance the arrangement of public transport. As at August 2021, 44 measures have been successfully implemented, which include increasing the maximum seating capacity of PLBs, implementing the long-term operation model of outlying island ferry routes, replacing the tram tracks, relaxing the period required for holding a private car or light goods vehicle driving licence before a person can apply for a commercial driving licence, extending the validity period of PLB and taxi driver identity plates to ten years, encouraging public transport operators to provide more fare concessions as appropriate, etc. These measures help reinforce the roles played by various public transport services in the public transport system as well as promote the complementarity among different modes, so that the public can enjoy more efficient, convenient and diversified public transport services. The Government will continue to actively take forward the implementation of the remaining measures.

(3) The TD has been continuously enhancing the public transport network having regard to local developments, demographic changes, completion of transport infrastructure, and the operation and service levels of public transport services in the districts, etc. The MTR Corporation Limited currently operates bus service in the Northwest New Territories, plying between Light Rail and Tuen Ma Line stations, and some of the housing estates as well as rural areas in the district. With interchange concessions, passengers are provided with convenient and affordable, or even free, feeder services. At the same time, franchised bus and green minibus (GMB) operators also operate intra-district feeder routes or cross-district routes in the Northwest New Territories, providing different public transport options for passengers. The TD will continue to keep in view the change in public transport demand in various districts and formulate suitable public transport arrangements so as to meet passengers’ needs.

(4) The Government has been coordinating various public transport service arrangements to enhance the efficiency of the overall transport network and to avoid duplication of transport resources. The Study Report recommended that franchised bus companies may attempt to open up new services, including the introduction of new long-haul bus services on a trial basis, with a view to providing passengers with more diversified choices and meeting various needs of the community. In this regard, the TD and a franchised bus company introduced the routes P960 (Siu Hong Station (North) – Wan Chai (North)) and P968 (Yuen Long (West) – Causeway Bay (Tin Hau)) in July 2021 to provide passengers with more comfortable and speedier long-haul bus services. The bus compartments are also equipped with more passenger amenities. On the other hand, residents’ services play a supplementary role in the public transport system to serve passengers of individual residential developments with a view to relieving the demand for regular public transport services primarily during the peak hours and filling the service gaps which cannot be met by regular public transport services.

(5) The Study Report examined and affirmed that the roles and positioning of various public transport modes (such as PLBs, including GMBs) remain valid. GMBs provide supplementary feeder service in areas with relatively lower passenger demand or where the use of high-capacity transport modes is not suitable, such as operating shuttle routes between residential areas in New Territories with relatively lower population density and transport nodes.

​     The Study Report suggested the Government and the franchised bus companies examine the feasibility of introducing mid-sized single-deck buses, and conduct a trial of these buses to provide short-haul shuttle services in areas with relatively lower population density but with growth potential. The TD and the franchised bus companies have completed the relevant feasibility study, which indicates that there is currently no mid-sized single-deck bus model in the market that is suitable for use in Hong Kong, nor is there any bus route(s) suitable for deployment of mid-sized single-deck bus for the time being.

(6) The Chief Executive announced in the 2020 Policy Address that the Government would conduct a comprehensive Traffic and Transport Strategy Study (TTSS), which includes surveying the latest travel patterns of the public, making reference to and introducing suitable innovative transport modes and technologies to promote green transport and reduce emission with a view to making Hong Kong a more livable city. Besides, the TTSS will also explore the enhancement of public transport services and encourage the public to use public transport, thereby relieving the traffic congestion situation. Our goal is to set out forward-looking long-term traffic and transport strategies for ensuring that Hong Kong’s traffic and transport system will not only be safe, reliable, environmentally friendly and efficient in the future, but also be able to support the sustainable social and economic development of Hong Kong and facilitate the flow of people and goods in the Greater Bay Area.

​     At present, the TD is formulating the scope and the detailed arrangements of the TTSS and is planning to conduct a travel characteristics survey in 2022. Data collected from the survey will be used for enhancing the Comprehensive Transport Study Model in 2024. During the course of the entire study, the TD will conduct topical studies in parallel with a view to formulating future traffic and transport policies and implementing suitable traffic management strategies and measures. read more

     Following is a question by the Hon Alice Mak and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Frank Chan Fan, in the Legislative Council today (September 8):

Question:

     The first population intake of Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen New Development Area (the NDA) is expected to take place in 2024. However, the Hung Shui Kiu Station proposed to be built between Tin Shui Wai Station and Siu Hong Station on the Tuen Ma Line (TML) is currently still at the detailed planning and design stage, and only the first stage of the Feasibility Study on Environmentally Friendly Transport Services in Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen New Development Area and Adjacent Areas (the Feasibility Study) has been completed so far. As such, the residents concerned may need to live at a place with inconvenient public transport for several years. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the timetable for Stage 2 of the Feasibility Study and the progress made so far; the date expected for commissioning the environment-friendly transport system concerned;

(2) of the measures in place to speed up the improvement of the transport infrastructure and services for the NDA, including speeding up the planning work for Hung Shui Kiu Station, so as to pursue the “infrastructure-led” planning approach; and

(3) given that a population of 176 000 will be accommodated upon the full intake of residents by the public housing projects in the NDA, whether, in order to alleviate the pressure to be brought about by an increased population on the carrying capacity of the TML, the Government will consider building a new railway line in New Territories West connecting the TML and the urban areas, thereby achieving a diversion effect?

Reply:

President,

     Having consulted the Development Bureau (DEVB), our reply to various parts of the Hon Alice Mak’s question is as follows:

(1) According to the information provided by the DEVB, the Feasibility Study on Environmentally Friendly Transport Services (EFTS) in Hung Shui Kiu/Ha Tsuen New Development Area (HSK/HT NDA) and Adjacent Areas is being conducted in two stages. The first stage study and public consultation have been completed. The Civil Engineering and Development Department is conducting the second stage study, which includes further evaluating the proposed green public transport modes with consideration of public views received in stage 1 public consultation, and will consult relevant stakeholders on the results of second stage study at an appropriate time. Based on the results of the second stage study and the views collected in public consultation, the Government will plan the way forward and implementation arrangement/timetable of the EFTS project to meet the traffic and transport needs of the NDA.

(2) The Government has invited the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) to proceed with the detailed planning and design of the HSK Station. It is expected that construction of HSK Station may commence in 2024 for completion in 2030 to tie in with the development plan of HSK/HT NDA. According to the current planning for the HSK/HT NDA, the major population intake of the NDA is expected to commence from 2030 onwards, which will be in line with the target commissioning of HSK Station. The Government will continue to follow up with the MTRCL to ensure that it will closely monitor the project progress with a view to completing the project for providing services as soon as possible. Before the commissioning of the HSK Station, a small population (about 4 400 residents, who are mainly the existing residents affected by the works) will gradually move into the newly completed dedicated rehousing estates within the district from 2024 onwards. In other words, majority of these residents are decanted from the same district but not new intake. The relevant departments will coordinate with public transport operators to provide adequate public transport services having regard to the transport needs of the decanted residents.

(3) The Government is planning to take forward a group of priority transport corridors connecting the coastal area of Tuen Mun, Lantau, Kau Yi Chau Artificial Islands and Hong Kong Island under the Lantau Tomorrow Vision. The project will help divert passengers from New Territories West to urban areas. Moreover, the Highways Department and the Transport Department commenced the “Strategic Studies on Railways and Major Roads beyond 2030” (the RMR2030+ studies) in December last year. Based on the final development strategy of the “Hong Kong 2030+: Towards a Planning Vision and Strategy Transcending 2030” planning study which will soon be published by the DEVB, the RMR2030+ studies will explore the layout of railway and major road infrastructure and conduct preliminary engineering and technical assessments for their alignments and supporting facilities, so as to ensure that the planning of large-scale transport infrastructure will complement or even reserve capacity to meet the overall long-term development needs of Hong Kong.

     Thank you, President.  read more

     Following is a question by the Hon Leung Che-cheung and a written reply by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr John Lee, in the Legislative Council today (September 8):
 
Question:
 
     It is learnt that the fertility rate of Hong Kong has been on the low side and dropping continuously in recent years and it even dropped to a record low of 0.87 last year. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) whether, in the past three years, it conducted assessments on the reasons for the fertility rate of Hong Kong being persistently on the low side in recent years, and the impacts of the low fertility rate on the various aspects of Hong Kong; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
 
(2) whether it has explored new measures to boost the fertility rate; and
 
(3) whether it has set a warning line for the fertility rate, so that the Government will take more aggressive measures to encourage childbearing in the event that the fertility rate has fallen below the warning line; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     The consolidated reply from the Government to the various parts of the question raised by the Hon Leung Che-cheung is as follows:
 
     According to information from the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong’s total fertility rate has been lower than the replacement level of 2.1 (i.e. the fertility rate to sustain the natural population unchanged) for more than three decades and has remained between 0.9 and 1.3 since mid-1990s. Our total fertility rates in the past three years were 0.87 (2020), 1.05 (2019) and 1.07 (2018) respectively. As in other Asian developed economies such as Singapore and South Korea, a decreasing marriage rate, as well as delayed marriage and childbearing are the main contributing factors of our low fertility rate. The total fertility rate further decreased in 2020 under the influence of the pandemic, and similar pattern was also observed in other Asian regions or countries.
 
     A family’s decision to bear a child is dependent on various factors, including personal choice, lifestyle preference, economic and social circumstances, and childbearing is a major family decision, excessive government intervention may not be appropriate. The Government has not set a warning line for the fertility rate.
 
     Declining birth rate and longer life expectancy have led to rapid ageing of our population. The Government has been paying close attention to the issue and has been studying and putting in place different measures to tackle the situation. Experiences from other places show that financial incentive alone may not be able to increase the desire for childbearing effectively. Government policies should aim at fostering a supportive environment for childbearing and promoting family-friendly measures to provide better support for couples who wish to have children. In this connection, the Government has formulated a number of family-friendly measures in recent years, including:
 
1. Supporting parents to raise children: The child allowance under salaries tax has been increased from $70,000 for the year of assessment 2014/15 to $120,000 for the year of assessment 2018/19, representing an increase of over 70 per cent; the Kindergarten Education Scheme was launched in the 2017/18 school year; and the $2,500 student grant has been regularised from the 2020/21 school year onwards.
 
2. Enhancement of child care services: The Social Welfare Department (SWD) has planned to increase around 900 aided standalone child care centre (CCC) places through new development projects in three to four years from 2020-21. At the same time, the SWD also planned to purchase suitable premises for the use of CCCs so as to increase around 1 000 places. In addition, the SWD has increased the subsidy level of CCC service and enhanced the manning ratio of qualified Care Centre Workers while implementing a host of measures for enhancement of the After School Care Programme, including adding 2 500 full fee-waiving subsidy places, relaxing application eligibility and increasing the subsidy level.
 
3. Supporting parents to take care of newborn babies: We have implemented the five-day statutory paternity leave since January 18, 2019, and statutory maternity leave has been extended to 14 weeks since December 11, 2020, to allow eligible employees more time to spend with and take care of their newborn babies. Moreover, to support and protect breastfeeding in Hong Kong, the Government has amended the Sex Discrimination Ordinance to prohibit discrimination and harassment towards breastfeeding women. The “Breastfeeding GPS” mobile application, which contains the latest information of over 430 baby care rooms to help parents locate breastfeeding facilities all over Hong Kong has been launched in September last year.
 
     In addition, the Labour Department is committed to promoting family-friendly employment practices to the community through a wide range of publicity channels and various promotional activities. Employers are encouraged to adopt “employee-oriented” good people management measures with a view to helping employees balance their work and family responsibilities. Employers are encouraged to provide their employees with more favourable employment benefits than the statutory requirements and provide them with flexible and varied work arrangements and support (e.g. flexible working hours, five-day work, work from home, parental leave and child care service) to meet individual employees’ special needs at their different stages of life.
 
     The above family-friendly measures could foster a supportive environment for childbearing, providing better support for couples who wish to have children. read more

     Following is a question by the Hon Holden Chow and a reply by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Edward Yau, in the Legislative Council today (September 8):
 
Question:
 
     Hong Kong’s tourism industry has been on its last legs since the outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 epidemic. Members of the tourism industry look forward to an expeditious resumption of normal traveller clearance between Hong Kong and the Mainland, so that the flow of people between the two places will return to normal and the hardship of the tourism industry will be relieved. Regarding the support for the tourism industry, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the latest progress of the discussions between the Government and the Mainland authorities on the resumption of normal traveller clearance, including whether adoption of the traveller clearance arrangements between the Mainland and Macao (which have been proved effective) has been considered, so as to facilitate the flow of people between the two places and help Hong Kong’s tourism industry recover;
 
(2) given that the disbursement of a new round of cash allowances for travel agents and practitioners of the tourism industry as announced by the Government last month is one-off in nature, and that the 2 000 temporary positions created for practitioners of the tourism industry will be cancelled following the progressive closure of the community vaccination centres, of the new measures put in place by the Government to support travel agents and practitioners of the tourism industry to tide over the difficulties; and
 
(3) as mutant strains with higher transmissibility may cause the epidemic all over the world to persist for a long period of time, whether new measures are in place to make good use of the currently excessive human resources arising from the standstill of the tourism industry, and to provide more temporary positions and vocational training for practitioners of the tourism industry; if so, of the details?

Reply:
 
President,
 
     In respect of the three questions raised by the Hon Holden Chow, having consulted the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, the Civil Service Bureau and the Labour and Welfare Bureau, my consolidated reply is as follows:
 
(1) The Government understands the importance of early resumption of normal cross-boundary activities with the Mainland and Macao. To achieve this goal early, the Government has all along been stringently controlling the epidemic situation and speeding up vaccination for members of the public, and on the other hand, maintaining close liaison with the Mainland and Macao to actively explore the gradual resumption of normal cross-boundary activities amongst the three places in an orderly manner, on the premise that the epidemic situation in the three places is under control and there will not be additional public health risks posing on the three places.
 
     Along this direction, the Return2hk Scheme has resumed in full today, while the Chief Executive has also announced yesterday the launch of the Come2hk Scheme next week, which will allow non-Hong Kong residents from Guangdong Province and Macao coming to Hong Kong without being subject to compulsory quarantine, with a view to further resuming cross-boundary activities between Hong Kong and the Mainland.
 
(2) The tourism industry is undoubtedly the hardest hit sector under the prolonged epidemic situation. The Government has therefore provided support to the trade in various ways. Since 2020, the Government has launched five rounds of schemes through the Anti-epidemic Fund (AEF) to provide direct financial support to the tourism industry with a cumulative funding commitment amounting to around $2.6 billion, benefitting over 1 700 travel agents, and around 21 000 practitioners including travel agent staff, tourist guides, tour escorts, and drivers of tour service coaches. Therefore, the support is not one off in nature. In fact, as just announced in August, the latest round of support measures for the tourism industry is a targeted arrangement offered by the Government having regard to the continuous difficulties faced by the tourism industry.
 
     Apart from providing direct financial support, the Government has increased the financial commitment for the Travel Agents Incentive Scheme and the Green Lifestyle Local Tour Incentive Scheme (GLIS) to around $150 million and $100 million respectively. The GLIS has received active response from the trade especially during the summer holiday in July and August. The scheme has received applications from over 410 travel agents involving subsidy amount close to $28 million, which reflects that the scheme can bring assistance to the trade.
 
     In addition, the Government just announced in the end of last month the extension of waivers/concessions of various government licence fees and charges till end-September 2022, and that an additional $35 billion will be injected to the Special 100 per cent Guarantee Product under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme while the application period will be extended to end-June 2022. The tourism industry can also benefit from these two measures.
 
     On the other hand, during the past one and a half year, at times when the epidemic situation has improved, the Government would actively try to expand the room for business for the tourism industry on the premise of containing the epidemic.
 
     Since end-April, the Government has allowed the resumption of organising local group tours of 30 persons or below with conditions. Since end-June, the restriction on the number of participants for group tours with two-thirds of the participants having received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine has been relaxed to 100 persons.
 
     Besides, “cruise-to-nowhere” (CTN) itineraries for Hong Kong residents which do not involve ports outside Hong Kong resumed in end-July. As at yesterday, 17 calls have departed, serving nearly 22 000 passengers. The second cruise ship operating CTN itineraries is also planned to resume service in October. All these will certainly help the tourism trade.
 
     The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) has also launched five rounds of the “Free Tour” and “Staycation Delights” programmes in total, providing support of around $45 million to the tourism industry. The latest programmes include the launch of the “Free Tours Lucky Draw” in August offering 20 000 reward quotas of free local tours to Hong Kong citizens who have received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine, as well as the second round of “Staycation Delights” reward with a total of 20 000 quotas.
 
(3) The Government has earmarked funding under the AEF in this and last year for creating time-limited jobs in two phases under the Job Creation Scheme.
 
     The Government has, taking into account the underemployment situation of the tourism industry and upon the proposal put forth by the trade, proactively employed around 1 800 practitioners of the tourism industry under the second phase of the Job Creation Scheme for providing operational and administrative support services at the community vaccination centres.
 
     On the other hand, the Employees Retraining Board (ERB) currently provides around 700 training courses to upgrade the employment-related skills of the unemployed. Starting from October 2019, the ERB has also launched the Love Upgrading Special Scheme offering a quota of 60 000 trainees in total. Trainees who have completed the relevant training courses can receive training allowance up to $5,800 per month, among which the placement-tied courses would also offer follow-up placement services for the trainees. As at end-June, about 5 800 trainees with present or recent employment in the tourism industry enrolled in training courses under the Love Upgrading Special Scheme, accounting for around 7.6 per cent of the total number of trainees enrolled during the period.
 
     President, the Government will continue to support the tourism industry on various fronts, maintain liaison with the trade, and put in place appropriate measures to assist them to tide over this challenging time.
 
     Thank you, President. read more

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) announced that as of 0.00am, September 8, the CHP was investigating two additional confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), taking the number of cases to 12 132 in Hong Kong so far (comprising 12 131 confirmed cases and one probable case).

     The newly reported cases are imported cases.

     A total of 65 cases have been reported in the past 14 days (August 25 to September 7) and all of them are imported cases.

     In view of the fact that many recent imported cases have joined non-essential travel after vaccination, the spokesman for the CHP stressed, “The global situation of COVID-19 infection remains severe and there is a continuous increase in the number of cases involving mutant strains that carry higher transmissibility, and there are also reports of breakthrough infections in some vaccinated individuals. The CHP strongly urged members of the public to avoid all non-essential travel outside Hong Kong, in particular to specified places with high risk under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Regulation of Cross-boundary Conveyances and Travellers) Regulation (Cap. 599H).”

     The spokesman reminded, “If travel is unavoidable, the CHP highly recommends the public to be fully vaccinated with COVID-19 vaccines before their departure. They should continue to wear a surgical mask and maintain strict personal and environmental hygiene at all times. Parents are also urged to avoid taking unvaccinated children travelling.”

     Separately, according to the testing and quarantine arrangements for local COVID-19 cases with mutant strains, the CHP reminded that persons who resided or worked within the same building as the residence of relevant cases will be subject to compulsory testing on days 3, 7, 12 and 19 following the announcement of the relevant confirmed cases by the DH. They will also be required to undergo self-monitoring until the 21st day. Relevant deadlines of compulsory testing for respective specified premises are listed on the Government’s website at www.coronavirus.gov.hk/pdf/CTN_Specified_premises_and_Dates_of_Testing.pdf.
 
     Specified persons in relation to the following specified premises are also reminded to undergo compulsory testing in accordance with the compulsory testing notice tomorrow (September 9):

• 208 Shek O Village, Shek O
• Sunrise, 3 Parkridge Crescent, Discovery Bay, Lantau Island
• Tower 2, Phase 2A – Le Prestige, LOHAS Park, Tseung Kwan O

 
      The CHP’s epidemiological investigations and relevant contact tracing on the confirmed cases are ongoing. For case details and contact tracing information, please see the Annex or the list of buildings with confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the past 14 days and the latest local situation of COVID-19 available on the website “COVID-19 Thematic Website” (www.coronavirus.gov.hk).

     The Government has launched the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme. Members of the public are encouraged to get vaccinated. Details of the programme can be found at the designated website (www.covidvaccine.gov.hk). Generally speaking, COVID-19 vaccination can prevent COVID-19 infection, and if infected, reduce risk of severe disease and death from COVID-19.

     The CHP called on members of the public to pay attention to their health condition, seek medical advice early and undergo COVID-19 nucleic acid testing as soon as possible if respiratory symptoms develop. They should also maintain strict personal and environmental hygiene at all times, to protect themselves against infection and prevent the spread of the disease in the community.

     On a personal level, members of the public should put on a surgical mask when they need to go out. It is important to wear a mask properly, including performing hand hygiene before wearing and after removing a mask. Hand hygiene should be performed frequently, especially before touching the mouth, nose or eyes, after touching public installations such as handrails or doorknobs, or when hands are contaminated by respiratory secretions after coughing or sneezing. Wash hands with liquid soap and water, and rub for at least 20 seconds, then rinse with water and dry with a disposable paper towel. If hand washing facilities are not available, or when hands are not visibly soiled, performing hand hygiene with 70 to 80 per cent alcohol-based handrub is an effective alternative. Cover the mouth and nose with tissue paper when sneezing or coughing. Dispose of soiled tissues into a lidded rubbish bin, then wash hands thoroughly.

     â€‹To ensure household environmental hygiene, members of the public are advised to maintain drainage pipes properly and regularly (about once a week) by pouring about half a litre of water into each drain outlet (U-trap). They should also pay attention to hygiene when using the toilet by putting the toilet lid down before flushing to avoid spreading germs. read more