The Secretary for Justice, Mr Paul Lam, SC, leading a delegation comprising representatives from the Law Society of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Bar Association, as well as local and international law firms, continued his visit to Hangzhou today (March 25).

     Mr Lam and the delegation visited the Zhejiang Merchants Foreign-Related Legal Service Center in the morning to gain an in-depth understanding of the current state of foreign-related legal services in Zhejiang Province, and to explore co-operation opportunities between Hong Kong and Zhejiang in areas such as talent nurturing, international arbitration, and commercial dispute resolution.

     They then attended an exchange session with representatives of the Zhejiang legal community. Mr Lam discussed with the Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Deputy Director-General of the Department of Justice of Zhejiang Province, Mr Lao Hong, on the collaboration between the legal sectors of Hong Kong and Zhejiang. During the exchange session, Zhejiang legal professionals introduced the forms and latest trends of Mainland enterprises going global, as well as the relevant common legal and risk management issues, while representatives from Hong Kong’s legal sector elaborated on the unique role of Hong Kong’s legal profession in assisting Mainland enterprises expanding overseas. Both sides also explored enhancing professional collaboration between the legal, arbitration and mediation sectors of the two places in supporting Mainland enterprises going global, and discussed co-operation on the exchanges and training of foreign-related legal talent.

     Speaking at the exchange session, Mr Lam said that economic and trade co-operation between Hong Kong and Zhejiang has continued to deepen in recent years, with both sides serving as important engines for the country’s high-quality development, and possessing tremendous potential for collaboration. As the only common law jurisdiction within China, Hong Kong has a marked advantage in legal services. With more Zhejiang enterprises expanding overseas, Hong Kong’s legal sector can provide one-stop professional services to Mainland companies in areas including cross-border investment and financing, international arbitration, and compliance inspections. He expressed the hope of further deepening comprehensive co-operation between the legal communities of Hong Kong and Zhejiang, promoting complementary strengths, jointly raising the professional standards and international credibility of dispute resolution services, and working together to support enterprises as they go global.

     In the afternoon, Mr Lam and his delegation visited the Hangzhou Future Sci-Tech City Urban Exhibition Center to gain insights into Hangzhou’s advancements in areas including smart city development and AI. They then met with local business representatives to learn about the latest business developments and promote Hong Kong’s status as an international financial centre and the unique advantages of its common law system in assisting Mainland enterprises to expand overseas.

     Mr Lam will depart for Nanjing tonight to continue his visit tomorrow (March 26).

     The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) held a premiere of its new play, “The Mysterious Circus – Interactive Anti-drug Theatre” today (March 25) to disseminate anti-drug messages to nearly 300 representatives from charitable organisations and school sponsoring bodies, principals, teachers, and upper primary students, aiming to further enhance public awareness of emerging drugs such as etomidate.

     Addressing the event, the Commissioner of Police, Mr Chow Yat-ming, said that in 2025, etomidate has become the most commonly abused drug overall and among youths.  Since it was listed as a dangerous drug in February 2025, the Police recorded 911 cases involving etomidate by the end of the year, resulting in 1 134 arrests, including 205 youths.

     Mr Chow noted that prevention is better than cure, with education and publicity as the first line of defence against drug problems. The Police will intensify enforcement to combat drug supply while enhancing preventive education and publicity to build resistance and curb market demand.

     Over the past three years, the Police had organised over 120 interactive anti-drug drama performances. Through a lively, engaging and educational approach, the drama conveyed anti-drug messages to more than 18 000 upper primary students, helping them build proper values and a firm determination to reject drugs.

     The HKPF has specially produced a brand new series of plays this year to explore how youths may fall into drug traps on online platforms. Through the interactive sessions, students learn to spot drug offenders’ “sugar-coated traps”, firmly say “no” to drugs, and build digital literacy for stronger self-protection online.

     This year’s Interactive Anti-drug Theatre will reach a record-breaking 60 performances, with half sponsored by Yan Oi Tong. The HKPF will also join hands with Yan Oi Tong and the Yan Oi Tong Choi Wong Ling Ling Education Fund to launch the “Anti-drug Education Programme”, built around the Interactive Anti-drug Theatre complemented by an extended curriculum and creative activities to deepen students’ understanding of drug harms and foster healthy, positive lifestyles.

     “The Mysterious Circus – Interactive Anti-drug Theatre” marks the Narcotics Bureau’s first major publicity event for the “Anti-Cannabis cum Anti-Etomidate Month 2026”, featuring touring performances at various primary schools. Schools interested in learning more and arranging a performance can contact the Narcotics Bureau by email (ip-sip-int-1e-nb@police.gov.hk).

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

     The inaugural Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao-Shenzhen Joint Financial Regulatory Meeting was held in Nansha, Guangzhou, from March 23 to 24. The meeting was hosted by the National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA) Guangdong Office and attended by representatives from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, Hong Kong Insurance Authority, Monetary Authority of Macao, and NFRA Shenzhen Office. Officials from relevant departments of the NFRA, Guangdong Province and Guangzhou Municipal Government were also invited to attend.
      
     During the meeting, participants exchanged views on industry developments, supervisory work and latest market trends. They also discussed other key topics including banking support for the development of the international innovation and technology hub in the Greater Bay Area, regulatory oversight of AI development and application in the banking sector, as well as insurance services to enhance high-quality city development, facilitation of convenient cross-boundary medical insurance services, and the protection of consumer interests. Through enhanced financial regulatory co-operation and consensus building among Guangdong, Hong Kong, Macao, and Shenzhen, the meeting actively promoted high-quality development of the banking and insurance sectors, contributing to the stable development of financial markets and consumer protection.

     Led by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, a business delegation comprising representatives from various Hong Kong wine and liquor associations and chambers of commerce visited Sichuan to promote Hong Kong’s advantages as a liquor trading hub and its role as a platform for Chinese baijiu to go global.

     Mr Yau and the delegation today (March 25) attended a Sichuan-Hong Kong baijiu industry roundtable organised by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Chengdu of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), Invest Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, in Chengdu, Sichuan, to have in-depth exchanges with representatives of the local wine and liquor industry. Mr Yau said that the country is advancing the 15th Five-Year Plan, accelerating the formation of a new development landscape, continuously expanding the scope of its high-level opening up, as well as strongly supporting high-quality Chinese brands in going global.

     Mr Yau noted that there has been an increasing amount of high-quality Chinese baijiu entering the Hong Kong market in recent years. In 2025, the total volume of duty-paid Chinese baijiu entering the Hong Kong market reached over 1.3 million litres with a value of HK$350 million. At the same time, producers and traders worldwide have recognised Hong Kong as an important window to tap into the Asia-Pacific and Chinese Mainland markets. In 2025, the volume of liquor re-exported through Hong Kong to the Mainland reached 3.35 million litres, accounting for nearly 50 per cent of the total liquor re-export volume, with a value of about HK$3 billion.

     Noting that the brand value and global visibility of Chinese baijiu has been continuously rising, Mr Yau said that Mainland baijiu enterprises should seize the opportunity driven by the National 15th Five-Year Plan and go-global strategies to actively explore overseas markets. Hong Kong will continue to give full play to its role as a “super connector” and “super value-adder” to attract international investment while assisting Mainland baijiu enterprises in tapping into overseas markets.

     Mr Yau then visited the Wuliangye distillery in Yibin City to exchange views with its senior representatives and learn about the latest developments and sales strategies of the Chinese baijiu industry. Mr Yau also shared Hong Kong’s significant achievements in promoting high-end liquor trading after the reduction in liquor duty. Coupled with Hong Kong’s favourable business environment, enterprises are encouraged to use Hong Kong as a trading and distribution centre for high-end liquor including Chinese baijiu.

     Upon arrival in Sichuan from Beijing, Mr Yau yesterday (March 24) visited the Dujiangyan Base of the China Conservation and Research Centre for the Giant Panda, which was built with support from the HKSAR Government after the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, to learn about its latest developments. Mr Yau also visited the Dujiangyan water conservancy project and had a lunch meeting with Deputy Secretary of the Dujiangyan Municipal Committee Mr Li Jianjun to gain a deeper understanding of the social and economic development of the city and exchange views on strengthening commercial and trade co-operation between the two places.

     The delegation will visit the distillery of Luzhou Laojiao, another renowned Sichuan liquor brand, tomorrow (March 26) before proceeding to Guizhou to continue its visit.