Tag Archives: China

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

     Following the ballot for the White Form Secondary Market Scheme 2018 on July 30, the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) has completed detailed vetting on the eligibility of the applicants. Approval Letters to the 2 500 successful applicants (2 250 family applicants and 250 one-person applicants) will be issued tomorrow (October 19).

     “Each successful applicant will be issued two Approval Letters for the HA’s Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) Secondary Market and the Hong Kong Housing Society (HS)’s Flat-for-Sale Scheme (FFSS) Secondary Market respectively. Within two weeks from the date of issue, holders of the Approval Letters may apply for the Certificate of Eligibility to Purchase (CEP) from the HA and/or the HS to purchase a flat with premium not yet paid on the HA’s HOS Secondary Market or the HS’s FFSS Secondary Market. The fee for each CEP is $770,” a spokesman for the HA said.

     “The CEP is valid for 12 months from the date of issue and no extension will be granted upon its expiry. To complete the transaction, holders of the CEP need to apply for a Letter of Nomination from the HA or the HS after they have entered into a Provisional Agreement for Sale and Purchase,” he said.

     The list of successful applications will be uploaded to the HA/Housing Department website (www.housingauthority.gov.hk) tomorrow. read more

     The Transport Department (TD) today (October 18) reminded the public that special traffic and transport arrangements will be implemented in Tsim Sha Tsui and Wan Chai North this Saturday and Sunday (October 20 and 21) to facilitate the holding of the Cross Harbour Race 2018.
 
     The special traffic and transport arrangements mainly include:
 
* Expo Drive East outside Golden Bauhinia Square (including the pick-up/drop-off area) will be temporarily closed from about 1.30am to 2pm on October 21;
 
* Landing steps No. 1 to 3 and No. 6 of Kowloon Public Pier and the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre Landing will be suspended from about 9am on October 20 to 10.30am on October 21; and
 
* Ferry services plying between Tsim Sha Tsui and Wan Chai will be suspended from about 7.30am to 10.30am on October 21, subject to the actual re-opening time of the harbour.
 
     Motorists are advised to avoid driving to the affected areas. In case of traffic congestion, motorists should exercise tolerance and patience, and follow the instructions of the Police. Members of the public planning to go to the affected area are advised to use public transport as far as possible.
 
     The TD and the Police will closely monitor the traffic situation and implement appropriate measures whenever necessary. Members of public are advised to stay alert to the latest traffic news on radio and television.
 
     Details of the special traffic and transport arrangements are now available on the TD’s website (www.td.gov.hk). read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Office of The Ombudsman:
 
     The Ombudsman, Ms Connie Lau, held a press conference this morning (October 18) to announce the results of a direct investigation report on “Housing Department’s Arrangement for Using Idle Spaces in Public Housing Estates” and a full investigation report on “Transport Department’s Improper Arrangement for Implementation of Two-way Toll Collection at the Lantau Link That Caused Serious Traffic Congestion”. The reports are available on the Office of The Ombudsman’s website: ofomb.ombudsman.hk/abc/en-us/news.

      

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:        The meeting of the Legislative Council ("LegCo") Finance Committee originally scheduled at 3pm tomorrow (October 19) in Conference Roo… read more

     Following is the transcript of remarks by the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, at a media session after attending a radio programme this morning (October 18):

Reporter: About the Lantau Tomorrow Vision project, some people have expressed concerns that with this project and issues like climate change, it will make the artificial island vulnerable to disaster. What do you have to say to people who have these concerns?

Secretary for the Environment: After the COP 21, the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Paris, we saw the Paris Agreement. After that, the Hong Kong Government has set up a high level steering committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary for Administration, to look after mitigation, that means decarbonisation, and also adaptation and resilience. So you are talking about the adaptation. Under the high level steering committee, we have a working group to look after the infrastructures on how to follow the latest global standards and by making reference to the local situation. It will set the latest up-to-date standards for all infrastructures, including reclamation. Under this mechanism, for whatever kind of major infrastructures and development, no matter it is near the sea or on land, they will have to follow the latest climate adaptation standards.
 
Reporter: What about the impact of this project on marine life? How confident are you that the impact would be minimal?
 
Secretary for the Environment: I don’t think it is fair for me to comment on that. We have an established procedure, the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). It is a process based on scientific and objective data. It is up to the proponents to collect the data, to put forward the proposal and to decide on how they can minimise the environmental impact. Then they have to go through the (EIA) process, which the proposals can be approved or disapproved. Through the process, there are public involvement opportunities. The public can view the assessment and express their opinions. The duty of the Environment Bureau and also the EPD (Environmental Protection Department) is to diligently administer the EIA process.
 
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.) read more