The Labour Department (LD) today (October 16) reminded employers to make flexible work arrangements for staff when unexpected traffic incidents occur, having regard to road and traffic conditions. This will help maintain g… read more
Police yesterday (October 15) held the Regional Traffic Day on the Hong Kong Island to raise public awareness of road safety through stringent enforcement actions. A total of 318 officers f… read more
The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, visited the TWGHs Wong Fut Nam College this afternoon (October 15) to meet over 700 students from 18 secondary schools operated by the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals in a seminar. Mrs Lam shared with them her vision outlined in the 2018 Policy Address and the initiatives in it, and responded to questions raised by the students.
In the opening address, Mrs Lam shared with the students her governance philosophy and her experience in the past year as the Chief Executive. She noted that the Government has been implementing policy initiatives proactively over the past year and the initiatives have yielded remarkable outcomes in many aspects, which is a testimony that Hong Kong no doubt will scale new heights as long as Hong Kong people stand united and remain focused. Pointing out that there is no perfect solution in this world and it would be difficult to forge an absolute consensus in the community, she stressed that Hong Kong, yet, has to decide and proceed after discussions. She said that the Government will accommodate different opinions and strive ahead with the community decisively to advance Hong Kong’s development.
The Chief Executive fielded a wide range of questions raised by the students during the question-and-answer session, which include the Lantau Tomorrow Vision, revitalisation of industrial buildings, innovation and technology development, alleviating road traffic congestion, creative industries, retirement protection, electronic vehicles, street performances, electronic cigarettes, and support for pre-school children with special needs.
In her concluding remarks, Mrs Lam stressed the “three beliefs” she mentioned in delivering her 2018 Policy Address, including the beliefs that Hong Kong people and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region are capable of building a better Hong Kong; that all sectors in the community will seize the current opportunities to boost Hong Kong’s economy and livelihood; and that the country will continue to provide staunch support for Hong Kong to help Hong Kong rise to challenges and continue to inject new impetus to facilitate Hong Kong’s development. Mrs Lam encouraged students to believe in themselves and at the same time believe in the school, teachers and parents that they will nurture them into future pillars of society.
The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, hosted a luncheon for the winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Professor James Watson, at Government House in the afternoon today (October 15), during which she introduced him to Hong Kong’s exceptional environment for Innovation & Technology (I&T) and the measures she proposed in the Policy Address aiming to support the I&T development in Hong Kong. The Vice-Chancellor and President of Chinese University of Hong Kong, Professor Rocky Tuan, the Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of University of Hong Kong, Professor Paul Tam Kwong-hang, the Vice-President of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Professor Nancy Ip, and the Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Mr Nicholas W Yang, also attended the luncheon. Professor Watson is a renowned American molecular biologist and geneticist. He was awarded the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine together with other scientists for their joint research in DNA.
Mrs Lam welcomed Professor Watson’s visit to Hong Kong. In briefing Professor Watson on the strategy of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government on I&T development, she said that the Government is determined to develop Hong Kong into a knowledge-based economy and promote I&T development in all aspects in order to improve people’s livelihood. Noting that Hong Kong’s I&T development is supported by sound technological foundations and outstanding capability in scientific research with the convergence of top universities, research institutes and high-quality professional scientific research talent from around the world, she said that most important of all is the unique advantage of “One Country, Two Systems” and the city’s proximity to the huge Mainland market that give Hong Kong the huge potential to become an international I&T hub.
Mrs Lam said to the guests that last year’s Policy Address outlined the strategy of pushing ahead with I&T development at full steam in eight major areas, and committed significant resources for this purpose. The strategy has received wide recognition from various sectors and good progress has been made. In particular, the HKSAR Government launched the Technology Talent Admission Scheme to attract and nurture top-notch talent and the Technology Talent Scheme to subsidise research institutions and enterprises to recruit talent to carry out research and development activities, and train their existing staff to apply advanced technology for adding value to their businesses this year. In addition, Institut Pasteur from France, as well as the Guangzhou Institute of Biomedicine and Health and the Institute of Automation in Beijing under the Chinese Academy of Sciences have earlier expressed interest in joining the I&T clusters to be established at the Hong Kong Science Park, with one focusing on healthcare technologies and the other on artificial intelligence and robotics technologies. The RWTH Aachen University of Germany has also indicated its interest in joining recently. They will conduct more midstream and downstream research and development (R&D) projects in collaboration with local universities and scientific research institutions to strengthen Hong Kong’s R&D capabilities.
Mrs Lam said that the recently announced 2018 Policy Address is built on the current good progress and proposed to further promote the I&T development by injecting $20 billion into the Research Endowment Fund set up by the Research Grants Council, launching a new Research Matching Grant Scheme with a total commitment of $3 billion and setting up fellowship schemes to strengthen the pool of talent in research and I&T in Hong Kong. The HKSAR Government will also step up its effort in promoting re-industrialisation by setting up a $2 billion “Re-industrialisation Funding Scheme” to subsidise manufacturers, on a matching basis, to set up smart production lines in Hong Kong. Furthermore, an additional allocation of $2 billion will be provided for the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation to identify suitable land in industrial estates for building manufacturing facilities required by the dedicated advanced manufacturing sector.
The Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, met the Secretary of the CPC Guangzhou Municipal Committee, Mr Zhang Shuofu, at Government House this morning (October 15). The Secretary for Innovation and Technology, Mr Nicholas W Yang; the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Frank Chan Fan; and the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Patrick Nip, were also present.
Mrs Lam welcomed Mr Zhang’s visit to Hong Kong and thanked him for personally receiving her and other guests who arrived at Guangzhounan Station by the Vibrant Express train on the day of commissioning of the Hong Kong Section the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL) last month and for briefing her on the latest developments of Guangzhou. She said that Hong Kong and Guangzhou enjoy close ties in economic affairs and trade and people-to-people exchanges, and that the commissioning of the Hong Kong Section of the XRL will further enhance the connectivity between the two places. Noting that some of the trains running between Hong Kong West Kowloon Station and Guangzhounan Station pass through Qingsheng Station in Nansha and that she viewed the transportation network and surrounding development of Qingsheng Station during her visit to Guangzhou in May, she said she believes that the high-speed rail service can help Hong Kong and Nansha explore co-operation in different areas.
Mrs Lam said that the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will bring new development opportunities for Guangzhou and Hong Kong. She said that Hong Kong has advantages in areas such as innovation and technology, biomedicine and education and that Guangzhou can provide land as the hub for transformation of technological achievements as well as provide more room for the development of innovation and entrepreneurship by young Hong Kong people. She said she hopes that the two places will strengthen co-operation and jointly contribute to the development of the Bay Area.
