The Government will disburse a further subsidy to party rooms and local vessels let for hire or reward (pleasure vessels) under the Anti-epidemic Fund. Each eligible premises or vessel will be given a one-off subsidy of $40,000. 
      
     Party rooms and pleasure vessels that have continuously suspended operations since November 22, 2020, pursuant to the closure order under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Requirements and Directions) (Business and Premises) Regulation (Cap. 599F), and that had been granted a subsidy under the previous round of the Subsidy Scheme for Beauty Parlours, Massage Establishments and Party Rooms (note), will be eligible for the new subsidy. Premises that have been relocated or changed hands and new businesses established after November 22, 2020, will not be eligible for the further subsidy.  
      
     Party rooms do not need to apply for the subsidy proactively. The Scheme Secretariat will, starting from May 10, send the application and declaration form by mail to the reported shop addresses of party room operators who have been granted a subsidy (including successful appeal cases) under the previous round of the Scheme. Upon receipt of the mail, the party room operators concerned will only need to sign the declaration and confirm that the business information pre-printed on the application form is accurate, that the business continues to exist, and that other application requirements are met. By returning the completed forms to the Scheme Secretariat by the end of May, the party rooms concerned will be deemed eligible for the further subsidy. Details of the eligibility criteria, application guidance notes and methods for returning the completed form will be provided in the letter issued by the Scheme Secretariat. 
      
     The Scheme Secretariat will arrange subsidy disbursement to eligible party room operators through autopay according to the bank account information kept in the approved records of the previous round of the Scheme. It is expected that the subsidy could be disbursed from late May onwards.
      
     Likewise, owners of pleasure vessels are not required to apply for the subsidy proactively.  The Marine Department will arrange to issue a notification letter to owners of all eligible pleasure vessels in early May. The department will handle the relevant procedures and the disbursement of the subsidy.  
      
     A sum of $54.6 million has been earmarked under the Fund for disbursing the further subsidy.
      
     For enquiries on the further subsidy for party rooms, applicants may call the dedicated telephone hotline (1836 188) or send email to info@bmpsubsidy.hk. For enquiries on the further subsidy for pleasure vessels, owners of pleasure vessels may contact the Marine Department (Tel: 2852 4931).   
 
Note: Referring to the Subsidy Scheme for Beauty Parlours, Massage Establishments and Party Rooms launched on January 18, 2021.

     The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) announced today (April 27) that applications for the Catering Business Subsidy Scheme (applicable to liquor licensed premises (with Bar Endorsement), karaoke establishments and nightclubs with restaurant licence) and the Further Subsidy to Commercial Bathhouse Licence Holder Subsidy Scheme under the fourth round of the Anti-epidemic Fund (AEF) will start from tomorrow (April 28) until May 27.

     The Government had earlier on provided financial relief measures to businesses affected by the epidemic and the Government's various anti-epidemic and social distancing measures through a number of schemes under various rounds of the AEF, including the Food Licence Holders Subsidy Scheme, the Subsidy Scheme for Tenants of Cooked Food/Light Refreshment Stalls at FEHD Markets, the Catering Business (Social Distancing) Subsidy Scheme, the Catering Business Subsidy Scheme; the Commercial Bathhouse Licence Holder Subsidy Scheme, the Places of Public Entertainment Licence Holder Subsidy Scheme and the Food Courts Subsidy Scheme. Hitherto, a total of about $12.8 billion in subsidies has been disbursed to eligible applicants.

     Taking into account that bars/pubs, karaoke establishments, nightclubs and commercial bathhouses have been affected by the Government's measures on progressively tightening the social distancing measures since last November and are required to remain closed until now, the Government intends to provide further subsidy to the above-mentioned businesses. The new round of Catering Business Subsidy Scheme will benefit licence/permit holders of liquor licensed premises (with Bar Endorsement), karaoke establishments and nightclubs with restaurant licence. They are eligible to a one-off subsidy ranging from $100,000 to $500,000 according to the licensed area of the restaurant premises if they have closed the whole of their premises for the entire period specified in the directions issued under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Requirements and Directions) (Business and Premises) Regulation (Cap. 599F).

     To avoid abuse, an applicant at the time of application shall declare that the business is still in operation, and for an application lodged in respect of premises involving more than one licence/permit, the applicant has to be nominated by all licence/permit holders to apply for and receive the subsidy, and the FEHD will only issue one single subsidy in respect of the same licensed premises. It is estimated that the scheme will benefit about 1 100 bars/pubs, karaoke establishments and nightclubs, with the total amount of subsidy involved being approximately $250 million.

     Separately, the Further Subsidy to Commercial Bathhouse Licence Holder Subsidy Scheme will provide a one-off subsidy of $100,000 to each eligible licence holder of a commercial bathhouse. It is estimated that around 50 commercial bathhouses will benefit from the subsidy.

     The application form and guidelines for the new round of Catering Business Subsidy Scheme and the Commercial Bathhouse Licence Holder Subsidy Scheme can be obtained from the licensing offices or District Environmental Hygiene Offices of the FEHD, or downloaded from the website of the FEHD (www.fehd.gov.hk), where details of the scheme are also available. Eligible licence/permit holders should submit their applications to the corresponding licensing offices (for the Catering Business Subsidy Scheme) or District Environmental Hygiene Offices (for the Further Subsidy to Commercial Bathhouse Licence Holder Subsidy Scheme) of the FEHD in person or by mail. Upon receipt of the completed application form and supporting documents and after verification, the FEHD will disburse the subsidy in about two weeks by mailing crossed cheques to the corresponding premises. 

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     The spokesman for Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital (AHNH) made the following announcement today (April 27) regarding a patient walk-away incident:

     A male patient with chronic illness was brought to the Accident and Emergency Department (A&E) at around 5am on April 24. The patient, accompanied by relatives, presented with fever, vomiting and fall injury. After examination, the patient was diagnosed with head injury and was arranged to have brain computed tomography and X-ray examination.

     The patient was put at the patient waiting area awaiting for admission to medical ward after the examinations at around 6am. At around 6.45am, clinical staff had observed and arranged medication for the patient. The patient's condition was stable, while his relatives had left the A&E earlier.

     A&E staff discovered that the patient left the hospital without notifying the staff at around 7.15am. Security guards subsequently performed a full-scale search within the hospital compound, notified patient's relative and reported to the Police for assistance. The Police was informed that the patient was located in a shopping mall at Tai Po and the patient was sent back to the A&E by ambulance. According to record, the patient's condition was serious with resuscitation performed onboard the ambulance.

     The patient arrived the A&E at 8.25am. The staff immediately performed resuscitation for the patient, and then admitted him to the medical ward for further management after resuming heartbeat and blood pressure. But the patient's condition deteriorated and succumbed at around 2.36am on the following day.

     The hospital expressed its deepest condolences and explained the sequence of events to the relatives. The hospital will continue to closely communicate with the relatives to provide necessary assistance. The incident has been reported to the Hospital Authority Head Office through the Advance Incident Reporting System and referred to the Coroner for follow up.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Alliance for Green Commercial Banks (the Alliance), co-launched by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, hosted the first roundtable, "CEO Talk: Opportunities for Green Bank Transformation", online today (April 27). The roundtable attracted over 1 100 participants globally from Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Americas.
      
     The Alliance was jointly launched by the HKMA and the IFC in November 2020 to help banks develop the solutions needed to address climate change across emerging markets. As part of its knowledge sharing and capacity building efforts, the Alliance will be hosting a series of roundtable sessions on relevant topics, starting in April 2021. The roundtable sessions will equip participants with the basic knowledge related to green banking transition and will provide a platform for market participants across commercial banks, leading real sector companies, tech innovators, thought leaders, and regulators to share their first-hand experiences and intelligence.
      
     The event started off with opening remarks from the Senior Vice President, Operations of the IFC, Ms Stephanie von Friedeburg; and a keynote address by the Chairman of the Green Finance Committee of the China Society for Finance and Banking, Dr Ma Jun.
      
     The roundtable was moderated by the Chief Executive of the HKMA, Mr Eddie Yue. The session also featured the following speakers, including chief executives from commercial banks and thought leaders in green bank transformation:
 

• the Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, Mr Peter Wong;
• the Vice Chairman and Chief Executive of Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, Mr Sun Yu; and
• the Vice President, Asia and Pacific of the IFC, Mr Alfonso Garcia Mora.

 
     During the roundtable session, speakers discussed the green strategies and the transformation roadmap of commercial banks, as well as opportunities in green investments and risk management in Hong Kong, China and Asia.
      
     "The Alliance for Green Commercial Banks has the mission to support financial institutions on their green transition," Mr Yue said. "Today's discussion has demonstrated that the transformation into green banks can create effective and far-reaching market-based solutions. This will address a range of impacts that emerge from climate change while at the same time allow banks to identify and secure new business opportunities that benefit customers."
      
     "There is no green future without green finance. To seize its enormous potential and limit global warming, it is more important now than ever for banks to build their capacity to green their operations and adequately assess, manage and disclose environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks. The Alliance for Commercial Banks will help members share knowledge and forge partnerships that will spearhead climate-smart initiatives and enable the transition to a low-carbon global economy." Ms von Friedeburg said.
      
     Riding on the success of the inaugural roundtable, the Alliance will be hosting roundtable sessions throughout the year. Participants will have the opportunity to learn and exchange knowledge with global sustainability as well as ESG experts, leaders in green finance and real sector, and peers from across the regions on topics such as green finance, carbon neutrality, climate risk, ESG, market trends and opportunities, policy environment and more.

  

     In response to media enquiries, the Department of Health (DH) said that it had received updates from the Hospital Authority (HA) today (April 27) about two hospitalisation cases with a history of COVID-19 vaccination first reported on April 5 and April 19, 2021, respectively. Both patients had chronic illnesses and the updated reports did not have clinical evidence to support that the events were caused by the vaccines.
 
     The first case involved a 76-year-old man with a history of hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidemia. He complained of right-sided weakness and was admitted to Tseung Kwan O Hospital on April 5. He was diagnosed with hypertensive intracranial haemorrhage. Today, the HA provided updated information that the patient passed away on April 26 due to pneumonia. According to information, he received the second dose of CoronaVac COVID-19 vaccination at a private clinic 26 days (i.e. March 31) prior to his death. There was no record that the man complained of feeling unwell during observation at the clinic.
 
     The second case involved a 74-year-old woman with a history of pulmonary fibrosis, osteoporosis and gastritis. She complained of shortness of breath and cough, and was admitted to Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital on April 19. Today, the HA provided updated information that the patient was diagnosed with pneumonia and passed away on April 25. According to information, she received the second dose of Comirnaty COVID-19 vaccination at a community vaccination centre 18 days (i.e. April 7) prior to her death. There was no record that the woman complained of feeling unwell during observation at the vaccination centre.
 
     The DH contacted the HA upon the initial report of the cases for information to facilitate causality assessment. After receiving updates from the HA today, the DH immediately contacted the HA to obtain further information and will pass the cases based on the established mechanism to the Expert Committee on Clinical Events Assessment Following COVID-19 Immunisation (Expert Committee) for conducting causality assessment. So far, there is no clinical evidence to indicate that the events were caused by the vaccines.
 
     According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an Adverse Event Following Immunisation (AEFI) is any medical occurrence that follows immunisation and that does not necessarily have a causal relationship with the usage of the vaccine. The Expert Committee conducts causality assessments based on the WHO algorithm for suspected serious adverse events.
 
     Up to and including April 25, 2021, there were about 1 275 300 doses of COVID-19 vaccines administered in Hong Kong. During the same period, the DH had received a total of 2 131 AEFI reports (0.17 per cent of all doses administered), including 15 reports of death with vaccination history within 14 days (0.001 per cent of all doses administered). Among these 15 cases, the Expert Committee has concluded no causal relationship with COVID-19 vaccination for three cases, preliminarily considered no association with vaccination for eight cases, and will conduct causality assessments for the remaining four cases when necessary information is available.
 
     According to the risk communication plan endorsed by the Expert Committee, figures and summaries of clinical events received will be released and updated through the designated website biweekly. When a suspected adverse event fulfilling the reporting criteria of AEFIs involving a death case within 14 days of vaccination is received, it will be announced via a press release as soon as possible.