The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Housing Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) announced today (March 31) that the HA will reopen children's play facilities at its public housing estates starting from tomorrow (April 1).
 
     "Members of the public are urged to wear masks and maintain social distancing when using the facilities. The number of people in group gatherings should not be more than that as stipulated by the law," a spokesman for the HA said.
   
     The outdoor recreational facilities, assembly/multipurpose halls and multipurpose activity rooms at the HA's public housing estates have been reopened earlier for public use.

     The spokesman stressed that estate staff will step up cleaning of the HA's recreational facilities to safeguard public health. Staff will also check the usage of the facilities from time to time. When irregularities are found, appropriate follow-up action will be taken.

     A saleslady of a fitness centre was sentenced to 13 months' imprisonment today (March 31) after earlier conviction of conspiracy to engage in aggressive commercial practices in the course of selling fitness services, in contravention of the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (TDO), at Kwun Tong Magistrates' Courts. She was also ordered by the court to pay compensation of about $2,000 to the victim of the case.

     Hong Kong Customs earlier received information alleging that staff members of a fitness centre in Kowloon Bay were suspected of engaging in unfair trade practices when selling fitness services, and coercing a customer to procure fitness membership and personal fitness trainer contracts.

     After an investigation, it was revealed that the salespersons of the fitness centre asked a customer to sign a form to check whether there were any promotional offers available. The customer was told that no payment was needed. After the customer had signed the form, the saleslady involved in the case immediately revealed that the form was a fitness membership contract. Later, she pressured the victim to purchase an extra personal fitness trainer contract and pay for the contracts by means of credit card and autopay.

     Customs reminds traders to comply with the requirements of the TDO. Consumers are also reminded to procure services from reputable shops.

     Under the TDO, any trader commits an offence of engaging in aggressive commercial practices if harassment, coercion or undue influence is used to impair the consumer's freedom of choice or conduct in relation to the product concerned, causing the consumer to make a transactional decision. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for five years.

     Members of the public may report any suspected violation of the TDO to Customs' 24-hour hotline 2545 6182 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk).

     The Planning Department today (March 31) published a report entitled "Projections of Population Distribution 2021-2029", which presents the latest population distribution projections for 2021-2029.
 
     The population distribution projections have been compiled based on the latest projected total population for Hong Kong released by the Census and Statistics Department in September 2020 and the latest planning information.
 
     The report projects that the populations of the New Territories and Kowloon will increase by 434 300 and 63 700 between 2019 and 2029, reaching 4.40 million and 2.36 million respectively by 2029, while that of Hong Kong Island is expected to decrease gradually from 1.25 million to 1.13 million during the same period.
 
     In terms of share of the total population, the New Territories will rise from 53 per cent to 56 per cent between 2019 and 2029, while that for Kowloon will decrease from 31 per cent to 30 per cent. The share of Hong Kong Island will decrease from 17 per cent to 14 per cent during the same period.
 
     The report also presents the projected population of the District Council districts. Kwun Tong District, Yuen Long District and Sha Tin District are projected to be the three most populous districts in 2029, with populations reaching 721 200, 708 200 and 695 400 respectively.
 
     The report "Projections of Population Distribution 2021-2029", as well as statistical tables containing the detailed results of the projections of population distribution for 2021-2029, have been uploaded to the website of the Planning Department (www.pland.gov.hk) and "Data.gov.hk" (www.data.gov.hk). Members of the public can access the report and the tables directly at www.pland.gov.hk/pland_en/info_serv/statistic/wgpd21.html and data.gov.hk/en-data/dataset/hk-pland-pland1-projections-of-population-distribution-2021-to-2029.

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (March 31) released the findings of its food safety report for last month. The results of about 3 700 food samples tested were satisfactory except for three samples that were announced earlier. The overall satisfactory rate was 99.9 per cent.
     
     A CFS spokesman said about 1 000 food samples were collected for microbiological tests, and about 2 700 samples were taken for chemical and radiation level tests.
     
     The microbiological tests covered pathogens and hygiene indicators, the chemical tests included pesticides, preservatives, metallic contaminants, colouring matters, veterinary drug residues and others, while the radiation level tests included testing of radioactive caesium and iodine from samples collected from imported food of different regions.
      
     The samples comprised about 1 700 samples of vegetables and fruit and their products; about 200 samples of cereals, grains and their products; about 300 samples of meat and poultry and their products; about 600 samples of milk, milk products and frozen confections; about 400 samples of aquatic and related products, and about 500 samples of other food commodities (including beverages, bakery products and snacks).
     
     The three unsatisfactory samples comprised a lily bulb sample and a carrot sample detected with excessive cadmium, and a cherry tomato sample found to contain excessive pesticide residue.
     
     The CFS has taken follow-up action on the unsatisfactory samples including informing the vendors concerned of the test results, instructing them to stop selling the affected food items and tracing the sources of the food items in question.
     
     The spokesman reminded the food trade to ensure that food for sale is fit for human consumption and meets legal requirements. Consumers should patronise reliable shops when buying food and maintain a balanced diet to minimise food risks.

     The Government announced today (March 31) the appointment of Mr Roland Wong Ka-yeung, Mr Wong Wing-lik and Ms Cecilia Ho Chung-chee as members to the Fight Crime Committee. Mr Roland Wong and Mr Wong Wing-lik are appointed under the Member Self-recommendation Scheme for Youth. Their appointments are from April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022. Ms Ho's appointment is from April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2023.

     The Chief Secretary for Administration and Chairman of the Fight Crime Committee, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, welcomed the new appointments. He also thanked the outgoing member, Ms Alexandra Lo Dak-wai, for her valuable contribution to the work of the Committee during her term of service.

     The Fight Crime Committee is responsible for drawing up plans to reduce crime, co-ordinating efforts in fighting crime and monitoring the results, and determining ways in which the public can be encouraged to contribute to the fight against crime.