Author Archives: hksar gov

     Police today (June 14) appealed to the public for information on a girl who went missing in Wong Tai Sin.             Lee Man-hei, aged 15, went missing after she wa… read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Council for Sustainable Development:

     At the invitation of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, the Council for Sustainable Development today (June 14) launched the public interaction phase of the public engagement on Long-term Decarbonisation Strategy. The public engagement aims to arouse public awareness on the impact of carbon emissions, and gauge the views of the community in developing feasible strategies for carbon reduction, with a view to making recommendations to the Government by the end of this year.

     Speaking at the press conference, the Chairman of the Council, Professor Arthur Li, said, “Climate change is an imminent global challenge. Mitigating climate change is not just for ourselves, but also for our children and future generations. Concerted efforts of the Government and civic society are required to promote and implement the decarbonisation strategy.”
 
     The public engagement, adopting a bottom-up and stakeholder oriented approach, provides a platform to gauge public views. The Support Group on Long-term Decarbonisation Strategy, comprising experts and stakeholders from different fields, was formed earlier to assist the Council in planning and implementing this public engagement exercise.

     The Convenor of Support Group, Mr Lam Chiu-ying, announced at the press conference a series of public engagement activities to be held in the coming three months, including regional forums, a youth forum, school activities and briefing sessions. He encouraged members of the public to actively participate. 

     The Council also released a Public Engagement Document to highlight three main topics for public discussion:

* Transition towards a low-carbon society
* Reducing energy use and further decarbonising electricity generation 
* Low-carbon transport in a smart city 

     The public interaction phase of the public engagement will run until September 20, 2019. The Public Engagement Document can be downloaded from the Council’s dedicated website (www.susdev.org.hk). Members of the public are invited to send the views collection forms (included in the Public Engagement Document) to the Council Secretariat via email (comments@susdev.org.hk), mail (46/F, Revenue Tower, 5 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong) or fax (3150 8168).

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     The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (June 14) released the latest grading of water quality for 38 gazetted beaches that are open for swimming and one non-gazetted beach (i.e. Discovery Bay*).

     Fourteen beaches were rated as Good (Grade 1), 15 as Fair (Grade 2), nine as Poor (Grade 3) and one as Very Poor (Grade 4).
 
Grade 1 beaches are: 
       

Cheung Chau Tung Wan Beach	Repulse Bay Beach
Chung Hom Kok Beach	South Bay Beach
Discovery Bay	St Stephen’s Beach
Hap Mun Bay Beach	Stanley Main Beach
Hung Shing Yeh Beach	Tong Fuk Beach
Kiu Tsui Beach	Trio Beach
Lo So Shing Beach	Upper Cheung Sha Beach

 
Grade 2 beaches are:
 

Cafeteria New Beach	Lower Cheung Sha Beach
Cafeteria Old Beach	Middle Bay Beach
Castle Peak Beach	Pui O Beach
Clear Water Bay First Beach	Shek O Beach
Clear Water Bay Second Beach	Silver Mine Bay Beach
Golden Beach	Silverstrand Beach
Kadoorie Beach	Turtle Cove Beach
Kwun Yam Beach

 
Grade 3 beaches are:
 

Anglers’ Beach	Hoi Mei Wan Beach
Approach Beach	Lido Beach
Butterfly Beach	Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach
Casam Beach	Ting Kau Beach
Deep Water Bay Beach

 
Grade 4 beach is:
 

Big Wave Bay Beach**

* Discovery Bay is a non-gazetted beach without lifeguard service.
** Big Wave Bay Beach has been temporarily closed since June 4 due to urgent works by the Drainage Services Department at a nearby stream and the very poor (Grade 4) water quality measured by the EPD. The beach will be closed until further notice.

     Compared with the grading released last week, Stanley Main Beach has been upgraded from Grade 2 to Grade 1, and Silver Mine Bay Beach from Grade 3 to Grade 2. Kwun Yam Beach has been changed from Grade 1 to Grade 2, and Deep Water Bay Beach from Grade 2 to Grade 3.

     “Big Wave Bay Beach has been rated as Very Poor (Grade 4) since June 5, which was largely due to the recent unsteady weather and frequent heavy rain. The changes in other beaches are generally within the normal range of fluctuation of the bacteriological water quality of the beaches,” an EPD spokesman said.

     Under the present grading system, beaches are classified into four grades according to the level of E. coli in the water. Grades are calculated on the basis of the geometric mean of the E. coli counts on the five most recent sampling occasions.

     While the ratings represent the general water quality at the beaches, the EPD spokesman reminded members of the public that water quality could be temporarily affected during and after periods of heavy rain. Bathers should avoid swimming at beaches for up to three days after a storm or heavy rainfall.

     A summary of beach grades is published weekly before the weekend. The latest beach grades based on the most current data may be obtained from the department’s website on Beach Water Quality (www.epd.gov.hk/epd/beach) or the beach hotline, 2511 6666. read more

     The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Dr Law Chi-kwong, will depart for Geneva, Switzerland, tomorrow evening (June 15) to attend the 108th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC), which is also called the Centenary Conference as 2019 marks the 100th anniversary of the International Labour Organization (ILO).
 
     Dr Law will attend the ILC as a member of the delegation of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The agenda of this year’s ILC includes the discussion of the report of the Global Commission on the Future of Work of the ILO entitled “Work for a brighter future” and the international labour standards on ending violence and harassment in the world of work.
 
     While in Geneva, apart from exchanges with tripartite representatives of the PRC delegation, Dr Law will also call on the Permanent Mission of the PRC to the United Nations Office at Geneva and Other International Organizations in Switzerland and have meetings with representatives of the ILO’s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, the International Social Security Association and the System Initiative Management Team of the World Economic Forum to exchange views on matters of mutual interest.
 
     Representatives of the Labour Department and the Labour Advisory Board are also attending the ILC.
 
     Dr Law will arrive in Hong Kong on June 20. In his absence, the Under Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Caspar Tsui, will be the Acting Secretary for Labour and Welfare. read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

The Hospital Authority (HA) spokesperson made the following statement today (June 14):
 
     The HA reiterates that the prime concern of public hospitals is ensuring patient safety during the course of patient management, which should not be compromised by any non-clinical activities.
 
     The HA also upholds the overriding principle of patient confidentiality, which is the cornerstone of patient confidence. All patient information is collected on a clinical needs basis, while observing the need-to-know principles in information access.
 
     There is a well-established procedure, including proper documentation, in handling requests for patients’ information from law enforcers. If in doubt, front-line staff are encouraged to consult senior staff or the HA Major Incident Control Centre.
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