The Government announced today (June 12) the appointment of Mr Wong Ying-keung as Chief Staff Officer, Auxiliary Medical Service vice Mr Hui Wai-kwong with effect from June 15, 2019, when Mr Hui commences his pre-retirement leave.
 
     The Chief Staff Officer, Auxiliary Medical Service is the head of the civil service establishment of the Auxiliary Medical Service. Mr Wong, Assistant Chief Ambulance Officer, has been selected for the post through in-service appointment.
 
     The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Joshua Law, said, "Mr Wong possesses administration and leadership abilities as well as rich professional knowledge to lead the Auxiliary Medical Service to meet the challenges ahead."
 
     On the retirement of Mr Hui, Mr Law said, "As the Chief Staff Officer, Auxiliary Medical Service, Mr Hui has made sustained efforts in leading the department to provide professional training and logistics support to enable members of the Auxiliary Medical Service to provide reliable auxiliary medical service for the people of Hong Kong in times of emergency. I sincerely wish him a fulfilling and happy retirement."
 
     Brief biographical notes on the two officers are set out below:
 
Mr Hui Wai-kwong
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     Mr Hui joined the Immigration Department as Assistant Immigration Officer in August 1982. He then joined the Fire Services Department as Ambulance Officer in June 1985 and was promoted to Senior Ambulance Officer in November 1990. He joined the then Government Land Transport Agency as Government Transport Manager in June 1994 before being appointed as the Chief Staff Officer, Auxiliary Medical Service in September 2012.
 
Mr Wong Ying-keung
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     Mr Wong joined the Fire Services Department as Ambulance Officer in November 1997. He was promoted to Senior Ambulance Officer in October 2007, to Superintendent (Ambulance) in October 2015, and has been appointed Assistant Chief Ambulance Officer since October 2018.
 

  

     A spokesman for the Social Welfare Department (SWD) said today (June 12) that recipients of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) as well as recipients of the Old Age Allowance (OAA) including the Guangdong (GD) Scheme and the Fujian (FJ) Scheme), the Old Age Living Allowance (OALA) and the Disability Allowance (DA) under the Social Security Allowance (SSA) Scheme, will receive a one-off extra payment this Friday (June 14).

     The spokesman said that the arrangement was one of a series of relief measures announced in the 2019-20 Budget. The SWD has been allocated $3.84 billion for implementing the arrangements and will credit the payment to the designated bank accounts of eligible recipients. Recipients who were eligible for the above social security payment on May 16 (the date of the passage of the Appropriation Bill 2019) will be eligible for the one-off extra payment without the need to make an application. 
 
     For CSSA recipients, the amount of the one-off extra payment is equivalent to one month's standard rate payable to different categories of recipients under the CSSA Scheme. Recipients of OAA (including the GD Scheme and the FJ Scheme), OALA and DA will receive an additional one month's allowance. The level of payment is as follows:

     The measure will benefit about 1.32 million eligible persons including 330 000 CSSA recipients, 570 000 OALA recipients, 280 000 OAA (including GD Scheme and FJ Scheme) recipients and 150 000 DA recipients.
 
     For enquiries, recipients may call the SWD hotline at 2343 2255 or contact the respective Social Security Field Unit.

     The effective exchange rate index for the Hong Kong dollar on Wednesday, June 12, 2019 is 105.4 (up 0.1 against yesterday's index).

Attention TV/radio announcers:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible and repeat it at regular intervals:

     Here is an item of interest to swimmers.

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (June 12) that due to an insufficient number of lifeguards on duty, Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park Swimming Pool in ​Central and Western District has been temporarily closed until further notice to ensure the safety of swimmers.

     The Transport Department (TD) today (June 12) announced that two auctions of personalised vehicle registration marks (PVRMs) will be held on July 6 (Saturday) and August 4 (Sunday) at Meeting Room N101, L1, and Meeting Room N201, L2, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, Wan Chai, respectively.

     "A total of 206 and 208 approved PVRMs will be put up for public auction. The lists of the marks were posted on the department's website, www.td.gov.hk, today," a department spokesman said.

     The reserve price of all these marks is $5,000. Applicants who have paid a deposit of $5,000 should also participate in the bidding (including the first bid at the reserve price). Otherwise, the PVRM concerned may be sold to another bidder at the reserve price.

     People who wish to participate in the bidding at the auction should take note of the following important points:

(i) Paddle bidding will be used at this auction;

(ii) The display of a PVRM on a motor vehicle should be in compliance with the requirements stipulated in Schedule 4 of the Road Traffic (Registration and Licensing of Vehicles) Regulations;

(iii) Any change to the arrangement of letters, numerals and blank spaces of a PVRM, i.e. single and two rows as auctioned, will not be allowed;

(iv) Purchasers must make payment of the purchase price through the Easy Pay System (EPS), or by crossed cheque and complete the Memorandum of Sale of PVRM immediately after the bidding of the PVRM concerned. Subsequent alteration of the particulars in the memorandum will not be permitted. For an auctioned mark paid for by cheque, the first three working days after the date of auction will be required for cheque clearance confirmation before processing of the application for mark assignment can be completed; and

(v) The purchaser shall, within 12 months after the date of auction, apply to the Commissioner for Transport for the PVRM to be assigned to a motor vehicle registered in the name of the purchaser. If the purchaser fails to assign the PVRM within 12 months, allocation of the PVRM will be cancelled and arranged for re-allocation in accordance with the statutory provision without prior notice to the purchaser.

     "Upon completion of the Memorandum of Sale of PVRM, the purchaser will be issued a receipt and a Certificate of Allocation of Personalised Registration Mark. The Certificate of Allocation will serve to prove the holdership of the PVRM. Potential buyers of vehicles bearing a PVRM should check the Certificate of Allocation with the sellers and pay attention to the details therein. For transfer of vehicle ownership, this certificate together with other required documents should be sent to the Transport Department for processing," the spokesman said.

     For other auction details, please refer to the Guidance Notes – Auction of PVRM, which is available at the department's licensing offices or can be downloaded from its website, www.td.gov.hk.