The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     With tropical storm Toraji edging closer to Hong Kong, the arrangements of the Legislative Council (LegCo) meeting tomorrow (November 14) as well as public services in the LegCo Complex will be as follows:

LegCo meeting
 
     (1) if Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal No. 8 (Typhoon Signal No. 8) or above is issued and remains in force between 7am and 9am tomorrow, or if the Hong Kong Observatory announces that Typhoon Signal No. 8 will be issued or is considered to be issued within a short period of time, the LegCo meeting scheduled for 9am tomorrow will be rescheduled;
      
     (2) if Typhoon Signal No. 8 is cancelled, the LegCo President will, depending on the weather and traffic conditions at the time, decide whether to follow the usual practice of holding the meeting no less than two hours after the cancellation of the signal; and
      
     (3) the LegCo President will closely monitor the weather conditions and provide timely instructions regarding the meeting arrangements.
      
Public services in LegCo Complex
 
     (1) the service of the LegCo Public Complaints Office and public services in the LegCo Complex, including the guided tours of the Complex or education activities for Members' visitors and schools, the LegCo Library and the LegCo Archives, will be suspended while Typhoon Signal No. 8 is in force; and
      
     (2) if Typhoon Signal No. 8 is cancelled, a decision will be made, based on the weather and traffic conditions at the time, on whether to gradually resume the services no less than two hours after the cancellation. If Typhoon Signal No. 8 is cancelled at or after 3pm, the services will remain suspended for the whole day.

     In response to media enquiries regarding an organisation suspected of arranging holders of Community Care Service Voucher (CCSV) to receive services from a non-recognised service provider, a spokesman for the Social Welfare Department (SWD) today (November 13) gave the following response:

     The CCSV Scheme provides direct subsidy to eligible frail elderly persons in the form of service vouchers so that they can flexibly select the recognised service providers (RSPs) which best suit their needs to provide services. The RSPs are required to formulate individual care plan for the service users and prepare service packages and content in consultation with the voucher holders or their families.

     According to records, Woopie Club (Tai Po) has been an RSP under the CCSV Scheme since August 2019, which provides centre-based day care services and home care services for the elderly. The application from Woopie Club (Sheung Shui) is still being examined and it is not an RSP at the moment.

     The SWD is highly concerned about the media report on Woopie Club (Tai Po) allegedly arranging CCSV holders to receive services in Woopie Club (Sheung Shui). Upon gathering initial information, the SWD has contacted the Police for investigation. The SWD will work with Police on the latter’s investigation and provide all relevant information. If any irregularity of the RSP is found, the SWD will follow up on the matter seriously to ensure the proper use of public funds and to protect the interests of the CCSV holders.

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health is today (November 13) investigating three epidemiologically linked food poisoning clusters affecting 10 persons, and reminded the public to maintain personal, food and environmental hygiene to prevent foodborne diseases.
 
     The first cluster involved two females aged 36 and 40, who developed abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, and fever about 17 hours after they bought lunch from Busan House located in Lok Fu and consumed at their workplace on November 7.
 
     The second cluster involved four females aged between 30 and 46, who developed abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea and fever about 11 to 39 hours after they bought dinner from the same restaurant and consumed at their workplace on the same day.
 
     The third cluster involved four females aged between 30 and 60, who developed abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea and fever about 15 to 24 hours after they bought lunch from the same restaurant and consumed at their workplace on November 8.
     
      All of the affected persons sought medical advice. One of them required hospitalisation. Her stool specimen was positive for Salmonella upon laboratory testing. All patients are in stable condition.
 
      Initial investigations by the CHP revealed that the affected persons had consumed common food and the food concerned was kimbap, which consisted of seaweed, shredded egg, cucumber and pickles.
 
      Personnel from the CHP and the Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department have conducted an inspection at the restaurant, and instructed the premises concerned to suspend operation with immediate effect, carry out cleaning and disinfection of the premises and improve food preparation process and food hygiene. The officers have also provided health education related to food safety and environmental hygiene to the staff of the premises. The officers initially suspected that the food concerned was contaminated during the preparation process.
 
      The CHP and CFS's investigation is ongoing and it cannot rule out that the number of cases will increase. The CHP appeals to the persons who have consumed the said food item from the aforementioned restaurant on November 7 or 8 to seek medical advice as soon as possible if they feel unwell.
 
       To prevent foodborne diseases, members of the public are reminded to maintain personal, food and environmental hygiene at all times. When dining out:
 

• For dishes that often use lightly cooked or uncooked eggs, choose pasteurised eggs, egg products or dried egg powder;
• Patronise only reliable and licensed restaurants;
• Avoid eating raw seafood;
• Be a discerning consumer in choosing cold dishes, including sashimi, sushi and raw oysters, at a buffet;
• Pre-cooked or leftover foods should be stored and reheated properly before consumption;
• Ensure food is thoroughly cooked before eating during a hotpot or barbecue meal;
• Handle raw and cooked foods carefully and separate them completely during the cooking process;
• Use two sets of chopsticks and utensils to handle raw and cooked foods;
• Do not patronise illegal food hawkers;
• Drink boiled water;
• Do not try to use salt, vinegar, wine or wasabi to kill bacteria as they are not effective; and
• Always wash hands before eating and after going to the toilet.

     The Hong Kong Observatory (HKO) will issue Tropical Cyclone Warning Signal No. 8 at 11:10pm tonight (November 13), and will remain in force at least until 10am tomorrow (November 14).  Classes of all AM and whole-day schools, including secondary schools, primary schools, schools for children with physical disability, schools for children with intellectual disability, kindergartens, and kindergartens-cum-child care centres, will be suspended tomorrow. The schooling arrangement for PM primary and secondary schools, and evening schools will be announced tomorrow. 

     Meanwhile, when the HKO issues Pre-no.8 Special Announcement later, classes of all schools will be suspended tonight.  Schools should implement contingency measures to ensure the safety of students.  They should ensure that conditions are safe before allowing students to return home.

     "Post Capitalistic Auction", a participatory theatre production under the Asia+ Festival, will be staged at Hong Kong City Hall Theatre on November 16 and 17. The production is accompanied by a series of extension activities including guided tours, art student roundtables and a panel discussion, which will take place November 14 to 18 at Hong Kong City Hall Exhibition Hall. The events are presented by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department.

     "Post Capitalistic Auction" is an unconventional yet authentic auction created by Mainland artist Jingyi Wang and local curator Kyle Chung. Audiences can bid for their favourite artworks in new ways other than money, such as barter (in either tangible or intangible terms), a career opportunity for the artist, a deep understanding of the artwork and many more possibilities, before taking the art pieces home.

      At a limited auction preview held today (November 13), Wang and Chung first explained the creative concepts behind this experimental auction, before walking visitors through eight works of art crafted by local and overseas artists, which will be put up for bidding at the actual auctions on November 16 and 17. Artists in attendance today, namely France's Maurice Benayoun and local practitioners Carla Chan, Wu Jiaru, Chan Wai-lap and William Lim, also shared their feelings of being part of this alternative auction.

     An auction showcase and guided tours will be held from November 14 to 18, when audiences will be introduced to the participating artists, their works and more. Moreover, art student roundtables, moderated by local scholar-curator Wong Ka-ying, will take place on November 14 and 15 respectively for students of related fields to re-examine the nature and future of art. The entire programme will culminate in a panel discussion on November 18, where seasoned artist-curators Hou Hanru and Isaac Leung together with Wang and Chung will share their insights on the "Post Capitalistic Auction" Hong Kong edition. For details, please refer to asiaplus.gov.hk/2024/en/post-capitalistic-auction.
    
     Free seating tickets for the participatory theatre production "Post Capitalistic Auction" are priced at $420, whereas guided tour tickets are $60. Admission to other activities is free. Tickets are now available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288, or use the mobile ticketing app "URBTIX".
    
     The second Asia+ Festival is running from September to November, highlighting the arts and cultures of nearly 30 Asian and Belt and Road countries or regions. Apart from stage programmes, there are also thematic exhibitions, an outdoor carnival, film screenings, outreach activities and more, numbering over 100 in total. For programme enquiries or concessionary schemes, please call 2370 1044 or visit asiaplus.gov.hk/2024/en.