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Author Archives: hksar gov

Veterinary drug chloramphenicol found in two live abalone samples

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (November 22) announced that two live abalone samples were found to contain a veterinary drug, chloramphenicol. The CFS is following up on the incident.

     A spokesman for the CFS said, “The CFS through its routine Food Incident Surveillance System, had earlier noted an announcement by the Macao authorities about a recall of a batch of ‘South African live abalone’ imported into Macao by a Hong Kong supplier due to the presence of a prohibited veterinary drug, chloramphenicol. That batch of live abalone had not entered the Hong Kong market. For the sake of prudence, the CFS had enhanced surveillance of live abalone. It collected the two above-mentioned samples from a fresh provision shop in Lok Fu and a stall in Tai Po Hui Market for testing. The test results showed that they contained chloramphenicol at respective levels of 0.65 micrograms per kilogram (µg/kg) and 0.56 µg/kg.”
      
     According to the Harmful Substances in Food Regulations (Cap 132AF), no fish (including shellfish) sold in Hong Kong for human consumption is allowed to contain chloramphenicol. Offenders will be liable to a fine of $50,000 and imprisonment for six months upon conviction.
      
     The spokesman said, “The CFS has informed the vendors concerned of the irregularities and instructed them to stop sale of the affected products. The CFS is tracing the sources of the affected products.”
      
     The CFS will continue to follow up on the cases and take appropriate action. read more

Speech by CS at Social Enterprise Summit 2018 grand opening (English only) (with photos/video)

     Following is the speech by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, at the grand opening of the Social Enterprise Summit 2018 this afternoon (November 22):
 
Mrs Rebecca Yung (Chair of the Organising Committee of Social Enterprise Summit (SES)), Ms Susan Tse (Secretary-General of the Organising Committee of SES), Ms Paula DiPerna, (Special Adviser of CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project)), Mr Mark Cheng (Managing Director of Ashoka Europe), Dr Jane Lee (Chairperson of Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Fund Task Force), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,
 
     Good afternoon. It is my honour to join you all at the opening ceremony of the 11th Social Enterprises Summit. First and foremost, I would like to extend my warmest welcome to all guests and speakers from the Mainland and overseas.
 
     The Summit is a flagship event to demonstrate the cross-sector collaboration among social enterprises, NGOs, charities, businesses, investors, academics and government to promote social innovation and entrepreneurship. Since its inception in 2008, the Summit has become a highly acclaimed annual fixture attracting thousands of participants every year from Hong Kong, Mainland China and the Asia Pacific region.
 
     This year, over 3,000 participants from the region have gathered in Hong Kong to explore and discuss future directions and trends of social innovation and social entrepreneurship development under the theme “Innovating for a Happier Society”, which echoes well with the aspiration of social innovation. 
 
     Social innovation puts emphasis on addressing social issues through innovation, improving people’s quality of life and seeing the community growing happily together. It covers advancement in knowledge, products and services, including the application of existing business models, processes and methods in new ways to meet social needs. 
 
     Social innovation has a proven track record in addressing social issues both locally and internationally, and has been gaining public attention and recognition these days. Initiated by individual social entrepreneurs, social innovation is often put into practice by cross-sector collaboration involving corporates, NGOs, philanthropies, impact investors, academia and the government.
 
     To foster social innovation in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government launched the Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Fund (SIE Fund) in 2013. The SIE Fund seeks to act as a catalyst for promoting social innovation in Hong Kong. By supporting cross-sector collaboration and capacity building, the SIE Fund aims to foster an ecosystem that enables social entrepreneurs to thrive; support innovative ideas, products and services to help alleviate poverty and promote social inclusion; and enhance the well-being and cohesion of society.
 
     To date, the SIE Fund has allocated more than HK$140 million in funding for about 160 projects, expecting to benefit more than 100 000 persons and 1 000 households. Over 2,800 social entrepreneurs have been nurtured by the Fund. This year, the Fund is bringing to the Summit a social innovation exhibition which showcases the latest accomplishments and the upcoming initiatives of the Fund.
 
     Given the multitude of social issues in Hong Kong, the Government sees the importance of fostering more extensive cross-sector collaboration to drive greater impact and achieve meaningful and sustainable solutions to complex social problems. While the SIE Fund works in close concert with relevant sectors to explore the new approaches to social innovation, I am glad to note that the Social Enterprise Summit also brings together world-renowned leaders, social entrepreneurs, scholars and practitioners to share with us the latest trends and developments in these areas.
 
     The development of social enterprises in Hong Kong has been most encouraging. They offer solutions and pioneering innovative projects to alleviate social problems through cross-sectoral collaboration. A shining example is the Community Housing Movement launched by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service with the support of the Government and cross-sectoral collaboration among the Community Chest of Hong Kong, the SIE Fund, kind-hearted landlords, NGOs and social enterprise to provide short-term relief for individuals or families with proven need of transitional housing.
 
     The HKSAR Government firmly believes that the continuous development of social enterprises will bring enormous social good to the long-term development of Hong Kong. Indeed, the Home Affairs Bureau of the HKSAR Government has been the major sponsor of the Social Enterprise Summit since 2008. We will also provide start-up funds, improve support platforms to promote cross-sectoral collaboration, and strengthen capacity building of social enterprises. We will also review the leasing arrangements for government properties to facilitate NGOs and social enterprises to lease and use suitable government properties. The SIE Fund will also bring to this year’s Summit a social innovation exhibition which showcases the latest accomplishments and the upcoming initiatives of the Fund.
 
     While the Government will continue developing the social innovation ecosystem, nurturing innovative ventures and fostering social entrepreneurs, we need long-term commitment and active participation from all stakeholders and sectors of society to help social enterprises to thrive and shine. I am pleased to note that the Social Enterprise Summit 2018 brings together relevant sectors and global experts from the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Thailand, Japan, South Korea and Singapore to share their insights and experience in tackling bottlenecks and making breakthroughs in social entrepreneurship development with a view to empowering everyone to create a happier society.
 
     I look forward to listening to your views and wise counsel during the policy dialogue session with Paula following the opening ceremony. I also wish the Summit every success and all of you a most rewarding and fruitful discussion.
 
     Thank you.

Photo  Photo  
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Speech by CS at opening ceremony of Sports and Arts Building at W F Joseph Lee Primary School (English only)

     Following is the speech by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, at the opening ceremony of the Sports and Arts Building at W F Joseph Lee Primary School today (November 22):
 
Dr Joseph Lee (Supervisor of W F Joseph Lee Primary School), Mr Alan Chow (Principal of W F Joseph Lee Primary School), His Eminence Cardinal John Tong Hon (Bishop Emeritus of the Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, principals, parents, students,
 
     Good afternoon. I am delighted to join you all today at the opening ceremony of the Sports and Arts Building of W F Joseph Lee Primary School. First and foremost, I would like to extend my warmest congratulations to the school and to those who have contributed to the successful completion of this impressive facility.
 
     The Sports and Arts Building marks a significant milestone in the continuous development of the school and the commitment of the WoFoo Foundation to quality education. Since its establishment in 2002, the W F Joseph Lee Primary School has been offering a diversified curriculum and joyful learning environment within and outside classrooms to students for whole-person development.
 
     The current setting of the campus is already well equipped with a dance studio, a library, a STEM room, a computer room, a campus TV studio, music rooms for Chinese and Western musical instruments, an art room, a science room, a band room and a mini-tennis court. The opening of this new building will offer a diverse education experience to students to unleash their potential. These facilities include an art gallery, an all-weather swimming pool, a roof basketball court, and a multi-purpose room for indoor exhibitions, theme-based seminars, gymnastic training and cheerleading team training. 
 
     The vision of the school to develop students to their fullest potential and become responsible and respectable future members of society is consonant with the current-term Government’s mission to nurture the future generations into quality citizens who are socially responsible and equipped with a sense of our national identity, a love for Hong Kong and an international perspective.
 
     Government expenditure on education is therefore the most meaningful investment for our future. It has always been the lion’s share of recurrent spending of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government. In the current financial year, our expenditure on education amounts to approximately HK$113.7 billion, an increase of 28.4 per cent from HK$88.5 billion in the previous financial year. This fully reflects the long-term commitment of the Government to education.
 
     To better prepare our next generations for the challenges ahead, we have allocated considerable resources to promote the whole-person development of students. All along, the Education Bureau has been advocating the adoption of diversified learning inside and outside the classroom to boost students’ interest in learning, and instil in them positive values and attitudes. To this end, the Policy Address this year announced the launch of a new recurrent Life-wide Learning Grant with an annual provision of $900 million. The Grant will support public sector schools and schools under the Direct Subsidy Scheme to take forward, on the present foundation, life-wide learning with enhanced efforts through organising more out-of-classroom experiential learning activities in various curriculum areas such as the humanities, STEM education, physical and aesthetic development and moral and civic education.
 
     I share the excitement and exhilaration of the teachers and students of this school over the grand opening of the Sports and Arts Building today. I am confident that building on its strengths and foundation, the school would fully utilise the enhanced facilities and the increased resources from the Government to further promote the whole-person development of students. With the concerted efforts of all the stakeholders, I trust that the school will continue to fulfil its mission of developing students as confident, innovative and resourceful individuals with broad horizons and positive thinking.
 
     Before I close, I would like to pay warm tribute to Joseph for his devotion to serving the community. On this note, I would like to congratulate WoFoo Foundation for another impressive community services project. I wish the school every success in the years ahead and all of you good health and happiness. Thank you. read more

Works contractors of Central-Wan Chai Bypass Project convicted for repeatedly causing noise nuisance and discharging substandard wastewater

     The construction sites for the Central-Wan Chai Bypass (CWB) project had illegally carried out construction works during restricted hours seven times and discharged substandard muddy water twice. The main contractors concerned, Chun Wo Construction and Engineering Company Limited and China Railway Group Limited, and subcontractor Wah Keung Metal Engineering Limited and the related workers were convicted and fined $157,500 by Eastern Magistrates’ Courts today (November 22) for a total of 16 offences under the Noise Control Ordinance (NCO) and the Water Pollution Control (General) Regulations (WPC(G)R).
      
     The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) received a number of complaints from May last year to January this year about noise nuisance generated by the construction works of the CWB project during Sundays and at night. After investigation, the EPD confirmed that the construction sites for eastern tunnel works of the CWB project (HK/2009/02) and Tunnel (North Point Section) and Island Eastern Corridor Link (HY/2009/19) illegally carried out construction works by using non-permitted powered mechanical equipment or exceeded the permitted number of equipment, and illegally carried out prohibited prescribed construction works a number of times during restricted hours at night and on Sundays.
      
     In addition, during the EPD’s inspections in June and August last year, it was found that the construction sites of the CWB Tunnel (North Point Section) and Island Eastern Corridor Link had discharged wastewater without proper treatment into storm drains twice. The wastewater samples showed that the concentrations of suspended solids exceeded the discharge standards stated in the licence by 172 times and 32 times respectively.
      
     After investigation and evidence gathering, the EPD prosecuted the contractors, the sub-contractor and the related workers for seven cases of noise nuisance and two cases of illegal wastewater discharge. The EPD has contacted the Civil Engineering and Development Department and the Highways Department and requested them to step up their supervision on contractors and to follow up the cases.
      
     The spokesman stressed that construction contractors must abide by the law and comply with environmental legislation and requirements. According to the NCO, first-time offenders are liable to a maximum fine of $100,000. A maximum fine of $200,000 may be imposed on second or subsequent convictions.
      
     The spokesman also reminded all construction site contractors to install appropriate wastewater treatment facilities and properly collect and treat wastewater to ensure that the discharge complies with the license requirements under the Water Pollution Control Ordinance. It is an offence for any person to discharge wastewater that does not comply with the license requirements. First-time offenders are liable to a maximum fine of $200,000 and six months’ imprisonment. read more