Author Archives: hksar gov

     The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, will lead a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) delegation on Sunday (July 28) to depart for a visit to three member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), namely Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, to introduce the strengths and latest developments of Hong Kong to local political and business communities, with a view to exploring business opportunities and establishing more extensive connections and networks.

     Noting that ASEAN is the second-largest trading partner of Hong Kong, Mr Lee said the bilateral trade in goods between Hong Kong and ASEAN reached US$144.6 billion last year and accounted for nearly 13 per cent of Hong Kong’s external merchandise trade, showing substantial economic potential in these emerging markets. This is his third visit to ASEAN countries since he took office, demonstrating the importance attached by Hong Kong towards co-operation with ASEAN, Mr Lee added.
           
     Members of the HKSAR delegation include the Deputy Financial Secretary, Mr Michael Wong; the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau; the Director of the Chief Executive’s Office, Ms Carol Yip; the Commissioner for Belt and Road, Mr Nicholas Ho; the Director-General of Investment Promotion, Ms Alpha Lau; and the Director of Information Services, Mrs Apollonia Liu.
       
     Members of the delegation also include some 30 high-level representatives from various sectors, including industry and commerce, financial services, transport, logistics, innovation and technology and tourism.
           
     Mr Lee will visit Laos on July 28 and 29. He will depart for Cambodia in the morning on July 30 and depart for Vietnam in the afternoon on July 31. During his visit, Mr Lee will meet with local political and business leaders to introduce Hong Kong’s unique advantages of enjoying the strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world under “one country, two systems”, and the opportunities, economic and trade connections, and broad business prospects that Hong Kong can bring to ASEAN. He will also visit local enterprises and major infrastructure projects to explore collaboration opportunities.
           
     Mr Lee will return to Hong Kong in the evening on August 2. During his absence, the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, will be the Acting Chief Executive. During the absence of Mr Yau, the Under Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Dr Bernard Chan, will be the Acting Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development. read more

     The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (July 26) released the test results of a targeted food surveillance project on the nutrition labelling of prepackaged yoghurts and yoghurt drinks. The results of 40 samples tested were all satisfactory.

     “The CFS collected samples from different retail outlets for the targeted food surveillance project. Tests were conducted to check if the energy content and specified nutrient content (total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, sugars, sodium, protein, carbohydrates, and more) are consistent with the declared values on their nutrition labels,” a spokesman for the CFS said.

     The Food and Drugs (Composition and Labelling) Regulations (Cap. 132W) require all applicable prepackaged foods to list the ingredients and the content of energy plus seven core nutrients, namely carbohydrates, protein, total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, sodium and sugars, and regulate any associated nutrition claims.

     Nutrition labelling can assist consumers in making informed food choices, encourage food manufacturers to apply sound nutrition principles in the formulation of foods, and regulate misleading or deceptive labels and claims. According to Section 61 of the Public Health and Municipal Services Ordinance (Cap. 132), if any person falsely describes food or misleads as to the nature, substance or quality of the food on a label of the food sold by him or her, he or she shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a maximum fine of $50,000 and six months’ imprisonment upon conviction.

     The CFS will continue to conduct surveillance on other food samples to check if their energy content and specified nutrient content are consistent with the declared values on their nutrition labels, and the results will be released in due course. The spokesman reminded the food trade to comply with the law, and urged members of the public to pay attention to the information on nutrition labels when purchasing food to make informed food choices so as to achieve a balanced diet and stay healthy. read more

Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:      Here is an item of interest to swimmers.      The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (July 26) that due… read more

Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:      Here is an item of interest to swimmers.      The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced toda… read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     The Hospital Authority (HA) announced today (July 26) that the two new drugs for treating cancer, approved for registration in Hong Kong after review under the new mechanism for registration of New Drugs (“1+” mechanism), are listed under the category of “Special Drug” on the HA Drug Formulary (HADF). The new drugs are the oral targeted therapy for treating metastatic colorectal cancer and are suitable for patients for whom conventional chemotherapy has been ineffective or inapplicable. Patients prescribed with these new drugs under specified clinical application are only required to pay for the standard fees and charges, which are substantially subsidised. This could greatly alleviate the financial burden on patients. It is estimated that around 300 patients will benefit every year and the subsidy amount is around $12 million.

     “With the ‘1+’ mechanism now in effect, the number of drugs successfully registered in Hong Kong would increase, thus enabling clinicians and patients to have more choices for drug treatment. The HA is conducting a comprehensive review of the procedure of new drugs listing on the HADF with the aim of expediting the process. While bringing new hope for the treatment of life-threatening or severely debilitating diseases, we hope that the financial burden on patients could also be greatly alleviated,” the Chief Pharmacist of the HA, Mr William Chui, said.

     Apart from the two drugs aforementioned, the HA is actively proceeding with the listing of a third new registered drug, which is for treating paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, on the HADF. The procedure is expected to be completed in the coming few months.

     The HA will continue to meet regularly with patient groups and other stakeholders to receive their opinions and suggestions on the listing of new drugs. The HA will also boost efforts in patient empowerment to ensure patients are well-informed about the relevant drug information. The HA will continue to enhance evaluation of new drugs as well as reviews of the HADF and the coverage of the safety net, so that more treatment options will be available for patients. The HA will also consult experts on health economics to have more cost-effective drugs of proven safety and efficacy listed on the HADF, benefitting more patients. read more