Author Archives: hksar gov

     The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (December 27) released the latest grading of water quality for six gazetted beaches that are open all year round for swimming.
 
     Five beaches were rated as Good (Grade 1), and one as Fair (Grade 2).
 
 
Grade 1 beaches are:          

Casam Beach	Golden Beach
Clear Water Bay Second Beach	Lido Beach
Deep Water Bay Beach

 
Grade 2 beaches are:

Silverstrand Beach

 
     Compared with the grading released last week, Casam Beach and Lido Beach have been upgraded from Grade 2 to Grade 1.
 
     Under the present grading system, beaches are classified into four grades, namely Good (Grade 1), Fair (Grade 2), Poor (Grade 3) and Very Poor (Grade 4), 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, an 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 tropical cyclone 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 EPD’s website on Beach Water Quality (www.epd.gov.hk/epd/beach) or the beach hotline, 2511 6666.  Members of the public can also obtain the latest daily water quality forecast information for all beaches that are open for swimming through the EPD’s dedicated webpage on the beach water quality forecast (www.epd.gov.hk/en/BWQForecast).  read more

     The effective exchange rate index for the Hong Kong dollar on Friday, December 27, 2024 is 107.7 (up 0.2 against Tuesday’s index). read more

     The Government announced today (December 27) the following senior appointments:

(a) Miss Charmaine Lee Pui-sze, Director of Social Welfare, will take up the post of Permanent Secretary for Housing/Director of Housing on February 4, 2025; 

(b) Mr Edward To Wing-hang, Deputy Secretary for Education, will take up the post of Director of Social Welfare on February 3, 2025; and

(c) Ms Priscilla To Kit-lai, Deputy Secretary for Security, will take up the post of Director of Home Affairs on February 3, 2025, to succeed Mrs Alice Cheung Chiu Hoi-yue who will proceed on pre-retirement leave in end January 2025.

     Commenting on the appointment of Miss Lee, Mr To and Ms To, the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, said, “The appointees are seasoned Administrative Officers with proven leadership and management skills. I have every confidence that they will continue to serve the community with professionalism in their new capacity.” 

     Turning to Mrs Cheung who will proceed on pre-retirement leave, Mrs Yeung said, “Mrs Cheung has rendered 38 years of loyal and dedicated service to the community of Hong Kong. During her tenure as Director of Home Affairs, she played an instrumental role in rebuilding the community after the COVID-19 pandemic and improving governance at the district level. Under her leadership, the Department successfully implemented the improved district governance system, whereby District Councils were reformed, a high-level district governance structure was instituted, and District Services and Community Care Teams were set up to better serve the needs of the community. I wish her a fulfilling and happy retirement.”   

     Brief biographical notes of the four officers are set out below:

Mrs Alice Cheung Chiu Hoi-yue 
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     Mrs Cheung joined the Government in May 1986. She served in the Executive Officer Grade before joining the Administrative Service in August 1992, rising to the rank of Administrative Officer Staff Grade A in April 2023. She has served in various policy bureaux and departments, including the former Civil Service Branch, the former Trade and Industry Branch, the Home Affairs Department, the former Trade Department, the Civil Service Bureau, the Chief Secretary for Administration’s Office, the former Home Affairs Bureau, the Education Bureau and the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau. She was Deputy Director of Environmental Protection from July 2016 to April 2019, Deputy Secretary for Transport and Housing (Housing)/Deputy Director of Housing (Strategy) from April 2019 to April 2022, and has been serving as Director of Home Affairs since April 2022. 

Miss Charmaine Lee Pui-sze
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     Miss Lee joined the Administrative Service in August 1993 and rose to the rank of Administrative Officer Staff Grade A in April 2023.  She has served in various bureaux and departments, including the former Chief Secretary’s Office, the former Home Affairs Branch, the Chief Executive’s Office, the former Trade Department, the Trade and Industry Department, the former Education and Manpower Bureau (later renamed as the Education Bureau) and the Civil Service Bureau. She was Deputy Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs from August 2011 to January 2019; Deputy Head, Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office (later renamed as Deputy Head, Policy Address Team, Chief Secretary for Administration’s Office) from January 2019 to July 2022, and has been serving as Director of Social Welfare since August 2022.
     
Mr Edward To Wing-hang
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     Mr To joined the Administrative Service in October 1996 and rose to the rank of Administrative Officer Staff Grade B1 in April 2024.  He has served in various bureaux and departments, including the former Security Branch (later renamed as the Security Bureau), the former Planning, Environment and Lands Bureau, the Innovation and Technology Commission, the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Tokyo, the former Housing, Planning and Lands Bureau (later reorganised as the Development Bureau) and the former Transport and Housing Bureau. He was Principal Assistant Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development (Communications and Technology) (later renamed as Principal Assistant Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development (Communications and Creative Industries)) from June 2014 to February 2017; Deputy Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development (Communications and Creative Industries) from February 2017 to April 2020, and has been serving as Deputy Secretary for Education since April 2020.

Ms Priscilla To Kit-lai
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     Ms To joined the Administrative Service in September 1995, rising to the rank of Administrative Officer Staff Grade B1 in April 2024.  She has served in various policy bureaux and departments, including the Correctional Services Department, the former Health and Welfare Bureau, the former Information, Technology and Broadcasting Bureau, the former Environment and Food Bureau, the former Health, Welfare and Food Bureau, the former Commerce, Industry and Technology Bureau (later reorganised as the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau), the Education Bureau, the Civil Service Bureau and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London. She was Private Secretary to the Chief Executive-elect from May 2022 to June 2022, Private Secretary to the Chief Executive from July 2022 to February 2023, and has been serving as Deputy Secretary for Security since June 2023.

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     The Hong Kong Film Archive of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department will present its “Archival Gems” series with the theme of “Time After Time IV – The ‘Times’ and ‘Trends’ of 1970s Hong Kong Film” on the first Sunday of February and March next year, featuring four Hong Kong films that reflect the many facets of urban life and styles in the 1970s. 
 
     As socio-economic developments accelerated in the 1970s, Hong Kong cinema entered a phase of transitioning from the old to the new. Besides reflecting the daily lives of people, many Hong Kong films of the time also sought to provide sensory stimulation for audiences. This screening programme comprises of two sections, namely “A Comedic Look on Life” and “Fists and Eros”. The former features comedies satirising social phenomena, while the latter showcases the trend of 1970s films featuring martial arts action and erotica to attract viewers.
 
     The two films under the “A Comedic Look on Life” section include “A Strange Tale of the Strange People” (1979) and “Money Trip” (1979). The former starred a fledgling Ng Kong as a simple-minded youth who becomes a temporary martial arts actor with his agility, encountering a series of thrilling and humorous moments. This social satire comedy paints a vivid and riveting picture of urban life through the absurd encounters of ordinary people.
 
     The other film, “Money Trip”, marks the first collaboration between George Lam and Cora Miao on the big screen. In the film, the two, together with fortune seekers, embark on a crazy treasure hunt for a valuable fossil. Lau Tin-chi’s script is full of the situation-comedy style of 1970s television dramas, and is rife with imaginative and whimsical elements. The film also features well-known actors Ng Mang-tat and Kent Cheng.

     “The Heroine” (1973), part of the “Fists and Eros” section, is an action-filled crime film about the crackdown on a drug-dealing gang. Jackie Chan plays a villain in the film. Also serving as the film’s martial arts choreographer, he performed numerous exciting action scenes with a policewoman played by Yuen Chau, his fellow apprentice under the same master.
 
     “Underworld Beauty” (also known as “From the Underworld”) (1974) tells the story of a female ghost, played by Tien Ni, who uses beauty and magic power to lure a coffin shop owner into saving the lives of evildoers. The coffin shop owner later realises that all the people he has saved live on to wreak more havoc, so he decides to follow his conscience and refuse to work with the ghost anymore. The film combines spirituality, comedy and human desire, offering not only entertainment but also an exploration of themes such as life and karma in a simple and straightforward manner.
 
     “A Strange Tale of the Strange People” and “Money Trip”, to be screened on February 2, are both in Cantonese, while “The Heroine” and “Underworld Beauty”, to be screened on March 2, are both in Mandarin. All films are with Chinese and English subtitles.
 
     “Money Trip” and “Underworld Beauty” will be accompanied by post-screening talks. The former will be hosted by Sam Ho and Joyce Yang, and the latter will be hosted by Dr Kenny Ng and Grace Ng.
 
     Tickets priced at $70 will be available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk) from January 3 (Friday). A 20 per cent discount will be available for every purchase of regular-priced tickets of two screenings of this programme on the same day. The discounted ticket price will be $56 each. For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288. For programme details, please visit the HKFA website (https://www.filmarchive.gov.hk/en/web/hkfa/2024/tat4/pe-event-2024-tat4.html) or call 2739 2139.

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     â€‹The Government announced today (December 27) that the Chief Executive has made appointments and reappointments to the Standing Commission on Civil Service Salaries and Conditions of Service (SCCS) and the Standing Commi… read more