Author Archives: hksar gov

     Two landlords of subdivided units (SDUs) contravening Part IVA of the Landlord and Tenant (Consolidation) Ordinance (Cap. 7) (the Ordinance) pleaded guilty and were fined today (August 4) at the Eastern Magistrates’ Courts respectively under the Ordinance. The first landlord failed to submit Form AR2 to the Commissioner of Rating and Valuation (the Commissioner) within 60 days after the term of the regulated tenancy commenced. The landlord pleaded guilty for three offences today and was fined a total of $2,700. The second landlord, in addition to failing to submit Form AR2 in accordance with the above-mentioned statutory requirement, also requested the tenant to pay deposits for water and electricity charges which were not permitted under the Ordinance. The second landlord pleaded guilty for nine offences and was fined a total of $12,500. Since the Ordinance has come into force, six SDU landlords have been convicted of contravening the Ordinance.

     In January 2023, the Rating and Valuation Department (RVD) discovered that the first landlord mentioned above was suspected of failing to submit Form AR2 in accordance with the relevant statutory requirement, despite having been issued a warning letter by the RVD earlier for the same contravention. After in-depth investigation and collection of evidence, the RVD prosecuted against the landlord. Separately, upon learning a case where a landlord was convicted of water overcharging which contravened the Waterworks Regulations, the RVD proactively conducted a site visit to the subject SDU in February 2023 and collected the relevant tenancy particulars from the landlord (i.e. the second landlord mentioned above). After in-depth investigation and collection of evidence, the RVD found that the landlord was suspected of contravening two requirements under the Ordinance, and hence prosecuted against the landlord.

     Pursuant to Section 120AAZL of the Ordinance, if a landlord of a regulated tenancy requests the tenant to pay, or otherwise receives from the tenant any money in relation to the tenancy other than the types of: specified rents; specified rental deposits; reimbursement of charges for any of the specified utilities and services payable by the tenant; and damages for the tenant’s breach of the tenancy, the landlord commits an offence and is liable to a fine at level 3 ($10,000), and on a second or subsequent conviction to a fine at level 4 ($25,000).

     In addition, pursuant to Section 120AAZT of the Ordinance, the landlord of a regulated tenancy must submit a completed Form AR2 to the Commissioner to notify the particulars of the tenancy within 60 days after the term of the regulated tenancy commenced. A landlord who refuses or neglects to comply with the above requirements without reasonable excuse commits an offence and is liable to a fine at level 3 ($10,000), and in the case of a continuing offence, to a further fine of $200 for each day during which the offence continues.

     A spokesman for the RVD hopes that these two convictions will send a strong message to SDU landlords that they must comply with the relevant requirements under the Ordinance, and also reminds SDU tenants of their rights under the Ordinance. Meanwhile, the case where the second landlord mentioned above was convicted of contravening both the Waterworks Regulations and the Ordinance demonstrates the effectiveness of interdepartmental co-operation between the RVD and the Water Services Department.

     Apart from following up on reported cases, the RVD has been adopting a multipronged approach with close liaison with other departments to proactively identify, investigate and follow up on cases concerning landlords who are suspected of contravening the Ordinance. To this end, the RVD has started to proactively require landlords of regulated tenancies to provide information and reference documents of their tenancies for checking whether the landlords concerned have complied with the requirements of the Ordinance. If a landlord, without reasonable excuse, refuses to provide the relevant information or neglects the RVD’s request, the landlord commits an offence and is liable to a fine at level 3 (10,000) and to imprisonment for three months. Moreover, the RVD has provided a simple form (Form AR3) since April 2023 to help tenants of regulated tenancies who have not yet received a copy of endorsed Form AR2 to provide the basic tenancy particulars to the RVD by electronic means or in paper form, so as to enquire whether the RVD has received the relevant Form AR2 for the department’s follow-up as appropriate. If any contraventions are found, the RVD will seriously look into the cases.

     The RVD spokesman also appeals to members of the public to come forward and report to the RVD promptly any suspected cases of contravening the relevant requirements. This would help curb illegal acts as soon as possible. Reporting can be made through the telephone hotline (2150 8303), by email (enquiries@rvd.gov.hk), by fax (2116 4920), by post (15/F, Cheung Sha Wan Government Offices, 303 Cheung Sha Wan Road, Kowloon), or in-person (please call 2150 8303 to make an appointment with the Tenancy Services Section of the RVD before visiting its office at Room 3816-22, 38/F, Immigration Tower, 7 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai).

     For enquiries related to regulated tenancy, please call the above telephone hotline or visit the RVD’s webpage (www.rvd.gov.hk/en/our_services/part_iva.html) for the relevant information.     read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Film Development Council:
 
     The Hong Kong Film Development Council (FDC) announced today (August 4) that two subsidy schemes under the Film Development Fund, namely Sponsorship for local films nominated to participate in film festivals overseas (Film Festival Subsidy Scheme) and Sponsorship for Hong Kong films (Cantonese version) distributed in the Mainland (Mainland Distribution Subsidy Scheme), will end on August 31, upon a review of the effectiveness of the schemes.
      
     A two-month grace period will be allowed for applications for the Film Festival Subsidy Scheme satisfying the eligibility requirements set out in the Guidelines on Application for Sponsorship for Local Films Nominated to Participate in Film Festivals Overseas on or before August 31. Eligible applications for the Film Festival Subsidy Scheme must be submitted within two months after the completion of the film festival concerned as stipulated in the Film Festival Subsidy Guidelines.
      
     An eight-month grace period will be allowed for applications for the Mainland Distribution Subsidy Scheme satisfying the eligibility requirements set out in the Guidelines on Application for Sponsorship for Hong Kong films (Cantonese version) distributed in the Mainland on or before August 31. Eligible applications for the Mainland Distribution Subsidy Scheme must be submitted within eight months after the first day of the theatrical release of the film in Guangdong Province as stipulated in the Mainland Distribution Subsidy Guidelines.
      
     For details of the application guidelines and assessment criteria of the two schemes, please visit the FDC’s website (www.fdc.gov.hk/en/applications_detail.php?id=2022042210270188593).
      
     The Government is committed to promoting the development of Hong Kong’s film industry. The FDC will launch new scheme(s) that can lead to bigger marketing impact with elements of proactiveness, focused mission, agility, etc, by the end of 2023. read more

     The Government will streamline the mechanism of retiring officers in the public interest on grounds of persistent sub-standard performance under section 12 of the Public Service (Administration) Order (PS(A)O) to further enhance performance management and maintain the professionalism and efficiency of the civil service so as to improve the efficacy of governance.

     The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, met with the staff-side representatives of the four civil service central consultative councils at the Central Government Offices this morning (August 4) to brief them on the main contents of the streamlined mechanism and to collect their views. She is continuing to meet with representatives of the four major civil service groups this afternoon.
 
     Mrs Yeung said, “Improving and strengthening the handling of persistent non-performers is one of the key measures to further enhance civil service management. The procedures of the current mechanism are too complicated and lengthy. We have reviewed and streamlined the procedures under the principle of impartiality and fairness in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the mechanism and keep up with the times.”

     The Chief Executive announced in his 2022 Policy Address the strengthening of the civil service management system. For officers whose performance remains persistently sub-standard despite supervision and assistance, their appointments should be terminated in a timely manner. Where an officer is not performing up to the required standard, management will help him/her to improve their performance through counselling, training or other administrative measures as appropriate. When these measures do not yield the expected results, action will be pursued under section 12 of the PS(A)O to retire him/her in the public interest.
 
     Main points of the streamlined mechanism are as follows:
 

• To simplify the mechanism with well-defined and clear procedures so as to enable Heads of Departments (HoDs), Heads of Grades (HoGs), administrators and all civil servants to understand clearly the Government’s procedures for handling persistent sub-standard performers; and to improve the efficiency of the mechanism while maintaining the principle of impartiality, upholding due process, and safeguarding the reasonable rights of the officer concerned;

 

• To reduce unnecessary representations at multiple junctures. Under the current mechanism, despite the arrangement that a civil servant has the opportunity of expressing his/her views on his/her work performance, supervisors’ assessments and other related matters during the interview that his/her supervisor must conduct upon completion of the annual appraisal report, the civil servant concerned is still invited to make representations as many as four times after management has kick-started the mechanism under section 12 of PS(A)O. After the streamlining of the workflow, representations will be invited at two major steps: (1) when the Bureau/Department issues a letter-of-intent to the officer informing him/her of the intention to take section 12 action against him/her (before the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) examines the case and consults the Public Service Commission (PSC)) and; (2) when the CSB has obtained the PSC’s advice and is about to seek a decision from the approving authority. This is to ensure that the officer will have sufficient opportunities to make representations which will be fully considered by the decision-making authority when key decisions are made, and that the efficiency of the mechanism will be improved;

 

• To require that the “observation period”, which is a specified period within which a persistent sub-standard performer is required to improve his/her performance to an acceptable level, can only be extended once and for specific circumstances only. The move could reduce delays caused by hesitation of the management in making decisions;

 

• To dispense with the requirement for an HoD or HoG  to set up and consult an “independent panel” within the department after the “observation period” and before submission of the case to the CSB. Under the mechanism, by the time a persistent sub-standard performer’s case reaches the stage when the HoD/HoG has to decide on the course of action to be taken, the officer concerned has already been counselled, trained or even given postings multiple times, and has also completed the “observation period” granted by the department during which the officer has been given the final chance to improve his/her performance. Past appraisal reports are sufficient proof of the officer’s failure to meet the minimum required standard. Setting up an “independent panel” will not provide substantive support but will only prolong the processing time of the case; and

 

• If a Special or Observation Appraisal is called for due to an officer’s persistent sub-standard performance under section 12 of the PS(A)O but the officer has been recommended for an increment at the most-recent annual Appraisal, the existing mechanism only requires management to review the increment recommendation. As civil servants are required to perform satisfactorily during the appraising period, the streamlined mechanism will make it mandatory for a stoppage or deferment of an increment for an officer concerned.

 
     Mrs Yeung said, “We attach great importance to every member of the civil service, and the vast majority of civil servants serve the public with dedication in their respective positions. With the rising public expectations on civil servants, management must provide supervision and assistance to officers with unsatisfactory performances early. For officers with persistent sub-standard performances, we must take actions resolutely so that they will not have an adverse impact on civil service morale or on the performance of the Government as a whole.”
 
     The CSB has consulted the PSC on the aforementioned measures and is in the process of collecting views from the staff side, with the aim of promulgating the implementation of the new mechanism and procedures to all civil servants within this year. read more

     The effective exchange rate index for the Hong Kong dollar on Friday, August 4, 2023 is 104.5 (down 0.2 against yesterday’s index). read more

     The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (August 4) released the latest grading of water quality for 39 gazetted beaches (see Note 1) and one non-gazetted beach (see Note 2).
      
     Twenty-one beaches were rated as Good (Grade 1) and 19 as Fair (Grade 2).
      
Grade 1 beaches are:          

Cheung Chau Tung Wan Beach*	Shek O Beach*
Chung Hom Kok Beach	Silverstrand Beach*
Discovery Bay	South Bay Beach*
Clear Water Bay First Beach	St Stephen’s Beach
Hap Mun Bay Beach*	Stanley Main Beach*
Hung Shing Yeh Beach*	Tai Po Lung Mei Beach*
Kiu Tsui Beach	Tong Fuk Beach
Kwun Yam Beach	Trio Beach
Lo So Shing Beach	Turtle Cove Beach
Pui O Beach*	Upper Cheung Sha Beach
Repulse Bay Beach*

 
Grade 2 beaches are: 

Anglers’ Beach*	Golden Beach*
Approach Beach	Hoi Mei Wan Beach
Big Wave Bay Beach*	Kadoorie Beach*
Butterfly Beach*	Lido Beach*
Cafeteria New Beach	Lower Cheung Sha Beach
Cafeteria Old Beach	Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach*
Casam Beach*	Middle Bay Beach
Castle Peak Beach	Silver Mine Bay Beach*
Clear Water Bay Second Beach*	Ting Kau Beach*
Deep Water Bay Beach*

 
      
     Compared with the grading released last week, Clear Water Bay First Beach and Pui O 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 storm 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.
      
Note 1: Lifeguard services are provided by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department at 22 gazetted beaches, marked with an asterisk (*) above, from May 1.
      
Note 2: This refers to the non-gazetted beach in Discovery Bay which has no lifeguard service. read more