The Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau (CSTB) convened a meeting yesterday (December 3) to strengthen preparations for receiving mega cruise ships homeporting at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal (KTCT) in the coming months.  
      
     The meeting was chaired by the Commissioner for Tourism, Mrs Angelina Cheung, and attended by representatives of the Transport Department (TD), the Hong Kong Police Force, relevant cruise lines, transport services providers, the Hong Kong Tourism Board and the cruise terminal operator. 
      
     Mrs Cheung said, "The Government attaches great importance to facilitating operations on international cruise lines, and aspires to furnish cruise passengers with better visiting experiences, thereby consolidating Hong Kong's position as a major homeport in Asia and attracting more ship calls."
      
     Departing from Shanghai, Spectrum of the Seas will berth at the KTCT on December 6 (Friday) until the afternoon on the same day with some 4 900 passengers from different places, beginning its seasonal homeport deployment in Hong Kong with a total of eight ship calls in the coming two months. The Government welcomes the ship to choose Hong Kong as its homeport, and looks forward to working with the trade to better prepare to receive cruise passengers.  
      
     At the suggestion of the CSTB, the cruise lines will collect information from passengers and persons-in-charge of the tour groups on board regarding post-disembarkation arrangements such as planned destinations and whether a vehicle pick-up has already been arranged. The cruise lines will pass such information to the terminal operator so that the transport arrangements can be adjusted and enhanced as necessary.
      
     Transportation services at the KTCT will be strengthened during the disembarkation period between 7am to 10.30am on December 6, with due regard to the disembarkation arrangements by the cruise line, and to enable passengers to head to different destinations. Improved services include:
 
(a) apart from four regular franchised bus routes and one minibus route, two additional express bus routes will be in service, connecting the Kai Tak MTR Station and the West Kowloon High Speed Rail Station (via Tsim Sha Tsui) respectively. Franchised bus companies will step up service levels to meet demand when necessary, and will deploy more buses with luggage racks to serve passengers with luggage. At least 53 flights of buses will be in operation; 

(b) coach operators will provide free and paid shuttle services as well as support pre-arranged tours organised by local travel agents. At least 38 coaches will be in operation; and 

(c) with regard to taxis, since the taxi supply may fluctuate during peak hours, shift-change hours and inclement weather conditions, in addition to the existing mechanism of frequently notifying the taxi trade before and during the disembarkation period via instant message platforms, the TD has also recently communicated with the taxi trade specifically on cruise ship calls, and will further assist in informing the taxi associations in advance before the arrival of mega cruise ships. If an exceptionally strong demand is anticipated, the terminal operator will, depending on the ground situation, increase the face value of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) coupons distributed to each taxi that picks up passengers at the KTCT to $100 as appropriate. Real-time messages to the taxi trade will also be refined by including the forecast taxi demand on top of the time of disembarkation and real-time waiting situations. 

     Furthermore, the CSTB reminded parties attending the meeting to work together and take other necessary measures to ensure that passengers can leave the terminal for their destinations quickly and smoothly. In particular:
 
(a) making available to passengers, through cruise lines and before the ship’s arrival, specific information about various transport options so that passengers can decide on their transportation arrangements in advance; 

(b) imposing appropriate crowd management measures, through cruise lines, the terminal operator and relevant parties early and in a timely manner, and deploying sufficient manpower and signage at the KTCT to guide and assist passengers; and 

(c) informing the terminal operator immediately of any congestion and major traffic incidents in the vicinity of the KTCT and along major trunk roads so that appropriate contingency measures can be imposed and alternate advice to passengers could be given.       
     
     â€‹The Government has long been providing, and will continue to provide, necessary support to the terminal operator with regard to receiving cruise ships. The terminal operator should continue to discharge its responsibilities of co-ordinating various departments, cruise lines, and service providers on making appropriate transportation plans and on ensuring efficient, smooth and effective management of cruise passenger flows. Stakeholders will continue to maintain close communications on the ship calls at the KTCT, plan in advance and co-ordinate different aspects for receiving cruise passengers to Hong Kong. The CSTB will also closely monitor the implementation of the strengthened measures and will further review and adjust the arrangements for ship calls thereafter.

  

     The Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, will depart for Beijing tomorrow afternoon (December 5) to attend a seminar on December 6 to exchange views with representatives of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Human Resources and Social Security Department of Guangdong Province, and the Talent Development Committee of the Macao Special Administrative Region Government on promoting talent exchanges and co-operation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and to sign a Memorandum of Understanding. The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, and the Director of Hong Kong Talent Engage, Mr Anthony Lau, will join the visit. 

     Mr Chan and the delegation will return to Hong Kong on December 6. During his absence, the Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Cheuk Wing-hing, will be the Acting Chief Secretary for Administration. During Mr Sun's absence, the Under Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Ho Kai-ming, will be the Acting Secretary for Labour and Welfare.

     Police today (December 4) appealed to the public for information on a boy who went missing in Tsing Yi.

     Kwok Cheuk-hin, aged 15, went missing after he left his residence in Tsing Yi Estate on December 2 afternoon. His family then made a report to Police.
    
     He is about 1.78 metres tall, 52 kilograms in weight and of thin build. He has a pointed face with yellow complexion and short black hair. He was last seen wearing a black top, black trousers and black and white slippers.     

     Anyone who knows the whereabouts of the missing boy or may have seen him is urged to contact the Regional Missing Persons Unit of New Territories South on 3661 1174 or 6103 4963, or email to rmpu-nts-2@police.gov.hk, or contact any police station.

  

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The seventh Hong Kong-Switzerland Financial Dialogue was held in Hong Kong today (December 4). Co-organised by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the State Secretariat for International Finance (SIF) under the Federal Department of Finance of Switzerland, the Dialogue aims to foster collaboration in financial services between Hong Kong and Switzerland, and to facilitate the exchange of views on important issues surrounding the global financial system.
      
     The Dialogue was chaired by Deputy Chief Executive of the HKMA Mr Darryl Chan and the Deputy State Secretary and Head of the Planning and Strategy of the SIF, Mr Christoph König. Representatives from the Swiss National Bank, the Swiss Embassy in China, the Consulate General of Switzerland in Hong Kong, and the HKMA also participated in this bilateral dialogue. During the meeting, the representatives discussed regional and domestic outlook and policy challenges, as well as the latest developments and potential areas of collaboration in sustainable finance, fintech, and market connectivity.

  

     â€‹The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department today (December 4) announced the test results of a recently completed surveillance project assessing the food safety of hot pot cuisine. A total of 344 hot pot food samples were collected and all passed the tests.
    
     A CFS spokesman said, "Hong Kong people like eating hot pot meals. As food additives such as colouring matters and preservatives may be used during the making of hot pot ingredients, beverages and sauces, the CFS conducted this project in a bid to provide timely food safety information to consumers and the trade."
    
     The CFS collected different kinds of hot pot food samples, including meat and meat products (such as beef balls and pork balls), aquatic and related products (such as fish balls, shrimp balls and cuttlefish balls), bean products (such as dried bean curds, tofu and soya bean sticks), noodles, soup bases, beverages (such as juice and sour plum drinks) and sauces from restaurants, fresh provision shops, supermarkets, groceries, market stalls and retailers (including online retailers) for chemical and microbiological testing.
    
     Chemical tests included testing for colouring matters, preservatives and metallic contaminants, while microbiological tests for ready-to-eat food included testing for Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens, Salmonella and coagulase-positive staphylococci.
    
     The spokesman reminded the public that food safety is a shared responsibility and all those involved in the food supply chain – from farms and food manufacturers to food handlers and consumers – should put in place safety measures. He advised the trade not to entertain orders beyond handling capacity. The trade should also comply with legal requirements, follow Good Manufacturing Practices, use permitted food additives in an appropriate manner, and check the quality of food and ingredients upon delivery.
    
     Furthermore, the spokesman advised food handlers and consumers to apply the following Five Keys to Food Safety when handling and preparing food:
 
Choose wisely
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* Patronise reliable shops and select fresh and hygienic foods for hot pot ingredients;
* For prepackaged foods or soup bases, check whether the packaging is intact and if the selected foods are expired; and
* For online purchases, buy from reliable online shops with licences, and pay attention to the nature and potential risk associated with food items purchased online.
 
Keep clean
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* Observe good food, environmental and personal hygiene when preparing foods. All food ingredients must be thoroughly washed;
* Poultry meat, pork and beef should be washed and sliced into thin strips for easy cooking;
* For shellfish like scallops and geoduck, scrub the shells thoroughly and remove the internal organs;
* Before eating and handling food ingredients, wash hands thoroughly with liquid soap and water, and rub for at least 20 seconds; and
* If there is a wound on the hand, cover it properly with a waterproof bandage or put on a glove before handling food.
 
Separate raw and cooked food
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* When shopping for hot pot ingredients, buy prepackaged foods first and raw meat, poultry and seafood last;
* When shopping for or delivering food, raw foods should be kept separately from other ready-to-eat foods or cooked foods to prevent cross-contamination; and
* Handle raw and cooked foods carefully and separate them completely during the cooking process. Use separate sets of chopsticks and utensils with different appearances to handle raw and cooked foods, and avoid contact between raw and cooked foods on the table to prevent cross-contamination.
 
Cook thoroughly
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* During the whole eating process, take thoroughly cooked food out of the pot only when the soup is boiling completely. Whenever water or soup is added to the pot, wait until it is boiling hot before adding food for cooking;
* Shrimps should be fully cooked until the shells turn red and the flesh turns white and opaque. Shellfish should be boiled until their shells open and boiled for a further three to five minutes afterwards. Shucked oysters should be cooked in the boiling water for at least three minutes before consumption;
* Do not consume cooked foods that are mixed with unpasteurized raw eggs to prevent pathogenic or antimicrobial resistant micro-organisms; and
* Condiments such as soy sauce, vinegar, wine, chili and wasabi cannot kill bacteria or parasites that may be present in hot pot ingredients.
 
Safe temperature
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* Most hot pot ingredients should be stored in a refrigerator at 4 degrees Celsius or below, while frozen foods should be stored in a freezer at -18 degrees C or below; and
* Do not thaw frozen foods at room temperature, as bacteria may multiply rapidly in food. It is preferable to defrost frozen foods in a refrigerator, microwave oven or under running water. Thawed foods should be cooked as soon as possible.
 
     "People should also pay attention to the amount of food consumed and follow a balanced diet when having hot pot meals. To reduce fat intake, it is preferable to choose a clear soup base as it contains less fat than bone, satay and mala soup bases. Eat vegetables first to fill oneself up and then meat to prevent overeating. Members of the public should also eat more vegetables with high dietary fibre and less fatty meats and animal offal, and use less sauce and condiments. If there are nutrition labels for hot pot products, make healthier food choices by referring to their nutritional contents and choosing those lower in fat, sodium and sugars," the spokesman said.