â€‹The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (February 19) that in view of a notification from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Auglaize County of the State of Ohio in the United States (US), the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the area with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that according to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 79 630 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat, and about 19.6 million poultry eggs from the US last year.

     "The CFS has contacted the American authority over the issue and will closely monitor information issued by the WOAH and the relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreaks. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:
 
     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today (February 19) the composite interest rate at the end of January 2025 (Note 1).
      
     The composite interest rate, which is a measure of the average cost of funds of banks, decreased by 8 basis points to 2.16 per cent at the end of January 2025, from 2.24 per cent at the end of December 2024 (see Chart 1 in the Annex). The decrease in composite interest rate reflected the decreases in the weighted funding cost for deposits and interbank funds during the month (see Chart 2 in the Annex) (Note 2).
      
     The historical data of the composite interest rate from the end of the fourth quarter of 2003 to the end of January 2025 are available in the Monthly Statistical Bulletin on the HKMA website (www.hkma.gov.hk).
 
Note 1: The composite interest rate is a weighted average interest rate of all Hong Kong dollar interest-rate-sensitive liabilities, which include deposits from customers, amounts due to banks, negotiable certificates of deposit and other debt instruments, and all other liabilities that do not involve any formal payment of interest but the values of which are sensitive to interest rate movements (such as Hong Kong dollar non-interest bearing demand deposits) on the books of banks. Data from retail banks, which account for about 90 per cent of the total customers' deposits in the banking sector, are used in the calculation. It should be noted that the composite interest rate represents only average interest expenses. There are various other costs involved in the making of a loan, such as operating costs (e.g. staff and rental expenses), credit cost and hedging cost, which are not covered by the composite interest rate.

Note 2: Since June 2019, the composite interest rate and weighted deposit rate have been calculated based on the new local "Interest rate risk in the banking book" (IRRBB) framework. As such, these figures are not strictly comparable with those of previous months.

     Following is a question by the Hon Chan Hoi-yan and a reply by the Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, in the Legislative Council today (February 19):
 
Question:
 
     This Council passed in 2018 the amendments to the Medical Registration Ordinance, with the aim of improving the complaint investigation and disciplinary inquiry mechanism of the Medical Council of Hong Kong (MCHK) to address the problem of a backlog of cases. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:
 
(1) the average time taken by MCHK to handle a complaint case at present, and the average processing times at the consideration stage by Preliminary Investigation Committee and the inquiry stage respectively;
 
(2) the total number of complaint cases received by MCHK in each of the past five years and, among them, the respective numbers of cases in which inquiries were held and the complaints were determined to be substantiated, with a breakdown by the type of medical practitioners involved (i.e. private medical practitioners, medical practitioners employed by the Hospital Authority, as well as medical practitioners of the Department of Health); and
 
(3) among the complaint cases handled by MCHK in each of the past five years, the respective numbers of cases in which the handling time was less than two years, two to four years, five to seven years, and eight years or more; among these cases, the shortest, longest and median time taken from the lodging of the complaint by the complainant to the completion of all procedures, and the main reasons for cases taking a longer time to handle (i.e. more than two years)?
 
Reply:
 
President,
          
     Healthcare professions in Hong Kong observe the principle of professional autonomy. Their statutory regulatory bodies were established by legislations. They are responsible for the registration of professionals, and maintaining and uplifting relevant professional standard and conduct. These regulatory bodies must be accountable to the public in discharging their duties, ensuring that Hong Kong can maintain healthcare professional standards and safeguarding the broader interests of the community.
 
     The Medical Council of Hong Kong (MCHK) is a statutory body established under the Medical Registration Ordinance (MRO) with the objectives of developing and facilitating medical professional competencies and standards, safeguarding ethical conduct and protecting patients. The MCHK is empowered by the MRO to regulate the medical profession, including handling the registration of medical practitioners, organising Licensing Examinations, formulating codes and guidelines for the profession, and conducting disciplinary inquiries against complaints made by members of the public in respect of professional misconduct of medical practitioners.
 
     Handling complaint cases is an important function of the MCHK. The mechanism of complaint investigation and disciplinary inquiries must be fair, impartial, transparent and efficient, in order to ensure healthcare professional standards and patients' safety, and facilitate mutual trust between patients and healthcare professionals. The Government's role is to ensure that the operation models of regulatory bodies keep up with time and the system work smoothly to meet the changing needs of society. To that end, the Government keeps the MRO under regular review to enable the MCHK to better carry out its various statutory functions, including the function of handling complaints, and propose amendments to the MRO to enhance the efficiency of the complaint-handling mechanism where necessary.
 
     With regard to the complaint-handling mechanism which was unable to operate effectively due to statutory limitations in the MRO, leading to a backlog of complaint cases, the Government proposed to amend the MRO in 2017 to enhance the efficiency and flexibility of the mechanism. Newly introduced measures include setting up inquiry panels under the MCHK to conduct inquiries, increasing participation of lay persons in inquiry proceedings, and increasing the number of assessors. The legislative amendment was passed by the Legislative Council in 2018, enhancing the efficiency of the MCHK in handling complaints. After the legislative amendment, the number of inquiry cases heard per year increased from an average of 25 before 2018 to an average of 48 in the past five years, marking an increase of 90 per cent. The average time for processing a disciplinary inquiry case also dropped from around six years to an average of 3.5 years. 

     At present, the establishment of the MCHK Secretariat comprises 30 civil service posts, and contract staff are also engaged. The Government will review the services provided by the Secretariat for the MCHK from time to time, and increase its operational efficiency through various measures, such as increasing the use of information technology and organisational structure to better support the MCHK in discharging its statutory duties. The Government will also consider suitably increasing manpower and other resources for the Secretariat where necessary.
 
     In response to the Hon Chan Hoi-yan's question, after consulting the MCHK Secretariat, the consolidated reply is as follows:
 
     In the past five years, the number of complaint cases the MCHK received per year ranged from around 500 to over 3 000. The number of cases requiring disciplinary inquiries and involving doctors in private practice and in the public sector, and the number of substantiated cases, are set out at Annex 1.
 
     The MCHK had concluded over 8 700 complaint cases in the past five years. The average time taken since receipt of complaints till conclusion of cases is 27 months. In 98 per cent of these cases, disciplinary procedures were completed within four years after receiving the complaint. Other cases that required longer processing time were usually more complex in nature, requiring time to examine relevant medical record(s), seek medical experts' report(s), and consult legal advice, etc. Among these complaint cases, the Preliminary Investigation Committees (PICs) dismissed around 7 000 cases for being frivolous or complainant not providing further information, decided that no inquiry by an inquiry panel was to be held in around 1 500 cases, and referred three cases involving the physical and mental condition of the medical practitioner to the Health Committee for consideration. Disciplinary inquiries were required in only 221 cases, i.e. less than 3 per cent. Those some 8 700 concluded complaint cases, broken down by processing time, are set out at Annex 2.
 
     President, the Government will continue to strive for reforms to enhance healthcare quality and efficiency, including inviting major institutions in the Hong Kong healthcare sector to establish the Institute for Medical Advancement and Clinical Excellence last December as a professional platform to develop evidence-based clinical protocols and explore the feasibility of devising service quality and efficiency standards for healthcare services with the plan to consult the sector within this year. 
 
     Regulatory bodies of healthcare professions must also undergo constant reform to meet the expectation of the community. The Government will keep the operation of the MCHK under ongoing review, and is happy to listen to the views of different sectors.
 
     Thank you, President. 

     Following is a question by Dr the Hon Kennedy Wong and a reply by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, in the Legislative Council today (February 19):

Question:

     There are views pointing out that the Reports of the Director of Audit (the Reports) in recent years have revealed the governance problems of quite a number of public organisations, and this has aroused concerns about the Government's ability to monitor public organisations. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) as it has been reported that, to the Director of Audit's surprise, the arrangements concerning claims for allowances as put in place by some organisations receiving subventions from government funds are contrary to government guidelines, whether the authorities will review how to enhance the monitoring of such organisations, so as to comply with the guidelines on the governance of public organisations in respect of a key element therein relating to robust internal control as well as reporting and monitoring mechanisms;

(2) as it has been reported that the Audit Commission will place more emphasis on conducting audits on public organisations, funds and social welfare organisations in the future, of the details of the specific work plan; whether the organisations concerned include statutory bodies such as the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, which receive relatively substantial government subventions; and

(3) of the number of public organisations which needed to improve their governance in the light of the recommendations made in the Reports in the past five years, and whether it has looked into the average time taken by such organisations to implement the relevant improvement measures; whether it will step up efforts in monitoring the progress of the relevant work of public organisations; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Reply:

President,

     Thank you Dr the Hon Kennedy Wong for the question, offering me a chance to talk about the monitoring of public organisations. The Government attaches great importance to good corporate governance of public organisations and monitors these organisations under a multi-pronged approach. Enhancing corporate governance of public organisations not only uplifts their overall efficiency and cost effectiveness, but also plays an integral role in facilitating effective implementation of the organisations' policies and work objectives. Generally speaking, while respecting the need for public organisations to maintain flexibility in operation and its independence, the Government considers the objectives of setting up the organisations and the powers conferred on them, and formulates regulatory mechanisms for these organisations as appropriate and necessary. Detailed arrangements are mapped out by the relevant bureaux. 

     In consultation with the Administration Wing and the Audit Commission (AUD), our reply to Dr the Hon Kennedy Wong's question is as follows: 

(1) Public organisations should devise a proper governance framework, having regard to the size of the public organsations, the nature of their work and relevant Ordinances. The relevant bureaux should also ensure that a good governance framework is in place in the organisations under their purview. Such arrangements generally consist of the following elements: 

(i) To set clear work objectives;

(ii) To make a clear delineation of roles and responsibilities between the Government, the governing body and the senior management of the public organisation; and

(iii) To put in place robust internal monitoring and reporting systems.

     Bureaux also appoint appropriate personnel (e.g. those with relevant experience and professional knowledge) to the governing bodies of the public organisations, with a view to monitoring the organisations in an effective manner.

     In terms of financial control, subvented organisations are required to prepare a budget annually and submit audited financial accounts to the Government. Where necessary, the Government may include the relevant organisations into the scope of audit by the AUD having regard to the actual circumstances. The subvented organisations should also develop comprehensive understanding of the relevant guidelines pertaining to the management and control of government funding, put in place an appropriate system of cost control and monitoring, and abide by the principle of financial prudence with a view to ensuring proper use of public money and cost-effectiveness. The relevant bureaux will also formulate appropriate monitoring measures, such as drawing up service level agreements and setting out consequences of non-compliance with the responsibilities therein, to maintain effective supervision. This will be done having regard to the organisations' individual targets, nature and circumstances.

     Where the Director of Audit (the Director) selects individual public organisations for conducting Value for Money (VFM) audits, the respective bureaux/Controlling Officers (COs) should give their full co-operation and supervise the public organisations under their purview in implementing the audit recommendations conscientiously. They should also review how to strengthen monitoring of the relevant organisations in accordance with the elements of robust internal control and reporting/monitoring systems as set out in the guidelines on governance of public organisations. 

     In a nutshell, the Government has strived to enhance the governance of public organisations on various fronts. Bureaux will conduct reviews on the governance of public organisations under their purview from time to time to ensure their effective operation and good governance.

(2) The AUD conducts VFM audits on a wide range of subjects, with a view to ensuring proper use of public money. In addition to bureaux and departments, the AUD may conduct audits on various bodies such as public organisations, funds and social welfare organisations, having regard to the following circumstances: 

(i) The body receives more than half of its income from public money; 

(ii) The Director is empowered under an Ordinance to audit the accounts of the body and there are currently 23 such bodies. The Director reviews and conducts audits on the economy and efficiency with which these bodies have used their resources in performing their functions and exercising their powers; 

(iii) The Chief Executive authorises the Director to audit the accounts and records of the body in the public interest; or

(iv) By virtue of an agreement made between the Government and the individual body, the Director is empowered to audit the body's accounts and records. Examples include social welfare organisations funded under the Lump Sum Grant Subvention System.

     As the Hong Kong Trade Development Council does not meet the above criteria, it does not fall into the Director's scope of audit.

     In selecting VFM audit projects and according priorities, the Director takes into account a number of factors, including the materiality of projects, their timeliness, the public money and risks involved, and the benefits to be brought about. Until the reports are tabled in the Legislative Council (LegCo), the issues under the AUD's investigation are confidential. Therefore, we cannot disclose the specific work plans.
 
(3) Among the 10 reports which the Director prepared from 2020 to 2024, 12 chapters involved audit recommendations for 12 public organisations to improve their governance. Of these public organisations, six have fully implemented the recommendations made by the AUD and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of LegCo. On average, it takes about 1.5 years for the said organisations to implement all the recommendations.

     The Government makes regular reports to the LegCo implementation progress of various recommendations in the form of Government Minutes and Annual Progress Reports. In addition to efforts by the relevant bureaux/COs in monitoring their public organisations in implementing audit recommendations seriously and expeditiously, the AUD would also discuss with the PAC the progress of audited organisations (including public organisations) in implementing the recommendations. 

     Thank you, President.

     The effective exchange rate index for the Hong Kong dollar on Wednesday, February 19, 2025 is 107.1 (up 0.1 against yesterday's index).