Author Archives: hksar gov

     Following is a question by the Hon Tony Tse and a written reply by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Erick Tsang Kwok-wai, in the Legislative Council today (June 12):

Question:

     The National Flag and National Emblem Ordinance and the Regional Flag and Regional Emblem Ordinance respectively provide for the specifications, use and protection of the national flag and regional flag, flag raising ceremonies and related etiquette, as well as education in the national flag and regional flag. There are views that currently, the relevant education efforts and the requirement for the regular conduct of flag raising ceremonies are primarily focused on primary and secondary schools, and that the Government should further promote such education to the entire society. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the Government’s efforts to deliver education in the national flag and regional flag to the public, in addition to primary and secondary schools;

(2) whether it will consider setting up sales points in some suitable government premises and buildings for the sale of national flags, national emblems, regional flags, regional emblems, and related souvenirs;

(3) whether it will further enhance the Flag Raising Ceremony, which is currently held regularly at Golden Bauhinia Square in Wan Chai, including (i) reviewing the frequency, date and time for holding such ceremony, (ii) stepping up publicity among the public and tourists, and (iii) adding more performance programmes and tourism facilities in addition to the Flag Raising Ceremony; whether it will consider holding flag raising ceremonies at more suitable and distinctive locations; and
 
(4) of the requirements, rules and implementation status regarding the display of the national flag and regional flag, as well as the conduct of flag raising ceremonies in the offices of government departments and government buildings; whether it will strengthen such requirements and rules, including providing appropriate guidelines and training to the staff responsible for flag raising ceremonies and requiring all government personnel to participate in at least one flag raising ceremony per year, where practicable?

Reply:

President,

     Having consulted relevant bureaux and departments, the consolidated reply to the question raised by the Hon Tony Tse is as follows:

     The amended National Flag and National Emblem Ordinance and the Regional Flag and Regional Emblem Ordinance came into effect on October 8, 2021 and November 24, 2023 respectively, providing for the use and protection of the national flag, national emblem, regional flag, and regional emblem in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), including the proper use, etiquette, education and promotion in relation to the national flag, national emblem, regional flag and regional emblem.
 
     On promotion and education, the Education Bureau has included the national flag, national emblem, regional flag and regional emblem in primary and secondary education, and required schools to display the national flag and regional flag on each school day and conduct weekly flag raising ceremony. Besides, the HKSAR Government has produced announcements or materials in the public interest (API) to publicise the background, symbolic meaning as well as the related rules of usage and etiquette, etc, in relation to the national flag, national emblem and national anthem. Apart from broadcasting these APIs on local television and radio channels, we also made use of different online social media platforms to disseminate relevant information, with a view to enhancing public awareness of respecting and protecting the national flag, national emblem and national anthem, and promoting the understanding on their proper use. Currently, we are producing a new set of APIs to educate members of the public to respect and use properly the regional flag and regional emblem to express their love for our country and the HKSAR. The APIs will be broadcast on various television and radio channels, as well as social media platforms. To enable members of the public to have a clearer and more accurate understanding on the two pieces of legislation, we will also consolidate relevant publicity information in an easy-to-understand manner, for instance, producing comics, etc, and make use of social media to promote it extensively.
 
     On the selling of national flag and regional flag, as well as related souvenirs, the existing legislation has not prohibited on commercial sales of them, and the public can easily purchase them in physical or online shops. Besides, the Government Gift Shop set up at the Central Government Offices offers a variety of souvenir items including bowl and plate sets, tea pots, tea cups, folders, notebooks and bear toys, etc, that bear the design of the regional flag and regional emblem for purchase. Members of the public can also visit the online store to purchase such gifts. Currently there is no plan to set up additional Government Gift Shop at other government premises or buildings.

     According to the existing legislation regarding the raising and lowering of the national flag and regional flag, the national flag and regional flag must be raised in the morning and lowered in the evening. As such, with the flag-raising ceremony taking place at the Golden Bauhinia Square everyday currently, there is no room for increasing the frequency of flag-raising ceremonies. The national flag and regional flag are important symbols and signs of our country and the HKSAR that must be respected and loved. Flag-raising ceremonies are solemn and of special significance. We are thus of the view that when considering the location and occasion for holding flag-raising ceremonies, attracting tourists is not the most important consideration.

     The HKSAR Government has made clear directions regarding the display of the national flag and regional flag at major government organisations, for instance, the Central Government Offices, the boundary control points, major government complexes and public sports and cultural venues, etc. The Protocol Division has drawn up guidelines on the display of the national flag and regional flag at government department’s offices and buildings for government departments’ reference, and has reminded them to explain in detail to the responsible personnel the proper procedures for raising and lowering the flags and points to note. The Protocol Division also provides advice on the raising, lowering and display of the national flag and regional flag to government departments subject to the situation, and suitably reviews the assistance required by departments in this respect. read more

     â€‹Following is a question by the Hon Leung Man-kwong and a written reply by the Secretary for Housing, Ms Winnie Ho, in the Legislative Council today (June 12):

Question:

     In June last year, the Housing Bureau announced the sale of flats under the Private Subsidised Sale Flat – Pilot Scheme (the Pilot Scheme) at 65 per cent of market value, and that the applicant eligibility criteria would follow those (including income and asset limits) adopted under the prevailing Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) and housing policy. On the other hand, Hemma Amber, a Subsidised Sale Flats (SSF) Project launched by the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) in November last year, has also adopted the relevant income and asset limits for HOS as its applicant eligibility criteria, with a discount rate the same as that of HOS 2023. However, it has been reported that as pointed out by some analyses, the prices of the flats of Hemma Amber are higher than those of HOS 2023 flats in the same district, and the gap between the income limits for and flat prices of Hemma Amber is comparatively wide. As a result, only some of the flats are within applicants’ choice on the premise that they have met the stressed debt-to-income ratio for mortgage loans with a loan-to-value ratio of 90 per cent, thus affecting their chance of successfully acquiring a flat. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it knows if the authorities have set calculation criteria for the (i) discount rates and (ii) applicants’ income and asset limits in respect of various kinds of subsidised sale housing projects (including the Tenants Purchase Scheme, the Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme, HOS, the Pilot Scheme, the Starter Homes Pilot Scheme for Hong Kong Residents and the SSF Projects of HKHS), so as to ensure affordability of applicants in purchasing the flats;

(2) whether it knows if the authorities have reviewed whether the sale prices of the flats under the projects mentioned in (1) are commensurate with the affordability of applicants in a timely manner; if so, of the specific details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(3) given that the discount rates of some of the projects mentioned in (1) are comparable (e.g. HOS and the Pilot Scheme), whether the Government has plans to conduct a review on these projects and study the merger of them; if so, of the specific details; if not, the reasons for that? 

Reply:

President,

     The Government has all along been striving to enrich the housing ladder in response to the home ownership aspirations of households with different incomes. To ensure subsidised sale flats (SSFs) are affordable for applicants and to facilitate them to move upwards along the housing ladder, there are specific calculation mechanisms for setting the price as well as for the income and asset limits for applicants of different types of SSFs. In response to the various parts of the question raised by the Hon Leung Man-kwong, our reply is as follows:

(1) to (2) Pricing Mechanism

     To make Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) flats more affordable to target households, the Government revised the pricing mechanism of SSFs in 2018 so that HOS flat prices are delinked from the price of the private property market and revised to be based on the affordability of applicants. Under the revised pricing mechanism, at least 75 per cent of the flats for sale can allow non-owner occupier households earning the median monthly household income to spend no more than 40 per cent of their monthly income on mortgage payment. For SSF projects of the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS), HKHS will formulate the proposed sale price by drawing reference from factors including the discount rate of the preceding HOS sale exercise, market situations as well as affordability of the applicants.

     The pricing of other schemes of SSFs is benchmarked against the sale price of HOS. For Private Subsidised Sale Flat – Pilot Scheme (private SSFs), drawing reference from the average discount rates adopted in different HOS sale exercises since the resumption of HOS sale in 2014, the discount rate for the sale price of private SSFs is fixed at 35 per cent of the market price (i.e. the units are sold at 65 per cent of the market price). The discount of the Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme is 10 per cent more than that determined for the preceding HOS sale exercise. As for Starter Homes for Hong Kong Residents (SH) projects, given that their purpose is to help persons who are not eligible for HOS and yet cannot afford private housing meet their home ownership aspirations, and that the relevant units will be sold at a price lower than the market price, the discount rate concerned will be 10 per cent to 20 per cent lower than that of the preceding HOS sale exercise of the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA), in order to maintain the relativity among different rungs along the housing ladder.

     Tenants Purchase Scheme (TPS) allows tenants of public rental housing to buy the flats they currently rent at affordable prices. The list price of TPS flats is set by reference to the adjusted replacement cost. As at June 2024, the discounts of the unsold TPS flats range from 79 per cent to 84 per cent of assessed market values, i.e. for sale at 16 per cent to 21 per cent of assessed market values.

Income and Asset Limits

     To ensure that our limited public housing resources are made available only to those in genuine need, White Form (WF) applicants must meet the income and asset limits to be eligible to purchase various SSFs. In setting the income and asset limits, HA has thoroughly considered the applicants’ affordability and reviews the limits before each “Sale of HOS Flats” sale exercise. In setting the income limit, it adopts a household expenditure approach, which comprises both housing expenditure (including the mortgage payment, and rates, Government rent and management fee needed to purchase the reference flat) and non-housing expenditure, plus a 5 per cent contingency. The asset limit is derived from the amount of expenditure required to finance the down payment for acquiring the reference flat, the related transaction costs (including stamp duty and estate agent’s commission), and decoration expenses.

     On the other hand, as SH projects are positioned as a rung above HOS but below private housing, and their discount rate is lower than that for HOS (meaning their sale price is higher), the applicants should have income falling between the income limits for WF applicants for HOS and 30 per cent above such limits, and assets not exceeding 30 per cent above the HOS asset limits for WF applicants.

(3) Among various types of subsidised housing, as private SSFs and HOS/HKHS’s SSFs are on the same rung of the housing ladder, the two of them have similar discount rates. The eligibility criteria (including income and asset limits) and alienation restrictions for private SSFs will also largely follow those under the prevailing HOS and housing policy. However, the main difference between the two is that HOS/SSFs are developed by HA/HKHS, whereas private SSFs are developed and sold by private developers. This is to enhance the overall construction capacity, save time required for development, and unleash the development potential of private land. We consider that HOS and private SSFs will complement each other in enriching the design and variety of SSFs and providing more choices for buyers. There is therefore no need for consolidation.

     As mentioned above, there are different discount rates and eligibility criteria for different levels of SSFs, which can address the home ownership aspirations of households with different incomes. We consider that the current housing ladder has pragmatically responded to the home ownership needs of different people. We will continue to review whether there is room for enhancement of the housing ladder having regard to various factors such as the development of the property market and the home ownership aspirations of various members of the public. read more

     â€‹As the Heat Stress at Work Warning is now in effect, the Labour Department (LD) reminds employers and employees to take appropriate measures during the effective period of the warning to prevent heat stroke when working in hot weather or hot environments.
      
     Employees who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned indoor environments face high levels of heat stress and are at a relatively higher risk of heat stroke. Employers should assess the risk factors of heat stress for employees at work and, based on the identified risk factors, take necessary preventive and control measures, including rescheduling work periods, setting up shading covers, providing ventilation and heat dissipation equipment, and reminding employees to replenish water and rest in a timely manner.
      
     The Heat Stress at Work Warning is formulated by the LD based on the Hong Kong Heat Index. There are three levels of the warning: Amber, Red and Black, which help employers and employees better understand the level of heat stress while working outdoors or indoors without air-conditioning systems.
      
     A spokesman for the LD said that when the department issues the Heat Stress at Work Warning, employers must refer to the criteria and recommendations provided in the “Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work” to conduct risk assessments, according to the workloads and other relevant heat stress risk factors, for employees who work outdoors or in non-air-conditioned indoor workplaces. Appropriate rest breaks should be arranged every hour, as far as reasonably practicable, based on various levels of the Heat Stress at Work Warning, to reduce employees’ risk of heat stroke.
      
     Employees must also follow instructions to rest on time. Whenever there are any symptoms of heat-related illnesses, such as headache, dizziness, thirst, and nausea, they should rest in a cool and shady place, drink water, and inform employers/supervisors to take appropriate action immediately.
      
     The LD issued the “Guidance Notes on Prevention of Heat Stroke at Work”, detailing the various risk factors that should be considered when conducting heat stress risk assessments and recommending corresponding control measures for identified risk factors for employers’ and employees’ reference. For the Heat Stress at Work Warning and related guidelines, please refer to the department’s thematic webpage: www.labour.gov.hk/eng/news/prevention_of_heat_stroke_at_work.htm. read more

     Special traffic arrangements will be implemented in Happy Valley today (June 12). The arrangements will last until the crowds have dispersed after the race meeting.

A. Traffic arrangements before the commencement of the first race

     The following road closure and traffic diversions will be implemented from 6pm onwards:

1. Road closure

     Southbound Wong Nai Chung Road between Queen’s Road East and the slip road leading to Aberdeen Tunnel will be closed, except for vehicles heading for Aberdeen Tunnel.

2. Traffic diversions

– Southbound Wong Nai Chung Road between Village Road and the slip road leading to Aberdeen Tunnel will be re-routed one way northbound;
– Traffic along eastbound Queen’s Road East heading for Wan Chai and Happy Valley will be diverted to turn left to Morrison Hill Road;
– Traffic along southbound Morrison Hill Road heading for Happy Valley will be diverted via Sports Road and Wong Nai Chung Road;
– Traffic along Queen’s Road East cannot turn right to Wong Nai Chung Road, except for vehicles heading for Aberdeen Tunnel;
– Traffic from Cross Harbour Tunnel heading for Queen’s Road East will be diverted via the down-ramp leading from southbound Canal Road flyover to Morrison Hill Road to turn right at the junction of Wong Nai Chung Road and Queen’s Road East; and
– Traffic from Cross Harbour Tunnel heading for Happy Valley or Racecourse will be diverted via the down-ramp leading from southbound Canal Road flyover to Canal Road East, southbound Morrison Hill Road, Sports Road and Wong Nai Chung Road.

B. Traffic arrangements before the conclusion of race meeting

     The following road closure and traffic diversions will be implemented from about 35 minutes before the start of the last race:

1. Road closure

– The slip road connecting Wong Nai Chung Road and Aberdeen Tunnel;
– Southbound Wong Nai Chung Road between Queen’s Road East and the slip road connecting Wong Nai Chung Road and Aberdeen Tunnel;
– Southbound Wong Nai Chung Road between Village Road and Parsee Cemetery;
– Westbound Leighton Road between Wong Nai Chung Road and Canal Road East; and
– Southbound Morrison Hill Road between Leighton Road and Queen’s Road East.

     In addition, southbound Wong Nai Chung Road between the up-ramp leading to Aberdeen Tunnel and the Public Stands of Hong Kong Jockey Club will be closed from about 10 minutes before the start of the last race.

2. Traffic diversions

– Eastbound Queen’s Road East at its junction with Morrison Hill Road will be reduced to one-lane traffic heading for northbound Canal Road flyover;
– Traffic from Cross Harbour Tunnel heading for Wan Chai will be diverted via the down-ramp leading from southbound Canal Road flyover to Canal Road East, U-turn slip road beneath Canal Road flyover, Canal Road West and Hennessy Road;
– Traffic from Cross Harbour Tunnel heading for Happy Valley will be diverted via the down-ramp leading from southbound Canal Road flyover to Canal Road East, eastbound Leighton Road and Wong Nai Chung Road;
– Traffic along southbound Morrison Hill Road will be diverted to turn left to eastbound Leighton Road;
– Traffic along southbound Morrison Hill Road heading for Happy Valley will be diverted via eastbound Leighton Road and Wong Nai Chung Road; and
– Traffic along westbound Leighton Road will be diverted to Wong Nai Chung Road.

C. Learner drivers prohibition

     Learner drivers will be prohibited to turn left from Caroline Hill Road to Leighton Road between one and a half hours before the start of the first race and one hour after the last race. In addition, learner drivers will be prohibited from accessing the following roads within the above period of time:

– Shan Kwong Road between Yik Yam Street and Wong Nai Chung Road;
– Village Road between its upper and lower junctions with Shan Kwong Road;
– Percival Street between Hennessy Road and Leighton Road;
– Canal Road East; and
– The service road leading from Gloucester Road to Canal Road flyover.

D. Suspension of parking spaces

     Parking spaces on southbound Wong Nai Chung Road between Sports Road and Blue Pool Road will be suspended from 11am to 7pm during day racing, from 4.30pm to 11.59pm during evening racing, and from 5pm to 11.59pm during night racing.

     Any vehicles found illegally parked within the precincts of the above affected areas will be towed away without prior notice.

     Actual implementation of road closure and traffic diversion will be made by the Police at the time depending on traffic conditions in the areas. Motorists should exercise tolerance and patience, and follow the instructions of Police on site. read more

     The Secretary for Security exercised the powers conferred by sections 89(1) and 89(4) of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance (6 of 2024) today (June 12) to specify six persons who have absconded the United Kingdom… read more