Police today (February 23) appealed to the public for information on a man who went missing in Kwai Chung. Ling Kim-wah, aged 64, went missing after he was last seen at a care centre on &n… read more
Following is the transcript of remarks by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, at a media session this afternoon (February 23):
Reporter: HKMAO (Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council) mentioned that Xia comes to the city to plan ahead new development together with the Government. What could that new development be? And the second question is that, what does Xia think of Hong Kong’s current situation and regarding Hong Kong’s economy, what aspect did he think needs to be improved?
Chief Executive: The study team on this occasion, led by Director Xia Baolong (Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council), focuses on two main issues. One is economic development, the other is district administration. The study team impressed me as a team which listens in great interest to views expressed by both the Government and those who were received by the study team. And there have been very good exchange of opinions. One thing that has been shared is the actual situation for Hong Kong. And both myself, the Financial Secretary and the various Principal Officials have explained in great detail to the study team. The conclusion of all these meetings indicates that the study team is satisfied with the overall situation of Hong Kong and the way that the Hong Kong government is handling it. And they have strong faith that the Hong Kong government’s approach will deal with it appropriately.
And also, the study team is keen to listen to views about what requests we have for the Central Government, so that they will consider it. We have, as always, been making a lot of proposals in different regards for economic development. But a lot of them, of course, involve different issues that have to be ironed out, particularly when it may involve more than one responsible authority. So there’s a very strong common will that we should lay out our priority requests, and also we should spell out some of the details of the request, so that they will be addressed as quickly as possible. That is the first thing.
The second thing is there is a strong will. I have strong confidence to believe that with this strong will, they will look at our proposals very seriously and try to work out practical solutions for the benefit of Hong Kong. The announcement of these new cities under the Individual Visit Scheme is a reflection of the Central Government taking the views and the proposals of the Hong Kong SAR Government seriously. After addressing the different concerns, they had it approved and announced to be implemented very soon. And I would envisage that this smooth process and the good communication between the Hong Kong SAR Government and the Central People’s Government will continue to see results that will actually bring overall benefits to Hong Kong in the long run. Some may come earlier, some may take a longer time to come, because some actually involve some research work, and some also will require analysis of the different implications that may be involved.
But one thing I must emphasise is I’m very grateful to the Central Government’s willingness and enthusiasm in listening to the views of Hong Kong and being very serious in helping Hong Kong, and also sometimes looking at things both at the micro and macro level. In due course, I’m very confident that we will be getting a lot of new plans of action that will be helpful to the overall economic development of Hong Kong. Thank you.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority: The spokesperson for Kowloon Hospital (KH) made the following announcement today (February 23): Five patients (aged 63 to 78) in a female psychia… read more
The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat: The President of the Legislative Council (LegCo), Mr Andrew Leung, hosted a spring luncheon today (February 23) in the Dining Hall of the LegCo Complex for… read more
​ The Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan, today (February 23) officiated at the opening ceremony of GREEN@TSING YI, witnessing the first GREEN@COMMUNITY Recycling Store set up in an MTR station.
Mr Tse, addressing the opening ceremony, said that the Kwai Tsing District is the smallest district, yet has the highest population density in the New Territories. In order to enable MTR passengers and those nearby residents to participate in clean recycling to prepare for the implementation of municipal solid waste charging, the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) has further extended the GREEN@COMMUNITY community recycling network to the MTR Station.
With the commencement of the operation of GREEN@TSING YI, the number of Recycling Stores under the GREEN@COMMUNITY has increased to 40, together with 11 Recycling Stations, and more than 130 Recycling Spots operating weekly at fixed times and locations in the form of kerb-side collection booths. There are also more than 180 public recyclable collection points across the territory in total. In addition, under the pilot programme for a smart recycling system, there are also more than 70 smart recycling bins installed in different application points including large housing estates, public rental housing estates, villages, shopping malls, universities and government venues by the EPD for the public’s trial use. The EPD has also provided three-colour waste separation bins for about 2,700 building premises under the Source Separation of Domestic Waste programme. The department encourages members of the public to make good use of the recycling facilities and cultivate green living habits.
Mr Tse also announced at the opening ceremony that the launch of a pilot collaboration program with the EPD’s GREEN$ Electronic Participation Incentive Scheme (ePIS) and the MTR’s carbon emission reduction reward platform “Carbon Wallet”. Members of the GREEN$ Mobile App can convert Green$ points to “Carbon Wallet” points to redeem rewards including free single journey MTR tickets. Mr Tse hopes that the collaboration can introduce a synergistic effect to encourage more people to cultivate good carbon emission reduction, waste reduction as well as clean recycling habits in daily life.
For details of the GREEN$ ePIS, please visit the EPD’s Hong Kong Waste Reduction Website
www.wastereduction.gov.hk/en-hk/waste-reduction-programme/green-electronic-participation-incentive-scheme.
The public can also visit the GREEN@TSING YI social media page www.facebook.com/6green.tsingyi/ to get the latest information about the recycling store.
