The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (May 29) that in view of a notification from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H7N9 avian influenza in Corangamite Shire of the State of Victoria in Australia, 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 130 tonnes of chilled and frozen poultry meat and about 4.06 million poultry eggs from Australia in the first three months of this year.

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

     The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, began his visit to the United States on May 28 (San Francisco time) and delivered a keynote speech at a business luncheon. He also witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Invest Hong Kong (Invest HK) and partners in the San Francisco Bay Area.
      
     Mr Chan attended a business luncheon co-organised by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in San Francisco and the Bay Area Council, a business organisation in San Francisco, where he introduced the latest economic situation and development directions of Hong Kong to the local business and innovation sectors. He emphasised the developmental advantages of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), highlighting Hong Kong's role as an international financial centre and an international innovation and technology hub, as well as its "super connector" role in the GBA, which enable it to create business opportunities for companies from Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. He noted that both bay areas have exceptional innovation capabilities, and Hong Kong boasts a broad and deep financing platform, comprehensive financial services, a thriving venture capital ecosystem, concentration of top international research talent, and convergence of Mainland and international data. These qualities are highly attractive to innovative enterprises seeking to open up markets in the GBA and other parts of Mainland China and Asia.
      
     Mr Chan also pointed out in his speech that Hong Kong, under the "one country, two systems" principle, continues to practise the common law system, and allow the free flow of capital, talent, information, and goods. Hong Kong maintains its low tax regime and linked exchange rate system. The law and order situation in Hong Kong is robust. Its business standards are highly aligned with international benchmarks. All these factors present clear advantages.
      
     During the luncheon's panel discussion, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority Mr Kenneth Hui; Co-Head of Markets at the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited Ms Glenda So; and the Chief Public Mission Officer of the Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, Mr Eric Chan, promoted the developments of Hong Kong's financial markets, arrangements facilitating the listing of start-ups, initiatives to boost innovation and technology developments, and support for start-ups.
      
     In the presence of Mr Chan and Bay Area Council China Initiative Committee Co-Chair Mr Kevin Xu, Invest HK and the Bay Area Council signed an MOU to jointly promote investment promotion exchanges between Hong Kong and the San Francisco Bay Area, with a focus on green economy and sustainable development co-operation.
      
     The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, and the Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Joseph Chan, also attended the luncheon.
      
     In the morning, accompanied by the Chief Financial Officer of the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation, Mr Aldous Mak, and the Director-General of Investment Promotion, Ms Alpha Lau, Mr Chan visited five start-ups from the Hong Kong Science Park. These five companies are currently in Silicon Valley for exchanges and training as well as market expansion, and are engaged in businesses such as biodegradable materials, new building materials, online marketing, smart robotics and AI inspection. Mr Chan listened to their presentations on their business, technology, market expansion, and their experiences in the training programme, and exchanged views with their executives.
      
     Mr Chan also met with Mr Rahim Amidi, one of the founders of a Silicon Valley start-up accelerator, Plug and Play. The Hong Kong Science Park has started collaborating with Plug and Play, and the five start-ups mentioned above are being trained with the support of this accelerator in Silicon Valley. Plug and Play is also planning to establish a branch in Hong Kong. Mr Chan encouraged them to collaborate more with local start-ups and innovation and technology institutions in Hong Kong to add vitality to the local innovation and technology ecosystem.
      
     In the afternoon, Mr Chan visited an alternative asset management company, TPG, and met with its Founder and Executive Chairman, Mr Jim Coulter, to understand their development plans in Hong Kong.
      
     After arriving in San Francisco on May 27 (San Francisco time), Mr Chan met with the Consul General of China in San Francisco, Mr Zhang Jianmin. They exchanged views on the co-operation between the GBA and the San Francisco Bay Area, China-US relations, and the latest developments in Hong Kong.
      
     On May 29 (San Francisco time), Mr Chan will lead a delegation from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (SAR) to participate in the Bay to Bay Dialogue between the California Bay Area and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the US-China High-Level Event on Subnational Climate Action, together with delegations from the Guangdong Province and the Macao SAR.

                      

     â€‹Following is a question by the Hon Yim Kong and a reply by the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Kevin Yeung, in the Legislative Council today (May 29):
 
Question:
 
     In recent days, the Central Authorities have progressively introduced a number of new immigration policy measures which facilitate Mainland residents' travel to and from Hong Kong, including further expanding the Individual Visit Scheme to cover 59 cities and expanding the application of the "exit endorsement for talents travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao" from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to Beijing and Shanghai. There are views that such policy measures will have positive effects on the recovery of Hong Kong's economy by bringing more Mainland residents to Hong Kong for spending. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) whether it has assessed the current supply and demand situation of retail goods in Hong Kong that are more popular among Mainland visitors (such as pharmaceutical products, cosmetics and jewellery);
 
(2) as the Government has indicated in its reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on the 8th of this month that it will continue to maintain close communication with the relevant Mainland authorities and strive for policy initiatives that are conducive to Hong Kong's tourism development, including raising the tax free threshold for shopping for Mainland visitors visiting Hong Kong, whether the Government has reached a certain consensus with the relevant Mainland authorities on raising the tax free threshold; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
 
(3) whether it will consider planning for the establishment of a themed commercial complex to provide a retail spot specialised in goods that are popular among Mainland visitors at a boundary control point in the Northern Metropolis, so as to attract more Mainland visitors to come to Hong Kong for shopping and spending and facilitate their purchase of the goods they need in Hong Kong with the least time spent, thereby boosting Hong Kong's retail industry?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG) is sincerely grateful to the Central Government's announcement on May 11 for responding to the HKSARG's proposal on enhancing the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS), which allows residents of eight additional cities to explore Hong Kong's unique appeals as a tourism destination more flexibly and conveniently. The IVS now covers 59 cities, including all provincial capitals which will boost the local tourism and other related industries. The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is stepping up promotion work in the newly added cities and inviting representatives from the trade of relevant cities to come to Hong Kong to participate in promotional activities, thereby integrating the power of the trade to explore the relevant source markets.
     
     At the same time, the HKSARG will join hands with the trade to implement the concept of "tourism is everywhere in Hong Kong", enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong's tourism industry, fully explore Hong Kong's rich tourism resources, and draw on successful experiences from various places to enable innovative thinking and optimise policies. The HKSARG announced the calendar of mega events in Hong Kong for the second half of 2024 last week expecting that at least about 210 mega events will be held throughout this year. It is hoped that through sharing the event information with the trades, operators in different industries can make advance arrangement to prepare, plan and launch promotion, thereby fully seizing the business opportunities brought by mega events to create more diverse, rich and unique tourism experiences for tourists. The HKSARG will also actively facilitate the industry to continuously improve service quality and encourage the public to work together to show hospitality to make tourists feel at home, with a view to reinforcing and strengthening Hong Kong's position as the best tourism destination.

     In respect of the question raised by the Hon Yim Kong, in consultation with the Census and Statistics Department and the Development Bureau, the reply is as follows:
 
(1) According to the Quarterly Survey of Employment and Vacancies conducted by the Census and Statistics Department, comparing December 2023 with December 2022, the number of establishments in the retail industry of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts is about 3 600, increased slightly by 3 per cent while that of the medicines and cosmetics of the same period remained stable at approximately over 4 000.
 
     On the demand side, according to information provided by the Census and Statistics Department and the HKTB, the total value of retail sales in Hong Kong in 2023 was $406.6 billion while the total spending on goods in Hong Kong by visitors was $71.3billion, representing around 18 per cent of the total value of retail sales in Hong Kong.

     In addition, according to the latest result of the HKTB's departing visitor survey, factors attracting Mainland tourists to visit Hong Kong have changed and the proportion of tourists whose main purpose of visiting Hong Kong is shopping has gradually decreased. Having said that, some tourists considered that Hong Kong still enjoys price advantages in terms of buying luxury goods. Besides, the fashionable style, good quality and authenticity guarantee makes goods in Hong Kong popular among Mainland tourists.
 
(2) Currently, according to relevant Mainland customs laws, the duty-free allowance for imported items for personal use by Mainland visitors (including visitors to Hong Kong) is RMB 5,000 per travel. Increasing duty-free allowance for Mainland visitors will not only enrich and enhance their experience in visiting Hong Kong and provide them with incentive to shop, but will also boost local consumption and help attract more high spending overnight visitors to come to Hong Kong. The Government will continue to maintain close communication with the relevant Mainland Authorities for policies and measures that are conducive to Hong Kong's tourism development, including increasing the duty-free allowance for Mainland visitors, thereby enhancing their consumption intention and further stimulating the retail market.
 
(3) In planning the Northern Metropolis, the Government will take into account the industry potential in different areas and the opportunities for industry collaboration with the Mainland in reserving land for industry development as appropriate. For instance, by leveraging the three land boundary control points (BCPs) in the Boundary Commerce and Industry Zone where Lo Wu, Man Kam To and Heung Yuen Wai are located, there is potential to develop leisure consumption related commerce near the BCPs to meet the needs for cross-boundary services and livelihood consumption. We will reserve commercial land capable of accommodating retail and leisure consumption industries near the BCPs, the details of which will be announced when the land use proposal of the New Territories North New Town is released in the second half of this year. Besides, Hung Shui Kiu/ Ha Tsuen New Development Area will enjoy the convenience brought by the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Rail Link (Hung Shui Kiu to Qianhai section) in future, connecting to Qianhai area in Shenzhen. We will provide commercial land around the town centre railway station from 2026 onwards, contributing about one million square metres of commercial floor space in total, which may also accommodate retail and leisure consumption industries. Thank you President.

     â€‹Following is a question by the Hon Yim Kong and a reply by the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Kevin Yeung, in the Legislative Council today (May 29):
 
Question:
 
     In recent days, the Central Authorities have progressively introduced a number of new immigration policy measures which facilitate Mainland residents' travel to and from Hong Kong, including further expanding the Individual Visit Scheme to cover 59 cities and expanding the application of the "exit endorsement for talents travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao" from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to Beijing and Shanghai. There are views that such policy measures will have positive effects on the recovery of Hong Kong's economy by bringing more Mainland residents to Hong Kong for spending. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) whether it has assessed the current supply and demand situation of retail goods in Hong Kong that are more popular among Mainland visitors (such as pharmaceutical products, cosmetics and jewellery);
 
(2) as the Government has indicated in its reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on the 8th of this month that it will continue to maintain close communication with the relevant Mainland authorities and strive for policy initiatives that are conducive to Hong Kong's tourism development, including raising the tax free threshold for shopping for Mainland visitors visiting Hong Kong, whether the Government has reached a certain consensus with the relevant Mainland authorities on raising the tax free threshold; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
 
(3) whether it will consider planning for the establishment of a themed commercial complex to provide a retail spot specialised in goods that are popular among Mainland visitors at a boundary control point in the Northern Metropolis, so as to attract more Mainland visitors to come to Hong Kong for shopping and spending and facilitate their purchase of the goods they need in Hong Kong with the least time spent, thereby boosting Hong Kong's retail industry?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government (HKSARG) is sincerely grateful to the Central Government's announcement on May 11 for responding to the HKSARG's proposal on enhancing the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS), which allows residents of eight additional cities to explore Hong Kong's unique appeals as a tourism destination more flexibly and conveniently. The IVS now covers 59 cities, including all provincial capitals which will boost the local tourism and other related industries. The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is stepping up promotion work in the newly added cities and inviting representatives from the trade of relevant cities to come to Hong Kong to participate in promotional activities, thereby integrating the power of the trade to explore the relevant source markets.
     
     At the same time, the HKSARG will join hands with the trade to implement the concept of "tourism is everywhere in Hong Kong", enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong's tourism industry, fully explore Hong Kong's rich tourism resources, and draw on successful experiences from various places to enable innovative thinking and optimise policies. The HKSARG announced the calendar of mega events in Hong Kong for the second half of 2024 last week expecting that at least about 210 mega events will be held throughout this year. It is hoped that through sharing the event information with the trades, operators in different industries can make advance arrangement to prepare, plan and launch promotion, thereby fully seizing the business opportunities brought by mega events to create more diverse, rich and unique tourism experiences for tourists. The HKSARG will also actively facilitate the industry to continuously improve service quality and encourage the public to work together to show hospitality to make tourists feel at home, with a view to reinforcing and strengthening Hong Kong's position as the best tourism destination.

     In respect of the question raised by the Hon Yim Kong, in consultation with the Census and Statistics Department and the Development Bureau, the reply is as follows:
 
(1) According to the Quarterly Survey of Employment and Vacancies conducted by the Census and Statistics Department, comparing December 2023 with December 2022, the number of establishments in the retail industry of jewellery, watches and clocks, and valuable gifts is about 3 600, increased slightly by 3 per cent while that of the medicines and cosmetics of the same period remained stable at approximately over 4 000.
 
     On the demand side, according to information provided by the Census and Statistics Department and the HKTB, the total value of retail sales in Hong Kong in 2023 was $406.6 billion while the total spending on goods in Hong Kong by visitors was $71.3billion, representing around 18 per cent of the total value of retail sales in Hong Kong.

     In addition, according to the latest result of the HKTB's departing visitor survey, factors attracting Mainland tourists to visit Hong Kong have changed and the proportion of tourists whose main purpose of visiting Hong Kong is shopping has gradually decreased. Having said that, some tourists considered that Hong Kong still enjoys price advantages in terms of buying luxury goods. Besides, the fashionable style, good quality and authenticity guarantee makes goods in Hong Kong popular among Mainland tourists.
 
(2) Currently, according to relevant Mainland customs laws, the duty-free allowance for imported items for personal use by Mainland visitors (including visitors to Hong Kong) is RMB 5,000 per travel. Increasing duty-free allowance for Mainland visitors will not only enrich and enhance their experience in visiting Hong Kong and provide them with incentive to shop, but will also boost local consumption and help attract more high spending overnight visitors to come to Hong Kong. The Government will continue to maintain close communication with the relevant Mainland Authorities for policies and measures that are conducive to Hong Kong's tourism development, including increasing the duty-free allowance for Mainland visitors, thereby enhancing their consumption intention and further stimulating the retail market.
 
(3) In planning the Northern Metropolis, the Government will take into account the industry potential in different areas and the opportunities for industry collaboration with the Mainland in reserving land for industry development as appropriate. For instance, by leveraging the three land boundary control points (BCPs) in the Boundary Commerce and Industry Zone where Lo Wu, Man Kam To and Heung Yuen Wai are located, there is potential to develop leisure consumption related commerce near the BCPs to meet the needs for cross-boundary services and livelihood consumption. We will reserve commercial land capable of accommodating retail and leisure consumption industries near the BCPs, the details of which will be announced when the land use proposal of the New Territories North New Town is released in the second half of this year. Besides, Hung Shui Kiu/ Ha Tsuen New Development Area will enjoy the convenience brought by the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Rail Link (Hung Shui Kiu to Qianhai section) in future, connecting to Qianhai area in Shenzhen. We will provide commercial land around the town centre railway station from 2026 onwards, contributing about one million square metres of commercial floor space in total, which may also accommodate retail and leisure consumption industries. Thank you President.

     Following is a question by Dr the Hon Chow Man-kong and a written reply by the Secretary for Housing, Ms Winnie Ho, in the Legislative Council today (May 29):
 
Question:
 
     It has been reported that the average waiting time for public rental housing (PRH) in the first quarter of 2024 was 5.7 years, and the waiting time of young people was even longer. Moreover, there is keen competition in the market under the Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) and the White Form Secondary Market Scheme (WSM), and it is often difficult for young people to successfully buy a flat through one-person application. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the current number of one-person flats among the PRH flats of the Hong Kong Housing Authority and the rental flats of the Hong Kong Housing Society, and set out in Table 1 a breakdown by the three regions, namely Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories, as well as District Council district;

Table 1

        
(2) of the number of one-person applicants aged 35 or below among the applicants currently on the PRH Waiting List, and set out in Table 2 a breakdown by their academic attainment (i.e. (i) primary or below, (ii) secondary, (iii) post-secondary and (iv) tertiary or above);

Table 2

                       
(3) of the number of one-person applicants aged 35 or below who were allotted one-person PRH flats in each of the past three years and their average waiting time;
 
(4) of (i) the number of flats reserved for one-person applicants, and (ii) the number of one-person applicants aged 35 or below, and among them, the number of those who successfully bought an HOS flat under the Sale of HOS Flats 2022;
 
(5) of the following information on one-person applicants aged 35 or below under WSM 2022: (i) the number of applicants, (ii) the number of applicants exceeding the relevant quota and their percentage (if any), and (iii) the number of transactions of HOS flats involved and their percentage in the relevant quota; and
 
(6) as there are views that, to meet the home-buying needs of young people and tie in with the measure of extending the mortgage default guarantee period of second-hand HOS flats to 50 years, the Government should make good use of the second-hand HOS flats released by the market in response to the measure concerned and motivate more people who can afford home ownership to engage in the property market so as to continuously revive the overall sentiment of the property market, whether the Government will consider increasing the quota for WSM from 4 500 to 20 000 and correspondingly adjusting upward the quota for one-person applicants therein; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     In response to the question raised by Dr the Hon Chow Man-kong, our reply is as follows:
 
(1) As at end-March 2024, the number of public rental housing (PRH) flats for one to two persons under the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) is as follows:

Note: The figures include PRH flats in Tenants Purchase Scheme estates, Home Ownership Scheme Courts, Buy or Rent Option Scheme and Mortgage Subsidy Scheme Courts, and Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme Courts. Interim Housing flats are not included.

     Meanwhile, as at end-March 2024, the number of rental flats for one/one to two person(s) under the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) is as follows:
 

* Rounded to the nearest 10.
# There are about 500 one-person flats in Sai Kung District, and about 10 each in Eastern District and Southern District. There is no one-person flat in other districts.
 
(2) and (3) The Housing Department (HD) conducts the Survey on PRH Applicants biennially to collect updated statistical information on the socio-economic characteristics of applicants. According to the findings of the survey in 2022, there were 38 600 non-elderly one-person applicants under the Quota and Points System (QPS) aged below 30. The number of applicants decreased by 27 900 from 66 500 five years earlier (i.e. 2017). The educational attainment of these applicants is distributed as follows:
 

Note: The percentages may not add up to 100 per cent due to rounding.
* "Post-secondary" includes Certificate, Diploma level courses and sub-degree programmes (e.g. Higher Certificate, Higher Diploma, Professional Diploma, Associate Degree, Pre-Associate Degree, Endorsement Certificate, Associateship or equivalent courses and other nondegree level programmes) in local or non-local institutions. 
# "Tertiary or above includes all undergraduate programmes, taught postgraduate and research postgraduate programmes in local or non-local institutions. 

     The HD does not keep statistics on the number of applicants categorised as "non-elderly one-person applicants aged 35 or below", and distribution of their educational attainment.
 
     Given the limited PRH resources, it is the policy of the HA to accord priority to general applicants (i.e. family applicants and elderly one-person applicants) over non-elderly one-person applicants in the allocation of PRH flats. Priority of flat allocation of QPS applicants, which is different from that of general applicants, is determined by the total points accumulated by such applicants under the points system instead of the time when they joined the queue. Therefore, the average waiting time of general applicants is not applicable to them. Generally speaking, older applicants will be allocated flats faster under QPS in order not to encourage early registration by young people, and to motivate them to work hard in their youth to move up the social ladder. The average age of non-elderly one-person applicants who were housed to PRH in the past five years is 57, whereas the age of the youngest applicant who was housed to PRH ranges from 47 to 52.
 
     Besides, the HD conducts regular checking on the eligibility of QPS applicants who have waited for five years but not yet due for detailed vetting within the next two years to remove applicants who are no longer eligible for PRH, thus enable the HA to have a more realistic grasp of the situation of the QPS applicants and assess the demand more accurately. On average, the applications of more than half of the target applicants who were subject to regular checking were cancelled each year.
 
     The HD does not keep statistics on the number of applicants categorised as "non-elderly one-person applicants aged 35 or below" who were housed to PRH flats. In the past three years (Note), the number of non-elderly one-person applicants under QPS who were housed to PRH flats is as follows:
 

Note: The figure for 2023/24 will be released in June 2024.
 
(4) A total of 8 926 flats were put up for sale under the Sale of Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) Flats 2022. Around 10 per cent of the flats were set aside for one-person applicants. The HA received a total of around 250 000 applications (comprising around 200 000 White Forms and around 50 000 Green Forms) under the sale exercise. There were around 110 000 one-person applicants aged 35 or below, accounting for around 43 per cent of all applicants. Around 480 one-person applicants aged 35 or below purchased HOS flats eventually, taking up around 54 per cent of the 900 quotas set aside for one-person applicants. 

(5) The HA received around 120 000 applications for the White Form Secondary Market Scheme (WSM) 2022. There were around 60 000 one-person applicants aged 35 or below, accounting for around 51 per cent of all applicants. WSM 2022 provided a quota of 4 500, around 10 per cent of which were set aside for one-person applicants. Around 160 one-person applicants aged 35 or below purchased subsidised sale flats (SSFs) under the HA or HKHS through WSM 2022 eventually, taking up around 36 per cent of the quota for all one-person applicants. 

(6) The HA has extended the maximum mortgage default guarantee period and repayment period for the Secondary Market Scheme earlier and we are closely monitoring the situation of the secondary market after the implementation of such arrangements. When we launch WSM in the future, we will take into account different factors, including the demand of White Form applicants towards SSFs, the secondary market and the market environment as a whole in order to review and determine the quotas for WSM.