As the rainstorm warning has been issued by the Hong Kong Observatory, the Labour Department (LD) reminds employers and contractors that they should adopt necessary work arrangements and take suitable safety measures to protect the safety of their employees when they are carrying out electrical work or handling electrical plant.

     A spokesman for the LD said today (May 24) that employers and contractors should avoid assigning employees to carry out electrical work (like electric arc welding work) or handle electrical plant at places affected by rainstorms, and should refer to the "Code of Practice in Times of Adverse Weather and 'Extreme Conditions'" and the "Guide on Safety at Work in times of Inclement Weather" issued by the LD.

     Even if electrical work is carried out or electrical plant is handled at places not affected by the rainstorm, suitable safety measures must still be adopted to prevent electric shock as the air would be more humid. Such measures include:

(i) Ensure that all live parts of an electrical installation are isolated from the power supply source and rendered dead, and the isolation from the power supply source must be maintained as long as electrical work is being carried out;

(ii) Before carrying out any electrical work or handling any electrical plant, cut off and lock out the power supply source, then test the circuit concerned to confirm it is dead and display suitable warning notices, and issue a work permit thereafter;

(iii) Ensure that protective devices (such as suitable and adequate fuses and circuit breakers) for the electrical installations or electrical plant have been installed and maintained in good working order, and portable electric tools must be double-insulated or properly earthed;

(iv) Provide suitable personal protective equipment such as insulating gloves and insulating mats for employees; and

(v) If live electrical work is unavoidable, a comprehensive risk assessment should be conducted by a competent person and the appropriate safety precautions should be taken to remove or properly control the electrical hazards involved before such work can proceed.

     In addition, employees should co-operate with the employer or contractor to follow the safety instructions and use the safety equipment provided.

     The LD has published guidebooks and leaflets on electrical work safety. These safety publications are available free from divisional offices of the department or can be downloaded from its website (www.labour.gov.hk/eng/public/content2_8.htm).

     Should there be any questions about occupational safety and health matters, please contact the Occupational Safety Officer of the LD at 2559 2297.

Attention duty announcers, radio and TV stations:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible and repeat it at suitable intervals:

     Members of the public are advised to report any street flooding that comes to their notice to the Drainage Services Department by calling the 24-hour drainage hotline on 2300 1110.

     The Lands Department (LandsD) today (May 24) announced the proposal for the resumption of land for the establishment of an Agricultural Park in Kwu Tung South – Phase 2 First Stage under the Lands Resumption Ordinance (Chapter 124).
 
     The proposal involves the resumption of 150 private lots with an area of about 15.6 hectares. Details were published in the notice gazetted today. The notice is affixed in a conspicuous place on or near the land proposed to be resumed. A copy of the notice and resumption plan are also available on the LandsD website (www.landsd.gov.hk/en/resources/gov-notices/acq.html). Members of the public may also inspect the above-mentioned documents at the following government offices during office hours:
 

• Central and Western Home Affairs Enquiry Centre, G/F, Harbour Building, 38 Pier Road, Central, Hong Kong;
• North Home Affairs Enquiry Centre, G/F, North District Government Offices, 3 Pik Fung Road, Fanling, New Territories; and
• District Lands Office, North, 6/F, North District Government Offices, 3 Pik Fung Road, Fanling, New Territories.

     The owner, occupier of the land or any person having any right in relation to the land to be resumed, who wishes to object to the proposed resumption, is required to submit a written objection to the Director of Lands. The written objection must sufficiently identify the aforementioned identity of the objector and describe how the objector will be affected by the proposal. Objectors are requested to provide contact details and deliver written objections to the Director of Lands on or before July 23 via one of the following means:
 

• By post or by hand to the District Lands Office, North, 6/F, North District Government Offices, 3 Pik Fung Road, Fanling, New Territories;
• By fax to 2675 9224; or
• By email to gendlon@landsd.gov.hk.

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council (LegCo) Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will hold the third public hearing on "Provision and monitoring of Rehabus services" (Chapter 5) of the Director of Audit's Report No. 82 tomorrow (May 25) at 9am in Conference Room 1 of the LegCo Complex.

     Five witnesses have been invited to appear before the above hearing to respond to points raised in the Report and answer questions asked by PAC members.

     The programme for the public hearing is as follows:

Subject: Provision and monitoring of Rehabus services
(Chapter 5 of the Director of Audit's Report No.82)
Date: May 25 (Saturday)
Time: 9am
Venue: Conference Room 1

Witnesses:

Mr Chris Sun
Secretary for Labour and Welfare

Ms Susan Chan
Assistant Commissioner for Rehabilitation
Labour and Welfare Bureau

Ms Angela Lee
Commissioner for Transport

Mr Curtis Chiu
Principal Transport Officer/Ferry and Paratransit
Transport Department

Ms Christine Yuen
Chief Transport Officer/Planning/Disabled Transport
Transport Department

     The PAC is chaired by Mr Shiu Ka-fai, and its Deputy Chairman is Mr Paul Tse. Other members are Ms Yung Hoi-yan, Mr Luk Chung-hung, Mr Edmund Wong, Mr Louis Loong and Ms Carmen Kan.

     To prepare for the onboarding of the second batch of Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) schemes to the eMPF Platform, the Government published in the Gazette today (May 24) the following legal notices:
 
(i) the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Specification of Dates for Purposes of Section 19M(2)(a)) (Amendment) Notice 2024 (Mandatory Use (Amendment) Notice 2024); and
 
(ii) the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Appointment of Dates for Purposes of Section 19U(4)) (Amendment) Notice 2024, the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Appointment of Dates for Purposes of Section 19Y(3)) (Amendment) Notice 2024, and the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Appointment of Dates for Purposes of Section 19Z(4)) (Amendment) Notice 2024 (collectively Fee Control (Amendment) Notices 2024).
 
     The Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (Amendment) Ordinance 2021 (Amendment Ordinance 2021) enacted by the Legislative Council (LegCo) in October 2021 provides the necessary legal basis for the implementation of the eMPF Platform, and confers power on the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury to publish legal notices in the Gazette to put certain provisions of the Amendment Ordinance 2021 into operation when the eMPF Platform is ready for use. Such legal notices will be published in the Gazette in batches to dovetail with the phased onboarding of MPF trustees in ascending order of their assets-under-management size. The first batch of legal notices was gazetted in April 2024 to prepare for the launch of the eMPF Platform on June 26, 2024.
 
     On the mandatory use of the eMPF Platform by MPF trustees, the Mandatory Use (Amendment) Notice 2024 specifies September 3, 2024, October 2, 2024, and October 29, 2024, as the "material day" for the purposes of section 19M(2)(a) of the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Ordinance (Cap. 485) (MPFSO) for the BCOM Joyful Retirement MPF Scheme administered by the Bank of Communications Trustee Limited, the SHKP MPF Employer Sponsored Scheme administered by the Standard Chartered Trustee (Hong Kong) Limited, and the BEA (MPF) Value Scheme administered by the Bank of East Asia (Trustees) Limited respectively. On cost savings and fee-setting of MPF schemes to be charged by MPF trustees on scheme members, the Fee Control (Amendment) Notices 2024 appoint December 3, 2024, January 2, 2025, and January 29, 2025, as the "material day" for the purposes of sections 19U(4), 19Y(3) and 19Z(4) of the MPFSO for the constituent funds of the BCOM Joyful Retirement MPF Scheme, the SHKP MPF Employer Sponsored Scheme, and the BEA (MPF) Value Scheme respectively. Mandatory Use (Amendment) Notices and Fee Control (Amendment) Notices for the remaining MPF trustees will be published when the respective onboarding dates are ascertained having regard to their onboarding preparation status.
 
     "With the phased onboarding of the second batch of MPF trustees to the eMPF Platform commencing in September 2024, more scheme members and employers will be able to enjoy a new experience in managing their MPF. As regards scheme members and employers whose MPF schemes have yet been onboarded to the eMPF Platform, there is no need to rush to register for an account as their MPF account information has yet been migrated to the Platform," a spokesperson for the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau said.
 
     If scheme members/employers have any question regarding the detailed operation of the eMPF Platform, they may visit the Platform's official website (empf.org.hk), or call the Platform's customer service hotline (183 2622).
 
     The aforementioned legal notices will be tabled at the LegCo for negative vetting on May 29, 2024.