The Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Cheuk Wing-hing, together with the Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan, and the Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Miss Alice Mak, today (April 9) held a briefi… read more
The Government announced today (April 9) that the Chief Executive (CE) in Council decided that the recommendations of the Standing Commission on Civil Service Salaries and Conditions of Service in relation to the Civil Service Pay Level Survey (PLS) in its Report No. 66 should be accepted in full, and that Stage 2 of the current PLS would not be proceeded with.
The Standing Commission recommended earlier that Stage 2 of the current PLS should not be proceeded with, in view of the severe and unprecedented turbulence in the current labour market which has had an impact on market pay practices and levels and in turn the timeliness and accuracy of pay-related data to be collected in the private sector, and that the effect of the talent and labour-trawling measures introduced by the Government in recent years on restoring the stability of the labour market is yet to be observed. The Standing Commission considered that the reconvening of another round of the PLS should be subject to review of relevant circumstances (including the then overall labour market conditions). Noting that a number of talent-trawling measures were introduced for two years tentatively, the Standing Commission recommended the Government to revisit the conditions in a reasonable period of time for the conduct of a PLS.
“The Government accepts the recommendations of the Standing Commission in full after holistic consideration on its prudent and in-depth analysis and the valuable comments from various stakeholders. The Government is grateful for the Standing Commission’s work and the participation of various stakeholders,” a spokesperson of the Civil Service Bureau said.
The Standing Commission decided in 2020 to accept the Government’s invitation to conduct a new round of Civil Service PLS and to adopt a two-stage approach. Stage 1 of the PLS was disrupted by the pandemic and eventually completed in end-2023. The Standing Commission later submitted its Report No. 66 to the CE on February 6, 2024, to recommend on whether and when to proceed with Stage 2. Upon consulting the staff-side representatives and relevant stakeholders, the CE in Council made the above decision today in relation to the way forward for Stage 2 of the PLS. read more
To tie in with the first Hong Kong Reading for All Day to be held on April 23, the Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL) of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) will join hands with various stakeholders to organise the first Hong Kong Reading Week from April 20 to 28. A series of large-scale territory-wide reading activities will be rolled out to encourage the public to enjoy the pleasure of reading and cultivate a reading habit, so as to foster a citywide reading ambience and build Hong Kong into a city of avid readers.
Addressing the opening ceremony of Hong Kong Reading Week, the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr Kevin Yeung, said that the LCSD would organise over 200 online and offline library activities under the theme of “Self/LIBRARY” to enable members of the public to experience the joy of reading. In support of the establishment of the Chinese Culture Promotion Office earlier this month, the HKPL will put the reading focus on books related to Chinese history, stories of celebrities and venerable tradition to promote Chinese culture. Meanwhile, starting from April 23, the maximum number of loaned library items will be raised from eight to 10 to encourage and enable readers to read more. In support of the theme “Arts and Action” of this year’s Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival, the HKPL will launch the Creative Writing Event and Roving Exhibition on “Chivalrous Heroes: My Favourite Characters in Martial Arts Novels”, offering opportunities for those who love writing to demonstrate their creativity and let reading nourish their life.
The inaugural Hong Kong Reading Week will feature an array of activities suitable for people of all ages. Some are even specially designed for parents and children. The HKPL will collaborate with Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) to produce the radio programme “One-minute Reading” by inviting government officials, Legislative Council members, writers, athletes and celebrities to share their reading tips and recommended book lists. The broadcast will start on April 20. Apart from the radio programme, RTHK will also produce videos of these individuals sharing their tips. The videos will be uploaded onto the HKPL’s website and social media platforms. In addition, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra will create a themed music video for Hong Kong Reading Week to disseminate the message of reading for all times through familiar music tunes.
　　The HKPL will also participate in the “2024 Hong Kong Reading+” carnival organised by Hong Kong Publishing Federation (HKPF) and sponsored by Create Hong Kong from April 20 to 23 at the New Town Plaza in Sha Tin. The carnival includes an opening ceremony of Hong Kong Reading Week and the 2024 Hong Kong Reading+ carnival on April 20. The HKPL will also introduce its electronic resources at the electronic reading experience zone with a STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) workshop tailor made for young readers to let them know more about relevant e-resources. In addition, the HKPF will stage an exhibition with the theme “n reasons for reading”, alongside a themed book fair, electronic reading experience zone, parent-child workshops and various talks by renowned writers and music performances. Furthermore, the Publicity Department of the CPC Shenzhen Municipal Committee has accepted an invitation to display selected parent-child books from Shenzhen at the designated Shenzhen zone in the carnival to promote Shenzhen and Hong Kong co-reading.
In response to the first Hong Kong Reading for All Day, the “2024 Hong Kong Reading+” will present over 30 activities in schools and the community from April 10 to May 12 to promote reading.
On April 23, the first Hong Kong Reading for All Day, the HKPL will join hands with stakeholders to organise a number of activities. Apart from the main venue of the Hong Kong Central Library (HKCL), the LCSD will set up different reading locations in the department’s venues and libraries for “Read Together for Half an Hour” activities. While the Education Bureau will organise joint secondary and primary school 30-minute reading activities to enhance the reading ambience at schools, the HKPF will invite the public to join the “Read Together for Half an Hour” activities at the “Hong Kong Reading+” carnival. The Hong Kong Teacher-Librarians’ Association will organise the finale and awards presentation ceremony of the Hong Kong Inter-school Chinese Reading Contest, hoping to encourage students to read more extracurricular materials beneficial to the development of their mind and body through competitions.
In addition, the HKCL will organise the Prize Presentation Ceremony of the 4.23 World Book Day Creative Competition, co-organised by Hong Kong, Guangdong and Macao libraries, and a fun day at the Exhibition Gallery on April 27. The winning works created by students from the three areas under the theme “Reading Love (Love Reading)” will be on display. There will also be a lot of fascinating activities on the fun day including a story theatre on traditional Chinese stories, a Chinese acrobatic performance, booth activities and more. Special book shelves, thematic decorations and thematic book displays will be introduced in selected public libraries in each of the 18 districts to create a favourable reading environment. Game booths and workshops related to Chinese culture will also be organised.
There are a lot more supporting events in the Hong Kong Reading Week, and members of the public can visit the thematic website (www.hkpl.gov.hk/hkrw) for the latest information and more details.
Hong Kong Customs today (April 9) reminded members of the public to stay alert to two models of unsafe soother holders. Test results indicated that the fasteners and straps of the two models posed suffocation and strangulation risks. To avoid an accident, parents should immediately stop the use of those two soother holders by their young children. Traders should also remove the soother holders concerned from their shelves.
Customs earlier received a referral from a related organisation that suspected unsafe soother holders were being supplied on the market. Customs officers immediately test-purchased two models of soother holders from two related retailers respectively for safety testing. Test results revealed that the fasteners of the two models protruded past the base of two test guides simulating the oral cavity of young children but no ventilation hole was provided. The detachable soother fastener of one model also passed completely another test guide simulating the mouth size of infants, posing a danger of suffocation if accidentally swallowed. Another model had a maximum length exceeding the limit of safety standard’s requirement under tensile test, posing a danger of strangulation. Also, such a model failed to bear the identification markings and bilingual warnings or cautions prescribed in the Toys and Children’s Products Safety Ordinance (TCPSO). In addition, the two models failed to provide safety labelling prescribed in the safety standard such as warnings and instructions for use.
Customs later conducted operations and searched the premises of retailers and wholesalers in connection with the case. No suspected unsafe soother holders of the same models were found. The prohibition notices were served to prohibit the continued sale of the two models by the two retailers and related wholesalers.
Investigations are ongoing.
Customs reminds members of the public to observe the following safety tips when purchasing and using soother holders:
The Chief Executive, pursuant to the Accounting and Financial Reporting Council Ordinance (Cap. 588), has appointed Ms Janey Lai Chui-pik as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Accounting and Financial Reporting Council (AFRC) for a term of three years from April 9, 2024, to April 8, 2027.
Announcing the appointment today (April 9), a spokesman for the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau said, “Ms Lai is a veteran accountant with deep understanding of both the local and Mainland accounting professions and international regulatory and compliance landscape. Well versed with the development needs of the sector at the same time, Ms Lai is committed to promoting the accounting and auditing quality in Hong Kong while supporting the development of the profession. We look forward to Ms Lai’s contribution to laying a robust foundation of the AFRC as a regulatory body with newly expanded independent oversight functions as well as to driving the healthy and sustainable development of Hong Kong’s accounting sector.”
A selection panel, chaired by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, made the recommendation to the Chief Executive on the appointment following a global recruitment exercise. Members of the selection panel are Dr Kelvin Wong, Ms Miranda Kwok, Mr Wilson Fung and the Permanent Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury (Financial Services).
Biography of Ms Janey Lai Chui-pik
Ms Janey Lai Chui-pik worked in Ernst & Young between 1993 and 2011, and assumed the position as Audit Partner of the firm from 2006 to 2011. She was a Partner and National Leader in Audit & Assurance Learning of Deloitte China between 2012 and 2022. In August 2022, she joined the AFRC as Head of Inspection, and has been appointed as an Executive Director to act as the CEO after the term of the former CEO came to a close in October 2023.
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