Month: August 2025

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

Chief Secretary Chan Kwok-ki chaired the 19th meeting of the Youth Development Commission today, during which members expressed an appreciation for two funding schemes and steps to help young people purchase their own flats.

 

The two funding schemes that nurture youth positive thinking, introduced by the Home & Youth Affairs Bureau (HYAB), include the HYAB Funding Scheme for Youth Positive Thinking Activities and the HYAB Funding Scheme for Youth Adventure Training Activities.

 

Members appreciated that the funding schemes are conducive to young people’s whole-person development, enhancing their confidence, and helping them face challenges in life with a positive attitude, thereby nurturing them to become a new generation with a sense of responsibility and an aspiration and willingness to contribute to the development of the country and Hong Kong.

 

Furthermore, the Housing Bureau (HB) introduced a series of measures to help young people purchase their own flats and achieve upward mobility. These include a plan of action by the Housing Authority (HA) to further assist young people, such as increasing the quota by 1,500 starting from the White Form Secondary Market Scheme 2024, all of which were allocated to young applicants aged below 40, allocating an extra ballot number to young people for the purchase of Home Ownership Scheme flats, etc.

 

Members considered such measures effective in encouraging young people to move up the appropriate housing ladder and realise the dream of home ownership.

 

The HB also reported on the Well Being · Start-Up Programme, launched in 2024, which aims to encourage and support young people in pursuing their entrepreneurial dreams.

 

The HA offered rent-free shops in its shopping centres for a seven-month period for young people to trial their business plans. The programme subsequently extended this vision to private shopping centres, inviting the commercial sector to collaborate in supporting young entrepreneurs and offering participants a three-year staged rental at discounted market rents after the first phase of the programme.

 

Members concurred that this programme not only provides the community with more diverse shopping experiences through the vitality and innovative ideas of young people but also effectively increases patronage in shopping centres, creating a win-win situation for all stakeholders.

 

Apart from stressing that the current-term Government attaches great importance to youth development, Mr Chan said that he looks forward to continuing to work closely with all members to build on the Youth Development Blueprint and draw the community together to nurture a new generation of young people with an affection for the country and Hong Kong, and equipped with global perspectives, an aspiring mind-set and positive thinking.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     The Transport Department (TD) today (August 6) said that the next online auction of vehicle registration marks (VRMs) will be held from noon on August 21 (Thursday) to noon on August 25 (Monday) through the auction platform E-Auction (e-auction.td.gov.hk). Interested bidders can participate in the online auction only after they have successfully registered as E-Auction users.
 
     A spokesman for the TD said, “A total of 200 Ordinary VRMs will be available at this online public auction. The list of VRMs (see Annex) has been uploaded to the E-Auction website. Applicants who have paid a $1,000 deposit to reserve the Ordinary VRM for auction should also register as an E-Auction user in advance in order to participate in the online bidding, including placing the first bid at the opening price of $1,000. Otherwise, the VRMs reserved by them may be bid on by other interested bidders at or above the opening price. Auctions for VRMs with ‘HK’ or ‘XX’ as a prefix, special VRMs and personalised VRMs will continue to be carried out through physical auctions by bidding paddles, and their announcement arrangements remain unchanged.”
 
     Members of the public participating in the online bidding should take note of the following important points:
 
(1) Bidders should register in advance as an E-Auction user by “iAM Smart+” equipped with the digital signing function; or by using a valid digital certificate and an email address upon completion of identity verification. Registered “iAM Smart” users should provide their Hong Kong identity card number, while non-Hong Kong residents who are not “iAM Smart” users should provide the number of their passport or other identification documents when registering as E-Auction users.
 
(2) Bidders are required to provide a digital signature to confirm the submission and amount of the bid by using “iAM Smart+” or a valid digital certificate at the time of the first bid of each online bidding session (including setting automatic bids before the auction begins) to comply with the requirements of the Electronic Transactions Ordinance.
 
(3) If a bid is made in respect of a VRM within the last 10 minutes before the end of the auction, the auction end time for that particular VRM will be automatically extended by another 10 minutes, up to a maximum of 24 hours.
 
(4) Successful bidders must follow the instructions in the notification email issued by the TD to log in to the E-Auction within 48 hours from the issuance of email and complete the follow-up procedures, including:
 

• completing the Purchaser Information for the issuance of the Memorandum of Sale of Registration Mark (Memorandum of Sale); and
• making the auction payment online by credit card, Faster Payment System (FPS) or Payment by Phone Service (PPS). Cheque or cash payment is not accepted in the E-Auction.

(5) A VRM can only be assigned to a motor vehicle registered in the name of the purchaser. Relevant information on the Certificate of Incorporation must be provided by the successful bidder in the Purchaser Information of the Memorandum of Sale if the VRM purchased is to be registered under the name of a body corporate.
 
(6) Successful bidders will receive a notification email around seven working days after payment has been confirmed and can download the Memorandum of Sale from the E-Auction. The purchaser must apply for the VRM to be assigned to a motor vehicle registered in the name of the purchaser within 12 months from the date of issue of the Memorandum of Sale. If the purchaser fails to do so within the 12-month period, in accordance with the statutory provision, the allocation of the VRM will be cancelled and a new allocation will be arranged by the TD without prior notice to the purchaser.
 
     The TD has informed all applicants who have reserved the Ordinary VRMs for this round of auction of the E-Auction arrangements in detail by post. Members of the public may refer to the E-Auction website or watch the tutorial videos for more information. Please call the E-Auction hotline (3583 3980) or email (e-auction-enquiry@td.gov.hk) for enquiries. 

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

The Director of Food and Environmental Hygiene has ordered a general restaurant in Sham Shui Po to suspend business for 14 days, as the licensee repeatedly breached the Food Business Regulation (FBR) by extending the business area illegally.

The restaurant, located at Shops A and B on the ground floor of Career Court on 56-58 Tonkin Street, was ordered to suspend business from today (August 6) to August 19.
 
“Two convictions for the above-mentioned breach were recorded against the restaurant licensee in May and June this year. A total fine of $7000 was levied by the court, and 30 demerit points were registered against the licensee under the department’s demerit points system. The contraventions resulted in the 14-day licence suspension,” a spokesman for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) said.
 
The licensee concerned had a record of two convictions for the same offence in March and June last year. A total fine of $7,050 was levied, and 30 demerit points were also registered, leading to a seven-day licence suspension during September last year.

The spokesman reminded licensees of food premises to comply with the FBR, or their licences could be suspended or cancelled.

Licensed food premises are required to exhibit their licence and a sign at a conspicuous place of the premises, indicating that the premises has been licensed. A list of licensed food premises is available on the FEHD website (www.fehd.gov.hk/english/licensing/licence-foodPremises-search.html).

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

Attention TV/radio announcers

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:

Here is an item of interest to swimmers.

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (August 6) that due to big waves, red flags have been hoisted at Shek O Beach in Southern District, Hong Kong Island, and Hung Shing Yeh Beach in Islands District. Beachgoers are advised not to swim at these beaches.

Source: Hong Kong Information Services

The Water Supplies Department (WSD) today launched a new integrated mobile app, “eWater” – a one-stop personalised digital water services information platform with an optimised user interface and enhanced features.

Users can manage their accounts and apply for various water services directly within the “eWater” app. This includes opening and closing water accounts, settling water bill payments and applying for e-bills.

In addition, the app shows the amount due on users’ latest water bills, and can send push notifications for bill issuance and payment deadlines. Users can also subscribe to specific districts or housing estates to receive location-specific water suspension and resumption alerts.

The “eWater” app works on Android, iOS and Huawei devices, and can be downloaded free from Google Play, the Apple App Store or the Huawei AppGallery.

The public can also scan a QR code or visit the app’s thematic website to download it.

For enquiries or assistance, call 2824 5000 or send an email to WSD.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Attention TV/radio announcers:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:

Here is an item of interest to swimmers.

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (August 6) that Stanley Main Beach in Southern District, Hong Kong Island, is temporarily closed until further notice for the maintenance of the shark prevention net. Beachgoers are advised not to swim at the beach.

     The red flag was hoisted at the beach earlier due to “Very Poor” predicted water quality, according to the Beach Water Quality Forecast System.