Month: January 2026

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     ​The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, continued his programme at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, yesterday (January 20, Davos time).
      
     In the morning, Mr Chan attended the Special Address delivered by Vice Premier of the State Council Mr He Lifeng at the WEF Annual Meeting. Yesterday, he also held meetings with senior officials from various economies, representatives of international organisations and business leaders to brief them on Hong Kong’s latest developments and unique advantages.
      
     Mr Chan attended a breakfast meeting hosted by a digital asset company, Animoca Brands, where he engaged in discussions with leaders from the financial and innovation sectors on how blockchain applications — including tokenised assets and genomic data analytics — are driving transformation and development in capital markets.
      
     Speaking at the meeting, Mr Chan said that finance and technology are mutually reinforcing. Financial innovations, such as digital assets, not only enhance transparency, efficiency, inclusiveness and risk management in financial services, but also facilitate more effective capital allocation to the real economy. He added that finance also plays a vital role in supporting and enabling technological development.
      
     Mr Chan pointed out that, as an international financial centre, Hong Kong adopts a proactive yet prudent approach to the development of digital assets. The city follows the principle of “same activity, same risk, same regulation” to promote responsible and sustainable market development. Since 2023, Hong Kong has issued licences to 11 virtual asset trading platforms, and a licensing regime for stablecoins is expected to be launched later this year. He also highlighted the Government’s leadership role in promoting tokenisation, including the issuance of three batches of tokenised green bonds amounting to around US$2.1 billion. In addition, regulatory sandboxes have been introduced to encourage innovative applications in the market.
      
     Later in the day, Mr Chan met with a number of officials from different economies and regional organisations attending the WEF Annual Meeting, including Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance of Thailand, Mr Ekniti Nitithanprapas; the Secretary-General of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, Mr Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi; the Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of Egypt, Mr Hassan El Khatib; and the State Secretary for International Finance at the Federal Department of Finance of Switzerland, Ms Daniela Stoffel. They exchanged views on the global political and economic landscape and issues of mutual concern, and explored opportunities to strengthen collaboration in areas such as trade, finance, industry development and digital transformation.
      
     In addition, Mr Chan met with the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to exchange views on the current landscape and future of international trade. Mr Chan reiterated that Hong Kong, China firmly supports free trade and multilateralism, and expressed support for the WTO’s efforts to pursue reforms in response to current global challenges, with a view to enhancing its agility in addressing emerging issues in international trade.
      
     Mr Chan also met with the Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of technology investment firm Vista Equity Partners, Mr Robert Smith, to learn about the firm’s latest developments in software and data businesses, and encouraged Mr Smith to consider expanding the company’s presence in Hong Kong.
      
     Mr Chan will continue his visit to Davos today (January 21, Davos time).

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is a question by Dr the Hon Johnny Ng and a reply by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Erick Tsang Kwok-wai, in the Legislative Council today (January 21):
 
Question:

     The Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan outline the country’s development in the next five years and make special arrangements to promote long-term prosperity and stability in Hong Kong and Macao. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the specific policy options to proactively align with the Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan, including how to broaden economic development and growth, accelerate the development and application of innovation and technology, and expedite the upgrading of industry structures, so as to align with the country’s development;
 
(2) as there are views that the Northern Metropolis will be crucial to Hong Kong’s economic and innovation development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, how the Government will strengthen co-operation between the Northern Metropolis and other Mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, such as formulating joint policies to promote division of work in development, streamlining the administration workflows, advancing infrastructure construction, and expediting the implementation of the Northern Metropolis Action Agenda and the Conceptual Outline of the Development Plan for the Innovation and Technology Industry in the San Tin Technopole, so as to align with the country’s planning and development; and
 
(3) whether the Government will, apart from formulating one-year policy planning through the annual Policy Address, proactively align with the country’s planning and arrangements and formulate “five-year plans” in the long run, so as to align with the country’s macro development direction?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     Having consulted the Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau (ITIB) and the Development Bureau (DEVB), our reply in response to the questions raised by Dr the Hon Johnny Ng is as follows:
 
(1) The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) deliberated and adopted the Recommendations of the CPC Central Committee for Formulating the 15th Five Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development (the Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan) in October last year. The Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan provide top-level design and strategic blueprint for the country’s development over the next five years, comprehensively devising the strategic tasks and major initiatives during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, and clarifying the approaches and key tasks in priority areas ranging from industrial development, technological innovation, domestic market, economic system, opening-up, rural revitalisation, and regional development, to cultural construction, safeguarding people’s livelihoods, green development, safe development, and national defence. All of these strategic tasks and major initiatives will bring boundless opportunities for Hong Kong’s future development, and therefore all sectors of Hong Kong society must seize them firmly. For example, in terms of improving regional economic structures, Hong Kong should deeply engage in the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, while strengthening interactive co-operation with other Mainland regional economies for mutual benefit, win-win results, and mutual advancement. In terms of international co-operation, Hong Kong should continue to deepen international exchanges and co-operation, attract global high-end talents and capital, and play its dual roles of assisting Mainland enterprises to “go global” and attracting overseas investment. In terms of green development, Hong Kong should promote green finance and carbon neutrality practices to support the country’s ecological civilisation construction, while fostering the development of local environmental industries. As for the innovation and technology development that Member is concerned about, the Government announced the Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Development Blueprint in 2022. In addition, the Hong Kong Park of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone (the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park) officially opened in December 2025. Hong Kong and Shenzhen will strive for trial implementation of dedicated cross-boundary policy measures to facilitate the convenient flow of important innovation elements including personnel, materials, capital and data within the Loop, endeavouring to become a testing zone for new rules and innovation and cultivate a testing ground for institutional and policy innovation, in response to the goals and requirements for high-quality development as well as self-reliance and strength in science and technology in the Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan. From the above, it can be seen that the work of aligning with the 15th Five-Year Plan is all-round, in-depth and multi-dimensional, covering extensive areas. The Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan also make important plans for Hong Kong’s development, proposing to consolidate, enhance, build and develop the “Four Centres and One Highland”, namely the international financial, shipping, trade and innovation and technology centres, as well as the highland of international top-tier talent. These plans not only represent the direction and driving force for Hong Kong’s long-term development in the future, but also align with the country’s development positioning and are conducive to the country’s development needs, precisely leveraging Hong Kong’s strengths to serve the country’s needs. At present, policy bureaux and departments of the HKSAR Government are actively studying in-depth on how to proactively align with the Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan in their respective scopes and purviews. After the draft outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan is adopted at the session of the National People’s Congress later, the policy bureaux will take forward the relevant alignment work in full swing. The Steering Group on Integration into National Development led by the Chief Executive will also provide high-level, all-round guidance, co-ordination and supervision to effectively implement the relevant work, ensuring that the HKSAR fully aligns with the 15th Five-Year Plan and promotes high-quality development for both the country and Hong Kong.
 
(2) As regard the development of the Northern Metropolis (NM), it is an important measure taken by the HKSAR Government to actively align with the 15th Five-Year Plan, as well as an important engine driving Hong Kong’s future economic and social development. It helps promote the high-quality development and foster more comprehensive co-operation of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. We are moving full steam ahead to develop the NM, expedite the construction and attract industries. At the same time, as mentioned above, the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park already officially opened in December 2025, and the ITIB has also promulgated the Conceptual Outline of Development Plan for Innovation and Technology Industry in San Tin Technopole, setting a clear development strategy for the San Tin Technopole.
 
     Recently, in addition to launching the tender exercise for the first pilot area under the large-scale land disposal approach within the NM, DEVB is also actively preparing for the Hung Shui Kiu Industry Park Company Limited’s commencement of operation in mid-2026. DEVB will conduct a public consultation on the dedicated legislation to accelerate the development of the NM in the first quarter, and has recently introduced to the industry and stakeholders the administrative measures to expedite approval of private projects within the NM. The HKSAR Government will continue to maintain close liaison with the Shenzhen side on matters relating to NM development through the Task Force for Collaboration on the NM Development Strategy. Both sides will conduct joint discussions on matters related to cross-boundary development and construction.
 
(3) The HKSAR Government attaches utmost importance to the work of proactively aligning with the country’s “Five-Year Plans”. The Chief Executive delivers the Policy Address annually, setting out to the Legislative Council and all sectors of the community the major policy directions and concrete measures to be launched by the Government in the coming year. These policy measures maintain consistency and are highly aligned with the national “Five-Year Plans”. In fact, since the promulgation of the 14th Five-Year Plan, each year’s Policy Address has included specific policy initiatives aimed at consolidating and strengthening Hong Kong’s role as the “eight centres” outlined in the plan. The Government also formulates development blueprints from time to time for key policy areas, manifesting medium- to long-term development planning, such as the Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Development Blueprint and the Chinese Medicine Development Blueprint. All these demonstrate that the HKSAR Government attaches great importance to the long-term planning and development of the HKSAR. The establishment by the Government of the Steering Group on Integration into National Development to steer the 14th Five-Year Plan and the 15th Five-Year Plan is in itself a mature and established mechanism for comprehensively aligning with the country’s “Five-Year Plans”.
 
     The 15th Five-Year Plan will bring boundless development opportunities to Hong Kong. The HKSAR Government will certainly lead all sectors of Hong Kong society to work together to fully and proactively align with the 15th Five-Year Plan, so as to promote the long-term high-quality development of the country and Hong Kong, integrate into and at the same time serve the overall national development, and contribute to the country’s building of a great country and the great rejuvenation of the nation.
 
     Thank you, President.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     The Transport Department (TD) today (January 21) said that the next online auction of vehicle registration marks (VRMs) will be held from noon on February 5 (Thursday) to noon on February 9 (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 220 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 an 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 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

     Following is a question by the Hon Carmen Kan and a written reply by the Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn, in the Legislative Council today (January 21):
     
Question:
 
     The 2025 Policy Address proposed the introduction of dedicated legislation to accelerate the development of the Northern Metropolis (NM). Subsequently, the Secretary for Development indicated at the policy briefing of the Panel on Development of this Council in October last year that there would hopefully be a main framework for the dedicated legislation, and that subsidiary legislation might be further introduced in the light of NM’s development needs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the roles and functions of the Committee on Development of the NM and its three groups respectively led by the Chief Secretary for Administration, the Financial Secretary (FS) and the Deputy Financial Secretary in the enactment of the dedicated legislation for the NM; given the Government’s remark that one or more dedicated companies will be set up for various industrial parks within the NM, of the division of labour and collaboration model between the three groups and those statutory industry park companies;
 
(2) apart from the statutory procedures involving six major areas that the Government will be empowered to simplify under the dedicated legislation for the NM (i.e. (i) setting up statutory industry park companies; (ii) providing such companies with dedicated channels for funding; (iii) managing the cross-boundary flow in designated areas; (iv) speeding up the approval of building plans; (v) relaxing permitted uses in outline zoning plans and fine-tuning development parameters; and (vi) expediting compensation payment for land resumption) as proposed in the 2025 Policy Address, whether the Government has plans to extend the application of the dedicated legislation to cover more other aspects; whether the Advisory Committee on the NM chaired by the FS will adjust the structure and terms of reference of the Committee and its sub-committees in the light of the six major areas involved under the dedicated legislation;
 
(3) of the specific timetable for enacting the dedicated legislation for the NM (including its main framework and the subsidiary legislation involving the six major areas); whether the legislative process will be expedited and whether the relevant bill will be introduced as soon as possible; if so, of the plans; if not, the reasons for that;
 
(4) of the government department primarily responsible for formulating the main framework for the dedicated legislation for the NM, and the government departments planned by the Government to be empowered to enact the relevant subsidiary legislation involving the six major areas; and
 
(5) how the Government assesses and ascertains that the intended dedicated legislation for NM can meet NM’s development needs, and whether the Government has anticipated the short, medium and long-term outcomes to be achieved by the dedicated legislation respectively; whether performance indicators will be set out for the effectiveness of the dedicated legislation; if so, of the plans; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     It is stated in the 2025 Policy Address that in order to further develop the economy and improve people’s livelihood, the Government must speed up the Northern Metropolis (NM) development and raise the level of decision-making accordingly by establishing the Committee on Development of the Northern Metropolis under the leadership of the Chief Executive and introducing dedicated legislation to accelerate the development of the NM, etc.
      
     My reply to various parts of the Hon Kan’s question is as follows:
 
(1) and (4) Three working groups have been set up under the Committee on Development of the Northern Metropolis to supervise respective matters concerning the development of the NM. As the dedicated legislation involves a range of policy areas, the Northern Metropolis Co-ordination Office under the Development Bureau is currently co-ordinating the relevant preparatory work, and would report to the relevant working groups on different areas. An overall report would also be made to the Committee on Development of the Northern Metropolis and necessary steer would be sought.
 
     The objective of establishing a park company is to attract enterprises to establish presence and accelerate development of industries in the NM under a government-led approach, while allowing more flexibility in operation under a company setting. The Working Group on Devising Development and Operation Models led by the Financial Secretary (FS) is responsible for this important task. Among others, the Hung Shui Kiu Industry Park Company Limited wholly owned by the Government was established in early January this year upon endorsement by the Working Group. This is a non-statutory company responsible for the development and operation of around 23-hectare industry land in Hung Shui Kiu. The Government is moving in full steam on the preparation work for the Park Company to commence operation in mid-2026.
 
(2) and (5) Regarding the dedicated legislation for the NM, the Government’s current thinking is to stipulate the relevant policy recommendations in the proposed legislation as a main framework, and delegate the power of further enacting relevant subsidiary legislation to the Chief Executive in Council to cover the implementation details of the policy recommendations as required. By doing so, the Government will be able to constantly review and flexibly adjust the implementation details as and when necessary in response to the rapid development of the NM, whereas the Legislative Council (LegCo) will continue to play its gatekeeping role.
 
     The dedicated legislation for the development of the NM aims to empower the Government to devise simplified statutory procedures, further remove barriers for the development of the NM, and achieve the dual major goals of accelerating the completion of development and construction, and facilitating industry anchoring in the NM, thereby guiding Hong Kong’s high-quality economic and social development in the future. We are currently formulating the details of the proposed legislation, including the areas and objectives involved, which will be announced and consulted in the upcoming public consultation. The legislative intent may not be quantified or measured by performance indicators at this stage.
      
     Regarding the Advisory Committee on the Northern Metropolis chaired by the FS and its four sub-committees, they comprise members from the Government and various sectors outside. Their primary role is to advise the Government on the overall development and different aspects of the NM, and may raise comments on the drafting and implementation of the dedicated legislation for the NM later with regard to their purview. Their operation will not be affected by the ambit or content of the dedicated legislation for the NM at this stage.
 
(3) We plan to launch a public consultation on the content of the proposed legislation in the first quarter of this year and submit the bill to the LegCo in mid-2026. We will strive to complete the legislative work within this year.

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

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is a question by the Hon Sunny Tan and a reply by the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, in the Legislative Council today (January 21):

Question:

     The country’s 2025 Report on the Work of the Government highlights the need to “continuously advance the ‘Artificial Intelligence Plus’ (AI+) Initiative”, while last year’s Policy Address emphasised promoting the development of AI+ and facilitating the extensive and deep integration and application of AI across different sectors. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the specific strategies to promote the extensive application of AI in the long run for supporting the digital transformation of traditional industries with competitive edge, such as the textiles industry, for which the Recommendations for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan have expressed support for upgrading;

(2) given that some members of the industry suggest that the authorities should consolidate, leverage and enhance the existing AI-related funding schemes, with a view to supporting traditional industries with competitive edge (particularly small and medium enterprises) in achieving transformation through the application of AI, whether the authorities will consider the relevant suggestions by introducing enhancement measures and increasing funding for the existing funding schemes, so as to encourage enterprises to enhance competitiveness through the application of AI; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(3) of the ways to leverage the AI+ strategy to enhance the cross-departmental service quality and efficiency of electronic government services (e-government services) as well as the level of data interoperability and application, such as applying AI in the business version of “iAM Smart” to directly identify funding schemes and e-government services applicable to an enterprise, and automatically assist the corporate user concerned in processing applications, thereby facilitating enterprises of different sizes to reduce operating costs and accelerating the service upgrade of traditional industries with competitive edge?

Reply:

President:

     Artificial Intelligence (AI) is one of Hong Kong’s core industries. Over the past few years, pursuant to the strategy set out in the Hong Kong Innovation and Technology Development Blueprint, we have been actively building a local AI ecosystem, focusing on “strengthening infrastructure and promoting the application-oriented approach” to enhance the synergy among the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors, and to fully drive Hong Kong’s AI development on multiple dimensions. This development direction is also in line with the national “AI+” initiative.

     In response to the question from the Hon Sunny Tan, my reply is as follows.
 
(1) The Government’s systematic AI framework, covering scientific research, computing power, data, talent and funding, provides strong support for Hong Kong to deepen its implementation of the “AI+” initiative and to better support and serve the national high-quality development agenda during the National 15th Five-Year Plan period. In particular, the 2025 Policy Address advocated stepping up promotion of AI applications with a view to achieving “industries for AI” and “AI for industries”, which is precisely our “AI+” action agenda. The local technology parks which have attracted nearly 1 000 AI-related enterprises, have also provided significant momentum in the process.

     Taking traditional industries such as the textile industry as mentioned by the Hon Tan as an example, the Hong Kong Productivity Council has established the Hong Kong Industrial Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Centre, focusing on the development of industrial AI and robotics technologies and commercialisation. Projects currently being developed by the Centre cover AI application in various facets of the manufacturing industry, such as logistics, automated assembly, and inspection of product quality.

     Separately, the Government has been supporting traditional industries with competitive advantages in their digital transformation and smart upgrades through the Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF). As of the end of last year, ITF has approved funding of over $1.4 billion for AI-related projects, strengthening the manufacturing sector’s competitiveness and innovation capacity. At the same time, ITF has already funded more than 350 AI-related projects involving a total funding amount of around $1 billion to promote research and development (R&D) on AI application and AI technology transfer.

(2) “AI for industries” ought to be driven by market demand and application scenarios to put Hong Kong’s excellent R&D outcomes into practice. The scope of the various funding schemes under the ITF are comprehensive, providing different levels of technical and financial support to meet the needs of various industries and enterprises at different stages of development. They can also flexibly respond to the demands from the market or enterprises for innovation technologies (including AI), catering for technological change and application scenarios of different sectors.

     In addition, to meet the pressing needs of enterprises for accelerating digital transformation and leveraging AI, the Government is committed to enhancing existing AI-related subsidy schemes. For example, the New Industrialisation Funding Scheme was enhanced in June last year to speed up the process of project approvals, supporting enterprises in leveraging technologies (including AI) for upgrading and transformation. The Scheme has supported over 120 smart production lines so far. Separately, the Digital Transformation Support Pilot Programme will include AI and cybersecurity digital solutions to encourage small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to use AI to enhance their competitiveness. We are currently drafting the scope of subsidies and implementation details for the new round of the programme, and expect to consult the Legislative Council within this year.

(3) The AI Efficacy Enhancement Team (AIEET) established per the 2025 Policy Address will leverage its planning and co-ordinating power to steer departments in effectively applying AI technologies in their work, exploring process re-engineering, and promoting technological reform in departments. Coupled with the launching of common AI tools over various government functions such as data analysis, customer service and document processing, overall efficacy will be enhanced, thereby better meeting public expectations for efficient administration and quality public services. In the process, the Government will work hand in hand with the industry to leverage AI to provide higher-quality public services that benefit the public and make it easier for businesses. The AIEET targets to launch AI tools covering 100 public administration procedures within 2026, and to expand to no fewer than 200 by end-2027. In addition, AI flagship projects will be rolled out progressively in 2026-27 and 2027-28 to use AI to assist departments in expediting the processes of handling, vetting and approval of various types of licences and permits, as well as applications.

     Additionally, the Digital Policy Office will provide “AI Assistant” for “iAM Smart” and “Digital Corporate Identity (CorpID)”, the Government’s interdepartmental unified electronic service platforms for the general public and businesses respectively. Based on users’ needs and data, the AI Assistant will quickly answer users’ enquiries and provide personalised services. In particular, the CorpID will recommend suitable subsidy schemes and public service support to enterprises (especially SMEs), helping them reduce operating costs. We expect to implement the above e-service enhancement measures gradually within this year.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     ​Following is a question by the Hon Tang Ka-piu and a written reply by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, in the Legislative Council today (January 21):

Question:
 
     It is learnt that there has been continued concern in Hong Kong society about families of elderly doubletons featuring “the elderly taking care of the elderly” as well as families with “persons with disabilities taking care of elderly persons” and families with “elderly persons taking care of persons with disabilities”. The Chief Executive mentioned in the 2025 Policy Address that an intelligent accident detection system (detection system) would be installed for 300 high-risk households to detect dangerous situations involving high-risk elderly persons in a timely manner. In addition, it has been reported that some organisations have collaborated with enterprises in the community to install gerontechnology products for elderly households. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council: 
(2) of the number of households currently applying for the Housing Department’s Grant for Emergency Alarm System (EAS Grant), with a breakdown by the number of elderly tenants in the relevant units, their districts of residence and age groups (each covering five years);
 
(3) given that in the reply to a question raised by a Member of this Council on the Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 2025-2026, the Government indicated that the number of recipients of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme receiving the EAS Grant had gradually decreased from the 2020-2021 financial year to the 2024-2025 financial year, whether the Government has studied the reasons for the decrease in the number of recipients;
 
(4) whether it has conducted performance assessments of organisations currently providing EAS (commonly known as “ping on bell”) service; if so, of the standard of service provided by various organisations; if not, whether the Government will consider conducting such assessments of those organisations;
 
(5) of the number of households that have installed the Door Sensor Installation for Elderly Households (the sensor system) to date, with a breakdown by the number of elderly tenants in the relevant units and their districts of residence;
 
(6) whether the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) may receive the alerts issued by the sensor system simultaneously; if so, of the number of alerts issued by the sensor system to date, with a breakdown by the reasons for issuing alerts; if not, whether the Government will consider allowing HA to receive the relevant alerts simultaneously in the future;
 
(7) whether it has compiled statistics on the number of cases where elderly persons were found dead at home in the past five years, with a tabulated breakdown by their districts of residence, whether “ping on bell” was installed and the level of impairment under the Standardized Care Need Assessment Mechanism for Elderly Services; and
 
(8) apart from the detection system and the sensor system, whether the Government has considered further providing other practical gerontechnology products for elderly persons directly for free; if so, whether it has estimated the additional funding required; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President, 
     The LWB hopes to achieve in this pilot scheme, through the application of technology, immediate detection, timely intervention, and prompt assistance whenever home accidents befall carers and/or their care recipients. The LWB is actively undertaking preparatory work and expects to announce the detailed arrangements in the first quarter of 2026 at the earliest, followed by installation of systems for relevant households. We aim to complete such installation for no fewer than 300 households by or before the third quarter of 2026.
      
     In addition, the Government set up the $1 billion Innovation and Technology Fund for Application in Elderly and Rehabilitation Care (the Fund) in December 2018 to subsidise eligible elderly and rehabilitation service units to procure, rent or trial technology products, so as to improve the quality of life of service users and reduce the burden and pressure of care staff and carers. In 2024-25, the Government injected additional $1 billion into the Fund and expanded its scope to cover technology products suitable for household use. As at December 2025, the Fund had allocated a total of about $910 million, subsidising about 2 100 elderly and rehabilitation service units to procure or rent over 27 000 technology products.
      
     The Social Welfare Department (SWD) expanded the scope of the Community Care Service Voucher Scheme for the Elderly in September 2023 to cover rental of assistive technology products, thus further catalysing the use of gerontechnology in community care services for elderly persons.
      
     As for the public rental housing (PRH) estates, apart from the Internet of Things (IoT) Door Sensor Installation for Elderly Households (the Scheme), the HD is actively exploring the use of new technologies in promoting elderly-friendly living. For instance, the HD has piloted the installation of smart fall-detection systems in some accessible toilets of some PRH estates to detect incidents such as falls, fainting, prolonged inactivity, etc. The HKHA has also collaborated with the Hong Kong Police Force to promote the Project PINPOINT which encourages the use of location devices for high-risk elderly individuals so as to prevent the elderly from missing and alleviating the stress of their carers and families. The HD will continue exploring the feasibility of implementing other gerontechnologies with other government departments and social welfare organisations with a view to benefiting more elderly residents. The HKHA and the HKHS will also continue looking into the application of more smart solutions in their rental estates, such as exploring the use of robots to assist in carrying heavy items to strengthen support for elderly residents.
     
(2) to (4) The HKHA provides eligible elderly households who do not receive Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) with subsidies to install Emergency Alarm Systems (EAS) (also known as “Safety Bell”), so that the elderly in need are able to seek prompt assistance in case of emergency. The HKHA has extended the scope of the EAS subsidy to cover not only traditional EAS but also mobile EAS, such as mobile phones and watches equipped with EAS as well as products with fall detection function. Elderly households may purchase the said devices on their own. Successful applicants will be given a one-off subsidy of not more than $2,500 to cover the actual expenses. As at end November 2025, the HKHA had approved over 26 000 applications. The HKHA does not keep the breakdown of the age profile or the districts of the applicants.      
     From 2020-21 to 2024-25, the number of CSSA recipients receiving the grant for EAS dropped from 32 745 to 25 543, alongside the decrease in the number of CSSA elderly cases from 128 863 to 110 846. The CSSA recipients decide on whether to apply for the grant for EAS based on their individual circumstances with varying reasons. Staff at Social Security Field Units of SWD will provide eligible CSSA recipients with information on the relevant grant and facilitate their applications. Apart from the grant provided under CSSA, various organisations in society also offer CSSA recipients similar EAS assistance.
      
     The SWD has not designated any service providers with regards the grant for EAS provided under the CSSA Scheme. CSSA recipients in need are free to purchase suitable EAS according to their needs. Separately, under the District Services and Community Care Teams – Pilot Scheme on Supporting Elderly and Carers, the Government subsidises eligible elderly persons and persons with disabilities referred by the Care Teams to install and use the emergency alarm services. Such services are provided by the designated service providers engaged by the SWD through established procurement procedures. The SWD monitors the provision of the services in accordance with the service contracts, as well as reviews and enhances the services as appropriate. 
     Subject to residents’ participation and the availability of resources, the HD will identify suitable estates for expansion of the Pilot Scheme along with simultaneous receipt of door-opening/closing notifications. The HD will actively explore the feasibility of implementing other similar schemes in collaboration with other government departments and social welfare organisations, with a view to benefiting more elderly households in other PRH estates. 
      
     In the past 5 years (i.e. from 2021 to November 2025), the number of natural death cases recorded in PRH units under the HD is set out in the table below. HD does not maintain statistical breakdowns by age, district, or whether the concerned individuals had EAS installed.