Month: April 2026

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

​Following is a question by the Hon Leung Man-kwong and a written reply by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, in the Legislative Council today (April 1):
 
Question:
 
Currently, under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) Scheme, recipients aged 65 or above who are single or living in a family with other family members who cannot take care of him/her may apply to the Social Welfare Department (SWD) for a special grant to cover the one-off installation fee or monthly service charges of an Emergency Alarm System (EAS) (commonly known as “Safety Bell”). With advances in gerontechnology, various smart sensing devices equipped with proactive detection functions have emerged on the market, which can automatically trigger an alarm when an elderly person is unable to press a button. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the number of CSSA recipients receiving an EAS Grant in the past three years;
 
(2) whether the authorities know the number of cases in which assistance was sought through EAS in each of the past three years, with a breakdown by nature of assistance sought (such as emergency medical transport to hospital and non-emergency support services);
 
(3) whether the authorities know the average time taken by the 24-hour call centres of various EAS service providers from receiving a distress signal to answering the call and dispatching the appropriate services;
 
(4) whether, in the past three years, the authorities have compiled statistics on the number of cases in which elderly persons living alone with an EAS installed were unable to actively press the button to seek help due to an accident, ultimately resulting in delayed rescue or even death; among such cases, of the proportion of those in which the elderly persons were found collapsed at home only after police or fire services personnel had forced entry into the units, as compared with the total number of units with an EAS installed; if the authorities have not compiled such statistics, whether they will consider establishing a mechanism to assess service blind spots;
 
(5) whether the current scope of subsidies provided by SWD covers “contactless” intelligent accident detection systems now available on the market, such as AI-powered millimetre-wave fall detectors or smart door sensors; if not, whether the authorities will consider expanding the subsidy coverage; and
 
(6) given the various new types of sensor systems now available on the market, whether the authorities will formulate uniform certification standards to ensure that such products meet the relevant requirements?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
The Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) Scheme provides a safety net of last resort for people who cannot support themselves financially due to old age, ill-health, disability, single parenthood, unemployment, low-earnings or for other reasons to help them meet their basic needs. The CSSA Scheme provides a wide range of special grants, including the grant for emergency alarm system (EAS Grant), to meet the different special needs of recipients. 
 
The EAS Grant is applicable to all emergency alarm systems available in the market. The EAS Grant is either $100 maximum per month or $2,500 maximum on a one-off basis. From 2023-24 to 2025-26, the number of CSSA recipients receiving the EAS Grant is set out below:
 

Year	Number of CSSA recipients receiving the EAS Grant
2023-24	26 653
2024-25	25 543
2025-26 (As at end December 2025)	25 053

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) does not designate any service providers, systems or certification standards for the EAS Grant. CSSA recipients can select suitable emergency alarm systems and services according to their needs. The SWD does not maintain records regarding the use of relevant services by the EAS Grant recipients and therefore are unable to provide the information requested in parts (2), (3) and (4) of the question.
 
To strengthen the support for carers and promote the use of gerontechnology, the Labour and Welfare Bureau and the SWD launched in March 2026 a two-year pilot scheme on Installation of Intelligent Accident Detection Systems for High-Risk Households, installing, on a pilot basis, intelligent accident detection systems for no fewer than 300 high-risk carer households, including singleton and doubleton elderly households, as well as households with persons with disabilities. The pilot scheme leverages smart technology, striving to instantly detect, early intervene and promptly assist carers or care recipients who unfortunately encounter home accidents. The pilot scheme is sponsored by HKEX Foundation and participating households of the pilot scheme will be exempted from all fees. The Government has commissioned Hong Kong Shue Yan University to evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot scheme for reference for continuous implementation, adjustments, or improvements of the measure in future.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

Following is the speech by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, at the Fourth Edition of Women Power Forum today (April 1):

Ladies and gentlemen, I am very pleased to join you, today, for the fourth Women Power Forum, delighted to be here among so many esteemed female leaders and distinguished guests.

They say women hold up half the sky, and in today’s Hong Kong, that is exactly what we see.

In the private sector, a growing number of listed companies now have a good number of female directors, and women’s participation in corporate leadership continues to rise. In the professional world, more than half of our accountants and lawyers are women. And within the Government, eight out of 15 directors of bureaux, along with the Director of the Chief Executive’s Office, are women. Forty-nine per cent of our civilian civil servants are also women. 

In short, women are both the leaders and the backbone of our economy and our government. Hong Kong is clearly far better because of it, because of the women of Hong Kong. Very proud of you all.

Hong Kong’s achievements stand as a powerful testament to our unwavering commitment to women’s development and gender equality.

We champion these goals because we recognise a fundamental truth: that women’s progress is not just a women’s issue; it is a shared responsibility, one that benefits everyone. In Hong Kong and around the world.

That’s why the theme of this year’s Women Power Forum is “Women Across Nations: Unite to Prosper.” Working together, we can continue to drive progress, locally, regionally and globally.

I wish you all a rewarding Forum and, for those of you here from outside Hong Kong, an enjoyable stay in the world’s rising East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange. Thank you. 

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     Following is a question by the Hon Cheung Pui-kong and a written reply by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, in the Legislative Council today (April 1):
 
Question:
 
     The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government launched the Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Scheme (the Scheme) on a pilot basis in 2021 and regularised the Scheme with enhancement measures in 2023. As the Scheme has entered the stage of regular implementation and involved substantial public expenditure, it is learnt that the community has expressed concern about the use of public funds under the Scheme and the sustainability of its effectiveness. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the specific verification and monitoring mechanism put in place by the authorities to ensure that young people receiving allowance actually take up full-time employment in eligible posts in Mainland cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) in accordance with the requirements of the Scheme, so as to prevent situations contrary to its eligibility criteria, such as “remote working”, “normally stationing in Hong Kong” or “bogus employment”;
 
(2) whether the authorities have formulated a regular review and verification mechanism targeting at the information on applications submitted by organisations participating in the Scheme (participating organisations) to ensure its accuracy, thereby forestalling situations such as falsifying the number of young people hired, fabricating job duties or defrauding public funds; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
 
(3) of the number of on-site inspections or document vetting conducted by the authorities since the launch of the Scheme on participating organisations and the young people hired as the specific targets; the number of non-compliant cases identified, the amount of allowance recovered, and the penalties imposed on non-compliant enterprises and individuals, with a breakdown by type of non-‍compliant act;
 
(4) whether the authorities have set specific and quantifiable key performance indicators (KPIs) to assess the effectiveness of the Scheme; if so, of the specific details of such KPIs and the extent to which they have been fulfilled in the past two years; if not, the reasons for that, and how the authorities account to the public as to whether the public funds involved in the Scheme have been put to proper use;
 
(5) as it is learnt that at present, the number of job vacancies under the Scheme is greater than the rate of job applications, whether the authorities will consider relaxing the upper age limit for participation in the Scheme from 29 to 35, so as to broaden the coverage of the Scheme;
 
(6) apart from commissioning a consultant to conduct a “longitudinal study” on the Scheme, whether the authorities have put in place a systematic mechanism to track the long-term employment trends of young people who have completed the 18-month on-‍the-job training; if so, of the data collected under the mechanism and the specific findings of the data analyses; if not, whether they will establish a relevant mechanism to collect information for the purpose of enhancing the Scheme and following up the employment development of these young people; and
 
(7) as it is learnt that problems have arisen since the launch of the Scheme, such as applying for allowance despite non-compliance, a relatively high rate of premature departure among the young people concerned, or the failure of certain posts to effectively promote talent exchange, of the specific enhancement measures implemented or planned for implementation by the authorities to address the above problems, thereby plugging monitoring loopholes and enhancing the effective use of public funds while ensuring that the Scheme can genuinely achieve its policy objectives of promoting the integration of Hong Kong young people into GBA for development and fostering talent exchange within the region?

Reply:
 
President,
 
     The Government launched the pilot Greater Bay Area Youth Employment Scheme (the pilot scheme) in 2021 and has regularised the scheme (regularised scheme) since 2023, encouraging enterprises to employ Hong Kong young people to work in the Mainland cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) in accordance with Hong Kong laws. Starting from January 2025, the Labour Department (LD) has relaxed the eligibility requirements for joining the scheme to include young people aged 29 or below with sub-degree or higher qualifications, and increased the allowance limit for employers to HK$12,000 per month per young person for up to 18 months. In tandem, the scheme has implemented the Arrangements for Mainland Youth to Work in Hong Kong under the GBA Youth Employment Scheme to allow enterprises taking on Hong Kong young people to work in the GBA Mainland cities to apply for the same number of Mainland young people to work in Hong Kong in accordance with relevant requirements, so as to foster talent exchange in the GBA.
 
     My reply to the question raised by the Member is as follows:

(1) to (3) The LD has established a monitoring mechanism for the scheme to ensure that enterprises comply with Hong Kong laws and the scheme’s requirements. The Guidelines for Participating Enterprises of the scheme stipulates that enterprises must submit job vacancies to the LD for vetting. The enterprises must arrange the employed young people to work at the premises of the enterprises in the GBA Mainland cities for at least 30 hours per week. During the allowance period, the enterprises in general may only deploy the employed young people to work in Hong Kong or other provinces/ cities in the Mainland outside the GBA for a maximum of six months.  Participating enterprises must strictly adhere to the terms and conditions set out in the Guidelines for Participating Enterprises, otherwise the allowance will not be disbursed. 

     The LD vets all job vacancies under the scheme, and examines the work and wages records, etc. of the employed young people in the GBA pursuant to a risk-based principle. If an enterprise violates Hong Kong laws or the requirements of the scheme, the LD will stop processing or reject the relevant allowance applications and recover the allowance already disbursed. If non-compliance with the law is involved, the LD will refer the cases to other law enforcement departments for follow‑up.

     From 2021 to 2025, the pilot scheme and the regularised scheme recorded a total of 2 833 employment cases. During the same period, the LD conducted random spot checks on about 1 400 employment cases, and investigated 90 cases suspected of non-compliance and/ or complaints. Among the 77 cases for which investigation had been completed, 16 cases, involving a total of 14 employers, were found to have breached the scheme’s requirements. After the LD’s follow‑up, seven employers have rectified and complied with the relevant rules, five employers’ applications for allowance have been rejected, and the remaining two employers have returned the approved allowance. Besides, the LD has referred seven suspected cases involving the provision of false information, documents forgery or fraud to the Hong Kong Police Force for follow-up.

(4) to (7) The LD proactively promotes and publicises the scheme, including liaising with trade associations, enterprises associations, the LD’s industry-based tripartite committees and human resources associations to introduce the scheme and appeal to enterprises to offer job vacancies. The LD also facilitates job matching through organising large-scale job fairs and briefing sessions annually, and participating in recruitment activities and talks organised by trade associations, enterprises associations and tertiary institutions. 

     The LD has also commissioned service providers to provide support for the employed young people to undergo exchange and study in the Mainland, and to strengthen their understanding of the development of the country and the GBA. Under the pilot scheme and the regularised scheme in 2023, a total of 1 809 young people were employed, among which 946 (52.3 per cent) completed the 18-month on-the-job training. In 2024 and 2025, a total of 1 024 young people were employed under the regularised scheme, and some of them are still undergoing on-the-job training. The LD will compile the data on their completion of on-the-job training in due course.

     Participating enterprises and employed young people generally acknowledge that the scheme has facilitated the employed young people in establishing interpersonal networks in the Mainland, and broadening their understanding of the living, work culture and business environment in the Mainland. To further understand the employment situation of the employed young people (including tracking their employment situation after the completion of the allowance period), the LD has commissioned a consultant to conduct a 3-year “longitudinal study” of the scheme since March 2024 to carry out follow-up surveys on participating enterprises and young people, gathering their opinions on the scheme. Upon completion of the “longitudinal study”, the LD will review the results in detail, and consider whether further data collection and analysis are required for evaluating the effectiveness of the scheme, including whether the current age limit for joining the scheme is appropriate.  

     Since the implementation of the enhancement measures, the numbers of job vacancies and employed young people recorded in 2025 have increased by 24.5 per cent and 45.6 per cent respectively when compared with those in 2024. As job vacancies offered by enterprises and the employment situation of young people are affected by factors such as the economy and labour market, it is not appropriate to formulate “key performance indicators” for the scheme.

     The LD will continue to closely liaise with the stakeholders and listen to the views of the society on the scheme, and explore appropriate enhancement measures in a timely manner to foster the career development of Hong Kong young people in the GBA and facilitate the talent exchange in the area. 

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

​Following is a question by the Hon Vincent Cheng and a written reply by the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law, in the Legislative Council today (April 1):
 
Question:
 
In the 2023-2024 Budget, the Government proposed examining the conversion of some underutilised floors of the Kwun Chung Municipal Services Building into an “urban sports centre”. The 2026-2027 Budget, announced earlier, also proposed the injection of $1.2 billion in the sports portion of the Arts and Sports Development Fund to further promote sports development. It has been reported that part of these funds will be used to strengthen the promotion of urban sports. Regarding the overall development of urban sports in Hong Kong, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the latest progress on the urban sports centre project; the expected funding application to be submitted to this Council, and the projected start date, completion schedule, and cost estimate for the project; and the expected date of the formal closure of the Kwun Chung Market to allow for the project-related conversion works;
 
(2) as it has been reported that authorities mentioned the refurbishment of the adjacent basketball courts at King George V Memorial Park while planning the “urban sports centre” to promote the development of 3-on-3 basketball; of the current progress of this work; based on current assessments, whether it is technically feasible to retrofit a canopy or cover over these basketball courts to provide an all-weather training and competition environment;
 
(3) as the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau stated at a press conference held on February 27, 2026 regarding measures in the 2026-2027 Budget, part of the resources from the additional funds injected into the sports portion of the Arts and Sports Development Fund will be used to continue the Urban Sports Funding Scheme (the Scheme), including the promotion of urban sports such as 3-‍on-3 basketball, skateboarding and sport climbing in schools and the community, of the respective funding allocations for the relevant sports; and
 
(4) whether the authorities will consider expanding the Funding Scheme to cover more urban sports?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
My reply to the questions raised by the Hon Vincent Cheng is as follows:
 
(1) The Government plans to convert part of the Kwun Chung Municipal Services Building into an “urban sports centre” to provide venues for sports such as sport climbing, skateboarding and breaking. The technical feasibility study of the project has been completed, and pre-construction site surveys along with related design work are underway. We plan to invite tenders for the project in the end of 2027. Upon completion of the tendering exercise, we will seek funding approval from the Legislative Council in accordance with the public works procedures. The dates for commencing the project and closing the Kwun Chung Market are yet to be confirmed.
 
(2) King George V Memorial Park in Kowloon is adjacent to the Kwun Chung Municipal Services Building which is proposed for conversion into an “urban sports centre”. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department is planning to convert the 5-a-side basketball court of the park into two 3-on-3 basketball courts, thereby developing the site as a hub for urban sports. The Government is conducting design and preparatory work, with the conversion works scheduled to commence within 2026.
 
Taking into consideration the views of relevant stakeholders, the Government has examined the feasibility of incorporating a canopy and spectator stands into the project. However, given the limited space of the existing basketball court and the substantial increase in project costs that would be incurred by constructing a canopy, these features are not proposed to be included in the scope of the present conversion works. Event organisers may, based on their needs, consider hiring temporary canopy and spectator seating when staging 3-on-3 basketball events to meet the competition requirements.
 
(3) and (4) The 2026-27 Budget proposes to inject $1.2 billion into the Arts and Sport Development Fund (Sports Portion) to support various areas. Among which, we will make use of the Fund to extend the Urban Sports Funding Scheme (USFS) for three years. We will continue to collaborate with the sports sector, schools and relevant sectors in promoting five urban sports, namely 3-on-3 basketball, futsal, sport climbing, skateboarding and breaking in schools and the community, and offering students and youths with more opportunities for training. The USFS is expected to benefit 10 000 students/youths at an estimated budget of $16 million per school year. The final amount of funding for each urban sports will be determined based on the actual number of applications that meet the requirements of the USFS. 
 
The five urban sports being promoted have all been included in the Olympic Games or the Youth Olympic Games. Taking into account Hong Kong’s current environment and relevant supporting facilities, we consider these five urban sports suitable for development and promotion in Hong Kong. We have no plans to expand the USFS to cover other urban sports at this stage.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) today (April 1) released the sixth batch of gravidtrap indexes and density indexes for Aedes albopictus in March, covering 18 survey areas, as follows:
 

District	Survey Area	March 2026
		First Phase Gravidtrap Index	First Phase Density Index
Islands	Cheung Chau	0.0%	N/A
Wong Tai Sin	Wong Tai Sin West	0.0%	N/A
Sai Kung	Sai Kung Town	0.0%	N/A
Kwai Tsing	Lai King	0.0%	N/A
Yuen Long	Hung Shui Kiu and Ping Shan	0.0%	N/A

 

District	Survey Area	March 2026
		Area Gravidtrap Index	Area Density Index
Central and Western	Kennedy Town and Shek Tong Tsui	0.0%	N/A
Wan Chai	Happy Valley and Tai Hang	1.8%	1.0
Islands	Tung Chung	0.0%	N/A
Kowloon City	Ho Man Tin	0.9%	1.0
	Kowloon Tong	2.5%	1.0
Sham Shui Po	Cheung Sha Wan	0.9%	1.0
	Sham Shui Po and Shek Kip Mei	0.0%	N/A
Yau Tsim	Tsim Sha Tsui and Yau Ma Tei	0.0%	N/A
North	Fanling South	0.0%	N/A
Tai Po	Tai Po East	0.0%	N/A
Tsuen Wan	Sheung Kwai Chung	1.0%	1.0
Tuen Mun	Tuen Mun South	0.9%	1.0
Yuen Long	Yuen Long Town	0.0%	N/A

     Among the sixth batch of First Phase Gravidtrap Indexes covering five survey areas and Area Gravidtrap Indexes covering 13 survey areas in March, most of the areas recorded 0 per cent, indicating that the distribution of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes was not extensive.

     The FEHD has so far released six batches of gravidtrap indexes for Aedes albopictus in March 2026, covering 62 survey areas. Among these 62 survey areas, 47 recorded a decrease or remained unchanged as compared to the Area Gravidtrap Index last month (i.e. February 2026), representing that the areas’ mosquito infestation improved or maintained a low level. Fifteen other areas recorded a slight increase, but the indexes were lower than 10 per cent.

     The warm and humid weather of spring is favourable for mosquito breeding. Members of the public should strengthen prevention work against mosquito breeding before the rainy season, and eliminate potential mosquito breeding sites in advance, with a view to avoiding the nuisances caused by rapid mosquito breeding during the rainy season and reducing the risk of transmitting mosquito-borne diseases.

     Public participation is crucial to the effective control of mosquito problems. The FEHD appeals to members of the public to continue to work together in strengthening personal mosquito control measures, including:

• tidy up their premises and check for any accumulation of water inside their premises;
• remove all unnecessary water collections and eliminate the sources;
• check household items (those placed in outdoor and open areas in particular), such as refuse containers, vases, air conditioner drip trays, and laundry racks to prevent stagnant water;
• change water in flower vases and scrub their inner surfaces thoroughly, and remove water in saucers under potted plants at least once a week;
• properly cover all containers that hold water to prevent mosquitoes from accessing the water;
• properly dispose of articles that can contain water, such as disposable meal boxes and empty cans; and
• scrub drains and surface sewers with alkaline detergent at least once a week to remove any mosquito eggs.

     Starting in August 2025, following the completion of the surveillance of individual survey areas, and once the latest gravidtrap index and the density index are available, the FEHD has been disseminating relevant information through press releases, its website and social media. It aims to allow members of the public to quickly grasp the mosquito infestation situation and strengthen mosquito control efforts, thereby reducing the risk of chikungunya fever (CF) transmission.

     Following recommendations from the World Health Organization and taking into account the local situation in Hong Kong, the FEHD sets up gravidtraps in districts where mosquito-borne diseases have been recorded in the past, as well as in densely populated places such as housing estates, hospitals and schools to monitor the breeding and distribution of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, which can transmit CF and dengue fever. At present, the FEHD has set up gravidtraps in 62 survey areas of the community, with a surveillance period of two weeks. During the surveillance period, the FEHD will collect the gravidtraps once a week. After the first week of surveillance, the FEHD will immediately examine the glue boards inside the retrieved gravidtraps for the presence of adult Aedine mosquitoes to compile the Gravidtrap Index (First Phase) and Density Index (First Phase). At the end of the second week of surveillance, the FEHD will instantly check the glue boards for the presence of adult Aedine mosquitoes. Data from the two weeks of surveillance will be combined to obtain the Area Gravidtrap Index and the Area Density Index. The gravidtrap and density indexes for Aedes albopictus in different survey areas, as well as information on mosquito prevention and control measures, are available on the department’s webpage (www.fehd.gov.hk/english/pestcontrol/dengue_fever/Dengue_Fever_Gravidtrap_Index_Update.html#).

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region