Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Approved pedestrian links in Ngau Chi Wan to enhance district accessibility and walkability      
     The abovementioned application is the ninth application approved by the CE in Council under the scheme of Facilitating Provision of Pedestrian Links by the Private Sector, endorsed in 2015. The scheme encourages developers through premium waivers to finance the design, construct and manage footbridges or subways linking to public transport facilities or public pedestrian linkage systems, bringing both tangible and intangible social value through creating a comfortable, all-weather walking environment to facilitate and encourage public travel, and increasing the footfalls for nearby businesses.
      
     A DEVB spokesperson said that the application is proposed by the developer of the private composite residential-and-commercial development under construction at 35 Clear Water Bay Road. In addition to the requirement under lease to construct a pedestrian footbridge to connect the development to Choi Wan (I) Estate uphill, the applicant proposed to provide a more comprehensive pedestrian network in the Ngau Chi Wan area. These include providing a public pedestrian subway at B2/F of the integrated podium of the composite residential-and-commercial development to connect to the Choi Hung MTR Station, and via the development, will connect Choi Wan (I) Estate and nearby public facilities to Choi Hung MTR Station; and providing openings at B1/F and 7/F of the integrated podium to receive connections from the future Choi Hung East Station of the Smart and Green Mass Transit System in East Kowloon and Ping Ting Road East extension respectively.
      
     The spokesperson added that the subject lot is situated at the heart of the Ngau Chi Wan area, where a number of large public housing estates are in the vicinity. The community was developed in earlier years, with relatively narrow pavements and slopes. At present, residents living uphill, including those in Choi Wan (I) Estate, have to walk along outdoor sloping roads or staircases, or take short-distance minibuses, to reach Choi Hung MTR Station, the nearby market and public facilities. This is particularly undesirable for elderly persons, people commuting with children, and mobility impaired persons.

     The proposed pedestrian facilities, together with the facilities originally required under the lease, will significantly enhance the connectivity and create a more comfortable walking environment in the Ngau Chi Wan area. Specifically, it will enable the public to travel more conveniently between Choi Hung MTR Station, Choi Wan (I) Estate and the special school on Ping Ting Road East, public facilities in the vicinity of the development including medical, elderly care facilities and a wet market, as well as the future Choi Hung East Station of the East Kowloon Smart Green Mass Transit System. It is estimated that a total of about 100 000 residents and the working population from both new and existing developments in the area will benefit. The project is also expected to bring more pedestrian flows to nearby restaurants and businesses, thereby boosting the local economy.
      
     The applicant will be required to shoulder the design, construction, management and maintenance responsibilities and related costs of the barrier-free pedestrian links, and be open for public in accordance with the approved scheme. For regulatory purposes, these requirements will be incorporated into the land documents. For this case, noting that some connection points (including Choi Hung MTR Station and the future Choi Hung East Station) do not operate round-the-clock, the CE in Council approved the opening hours of the relevant pedestrian links connecting the two stations to be aligned with the operating hours of the abovementioned railway facilities, while the remaining pedestrian facilities will continue to be open 24 hours for public use.
Issued at HKT 17:37

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Police National Security Department charges three men      
     The case was mentioned at the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts today (May 14).
      
     During an enforcement operation conducted on December 11 and 12, 2025, the NSD arrested ten individuals suspected of committing the offence of “unlawful drilling” under Section 13 of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance. Two men, aged 24 and 26, were previously charged jointly with one count of “conspiracy to commit subversion”.
      
     The remaining arrested persons in the case have been released on bail pending further investigation and are required to report to the Police in mid-June.
      
     Investigation revealed that a syndicate conducted firearms drills, knife techniques, and martial arts combat in a unit of an industrial building in Kowloon, and conspired, organised, planned, carried out or participated in acts aimed at subverting state power by means of force or threat of force, i.e., to overthrow the organs of power of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
     
Issued at HKT 17:01

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SWD urges public to be alert to fraudulent money-lending advertisements     ​
     The fraudulent money-lending advertisements falsely claimed that the SWD, together with various banks, would provide interest-free loans to elderly and low-income persons. The advertisements also included a photo of the Causeway Bay Social Security Field Unit of the SWD. The SWD clarified that it had not provided such loans or placed the advertisements in question. The case has been reported to the Police. The social media platform has also been informed to follow up on the fraudulent advertisements.
      
     Anyone who has clicked on the unknown hyperlink of the advertisements or provided his/her personal information to any suspicious website should contact the Police. For enquiries, please call the SWD’s hotline at 2343 2255.
Issued at HKT 15:30

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Hong Kong Space Museum to launch new sky show “Shenzhou 13 – Space Travel”  
     On October 16, 2021, the three astronauts went aboard Shenzhou-13 to the Tiangong Space Station, where they stationed and began their six-month space mission. Through the cameras operated by the astronauts, audiences will be enthralled by an immersive journey, piercing through the atmosphere, understanding daily life and work at the space station, and marvelling at the shimmering sea of city lights during a glimpse of our magnificent blue planet from a unique perspective.
 
     Enhanced with computer animation, the show presents various stages of the in-orbit assembly of the Tiangong Space Station and recreates the docking process of the Shenzhou spacecraft with the Tianhe Core Module. Audiences will also witness the historic moment when Wang Yaping became the first Chinese female astronaut to walk in space as she successfully completed her extravehicular mission.
 
     The 28-minute show will be run until February 14, 2027. Screening times are 3.30pm and 8pm on weekdays, and 2pm and 6.30pm on weekends and public holidays. Tickets priced at $30 (front stalls) and $40 (stalls) are now available at the Hong Kong Space Museum Box Office and URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk 
     The Hong Kong Space Museum, located at 10 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, is closed on Tuesdays (except public holidays).
Issued at HKT 15:00

Housing Bureau announces Composite Waiting Time for Subsidised Rental Housing has dropped by around five months to 4.7 years, marking lowest record in over eight years 
CWT shortened 1.5 years to 5.0 years for first time in comparison to 6.1 years before current-term Government
 
     This record is calculated based on general applicants (i.e. family and elderly one-person applicants) that were housed to public rental housing (PRH) or Light Public Housing (LPH) in the past 12 months as at end-March 2026. Compared with the highest level of 6.1 years before the current-term Government took office, the CWT has been shortened by nearly one and a half years, and has fallen below 5.0 years for the first time.
 
8 400 general applicants housed with nearly half in LPH
 
     “In the first quarter of 2026, we have succesfully arranged a total of about 8 400 general applicants to be housed to PRH or LPH, including about 1 200 newly completed PRH flats, about 3 300 recovered PRH flats, and about 3 900 LPH units. Nearly half (47 per cent) of them were housed to LPH units, which is significantly higher than the proportion in the last quarter (16 per cent),” said the spokesman for HB.
 
Waiting time for LPH only three years on average
 
     “The waiting time of general applicants who were housed to LPH in the past 12 months is only 3.0 years on average. Since the waiting time of general applicants housed to LPH is obviously shorter, the increased proportion of LPH has effectively led to a decrease in the overall CWT. In fact, the waiting time for PRH units in the urban district in the past 12 months was about six years, while the waiting time for LPH units in the New Territories was only about two years, with a difference of four years. The bureau hopes that families in need will make the most appropriate decision for their family members, particularly for the health of elderly members and the growth of children,” said the spokesman for HB.
 
Current average quarterly supply more than doubled that of three years before current-term Goverment
 
     In fact, since the first LPH project began allocation in March 2025, the Government’s overall supply of subsidised rental housing has increased to about 7 500 units per quarter, which is more than double the average quarterly supply of about 3 500 units during the three years before the current-term Government took office (i.e. from 2019-20 to 2021-22), showing that the supply has significantly increased. This fully highlights the original policy intent of the LPH to promptly assist residents in alleviating their hardships, which has not only played a key role in shortening the waiting time for PRH, but also improved the living conditions and quality of life of low-income families. Furthermore, as compared with subdivided units, residents who are housed to LPH can also save an average of over $50,000 in rent per year, which can be accumulated as family savings to plan for a better future.
 
Further reductions in PRH waiting queue with general applications significantly reduced by more than 30 per cent over past 5 years or so
 
     In addition, with the Government’s multipronged approach to expedite the turnover of PRH flats, the number of PRH general applicants has further decreased. As at end-March 2026, there were about 103 400 general applications for PRH, and about 81 100 non-elderly one-person applications under the Quota and Points System. As compared with the highest level of 156 400 cases and 143 700 cases of general applications and non-elderly one-person applications, the application number reduced significantly by more than 30 per cent and over 40 per cent respectively. Among them, the number of non-elderly one-person applicants aged below 30 recorded an even sharper decline of about 60 per cent over the 10-year period, from about 71 300 as at end-March 2016 to about 29 500 as at end-March 2026, clearly demonstrating that the PRH waiting queue is being reduced.
 
Slight fluctuations expected in near term amid PRH completion peak over next five years
 
     As the number of general applicants to be housed to PRH or LPH in the next quarter may be lower than this quarter, the CWT in the next quarter is expected to slightly fluctuate; it is nevertheless anticipated to be capped at 5.0 years, indicating that the CWT is still on a downward trend.
 
     Looking ahead to the next five years starting from 2026-27 onwards, the overall public housing production (including LPH) will be about 196 000 units, over 80 per cent higher than when the current-term Government took office. Among them, about 115 000 PRH flats will be completed during this period, reaching the peak in supply. In respect of LPH, about 9 650 units have been completed and have now been fully occupied as at the first quarter of 2026, and about 20 150 and 200 units will be successively completed in the remainder of 2026 and early 2027 respectively, gradually moving towards the target of completing the construction of about 30 000 LPH units by 2027-28.
 
CWT entering new stage and moving towards 4.5 years target
 
     Under the current-term Government’s unremitting efforts to “enhance speed, quantity, quality and efficiency” over the past four years, the back-loaded situation has been completely reversed by the public housing production. This shift has enabled faster fulfilment of the housing needs of low-income families. The CWT will move towards the target of reducing it to 4.5 years in 2026-27.
Issued at HKT 14:36

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FEHD releases second batch of gravidtrap indexes for Aedes albopictus in May