Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) announced today (May 7) that the park located east of Fan Kam Road (i.e. area of holes 1-8 of the Old Course of the Fanling Golf Course) will be temporarily closed from May 12 to 15 and May 23 to 30 for organising golf competitions. The fee-charging carpark and the 5-a-side hard-surface soccer pitches in the park will not be affected and will remain open for public use.

     Upon completion of the event, the LCSD will reopen the park facilities after inspection and maintenance. For enquiries, please contact the venue staff at 2295 3118.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Following is a question by the Hon Leung Man-kwong and a written reply by the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law, in the Legislative Council today (May 7):
 
Question:

It has been reported that recently, after admission tickets of a concert held in the Main Stadium of the Kai Tak Sports Park (KTSP) were put on sale through the ticket sales platform, there has been a spate of disputes involving the chaotic ticket exchange arrangements and obstructed views of some seats located in areas where the view was obstructed but the relevant platform had not marked prior to sale, etc., which have aroused strong dissatisfaction among the public. There are views that such situations may affect the confidence of the public and tourists in Hong Kong’s capability in hosting large-scale performances. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) whether the authorities have required organisers of commercial performances held at government venues to provide the relevant departments with clear ticketing plans in renting venues, such as information on the ticket-vending mechanisms, the number of tickets available for sale, the ticket collection arrangements, and the disclosure standards for seating information (including marking of areas with obstructed views); if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
 
(2) as it is learnt that ticket sales platforms collected handling charge from ticket buyers but failed to offer proper post-sale arrangements for those affected by the aforesaid situations, of the regulatory measures currently put in place by the Government on the platforms responsible for selling tickets of activities held at public venues, and how it would assist consumers in recovering loss;
 
(3) whether the authorities will study requiring ticket sale companies responsible for selling tickets of commercial performances held at government venues to adopt “identity-bound ticket limit” and “delayed ticket transfer mechanism” (e.g. ticket transfer must be processed through the official platforms), so as to curb the problem of ticket scalping; and
 
(4) whether consideration will be given to including a requirement of providing the electronic ticket exchange function in the new contract between government venues (such as the KTSP) and ticketing agencies, so as to ensure that members of the public are not required to go to the venues in person to exchange their tickets?
 
Reply:
 
President:
 
In consultation with the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau, the consolidated reply to the question raised by the Hon Leung Man-kwong is as follows:
 
Hirers of performance venues under the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) are required to obtain the LCSD’s approval on the ticket price scale, the seating plan and the ticketing system before the commencement of ticket sales. The seating plan shall indicate seats that are available for sale with prices specified, those with sightline problems or blocked due to technical reasons, and those for which complimentary tickets are to be issued.
 
The Kai Tak Sports Park (KTSP) has fully commissioned since March 2025, with the Kai Tak Sports Park Limited (KTSPL) being responsible for its daily operation under a “Design, Build and Operate” contract. The ticketing arrangements for events held at the various venues within the KTSP, including the choice of ticketing platform, are decided by individual event organisers. The KTSPL has already uploaded the seating plan of the three major venues to its website for public reference, and will maintain close liaison with event organisers regarding the arrangements of seats available for sale for individual events. As the stage design and venue usage of different events at the KTSP vary, event organisers will specify the seats with restricted view when selling tickets on the ticketing platform. These seats will also be marked as restricted view on the relevant tickets.
 
Subject to the requirements of event organisers, ticketing platforms offer different ticket collection arrangements, including the use of physical tickets and/or e-tickets. Some concerts/events held at the LCSD’s performance venues and the KTSP adopt the use of physical tickets, where audiences collect their tickets by such means as ticket delivery or at self-service ticketing kiosks, etc. after their purchase. E-ticket function is also available on URBTIX under the LCSD, events taking place at the KTSP could also use e-tickets as well. If an organiser chooses to adopt the use of e-tickets, their patrons could be admitted to the programmes by presenting either the e-ticket image in the confirmation email received, or the e-ticket QR code stored in the mobile app(s) to the venue staff for scanning and verification. At the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens recently held in the KTSP, the organiser opted to use e-tickets. Audiences had to download the relevant app on their smartphones to redeem their e-tickets and present such tickets upon entry by opening the app concerned.
 
Apart from ticket collection arrangements, ticketing platforms offer different ticketing proposals to cater to the needs of event organisers. For example, when handling ticketing for large-scale and popular events, URBTIX under the LCSD liaises with the organisers on ticketing proposals which cater to individual programmes (including adopting real-name ticketing arrangement); offering Internet, mobile app and telephone booking services only; setting a cap for the number of tickets each patron can purchase per transaction as well as imposing a limit on the number of tickets that can be purchased with the same credit card on the first day of ticket sales; increasing the transparency of ticketing information; implementing delayed ticket collection arrangement; and encouraging organisers to increase the ratio of tickets for public sale, etc. We note that other ticketing platforms also offer similar arrangements such as real-name ticketing arrangement and setting a cap for the number of tickets that can be purchased, etc.
 
Each ticketing platform has its own customer services arrangement, such as providing ticketing enquiries and after-sales supporting services. In addition, the Consumer Council (the Council) carries out its statutory functions in accordance with the Consumer Council Ordinance (Cap. 216), including the handling of complaints relating to goods and services of and the provision of advice to consumers, as well as conciliating disputes between consumers and traders. If consumers consider that the organisers and/or ticketing platforms have not handled the matters in relation to event tickets properly or have failed to reach a consensus with them, consumers may lodge a complaint with and seek assistance from the Council on conciliation.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is a question by Reverend Canon the Hon Peter Douglas Koon and a written reply by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, in the Legislative Council today (May 7):

Question:

     The 2023 Policy Address announced the launch of a three-year Re-‍employment Allowance Pilot Scheme (the Pilot Scheme), targeting at elderly and middle-aged persons aged 40 or above who have not been in paid employment for three consecutive months or more. To encourage these persons to rejoin the workforce, those who have worked for six consecutive months will be provided with a maximum allowance of $10,000, while those who have worked for 12 consecutive months will be given an additional maximum allowance of $10,000. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it will further improve the Pilot Scheme, such as increasing the amount of allowance, and strengthening employment counselling, job referral and post-placement follow-up services; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(2) whether performance indicators have been set for the Pilot Scheme, and whether the effectiveness of the Scheme in promoting re-‍employment among elderly and middle-aged persons is reviewed in a timely manner; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Reply:

President,

     Launched by the Labour Department (LD) on July 15, 2024, the three-year Re-‍employment Allowance Pilot Scheme (REA Scheme) encourages persons aged 40 or above who have not been in paid employment for three consecutive months or more to join the employment market. Each eligible participant who has worked full-time for six consecutive months will be provided with a re-employment allowance (REA) of $10,000, while those who have worked full-time for 12 consecutive months will be given an additional allowance of $10,000. Half-rate REA will be given to those who have worked part-time. Each participant may receive a maximum REA of $20,000 during the implementation of the REA Scheme. In response to the Member’s question, the reply is provided below.

     The response to the REA Scheme is very favourable. From July 15, 2024 to March 31, 2025, over 38 000 participants and more than 16 000 placements were recorded, far exceeding the original target of benefiting 6 000 employed persons during the three-year implementation period.

     The LD has been providing free and diversified employment services for participants of the REA Scheme. Participants may search for jobs through the LD’s Interactive Employment Service website (www.jobs.gov.hk), job centres across the territory, the Telephone Employment Service Hotline (2969 0888) or other channels. In addition, the LD from time to time stages large-scale job fairs targeting the elderly and middle-aged as well as district-based job fairs on part-time employment, etc, to promote the employment of the elderly and middle-aged. In tandem, the Government has commissioned two service providers, which have set up 12 service spots across the territory and two telephone hotlines, to assist with the implementation of the Scheme.

     The LD will closely monitor the implementation of the REA Scheme and make timely adjustments to the implementation arrangements in light of the employment market situation and the views of the stakeholders.

     The LD plans to conduct a mid-term review on the REA Scheme in the first quarter of 2026 to evaluate the effectiveness of the Scheme and map out the way forward. As the number of employment placements may be affected by various factors such as the economy, labour market situation and the personal circumstances of job seekers, it is not appropriate to set key performance indicators for the REA Scheme.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is a question by the Hon Kingsley Wong and a written reply by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, in the Legislative Council today (May 7):
 
Question:
 
     According to government data, in 2024-2025 (as at February 2025), among the approved cases under the General Employment Policy and the Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals (Two Talent Schemes), nearly 50 per cent of the applicants earned a monthly salary of less than $20,000. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the number of applications received, approved and rejected by the Government respectively under the Two Talent Schemes in 2023-‍2024 and 2024-2025, with breakdowns on “short-term employment” and “non-short-term employment” cases;

(2) among the non-short-term employment cases approved by the Government in 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 as mentioned in (1), of (i) ‍the distribution of the industries/sectors in which the applicants are employed and the median wage, and (ii) the minimum and maximum monthly salaries of the applicants and the respective industries/sectors in which they are employed (broken down by year and talent scheme); and

(3) among the short-term employment cases approved by the Government in 2024-2025 as mentioned in (1), of the minimum and maximum daily wages of the applicants, and the respective industries/sectors in which they are employed (set out by talent scheme)?

Reply: 

President,
 
     The General Employment Policy (GEP) and the Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals (ASMTP) are market-driven employment-tied admission schemes. Where a job vacancy arises, an enterprise, having through the market availability test proved difficulties to fill the vacancy in local recruitment, may apply to employ an outside talent via one of the aforesaid employment-tied admission schemes. The employed outside talent should have a good education background, normally a bachelor’s degree or higher qualification in the relevant field, and have been engaged in a job relevant to his/her academic qualifications or work experience. The remuneration package should also be commensurate with the local prevailing market level for professionals. As the professions on the Talent List are in local manpower shortage, enterprises could be exempted from the market availability tests if the positions for recruiting outside talents under the aforesaid admission schemes fall within the professions on the Talent List. The Immigration Department (ImmD) has put in place mechanisms for assessing applications under the talent admission schemes in a rigorous manner to ensure that approved applications meet the eligibility criteria of the schemes, including that their remuneration packages are broadly commensurate with the prevailing market levels for relevant professions at the time of applications.

     Our reply to the Member’s questions, in consultation with the ImmD, is as follows:

(1) In the past two years, over 67 000 applications were received under the GEP, and the numbers of applications approved and refused during the same period were nearly 63 000 and 1 000 respectively. Among the approved applications, around 70 per cent were in respect of short-term positions with contract duration of less than 12 months, while the remaining applications, around 30 per cent, were long-term positions with contract duration of 12 months or more. Over 53 000 applications were received under the ASMTP in the past two years, and the numbers of applications approved and refused during the same period were about 47 000 and 600 respectively. About 46 per cent of the approved applications were in respect of short-term positions, while long-term positions accounted for about 54 per cent of the approved applications. The breakdowns of the statistics are at Annex I.

(2) and (3) In the past two years, among those approved to take up long-term positions in Hong Kong under the GEP, most were engaged in the tourism industry, followed by academic research and education, and financial services. As for those approved under the ASMTP to take up long-term positions in Hong Kong, most were engaged in commerce and trade, followed by financial services, and academic research and education. Among the approved incoming talents, most have monthly remuneration falling within the range of $20,000 to $39,999, followed by those in the range of $40,000 to $79,999. As the job nature, job type and contract duration of individual cases are different, their salary levels also vary and should not be put in direct comparison.

     The breakdowns of the numbers of approved applicants taking up long-term positions in Hong Kong under the aforesaid employment-tied admission schemes by industry/sector and monthly remuneration are at Annex II.

     The ImmD does not maintain the other statistical breakdowns sought in the question.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region