Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Following is a question by the Hon Martin Liao and a written reply by the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, in the Legislative Council today (March 26):

Question:

     On developing Hong Kong into an international innovation and technology centre, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) as there are views pointing out that there is more than sufficient room for trial and error for start-ups in Hangzhou, including a failure-‍tolerant institutional design at the policy level, government subsidies for research and development (R&D) and a science and technology innovation fund on the funding front, and multi-capital in the market to patiently accompany their growth, whether the Innovation and Technology Industry-Oriented Fund set up by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government will formulate reference guidelines to increase the weighting of multi-dimensional indicators, such as innovative capability, growth potential and R&D intensity of enterprises, when guiding patient capital investments;

(2) as there are views that Hangzhou’s continuous progress in implementing “one visit at most” service is a result of Mainland departments streamlining administration and delegating power, as well as deepening reforms of the administrative vetting and approval system, whether the SAR Government will draw on Hangzhou’s administrative and entrepreneurial experience to conduct a comprehensive review of the efficiency and quality of the services provided by government departments, including the speed of vetting and approving applications for supporting funds and the efficiency of resource docking, and urge the relevant government departments and public organisations to formulate guidelines to enhance efficiency; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(3) as the 2025-2026 Budget proposes to establish the Hong Kong AI Research and Development Institute, with the expansion of application scenarios being one of its focuses, and as there are views that industry-specific vertical large models can promote “Artificial Intelligence (AI) Plus” and empower various industries on the condition of vertical large models being integrated with industry-‍specific data and knowledge, what plans the Government has put in place to mobilise the innovative power of enterprises and guide leading enterprises, small and medium enterprises, data service providers, etc. to step up the supply of high-quality industry-specific data elements; and

(4) as it is learnt that Hangzhou and its surrounding regions are able to provide start-ups with comprehensive industrial chain support (e.g.‍ Deepseek’s industrial chain is entirely based in Hangzhou, while Hangzhou Yushu Science And Technology Co., Ltd. relies on the resources of Hangzhou and two of its neighbouring cities, namely, Yiwu and Shanghai), what measures the SAR Government has put in place to promote co-operation with other Mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in terms of resources for the AI industry in order to improve the AI industrial chain?

Reply:

President,

     In respect of the question raised by the Hon Martin Liao, my reply is as follows:
 
(1) The Innovation, Technology and Industry Bureau and the Innovation and Technology Commission are currently preparing for setting up the $10 billion Innovation and Technology Industry-Oriented Fund (ITIF) to channel more market capital to invest in emerging and future industries of strategic importance. According to our current plan, the ITIF will cover five thematic areas, and one or more sub-fund(s) will be set up under each thematic area. Each sub-fund will have a fund duration of up to 12 years, fully realising the characteristics of patient capital which focuses on long-term investments with a higher risk tolerance. This will contribute to the on-going support for the growth, expansion and maturity of the innovation & technology (I&T) industry.

The Government will participate as a Limited Partner of the sub-funds and make contributions to each. Fund managers selected through an open application will become General Partners of the sub-funds and shall be responsible for setting up the sub-funds in the form of a limited partnership fund. They shall also raise market capital for the sub-funds, manage the daily operation of the sub-funds, as well as invest in suitable projects in accordance with the investment framework.
 
Based on a market-oriented operation, we hope that fund managers will leverage their professional investment capabilities to identify I&T enterprises of high potential, conduct comprehensive evaluations, and make reasonable investment decisions in compliance with relevant investment requirements. This will provide appropriate financial support to I&T enterprises and promote the long-term development of the related industries.
 
(2) The Digital Policy Office (DPO) is committed to driving various bureaux/departments (B/Ds) in the adoption of I&T to enhance operational efficiency and improve public services. The DPO also provides advice and consultancy services to various B/Ds in areas such as digital technology and innovative technology applications, data sharing, business process re-engineering, design thinking, change management, etc., with a view to accelerating the development of digital government, thereby continuously enhancing government efficiency and service quality.

In respect of promoting e-government services, all licences and government services involving application and approval (about 1 480 items in total) and forms (over 3 800) have been fully digitalised by mid-2024, i.e. enabling submission of application, payment and collection of documents by electronic means for relevant licences and services. If in-person submission or collection of documents is required by law or international practice, applicants will only need to visit relevant government offices no more than once.
     
In 2024-25, through the “Be the Smart Regulator” and “Streamlining of Government Services” programmes, the DPO worked with 47 B/Ds in proposing some 180 business facilitation and streamlining measures for about 400 licences and services, such as obviating the need for businesses and general public to submit information repeatedly for their licence and government service applications by leveraging cross-departmental data exchange, and shortening the time required for handling and approving applications by automating the verification processes, etc.

In addition, B/Ds are rolling out over a hundred of digital government and smart city initiatives progressively, including the application of artificial intelligence (AI) and chatbot technologies to improve government hotline services; application of data analytics, geospatial analysis and visualisation dashboard technologies to improve service management; and adoption of video analytics to enhance security surveillance at public cargo working areas.

(3) High-quality data are essential for promoting the training of large language models (LLMs), research and development (R&D) of industry-specific vertical LLMs, and industry applications. The Government has all along been implementing the open data policy and actively encouraging public and private organisations to open up more data for innovative applications by the industries. Currently, the Open Data Portal has published over 5 500 datasets, covering various industries and sectors including finance, education, transportation, community and social welfare, law and security, etc. The Common Spatial Data Infrastructure has also published over 1 000 spatial datasets, covering different aspects such as planning, lands, buildings, transport. These two platforms help the industry develop more and better industry-specific vertical LLMs and innovative solutions by leveraging the datasets and integrating them with LLMs, industry data and technologies available in the market. Meanwhile, the facilitation measure on the “Standard Contract for the Cross-boundary Flow of Personal Information Within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (Mainland, Hong Kong)” has been extended to all industries to further promote more cross-boundary services to benefit the public and businesses, while facilitating data flow in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) and expediting the development of digital economy and smart city.

In addition, the Hong Kong Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Institute, to be established as announced by the 2025-26 Budget, will also spearhead and support Hong Kong’s innovative R&D and industrial application of AI, and facilitate upstream R&D, midstream and downstream transformation of R&D outcomes and application scenarios of AI.
 
(4) The Government has been co-ordinating and promoting the development and application of information and communications technology, including AI, with Guangdong through the Hong Kong/Guangdong Expert Group on Co-operation in Informatisation (EGCI). The EGCI will strengthen the co-operation between Guangdong and Hong Kong in AI R&D, outcome transformation and application development, and implement co-operation initiatives to complement the development of the GBA into an international technology innovation centre.
 
Besides, the two I&T flagships in Hong Kong (viz. the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation and Cyberport) have been actively expanding their partnership network in the GBA to assist enterprises in respective technology parks to expand their businesses in the GBA and attract enterprises in the region to set up operations in the parks. Taking Qianhai as an example, Cyberport signed a co-operation agreement with the Qianhai Authority in January 2021 and deepened the co-operation agreement in August 2024. So far, two enterprises from Qianhai have settled in Cyberport, including one focusing on AI animation production. In addition, about 10 Cyberport enterprises are exploring to set up businesses in Qianhai, and nearly half of them are related to AI including start-ups that apply AI in education technology, e-commerce and insurance technology. On the other hand, the Hong Kong Science Park Shenzhen Branch commenced operation in 2023 to enable institutes and enterprises interested in starting their business in the GBA to establish a presence there. As of December 2024, a total of 58 enterprises and R&D centres were admitted, with approximately 40 of them involved in AI-related businesses.

The Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone is one of the major co-operation platforms in the GBA. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government promulgated the Development Outline for the Hong Kong Park of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone (the Development Outline) in November 2024, setting out the vision and mission, planning, development directions, strategies and targets of the Hong Kong Park. As set out in the Development Outline, the Hong Kong Park will focus on the development of core frontier technological fields including AI; strengthen the supporting infrastructure required for the development of AI technologies; and establish a cross-boundary data flow management mechanism, so as to attract Mainland and overseas enterprises engaging in AI to the Loop to set up and expand their businesses therein.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Following is a question by Dr the Hon Johnny Ng and a reply by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, in the Legislative Council today (March 26):
 
Question:
 
The Government established the Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited (HKIC) in 2022 to manage the investment activities of designated government funds through identifying investment opportunities and strategically promoting development of target industries, while generating investment return. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of an overview of HKIC’s investments since its establishment, including the main industries supported by HKIC’s current portfolios, and how far HKIC can identify the investment targets which can contribute to the economic development of Hong Kong; whether the effectiveness of HKIC’s work has been assessed;
 
(2) given that the Temasek Holdings, founded in 1974, had an asset size reaching S$389 billion (HK$2.3 trillion) in March 2024, making it the eleventh largest sovereign wealth fund in the world, whether HKIC will draw on the successful experiences of, among others, the Temasek Holdings and the Singapore’s Economic Development Board Investment, and strengthen HKIC’s investment efforts while adjusting its investment directions at appropriate times; and
 
(3) as far as Hong Kong’s long-term economic development is concerned, whether it has considered adding a wider variety of sectors in HKIC’s investments, including high-growth industries such as Web 3.0, thereby building up future economic pillars for Hong Kong and attracting talents as well as innovative enterprises to set up their presence in Hong Kong?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     In consultation with the Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited (HKIC), my consolidated reply to the three parts of the question is as follows:
 
     In the 2022 Policy Address, the Chief Executive announced the establishment of the HKIC to manage the investment for a total of HK$62 billion under the Hong Kong Growth Portfolio, Greater Bay Area Investment Fund, Strategic Tech Fund, and Co-Investment Fund. The positioning of the HKIC is to capitalise the power of “Patient Capital” to channel market capital and leverage market resources, with a view to attracting technology enterprises to set up their operations in Hong Kong, thereby accelerating the construction of a vibrant strategic industry ecosystem, while seeking reasonable financial return over the medium to long term.
 
     The HKIC actively leverages the guiding force of capital to promote collaboration among the investment, industry, academic and research sectors, facilitates the construction of international, regional and cross-border collaboration platform for Hong Kong, and supports the accelerated nurturing of new quality productive forces, thus enhancing Hong Kong’s long-term competitiveness and economic vitality.
 
     Since its establishment, the HKIC has invested in over 90 projects, including enterprises with cutting-edge technologies or in key industries. These projects are medium-to-long-term investments. Key themes include Hard and Core Technology, Biotechnology and New Energy and Green Technology. with the proportions being 56 per cent, 16 per cent and 11 per cent respectively based on the invested amount. In summary, these investments contribute to the development of Hong Kong’s innovation and technology industry, and help local start-ups explore diversified markets and application scenarios. On the other hand, they attract high quality projects and companies from the Mainland and overseas to set up and develop their business in Hong Kong through the channeling force of capital.
 
     The HKIC has clear requirements for investee companies to contribute to Hong Kong’s development in a sustainable manner, such as requiring the companies to establish offices in Hong Kong, nurture and attract talents, establish corporate venture capital (corporate VC) departments in Hong Kong and prioritise Hong Kong for their listing. Quite some investee companies have made good progress in attracting capital and talents and in exploring new markets, which has accelerated their planning for using Hong Kong as their business development platform. Certain investee companies have submitted their listing applications to the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited.
 
     The HKIC also actively collaborates with various investment institutions and joins hands in investing with them, promoting the continuous development and application of cutting-edge technologies in Hong Kong. As of March 2025, every Hong Kong dollar invested by the HKIC has attracted over four Hong Kong dollars from long-term capital in the market for investment.
 
     The investments and relevant work of the HKIC are guided by the vision and needs of Hong Kong’s development. In the future, the HKIC will continue to fully support government policies and the needs of Hong Kong’s economic development, and actively work with different sectors of the society to pool resources and implement its work. The Government has always been fully supportive of the HKIC’s work and will consider the timing and arrangements for capital injection in a timely manner as appropriate.
 
     One of the HKIC’s key strategies for 2025 is to continue to focus on three core themes, namely Hard and Core Technology, Biotechnology, New Energy and Green Technology, and also capture the adjacent opportunities arising from these themes, including “cross-sector” applications. The HKIC also focuses on expediting the deployment and application of cutting-edge technologies, bringing innovative and disruptive research outcomes into the market and to serve the society.
 
     The HKIC has been paying attention to accelerating the exploration of the cutting-edge impetus for growth and to strategising the relevant investment implementation. For example, the first batch of capital allocated to the Investment Portfolio under the New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, which management is supervised by the HKIC, will be invested in industries and innovative applications in areas such as low-altitude economy, gerontechnology and smart living technologies, as well as intelligent entertainment experiences.
 
Thank you, President.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Following is a question by the Hon Jeffrey Lam and a written reply by the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, in the Legislative Council today (March 26):

Question:

     Last month, an information security incident occurred in Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) in which its computer systems were attacked by malicious ransomware, affecting its internal Customer Relationship Management system, intranet, website operations, etc. Regarding the occurrence of cybersecurity incidents in government departments and public organisations, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the following information on malicious ransomware attacks on government departments and public organisations in the past three years: (i) the number of cases, (ii) the government departments and public organisations involved, (iii) the number of cases involving leakage of personal, customer or internal data, and (iv) the number of culprits arrested in connection with such cases;

(2) given that Hong Kong is actively attracting businesses and talents, whether the Government has received public complaints or enquiries about the aforesaid information security incident of InvestHK; if so, of the number; whether the Government has assessed if the information security incident has dampened investors’ confidence in the information security of InvestHK, or even investors’ interest in investing in Hong Kong; and

(3) of the measures the Government has put in place to strengthen the security of the computer and information systems of government departments and public organisations, and the expected time for conducting a review of the effectiveness of such measures, so as to continuously ensure the security of the relevant systems of such departments and organisations?

Reply:

President,

     In respect of the question raised by the Hon Jeffrey Lam, having consolidated the information provided by the Security Bureau and the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau, my reply is as follows:

(1) According to the Government Information Technology Security Policy and Guidelines, when an information technology (IT) security incident occurs, the concerned bureaux and departments (B/Ds) must report it to the Government Information Security Incident Response Office under the Digital Policy Office (DPO), and notify the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) and/or the Police depending on the nature of the incident.

In 2022, 2023 and 2024, the DPO received 5, 3 and 2 incident reports respectively that involved ransomware attack of government IT systems. None of these incidents resulted in any data leakage. In view of the nature of the incidents, the sensitivity of the information and security considerations, the departments concerned considered it as inappropriate to publish relevant details, in order not to increase the risk of malicious intrusion into government systems. Upon receipt of the incident reports, the DPO had promptly assisted relevant departments in handling the incidents and provided technical advice to enhance their information security.

As for public bodies, neither the DPO nor the Hong Kong Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Centre has received any notification of information security incidents from public bodies relating to ransomware attack in the past three years. However, we note that individual public bodies have taken the initiative to make public announcement on relevant incidents having regard to the nature and specific circumstances of the case. To enhance the information security of public bodies and strengthen the incident handling mechanism, the Government has since August 2024 required public bodies to notify the relevant B/Ds of incidents relating to their designated IT systems. As at mid-March this year, the Government has not received any relevant report.

Depending on the circumstances of the case, there is a possibility that a ransomware attack may constitute a breach of “criminal intimidation” (section 24 of the Crimes Ordinance), “criminal damage” (section 60 of the Crimes Ordinance), “access to computers with criminal or dishonest intent” (section 161 of the Crimes Ordinance), or other related offences. The Police does not maintain breakdown statistics on the number of arrests for ransomware attacks.

(2) On February 22 this year, Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) identified an information security incident which involved a malicious ransomware attack to part of InvestHK’s computer systems. Upon identification of the incident, the Department took immediate measures to tighten security of its IT systems to prevent further ransomware attacks. In line with the established procedures, it has on the same day also reported the case to the Police, the DPO, the PCPD and the Security Bureau respectively. According to InvestHK’s investigation findings, there was no evidence indicating leakage of personal information. No further suspicious activities have been identified since then. As at mid-March this year, the Department has not received any public complaints or enquiries related to this information security incident. After the incident, InvestHK promptly issued press releases to clearly explain the situation to the public and its clients. It is believed that the incident has not affected investors’ confidence. InvestHK has all along been observing the Government’s procedures in its information and cybersecurity work. It will continue to cooperate with the DPO and adopt experts’ recommendations in tightening its IT security systems, so as to prevent similar incidents from happening again. 

(3) To enhance the IT security of B/Ds and public bodies, the Government has implemented several enhancement measures which require B/Ds and public bodies under their purview to strengthen the project governance and security of IT systems, including key initiatives such as:

(i) Strengthen oversight responsibility: all B/Ds must appoint a senior directorate officer or the head/ deputy head of the management team of relevant organisation to oversee information security work, and immediately assess and strengthen their existing cybersecurity measures, in order to guard against cyberattacks.
(ii) Regular tests, assessments and audits: all B/Ds and public bodies must arrange additional stress tests and security tests by an independent third party before rollout of their IT systems, and perform security risk assessments for their IT systems at least once every two years. Security risk assessments shall identify and determine the level of IT security risks of an IT system based on risk sources (e.g. vulnerabilities, threats), events (e.g. incident scenarios), and risk impact and likelihood, so as to help prioritise the identified risks for risk management and updating of response measures.
(iii) System health check, penetration test and compliance audit: the DPO introduced a centralised cybersecurity health check platform to conduct regular and continuous health checks and penetration testing on the government’s public-facing IT systems to enhance B/Ds’ ability to identify potential security vulnerabilities, thereby strengthening the prevention of information and cybersecurity incidents. The DPO also launched a new round of government-wide information security compliance audit in 2024, and will select eight government IT systems for in-depth information security compliance audit in 2025.
(iv) Real-life cybersecurity attack and defence drills: starting from 2024, the DPO will organise annual real-life cybersecurity attack and defence drill, and invite different B/Ds and public bodies to participate. The drills will simulate real-life cyberattacks to test the response and resilience of IT systems in the event of cyberattacks, with a view to enhancing the technique, experience and overall defence capabilities of B/Ds and public bodies through the drills and fortifying the defence line.
(v) Step up staff training: the DPO and the Civil Service College jointly organise thematic seminars under the Innovation and Technology leadership series for the senior management of all B/Ds, and provide latest cybersecurity trends and preventive measures to enhance their information security knowledge.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

To commemorate a century of Hong Kong’s aviation history that took flight from Kai Tak, and coinciding with the Hong Kong Sevens being held at Kai Tak Sports Park for the first time, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government supports the event organisers in staging a special flight demonstration over Victoria Harbour on the afternoon of March 30. This event symbolises the century-long legacy of Hong Kong’s aviation history, inviting the public to join in witnessing this momentous and meaningful occasion.

To facilitate the flight demonstration, the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) will establish a temporary restricted flying zone (RFZ) in and around Victoria Harbour. Flying activities, such as the flying of unmanned aircraft systems (drones and model aircraft), kites, captive balloons, mass release of small balloons, etc, will be restricted. The CAD will announce details of the temporary RFZ on the electronic portal for small unmanned aircraft “eSUA” and by Notice To Airmen.

​The flight demonstration will be subject to weather conditions, and details of the event will be announced by the event organisers in due course.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is a question by Dr the Hon Chan Han-pan and a written reply by the Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn, in the Legislative Council today (March 26):
 
Question:
 
It has been reported that the current application procedures for lease of government land by way of short-term tenancy are complicated, and that the procedures for landowners to apply for payment of land premium also take a relatively long time, thus impeding economic development and the efficient use of government land resources to a certain extent. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) whether the Government has compiled statistics on the respective average time taken from acceptance to completion of the procedures for each application for short-term tenancy of land and payment of land premium in the past three years (set out in a table);
 
(2) whether the Government will consider consolidating land resources which have been left vacant for a long time, such as offering several pieces of vacant government land in a certain district for lease as a package to statutory bodies or non-governmental organisations which will then be responsible for management and leasing arrangements, so as to expedite the effective use of land resources; and
 
(3) given that the current arrangement for charging land premium at standard rates has been extended to New Development Area projects under the Enhanced Conventional New Town Approach, whether the Government will consider extending the arrangement for charging land premium at standard rates to the entire territory; whether the Government will consider streamlining the process of granting land leases, such as establishing simplified procedures for granting leases and payment of land premium, so as to shorten the time taken for vetting and approval?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
Our reply to the various parts of Dr the Hon Chan’s question is as follows:
 
(1) Currently, short-term tenancies (STTs) are granted by the Lands Department (LandsD) mainly via open tender or direct grant. In relation to direct grant STTs for community, institutional or non-profit making uses, the LandsD will proceed to grant the tenancy if the applications receive policy support and are confirmed to comply with statutory or administrative requirements upon consultation with relevant departments. The processing time required for each case varies as the nature of each application may differ.
 
In the past three years (2022 to 2024), the average processing time (from receipt of a valid application to completion of processing) for direct grant STTs for community, institutional or non-profit making uses is tabulated below:
 

Direct grant STTs for community, institutional or non-profit making uses
Year	2022	2023	2024
Average processing time	12.2 months	12.7 months	13.9 months

 
As for lease modification and land exchange applications involving private land, if applicants accept the provisional basic terms offer (PBTO) issued by the LandsD, the LandsD will proceed to premium assessment and issue a premium offer. If applicants are not satisfied with the premium offer made by the LandsD, they may lodge an appeal and provide supplementary information. The time needed for premium negotiation for each case will vary depending on the complexity of the case, and may be affected by the applicants’ business considerations and market outlook.
 
In the past three years (2022 to 2024), the average time needed for premium negotiation in respect of lease modification and land exchange applications approved and executed each year is tabulated below:
 

Year	2022	2023	2024
Average time needed for premium negotiation for lease modification and land exchange applications	8.5 months	5.8 months	7.8 months

 
(2) The vacant government sites currently available for rental applications by non-government organisations have been publicised online. It is noted that most of these sites may not have commercial values, a number of which may be secluded or even without vehicular access or other basic facilities. That said, if any external organisations are interested in simultaneously renting multiple sites for socially beneficial uses under the “package” arrangement as mentioned by Dr the Hon Chan, the Government is happy to explore further with the relevant organisations.
 
(3) In recent years, the Government continuously introduced a number of measures to streamline statutory and administrative procedures with a view to further expediting approval process and removing barriers for development. In terms of premium negotiation procedures, the LandsD will maintain close communications with applicants and endeavour to minimise the differences between both parties, such as allowing applicants to provide supplementary information during appeal, having face-to-face exchanges with applicants on various assessment parameters before processing the appeal. There is also a fast-track procedure for applicant’s second or third appeal. If the appeal applications meet the requirements for the relevant fast-track procedures, the LandsD will issue premium offer again within 24 working days after receiving the appeal, which will shorten the process of premium negotiation.
 
Also, to expedite the processing of specific types of lease modification applications, the Government introduced a standard rate approach for charging premium in the past few years, which provides applicants with an alternative option in addition to the conventional assessment mechanism, through promulgating in advance a set of standard rates for providing certainty. For example, apart from the standard rates applicable to the land exchange applications in new development areas (NDAs) under the “Enhanced Conventional New Town Approach” as mentioned, the Government introduced the standard rates for charging land premium for exemption of gross floor area arising from the adoption of Modular Integrated Construction in end-2022; regularised the standard rates applicable to the redevelopment of aged industrial buildings (IBs) across Hong Kong in end-2023 to provide continued incentive for redevelopment of aged IBs and thereby expedite urban renewal; and rolled out the standard rates arrangement for lease modifications involving development of agricultural land in the New Territories (NT) outside NDAs to unlock the development potentials of agricultural land in the NT. The Development Bureau will continue to keep the implementation of standard rates under review, and will further study whether to expand the standard rates approach for charging premium approach in light of implementation experience and relevant policy considerations.
 
To adopt a facilitating and collaborative mindset as a “facilitator”, the LandsD has implemented measures to further expedite the processing of lease modification and land exchange cases. In terms of the approval process, the LandsD has already streamlined the local consultation process. For cases where local consultation had already been conducted at the stage of planning application, the LandsD will avoid repeated consultation as far as practicable during the lease processing stage. In addition, prior to consulting relevant bureaux/departments regarding the development projects, the LandsD will hold partnership meetings in advance with the applicants on a need basis so as to clarify the key elements of the applications and discuss other potential issues that may need to be tackled with the applicants early, thereby expediting approval process. Also, the LandsD will accept requests for advance processing of lease modification and land exchange applications in association with rezoning applications approved by the Town Planning Board under section 12A of the Town Planning Ordinance with a set of development parameters clearly defined/firmed up. This means that there is no need to wait until the whole statutory rezoning procedure is completed before the processing could commence.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is a question by the Hon Lam San-keung and a written reply by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs, Mr Erick Tsang Kwok-wai, in the Legislative Council today (March 26):

Question:

     Article 5 of the Basic Law provides that Hong Kong’s “previous capitalist system and way of life shall remain unchanged for 50 years”. The President of the State has also repeatedly praised that “one country, two systems” is a good policy which “must be adhered to in the long run”. Moreover, there are views that the Extension of Government Leases Ordinance (Cap. 648), which came into force in July last year, ensures that the vast majority of land in Hong Kong will have the leases automatically extended for a term of 50 ‍years upon their expiry in 2047. However, it is learnt that the international community and global investors have all along been worried that there is a “2047 time limit” for Hong Kong’s capitalist system. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council of the efforts made to allay the concerns of the international community about the 2047 time limit, and how to strengthen the relevant publicity work in the future?

Reply:

President,

     The reply to the Hon Lam San-keung’s question is as follows:

     At the meeting celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to the motherland in 2022, President Xi Jinping said that, “‘One country, two systems’ has been tested repeatedly in practice. It serves the fundamental interests of not only Hong Kong, but also those of our country and the nation, so there is no reason for us to change such a good policy, and we must adhere to it in the long run.” President Xi reiterated in his report to the 20th National Congress that “the policy of ‘one country, two systems’ is a great innovation of socialism with Chinese characteristics. It has proven to be the best institutional arrangement for ensuring sustained prosperity and stability in Hong Kong after its return to the motherland. The policy must be adhered to over the long term.” These fully demonstrate to the world the Central Authorities’ firm commitment to the principle of “one country, two systems”, which will not be altered, nor shaken. Further, it is essential to ensure that “one country, two systems” is fully and faithfully implemented in Hong Kong without being bent or distorted, and will always advance in the right direction. To make it clear to the world that it is our country’s enduring policy to implement “one country, two systems” resolutely, fully and faithfully, and to showcase the historic and significant achievements made under “one country, two systems” since its implementation, the HKSAR Government will continue to spare no effort in external promotion and telling the good stories of “one country, two systems” and Hong Kong. This includes widely promoting the successful implementation of “one country, two systems” and Hong Kong’s various strengths and opportunities through overseas visits by senior officials in meeting with dignitaries, the business sector, the media and Chinese groups, and through different activities organised by the overseas Economic and Trade Offices, such as meetings with local governments and organisations, media interviews and seminars. We will also actively encourage different organisations to host major international events in Hong Kong, bringing people from all over the world and all walks of life to witness the rapid development of Hong Kong and our remarkable achievements in the implementation of “one country, two systems”.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Mobile Libraries 3, 9 and 11 will suspend services during designated periods in April for maintenance, a spokesman for the Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (March 26).

     Mobile Library 11 will suspend services from April 2 to 15. The affected service points are Sun Chui Estate and Kwong Yuen Estate in Sha Tin; Kwai Shing West Estate, Kwai Shing East Estate and Lai Yiu Estate in Kwai Chung; Tin Wah Estate in Tin Shui Wai; Wan Tau Tong Estate and Tai Yuen Estate in Tai Po; Cheung Ching Estate and Easeful Court in Tsing Yi; and Po Tin Estate in Tuen Mun. For enquiries about Mobile Library 11 services, please call 2479 1055.

     Mobile Library 3 will suspend services from April 7 to 12. The affected service points are Shan King Estate, Siu Hong Court, Sam Shing Estate and Fu Tai Estate in Tuen Mun; Kingswood Country Club and Tin Ching Estate in Tin Shui Wai; and Fairview Park in Yuen Long. For enquiries about Mobile Library 3 services, please call 2450 1857.

     Mobile Library 9 will suspend services from April 7 to 17. The affected service points are South Horizons in Ap Lei Chau, Sheung Wan Cultural Square, Tin Wan Estate in Aberdeen, Oi Tung Estate in Aldrich Bay, Tai Hong Street in Lei King Wan and Heng Fa Chuen in Chai Wan. For enquiries about Mobile Library 9 services, please call 2505 4690.

     Readers are welcome to use other public libraries during the service suspension periods. They may also renew library materials by telephoning 2698 0002 or 2827 2833, or via www.hkpl.gov.hk.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

 Following is a question by Dr the Hon Ngan Man-yu and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Tang Ping-keung, in the Legislative Council today (March 26):
 
Question:
 
Under the laws of Hong Kong, a foreign domestic helper (FDH) whose contract is terminated prematurely is permitted to remain in Hong Kong for 14 days after the termination of the contract or the remainder of the permitted stay, whichever is earlier. However, my office has recently received a number of requests for assistance involving FDHs who, after being dismissed, were suspected of making false accusations against their employers of maltreating them or child abuse, etc., in order to apply to the Immigration Department (ImmD) for extension of stay in Hong Kong as visitors and take up illegal employment. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) at present under what circumstances may FDHs’ applications for extension of the limit of their stay in Hong Kong as visitors be accepted by the ImmD after they have been dismissed by their employers; of the relevant procedures, requirements, and restrictions and validity period of their visas (e.g. whether they are allowed to work with their visas and whether they can re-enter Hong Kong after leaving);
 
(2) of the number of applications received by the ImmD for extension of the limit of stay in Hong Kong as visitors in the past three years, together with a breakdown by the type of applicants, reasons for extension of stay, and the outcome of the applications (including the number of approved and rejected cases); and among them the number of such cases involving FDHs;
 
(3) of the number of law enforcement operations conducted by the departments concerned in the past three years to combat illegal workers, and the respective results of such law enforcement operations; the number of illegal workers found during the law enforcement operations who were FDHs and those who had extended their stay in Hong Kong as visitors, and the respective results of such law enforcement operations; and
 
(4) whether the Government has considered stepping up cooperation with other departments to further combat the situation of FDHs overstaying in Hong Kong and engaging in illegal employment, and reviewed the existing mechanism for FDHs to extend the limit of their stay in Hong Kong as visitors and considered revising the related policies, so as to prevent FDHs from engaging in illegal activities by abusing the mechanism; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
Having consulted the Labour Department (LD) and the Immigration Department (ImmD), my reply is as follows:
 
(1) In accordance with the prevailing foreign domestic helper (FDH) policy of the Government, an FDH shall leave Hong Kong upon completion of employment contract or within two weeks from the date of contract termination, whichever is the earlier. The main purpose of this “two-week rule” is to allow sufficient time for FDHs to prepare for their departure, during which they are not allowed to take up any employment, whether paid or unpaid.
 
FDHs will only be allowed to extend their stay in Hong Kong as visitors in exceptional circumstances. Such exceptional circumstances include where an FDH has to attend a tribunal hearing because of labour or monetary disputes, and where an FDH has to stay in Hong Kong to assist in criminal investigations, etc. In this connection, the FDH is required to submit an application for extension of stay to the ImmD. He/She must provide supporting documents (e.g. documents issued by the LD or the Labour Tribunal to prove that his/her labour dispute case has been accepted or is being processed) before the application will be considered. The duration of extension of stay granted will be determined based on the relevant purpose of stay and individual circumstances. The ImmD will continue to exercise stringent gate-keeping and thoroughly examine every application from FDHs for extension of stay in Hong Kong as visitors.
 
After leaving Hong Kong, these FDHs may re-enter Hong Kong as visitors, no different from other visitors.
 
Under the Immigration Ordinance (Cap. 115), any person (including FDH) who takes up any employment, whether paid or unpaid, in contravention of the condition of stay during his/her stay in Hong Kong as a visitor shall be guilty of an offence. Upon conviction, he/she is liable to a maximum fine of $50,000 and up to two years’ imprisonment.
 
(2) The statistics on the number of applications received by the ImmD for extension of stay in Hong Kong as visitors in the past three years are tabulated below:
 

Year	2022	2023	2024
Number of applications (applications involving FDHs)	684 096 (7 673)	334 861 (5 506)	303 385 (7 625)
Number of approved applications (applications involving FDHs)	635 104 (4 710)	314 240 (3 898)	278 537 (6 153)
Number of rejected applications (applications involving FDHs)	9 216 (2 690)	4 339 (1 445)	2 808 (1 235)

Note 1: Applications processed in a year may not totally be those received in the same year.
 
Note 2: The figures only reflect the number of applications but not the actual number of applicants. An applicant may apply for extension of stay more than once.
 
The ImmD does not maintain other statistical breakdowns mentioned in the question.
 
(3) and (4) As mentioned above, under the prevailing policy, FDHs will be allowed to extend their stay in Hong Kong as visitors only under exceptional circumstances, and during the extended stay, they are not allowed to take up any employment. We will keep reviewing the relevant policy to ensure its continued effectiveness.
 
The Government has been adopting a multi-pronged strategy, including increase in penalty, strict law enforcement, and conducting publicity and education, so as to combat illegal employment (including FDHs taking up illegal employment during their stay in Hong Kong as visitors). Details are as follows:
 
(i) Increase in penalty
 
It is a serious offence to engage in illegal employment. Illegal workers, employers as well as aiders and abettors of illegal employment will be liable to prosecution in accordance with the Immigration Ordinance. The Government amended the Immigration Ordinance in 2021 by increasing the penalty on employers of illegal workers so as to reflect the gravity of the offence. Under the amended Immigration Ordinance, the maximum penalty for an employer employing a person who is not lawfully employable, i.e. an illegal immigrant, a person who is the subject of a removal order or a deportation order, an overstayer, or a person who was refused permission to land, has been significantly increased from a fine of $350,000 and three years’ imprisonment to a fine of $500,000 and ten years’ imprisonment. The High Court has laid down sentencing guidelines that the employer of an illegal worker should be given an immediate custodial sentence.
 
(ii) Strict law enforcement
 
Various law enforcement agencies (LEAs) (including the ImmD, the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) and the LD) have been proactively collecting intelligence and conducting joint operations to raid premises suspected of having illegal employment activities in order to combat the employment of illegal workers.
 
To specifically tackle FDHs in breach of condition of stay and the relevant employers’ violations, the ImmD will timely conduct various special operations to raid the black spots of illegal employment according to intelligence. Apart from prosecuting FDHs in breach of condition of stay, the ImmD will also take law enforcement actions against intermediaries or agents that aid and abet these FDHs.
 
According to the ImmD’s record, the number of law enforcement operations against illegal workers (including joint operations with other departments including the HKPF, etc.) in the past three years is tabulated below:
 

Year	Number of operations
2022	15 759
2023	17 248
2024	17 906
2025 (as at February)	2 863

Besides, when conducting regular workplace inspections to enforce labour laws, the LD will check employees’ proof of identity and records of employees kept by employers under the power conferred by Part IVB of the Immigration Ordinance to deter employers from employing illegal workers. Cases of suspected illegal employment detected will be referred to relevant LEAs for follow-up. The number of referrals by the LD in the past three years is as follows:
 

Year	Number of suspected illegal employment cases referred to relevant LEAs
2022	99
2023	123
2024	137
2025 (as at end of February)	25

The numbers of FDHs arrested, prosecuted and convicted for illegal employment in the past three years are tabulated below:
 

Year	FDHs^
	Arrested	Prosecuted	Convicted
2022	318	242	224
2023	415	343	318
2024	326	267	216
2025 (as at February)	47	35	23

^ Refers to FDHs or overstaying former FDHs at the time of arrest
 
Note: Persons prosecuted/convicted may not be arrested/prosecuted in the same year.
 
(iii) Publicity and education
 
In addition to sparing no effort to take law enforcement actions, the Government has all along been co-operating, and will continue to actively co-operate, with the relevant Consulates-General in Hong Kong to step up publicity and education for newly arrived FDHs about the fact that illegal employment in Hong Kong is a serious offence liable to imprisonment. The LD also promulgated the revised Code of Practice for Employment Agencies in May 2024, requiring employment agencies to thoroughly brief FDH job seekers on FDH-related immigration regulations.
 
The ImmD does not maintain other statistical breakdowns mentioned in the question.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Attention TV/radio announcers:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:

Here is an item of interest to swimmers.

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (March 26) that the red flags at Deep Water Bay Beach and Repulse Bay Beach in Southern District, Hong Kong Island, have been lowered.

The red flags were hoisted earlier because of emergency repair works on the sewer carried out near the beaches. 

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

     Following is a question by the Hon Tommy Cheung and a written reply by the Acting Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Dr Bernard Chan, in the Legislative Council today (March 26):
 
Question:
 
     The United States (US) Government has imposed additional duties on products from China, and Hong Kong products are likewise subject to such additional duties. As at the fourth of this month, a cumulative 20 per cent duty has been imposed on Hong Kong products. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the Government’s progress in filing a complaint regarding the matter with the World Trade Organization to defend Hong Kong’s legitimate rights; whether it has estimated how long it will take to process the complaint;
 
(2) whether the Government will consider working with the country to take countermeasures, including imposing additional duties on certain US products and placing some US enterprises on the export control list; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
 
(3) how the Government assesses the impacts of the additional duties on the exports of Hong Kong products, and of the proactive corresponding measures to minimise the negative impacts and identify new opportunities?
 
Reply:
 
President,
 
     The United States (US)’s imposition of additional tariffs on products of Hong Kong undermines the rule-based multilateral trading system, is grossly inconsistent with the relevant World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and ignores Hong Kong’s status as a separate customs territory as stipulated in Article 116 of the Basic Law and recognised by the WTO. As announced earlier, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government will file a complaint against the US’s measure in accordance with the WTO dispute settlement mechanism. We are now mapping out the strategy and taking forward the relevant work progressively. Generally speaking, the time required for handling individual WTO dispute cases would depend on different factors such as the complexity of the case, the progress and outcome of the consultations between the disputing parties involved, etc. With reference to previous cases, the time required is generally measured in years, and there is no specific time limit.
 
     The US’s additional 20 per cent tariffs on Hong Kong products would inevitably affect export of Hong Kong products to the US, particularly in the short term. That said, the domestic exports value of Hong Kong products to the US is relatively small in terms of Hong Kong’s total trade value. In 2024, the domestic exports value of relevant products to the US was about HK$5.9 billion, accounting for about 0.1 per cent of Hong Kong’s total exports value and about 0.06 per cent of Hong Kong’s total trade value. Given the foregoing, it is estimated that the US’s tariff measures on Hong Kong products would have a limited impact on Hong Kong’s overall merchandise trade. On the other hand, Hong Kong enterprises have responded to market changes through various arrangements, such as reintegrating supply chains, and exploring different emerging markets as well as different means including e-commerce in recent years. It is expected that the above measures would offset, to a certain extent, the possible impact brought about by the US tariffs.
 
     As the founding member of the WTO, Hong Kong has been a staunch supporter of a rule-based multilateral trading system, and commended by WTO members on various occasions for our continued adoption of free and open trade policies. We are one of the most open economies welcoming trade and investments, and have never imposed any tariffs on imported goods. Notwithstanding this, to tackle unfair trade practices targeting Hong Kong and in light of the evolving international trade landscape, the HKSAR Government has been actively expanding the economic and trade network and exploring development opportunities in markets with potential, especially emerging markets. At the same time, in order to help the trade cope with the various challenges (including the impact of the US’s tariffs), the HKSAR Government has been providing assistance to the trade, including keeping them abreast of the latest developments through disseminating relevant trade information to the trade via different channels and implementing various funding schemes to assist the trade in enhancing their competitiveness and exploring diversified markets.
 
     The HKSAR Government will continue with the relevant work. In the meantime, we will closely monitor the situation with a view to considering further follow-up.