Category: MIL-OSI

Secretary for Health receives World Health Organization’s World No Tobacco Day Award 
     The WHO marks May 31 as World No Tobacco Day annually to raise public awareness of the harmful effects of smoking and second-hand smoke, and to discourage the use of tobacco products in any form. Every year, the WHO selects individuals or organisations from members of each of the six WHO regions that have demonstrated outstanding accomplishments in tobacco control for the Award, in recognition of their achievements and contributions.
 
     Professor Lo’s receipt of the Award marks yet another WHO commendation for Hong Kong in the field of tobacco control, following the World No Tobacco Day Director-General’s Special Recognition Award presented to the then Secretary for Food and Health Dr York Chow in 2011, and the Award to the Department of Health in 2019. This latest recognition by the WHO signifies that Hong Kong’s tobacco control work has continued to build on past achievements and deliver tangible results.
 
     Professor Lo said, “The WHO’s recognition is a tremendous encouragement to us. The steady advancement of our tobacco control work would not have been possible without the concerted efforts of all sectors of the community over the years. I wish to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all close partners on this journey, including the Legislative Council (LegCo), the Department of Health, the Primary Healthcare Commission, the Hospital Authority, the Hong Kong Council on Smoking and Health, healthcare professionals, the education sector, academic institutions, non-governmental organisations, and each and every citizen who supports a smoke-free culture. In the process of formulating and implementing various tobacco control measures, various stakeholders, in particular the LegCo, have proactively provided invaluable advice to help us refine the relevant measures and make them more effective and responsive to the needs of society. Such close interaction and collaboration constitute the very driving force propelling Hong Kong towards a smoke-free city.”
 
     The Government has all along adopted a multi-pronged and progressive approach, encompassing legislation, taxation, publicity, education, enforcement and provision of smoking cessation services, to reduce the harmful effects caused by smoking products to members of the public and society. The Government conducted a public consultation on tobacco control strategies in 2023 and, on the basis of community consensus, formulated a new phase of tobacco control strategies covering short, medium and long-term measures, which has since been taken forward in a proactive and orderly manner. Among these measures, the Government increased tobacco duty in 2023 and 2024, and introduced 10 short-term tobacco control measures for implementation in phases after the completion of the legislative process. Measures that have already taken effect include strengthening the legal framework for combating illicit cigarettes, expanding the statutory no-smoking areas, further imposing a comprehensive ban on the possession of alternative smoking products in public places, alongside the sustained enhancement of public education and smoking cessation services.
 
     The aforesaid strategies have yielded notable results. According to preliminary data from the Census and Statistics Department, the smoking prevalence among the local population aged 15 and above dropped from 23 per cent in the 1980s to 8.5 per cent in 2025, hitting a record low, with the number of daily smokers decreasing by about 16 per cent compared with 2019, representing a reduction of nearly 100 000 smokers. Over the same period, the average number of daily consumption of cigarettes by smokers has also dropped by about 14 per cent, resulting in a nearly 30 per cent decrease in the overall consumption of cigarettes. This reflects the marked effectiveness of the Government’s tobacco control strategies in effectively safeguarding public health. The Government plans to fully implement plain packaging requirement for conventional smoking products and the duty stamp system by December next year to further reduce the attractiveness of tobacco products and strengthen efforts in combating illicit cigarettes.
 
     Professor Lo stressed, “Today’s achievements in tobacco control are the culmination of the tireless efforts of generations of people from all sectors of society over the past four decades. We shall cherish the hard-earned results and carry forward these efforts. Tobacco control admits no complacency. The Government will continue to forge ahead with the tobacco control process in collaboration with the LegCo and all sectors of society, to eliminate the hazards posed by the tobacco products on society and safeguard public health, with a view to moving towards a ‘tobacco-free Hong Kong’.”
Issued at HKT 22:50

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FS begins visit to Europe (with photos/video)      
     Upon arrival, Mr Chan called on the Chinese Ambassador to France, Mr Deng Li, to exchange views on China-France and China-Europe relations, as well as the latest developments in Hong Kong.
      
     In the afternoon, Mr Chan visited the French Asset Management Association and met with a number of representatives from the industry to exchange views on promoting investment co-operation between the two places. The French Asset Management Association is a major professional association representing the French asset management industry, with about 400 members, including about 330 asset management companies. Together, they manage about 90 per cent of the assets of the French asset management industry, with a total scale of 5 trillion euros.
      
     At the meeting, Mr Chan pointed out that Hong Kong’s economy registered steady growth in 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, and that its financial system remained robust. The International Monetary Fund and two major credit rating agencies have recently given positive assessments of Hong Kong’s economic and fiscal policies. Hong Kong’s stock market rose by 28 per cent in 2025 as a whole, while its initial public offering fundraising ranked first globally, with a number of leading Mainland innovation and technology enterprises listing in Hong Kong one after another. The asset management industry in Hong Kong has reached nearly 3.9 trillion euros in scale, and there are now over 3 300 family offices, most of which manage assets exceeding US$50 million, demonstrating a thriving asset and wealth management ecosystem. Meanwhile, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has a relatively affluent population of 87 million and a Gross Domestic Product of over 1.7 trillion euros, generating substantive demand for offshore asset allocation.
      
     Mr Chan said, “For French investors seeking both capital security and investment returns, Hong Kong is an ideal destination for asset diversification with its advantages under ‘one country, two systems’, including the free flow of capital and talent, a vibrant financial ecosystem, and capital markets connected to the Mainland and the world. It is an opportune time for French financial institutions to leverage Hong Kong’s advantages to expand their asset and wealth management businesses in Asia.”
      
     Mr Chan also visited a think tank, Asia Centre Paris, and met with a number of its board members in the afternoon. The Centre focuses on the study of geopolitical strategy, international relations and governance, and economic and social development dynamics. It is one of the important institutions in France specialising in Asian strategy and geopolitical analysis.
      
     At the meeting, Mr Chan shared the latest economic and social situation of Hong Kong, as well as the directions and priority areas for its future development, and exchanged views with the board members on the international economic and trade landscape and China’s development.
      
     Mr Chan pointed out that the “one country, two systems” arrangement in Hong Kong will be upheld in the long run, and that Hong Kong’s competitive advantages are built on multiple aspects, including the common law system, free port status, low tax regime, a stable business environment, predictable economic and financial policies, and mutual market access with the Mainland’s capital markets, making Hong Kong the best gateway for international capital to connect with China opportunities. In recent years, apart from continuously developing trade and finance, Hong Kong has been actively nurturing the innovation and technology industry, making dedicated efforts to attract enterprises and talent to Hong Kong, and promoting the development of emerging industries such as artificial intelligence and biomedicine. The vast market of the Greater Bay Area and the development of emerging and future industries will create broader application scenarios and development space for European products and enterprises. In addition, under the country’s dual circulation strategy, more Mainland enterprises will set up factories and expand their businesses in Southeast Asia and Europe through Hong Kong.
      
     He welcomed more multifaceted exchanges between Asia Centre Paris and Hong Kong, including organising delegations to visit Hong Kong, so as to enhance in-depth mutual understanding between the two places and facilitate the financial and business sectors of both sides in exploring more opportunities for mutually beneficial co-operation.
      
     Mr Chan will continue his visit in Paris today (May 19, Paris time) and attend the “No Money for Terror” Ministerial Conference.
Issued at HKT 9:00

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Government introduces proposed legislative amendments into LegCo to implement smoking ban in all construction sites      
     The Government will publish the Amendment Order and the Amendment Notice in the Gazette on May 22. The Amendment Order designates construction sites as no smoking areas and the Amendment Notice specifies Occupational Safety Officers (OSOs) of the Labour Department to carry out enforcement work related to all smoking offences in construction sites under the Fixed Penalty (Smoking Offences) Ordinance (Cap. 600). Any person smoking in a construction site commits an offence. OSOs can issue a fixed penalty notice under Cap. 600 to offenders with a fixed fine of $3,000. The Amendment Order is applicable to all types of construction sites, including building maintenance sites, except domestic premises and private quarters that are being occupied by their residents for residential purposes.
      
     Meanwhile, the Amendment Regulation requires that contractors and subcontractors must take all reasonable steps to ensure that no person smokes or carries a lighted specified smoking product; or uses a naked light for lighting a specified smoking product in a construction site. Otherwise, those violating the Amendment Regulation are liable on conviction to a maximum fine of $400,000.
      
     The Amendment Order and the Amendment Notice will be subject to the negative vetting procedure, while the Amendment Regulation will be subject to the positive vetting procedure.
      
     The Government will strive to facilitate the scrutiny work of the LegCo and looks forward to the LegCo’s support for early passage of the three legislative amendments, enabling the Government to implement the smoking ban in all construction sites as soon as possible.
Issued at HKT 12:10

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