Posts

Posted on

District governance: Blossoms brighten city landscape

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     The Government has implemented thematic planting projects across Hong Kong, including planting a single type of tree or shrub in selected locations to bring vibrant colour and vitality to the community.
 
     In Sha Tin Park, related improvement works were completed earlier this year, with pink trumpet trees as the main feature. The sea of beautiful flowers has attracted residents and tourists alike to stop and take pictures.
 
     News.gov.hk spoke to representatives from the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Civil Engineering and Development Department to learn more about the thematic planting projects.
 
     The story is available at www.news.gov.hk/eng/feature from today (March 22) in text and video format.
 

Posted on

Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund 39th Awards Presentation Ceremony held today

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

The following is issued on behalf of the Working Family and Student Financial Assistance Agency:

     The 39th Awards Presentation Ceremony of the Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund (SEYMF) was held at Hong Kong City Hall today (March 22). Nine hundred and fifty-eight students, four apprentices and five working adults were presented with scholarships and awards.     
(1) Mr Cheng Wing-kit, who completed a Foundation Certificate in Electrical Wireman Training (Intermediate Trade Test) and is currently a skilled worker;

Posted on

One man arrested and charged with attempted wounding with intent and possession of offensive weapon

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

One man arrested and charged with attempted wounding with intent and possession of offensive weapon

     Police arrested a 43-year-old man on March 21 and laid holding charges against him yesterday (March 22) with one count of attempted wounding with intent and one count of possession of offensive weapon.Issued at HKT 19:58

NNNN

Posted on

Pending infanticide in Wan Chai

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Pending infanticide in Wan Chai

     Police are investigating a pending infanticide case happened in Wan Chai today (March 23) in which a baby boy died.     
     Post-mortem examinations will be conducted later to ascertain the cause of death of the deceased.Issued at HKT 19:49

NNNN

Posted on

Dates announced for second and third rounds of evidential hearings of Independent Committee in relation to fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po and online pre-registration for public observation of second round of hearings

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Dates announced for second and third rounds of evidential hearings of Independent Committee in relation to fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po and online pre-registration for public observation of second round of hearings 
     The Independent Committee in relation to the fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po announced today (March 23) that it will hold the second and third rounds of evidential hearings, comprising 13 sessions in total, in April to receive evidence. The evidential hearings will be conducted in Cantonese from 10am to 1pm and from 2.15pm to 4.30pm at the Multi-purpose Hall, 3/F, City Gallery, 3 Edinburgh Place, Central. Simultaneous interpretation in Putonghua and English will be provided in the City Gallery. Members of the public may pre-register for selected hearings that they wish to observe via the online system.
 
     The Committee will hear evidence in the evidential hearings on matters in accordance with its terms of reference. The Committee aims to clarify the relevant facts through oral evidence, written submissions, and other forms of evidence presented by witnesses. This will provide an important basis for the preparation of its report and recommendations.
 
     The schedule for the second round of six evidential hearings is as follows:
 

      The schedule for the third round of seven evidential hearings is as follows:
 

      In the second and third rounds of evidential hearings, the Committee will continue to receive oral evidence from witnesses (including oral evidence from Wang Fuk Court residents and representatives of the involved parties). The Committee will release the list of exact witnesses who will be giving evidence at each date of hearing on its website (www.ic-wangfukcourtfire.gov.hk/eng/timetable.html 
     Some seats of the hearings will be reserved for the involved parties, and some seats will be open to the public to observe the proceedings. To allow more members of the public to attend the hearings, the proceedings will be broadcast simultaneously in transmission areas set up on the ground floor of the City Gallery and in the Lecture Theatre of the Hong Kong Central Library. Arrangements will be made for some members of the public to observe the hearings in these two areas. A total of about 360 seats will be available for public observation in the main venue and the two transmission areas. About half of the seats will be set aside for residents of Wang Fuk Court on a priority basis. Separate arrangements will be made for the media.
 
     To avoid members of the public queuing up outside the venue for a long time, and to allow those who wish to observe the hearings to have certainty of whether seats have been secured before the day of the hearings, for the second round of hearings, individuals (including Wang Fuk Court residents) are required to pre-register online (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ic-hearing/en/ 
     Successful registrants will receive a “Confirmation of Successful Registration” regarding the second round of hearings issued by the Secretariat of the Committee by April 2. An SMS notification will be sent from the sender name “#IC-hearing”. If an email address is also provided during pre-registration, an email notification will be sent from hearing@ic-wangfukcourtfire.gov.hk 
     Online pre-registration arrangements for the third round of hearings will be announced separately in due course.
 
     According to the current plan, the Committee will continue to hold evidential hearings in May. Details (including the specific dates of the hearings, the witnesses who will be giving evidence, and the pre-registration arrangements for public observation) will be announced separately at a later date.
 
     The Chief Executive established the Independent Committee in relation to the fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po to review the causes of the incident and related issues of the fire, and to make recommendations to prevent similar incidents from occurring again. The Committee formally commenced its work on December 19, 2025. The first round of hearings commenced on March 19 and will last till April 2 to hear the opening remarks from the legal teams and oral evidence from witnesses (including oral evidence from Wang Fuk Court residents).
Issued at HKT 19:00

NNNN

Posted on

LegCo to debate motion on “Comprehensively reforming the complaints handling and disciplinary inquiry mechanism of the Medical Council of Hong Kong”

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

The following is issued on behalf of the Legislative Council Secretariat:

     The Legislative Council (LegCo) will hold a meeting on Wednesday (March 25) at 11am in the Chamber of the LegCo Complex. During the meeting, Members will debate a motion on “Comprehensively reforming the complaints handling and disciplinary inquiry mechanism of the Medical Council of Hong Kong”. The motion, moved by Ms Chan Hoi-yan, is set out in Appendix 1. Reverend Canon Peter Douglas Koon, Mr Nick Chan, Mr Jonathan Leung, Dr Chan Han-pan, Mr Tang Ka-piu and Dr Thomas So will move separate amendments to Ms Chan Hoi-yan’s motion.

     Dr Elvin Lee will move a motion on “Aligning with the country’s promulgation of the Regulation on Promoting Nationwide Reading to further strengthen Hong Kong’s strategy and efforts to promote reading for all”. The motion is set out in Appendix 2. Mr Kenneth Fok, Mr Albert Chuang, Dr Hoey Simon Lee, Mr Nick Chan, Professor Michael Ngai, Dr Junius Ho, Mr Yiu Pak-leung, Mr Lau Ka-keung and Professor William Wong will move separate amendments to Dr Elvin Lee’s motion.

     Meanwhile, Mr Chan Chun-ying will move a motion under Rule 49E(2) of the Rules of Procedure to take note of a report of the House Committee on consideration of subsidiary legislation and other instruments. The motion is set out in Appendix 3.

     On Government motions, the Chief Secretary for Administration will move two proposed resolutions under the Legal Aid Ordinance relating to the adjustments to the financial eligibility limits for legal aid applicants and two specific amounts under the Director of Legal Aid’s First Charge. The proposed resolutions are set out in Appendices 4 and 5 respectively.

     Members will also ask the Government 22 questions on various policy areas, six of which require oral replies.

     The agenda of the above meeting is available on the LegCo Website (www.legco.gov.hk). Members of the public can watch or listen to the meeting via the “Webcast” system on the LegCo Website. To observe the proceedings of the meeting at the LegCo Complex, members of the public may call 3919 3399 during office hours to reserve seats.

Posted on

Government adjusts Outbound Travel Alert for Middle East countries

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Government adjusts Outbound Travel Alert for Middle East countries      
     The Security Bureau will continue to closely monitor the situation of the relevant Middle East countries. Any updates will be issued through the media, the Bureau’s mobile app and the OTA webpage (www.sb.gov.hk/eng/ota      
     Hong Kong residents outside Hong Kong who need assistance may call the 24-hour hotline of the Assistance to Hong Kong Residents Unit of the Immigration Department (ImmD) at (852) 1868, call the 1868 hotline using network data or use the 1868 Chatbot via the ImmD mobile application, send message to the 1868 WhatsApp assistance hotline, send message to the 1868 WeChat assistance hotline or submit the Online Assistance Request Form, or contact the local Chinese Embassies.
      
     Hong Kong residents are encouraged to use the online Registration of Outbound Travel Information service (www.gov.hk/rotiIssued at HKT 17:15

NNNN

Posted on

Remarks by SLW at media session regarding adjustment of Government Public Transport Fare Concession Scheme for the Elderly and Eligible Persons with Disabilities

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Remarks by SLW at media session regarding adjustment of Government Public Transport Fare Concession Scheme for the Elderly and Eligible Persons with Disabilities 
Reporter: Good afternoon. Firstly, how would you assess the monetary impacts on the Government for the revised policy and the impact on beneficiaries who might have to take more expensive or longer routes after the policy takes effect? And secondly, any concrete timetable on when to review the policy and roll out the second phase, which would be the cap on the 240 trips per month? Thank you.
 
Secretary for Labour and Welfare: Thank you for your questions. The estimated annual savings arising from the new measure will be around $550 million, so as to save the public monies by putting in place a new measure. If you look at the number of transport routes that will be affected, it will be around 40 per cent. Currently, if you look at the number of routes taking into account all modes of transport, around 60 per cent of them have fares of $10 or below. That means about 40 per cent will be over $10. We will step up our promotion and publicity to put across all the messages to our elderly people and the disabled to make sure that they are fully informed about the new measure.
 
     Of course, when we roll out the new measure, we will keep a very close watch over usage patterns and also all relevant statistics. I am going to share it with the public from time to time. We will also look at what is needed to make sure that all those elderly people and the disabled are fully informed about the new measure. To put it simply, the process is very simple because they do not have to apply. They do not need to do anything by themselves. What they need to know is just look at the fare. If it is $10 or below, no change. It will be $2. If it is over $10, that means they have to pay 20 per cent of the adult fare, and the rest of the 80 per cent will be fully borne by the government. Thank you very much.
 
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the remarks.)
Issued at HKT 15:58

NNNN

Posted on

CE to attend Boao Forum for Asia annual conference in Hainan

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

​     The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, will depart for Hainan tomorrow (March 24) to attend the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2026.
　　
The theme of this year’s conference is “Shaping a Shared Future: New Dynamics, New Opportunities, New Cooperation”. Mr Lee will attend the opening plenary of the annual conference and deliver a keynote speech at the Global Free Trade Port Development Forum.
 
Mr Lee will return to Hong Kong on March 26. During his absence, the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, will be the Acting Chief Executive.