Jan 2022
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 25, 2022 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “As the epidemic begins to end in most parts of the world, Hong Kong epidemic has only just begun, and with both Omicron and ...Read MoreDelta variant viruses striking, it seems that the public is only now discussing the issues of ‘zero cases infection’ and ‘coexistence with the virus’. Virus clearance is known to be mission impossible from the beginning. Instead of putting in a lot of resources to fight the epidemic indefinitely, it would be better to seriously reorganize the pace and aim towards coexistence, so that people can get back to the right track of life. In order to survive, viruses will mutate and re-mutate. When the epidemic is underway, will the Hong Kong government change and change and change in order to survive?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jan 21, 2022 | Yam Wai Ho, member of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood observed, “The UK has successfully implemented the strategy of ‘coexisting with the virus’,...Read More revoked most of the epidemic prevention measures such as the ‘mask order’, and truly returned to normal life. It is believed that many countries that implement ‘coexistence with the virus’ strategy will gradually enter this stage, including neighboring countries like Singapore and South Korea. On the other side, Hong Kongers are angry about killing pets, disappointed that we can’t reunite in CNY, stopping schools, discuss about whether the epidemic prevention fund has been allocated enough, blame for not doing well in epidemic prevention, suffer from the closure of business and layoffs every day. Hong Kong has entered its third year of fighting the epidemic. Are we still resisting the 20th wave in ten years? Do we still need to suspend business for two or three months in every three or four months, and will we never be able to travel abroad? Meanwhile, people out of HK are living happily like parallel universe.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jan 18, 2022 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “As a result of the ...Read Morenew epidemic prevention policy, the industry has to find ways to survive, for example, florists have to look for venues to sell their Chinese New Year products. Coach drivers are hoping to arrange for passenger pick-ups too. The non-availability of evening dine-in service during the Chinese New Year has affected the mood of many people. It is believed that people will go out less, or reduce the scale of their activity, or switch to a more sedentary activity.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jan 14, 2022 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “The government is facing the fifth wave of the Omicron virus epidemic as if it ...Read Morewere a major enemy. With universal testing everywhere and the market closed after 6pm, Hong Kong is like a dead city, directly affecting economic activities and people’s livelihood. I once again suggest that the government should study the coexistence plan with the virus, so as not to trap itself in a dangerous city, and return to market activities as soon as possible, so that people can lead a normal life again.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jan 11, 2022 | Yam Wai Ho, member of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood observed, “Many senior government officials and members of the Legislative Council knew that Omicron was not terrible, otherwise they would not have dared to attend a party...Read More of nearly 200 people. I think they are demonstrating the practice of ‘living with the virus’. Hongkongers who are not afraid of the epidemic should ask the government to relax the restrictions on gatherings, so that Hongkongers can continue to party like senior government officials. I have always advocated a ‘coexistence with the virus’ approach in dealing with the epidemic, and I believe there are many people in the business community who share the same thoughts as me. In fact, there are more and more scientific and medical data showing that Omicron is not scary, what needs to be feared is ‘fear’ itself.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jan 07, 2022 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The latest situation of various industries can be said to be aggravated by the uncertainty of border resumption and the sudden regulations on gathering. Of course, ...Read Morethe cancellation of large-scale events also affects some businesses. At the same time, it can be seen that different industries have immediately reflected their problems to the government and asked for relevant rescue measures. The industry had expected the epidemic situation to be relatively stable, but unfortunately, a new round of epidemic has hit before the Chinese New Year, which has affected their business.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jan 04, 2022 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “The government had originally planned to launch the quarantine-free border resumption on December 10, but the plan was ...Read Moreput on hold due to the global outbreak of Omicron virus. Recently, it was rumoured that the government would forbid public from dining in restaurants after 6pm, causing a wave of panic. As a precautionary measure against the mutated virus, the government has continued to provide a third dose of vaccine to the public, and has further tightened the quarantine arrangement for aircrews stationed in Hong Kong, extending the quarantine period from three to seven days and abolishing the exemption from quarantine. This is a disruptive move that has a direct impact on people’s livelihood, so the government must think again.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
Dec 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 28, 2021 | Yam Wai Ho, member of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood observed, “Chief Executive Carrie Lam has gone to Beijing to report her work, but she still failed to obtain border resumption for Hong Kong. ...Read MoreThe reason may be that China government believes that there is no need to resume the border crossing with Hong Kong, coupled with the recurrence of the Xi’an epidemic and the need to cope with the top national event of the Winter Olympics, border resumption with Hong Kong will only add variables to the country. The person who most wants to resume border may be Chief Executive Carrie Lam, who is eager to carry out the plan for the Greater Bay Area in the Policy Address.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Dec 23, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “With the Winter Solstice Festival just over, some restaurants and family gatherings have returned to normal. However, ...Read Moreit seems that people are going out to celebrate less than in the past and are arranging food and gatherings at home. In terms of border resumption, the industry is looking forward to return to previous level after a run-in period, rather than just the existing quota. SMEs are also expecting the epidemic to draw to a close and are working hard to cope with the upcoming festive seasons with a ‘Lion Rock’ spirit.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Dec 17, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “The government had originally planned to launch the quarantine-free border resumption on December 10, but the plan was put on hold due to the global outbreak of Omicron virus. ...Read MoreIn order to effectively prevent the mutated virus and monitor the epidemic, the government has continued to review the feasibility of administering a third dose of the vaccine to the public, and has also classified dozens of countries around the world with Omicron mutated virus cases as high-risk areas, effectively isolating Hong Kong from the rest of the world. The epidemic and influenza have become a global endemic, and living with the virus is the only way out. Once again, I suggest that the Hong Kong Government should not hesitate to act promptly.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Dec 14, 2021 | Yam Wai Ho, member of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood observed, “When Chief Executive announced the quarantine-free travel last week, she pointed out that priority would be given to business and civil purposes. ...Read MoreIn fact, Hong Kong people have made a lot of concessions and sacrifices for quarantine-free border crossing, including all measures related to ‘zero infection case’ and a lot of inconvenience caused by the strengthening of monitoring. In the end, the only thing in exchange was the clearance of a small number of privileged classes. This is believed to arouse the resentment of a large number of ordinary citizens who have made sacrifices and concessions in support of travel clearance.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Dec 10, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Small and medium-sized restaurants are now benefiting from the consumption voucher and their business has improved slightly. However, ...Read Morelarge restaurants are not benefiting from that as their clientele are mainly tourists and catering for wedding parties. Although the market has recovered a bit, the festive mood is not too good and should only improve in a week or two.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Dec 07, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “Every measure formulated by the government in response to the epidemic prevention policy will inevitably affect the business of the industry, and the industry has no choice ...Read Morebut to comply. The industry is generally inclined to support the relevant measures. After the border resumption with the mainland, the government can relax the existing anti-epidemic measures, including the four-person gathering restriction and the opening hours of restaurants, such as allowing Category B restaurants to extend their evening meal for an additional hour, so that the industry can do business in time for Christmas and New Year and restore the business environment as soon as possible.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Dec 03, 2021 | Yam Wai Ho, member of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood observed, “The virus has undergone many mutations, and this time it has come to Omicron to debut. Pharmaceutical companies have announced the need ...Read Moreto re-develop targeted vaccines for Omicron, because the old vaccines have little effect. BioNTech and Sinovac vaccines are only developed for the most original version. In an era when new variants are constantly appearing, the purpose of vaccination, apart from making numbers and peace of mind, does not seem to have much effect on real epidemic prevention.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
Nov 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 30, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Recently, the public has been mainly concerned about border crossing and vaccination, which are particularly crucial to the tourism and catering industries. ...Read MoreHowever, not much information is available to the public. For example, on issues such as ‘how to stop or prevent high-risk individuals from coming to Hong Kong’ and ‘whether the target of vaccination should be 99%’, the Government should release information centrally and regularly, and communicate more to the public so that the public can have a clearer understanding of all kinds of information.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Nov 26, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “In anticipation of the limited border crossing between Hong Kong and the Mainland on December 10, LeaveHomeSafe will be fully operational on December 9. Basically, wherever people go, ...Read Morethey have to report their whereabouts through LeaveHomeSafe so that the government can monitor the outbreak. However, what people are looking forward to is that the government can relax or even lift the restriction on gathering, so that people can go back to their normal life. I strongly suggest that the government should respond to the public opinion, so that people can participate in large-scale festive events and general family gatherings without the hassle of 599G.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Nov 23, 2021 | Yam Wai Ho, member of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood observed, “If Hong Kong only implements the ‘zeroinfection policy’, there is no need to push up the vaccinationrate. In order to travel with the mainland, ...Read Morethe government keeps asking Hong Kong to increase the vaccination rate. Is it preparing to be ‘coexisting with the mainland virus?’” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Nov 19, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Although there may be some inconvenience in...Read More implementation, the public has gradually become familiar with the use of LeaveHomeSafe. However, the government and the experts should provide clearer and more convincing guidelines and regulations on epidemic prevention policies, so that the public can ‘feel easy’ in implementing them. At the same time, there should be a greater appreciation of the public’s past efforts, rather than concerning how far we are from our goal.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Nov 15, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “The government has recently announced the introduction of ‘vaccination passports’ through the experts, ...Read Morefollowing the restriction on gathering and LeaveHomeSafe. The government’s epidemic prevention policy is strict and disproportionate, and it is very disturbing to the public as it restricts people’s space for activities. In this regard, I suggest that the government should first consider the actual situation of the public, rather than forcing the public to cooperate with the government in a coercive manner, as this would lead to counter-productive effects that would outweigh the losses. As a matter of fact, zero-infection policy is no longer possible, and the only way out is to live with the virus.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Nov 12, 2021 | Yam Wai Ho, member of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood observed, “The third dose of vaccination started in Hong Kong yesterday. However, many cases of infection that have been vaccinated have proved that the vaccine does not help cut off the...Read More spread of the virus, that is to say, the third dose of vaccination has nothing to do with the ‘zero-case policy’. On the contrary, in Europe and the United States where people ‘coexist with the virus’, because people are exposed to an environment that is prone to infection, continuous vaccination will make more sense. In Hong Kong, the third dose only has the function of ‘reassurance’ and meeting travel clearance requirements with mainland China.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Nov 9, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The end of the year is approaching, and the topic of boundary crossing (with no quarantine) has become the focus again. Various news from government officers, medical ...Read Moreexperts and the populace point to the pre-requisites: vaccination, Covid-19 case tracking, and group gathering ban (GGB). Up to now, everyone’s opposition to the GGB has showed indifference to the ban, and the government continues to expand the coverage of vaccination and uses LeaveHomeSafe apps to strengthen the tracking methods. There is no major mistake in these practices, but the government always has a way to make a mess, as well as present an unpleasant scenario.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Nov 5, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “The Government has recently disclosed through the media that quarantine-free border crossing between Hong Kong and China is expected to be implemented on a trial basis by end of this year, covering the business sector,...Read More family visits, compassionate visits and funerals, with a quota of 1,000 per week for the business sector. However, even after the epidemic has been under control and the local community has registered zero cases for a number of days, the restriction on gathering continues to be enforced and the epidemic preventive measures have not been relaxed, but rather tightened. The Government even requires people to use LeaveHomeSafe when entering government facilities, which has led to widespread discontent among the retail and catering industries. If the government insists on providing a peace of mind to all citizens, I suggest that it should first lift the restriction on gathering and increase the justification for people to use LeaveHomeSafe.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Nov 2, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “LeaveHomeSafe began to be used in most government-related places yesterday, causing heavy costs for elderly and low-income people. They need to buy new mobile phones, or else go to the supermarkets ...Read Moreor wet markets under Link REIT and suffer from more expensive food. As there are zero local cases for a long time, is the intention to further tighten the epidemic prevention measures to show power or to pave the way for the health code system?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
Oct 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 29, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Recently Hong Kong government extended the current social distancing measures for 14 days, and the mainstream public views continue to oppose the 4-person group gathering ban. Restaurants have been expecting a ...Read Morefurther relaxation of the number of people at the banquet, but it seems unlikely that there will be any drastic changes in the coming period, so the industry can only continue to do their best. Both employers and employee groups in the tourism sector have expressed their demand for the government to achieve the quarantine-free border crossing as soon as possible, and even the public has strong complaints about the government’s sluggish action. The only way for the public to pay the bill and complain at the same time.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Oct 26, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “It has been almost two years since the government implemented the ‘Group Gathering Restriction’, except for the subsidies at the beginning of the epidemic, there is no subsidy at all...Read More in 2021, so SMEs can only continue to struggle and their business turnover has not yet returned to normal due to the epidemic. Given the current situation of the epidemic, the government should consider lifting the restriction on indoor gathering in restaurants, bars and fitness centres in phases after the incubation period ends and the number of cases does not increase, so that the industry can get back on track.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Oct 22, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Earlier, the Education Bureau set a criterion for the resumption of classes in secondary schools with a vaccination rate of 70%. ...Read MoreAs of this month, only less than half of the classes can meet this criterion, which is not ideal for the Education Bureau. I think the Education Bureau should lower the requirement for the vaccination rate so that more secondary schools can resume full-time classes. However, because the Central government believes that Hong Kong’s epidemic prevention measures are not rigorous enough to allow cross border travelling, it seems unlikely that lowering the threshold would be realized. On the other hand, in the absence of border resumption, Hong Kong’s economy continues to recover. The unemployment rate continues to fall, and the market is becoming more prosperous. Maybe more Hong Kong people will begin to feel that Hong Kong’s economy is feasible without relying on Mainland. I believe this is an undesirable situation for the Central government.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Oct 19, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “The coronavirus epidemic in Hong Kong subsides while the confirmed cases remain low. The government has extended most of the social distancing and catering measures ...Read Morefor 14 days until October 27. The Chief Executive mentioned in her policy address that she might merge the ‘travel code’ and ‘LeaveHomeSafe’ at the end of the year, and did not rule out the possibility of requiring universal installation to prepare for the travel resumption. At the same time, many countries have abandoned the strategy of ‘zero infection’ amid the ongoing epidemic, and have adopted the ‘coexistence with the virus’ strategy instead. I suggest again that the SAR Government should make reference to the relevant measures to prepare for global travel resumption, instead of endlessly pursuing ‘zero infection’, which would trap Hong Kong in a dead end.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Oct 15, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “With the excitement of consumption voucher scheme and more holidays in October, local business has been quite juicy now. ...Read MoreCatering and retail industries definitely benefited from the scheme and relieved for a while. The treasury already spent extra 120 billions for the schemes of consumer voucher and employment support, which is about 20% of the annual government’s revenue. Thus, it is not likely a sustainable policy. The challenge remains and the government needs to rejuvenate the economy for more sustainable incomes.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Oct 12, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “From the perspective of the Hong Kong Government, the traveller clearance has been negotiated with the Central ...Read MoreGovernment for a long time, and it has not been as clear until now. This may cause the public to lose confidence in the ability of the Hong Kong Government to cooperate with the Central Government. In particular, the policy address released by the Chief Executive last week involved many plans for the Greater Bay Area, which will make people doubt whether the big plans in the policy address can really be realized. But on the other hand, I think it is also good to let Hong Kong observe the situation of Macau’s traveller clearance first.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Oct 8, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “In addition to the public’s constant urging for the government to speed up the process of ...Read Morequarantine-free border crossing, the focus of these two days was on the policy address. In terms of improving people’s livelihood, especially in terms of land supply, the government’s plans can respond to the needs of the community and are certainly effective in stabilizing the society. The only thing is that there are no targeted measures for the overall economic recovery, and there is still a lack of determination to support the Hong Kong economy after the epidemic. In today’s Hong Kong, moderate governance is no longer a satisfactory answer for everyone.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Oct 5, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “School classes in Macau was suspended since September 25 and it was the resumption day yesterday. However, because a suspected case has entered the community during border re-opening, Macau urgently announced the continued suspension of classes yesterday....Read More On the fourth day that Macau and the mainland implemented the quarantine-free border arrangement, Macau was again plunged into a total suspension of classes. The fundamental reason is that the zero infection strategy and quarantine-free border arrangement are contradictory in nature. Quarantine-free border arrangement can easily introduce suspected cases to the community, and the government will announce a complete suspension of classes, work and business in order to absolutely clear them. I hope that the Hong Kong government will learn from it and understand that quarantine-free border arrangement can only be synchronized with the ‘coexistence with the virus’ strategy. Otherwise, quarantine-free border arrangement will be a nightmare for schools, parents, and even all industries in Hong Kong.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
Sep 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 30, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “There are constant rumours that health codes exchange is needed for lifting Hong Kong and Mainland...Read More border control. I think that only those who go to Mainland China needs to install the mainland’s ‘health code’, while those coming to Hong Kong can just install the ‘LeaveHomeSafe’. There is no need for digital technology transfer between the two sides, and also no need for everyone to adapt to the new system.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 29, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “As the consumption voucher scheme takes effect, local retail and catering business has slightly recovered....Read More However, the almost forgotten tourism industry is still depressed. The good news is that two days ago, Hong Kong government finally had a formal meeting with mainland authority regarding quarantine-free travel. Being an essential part of the Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong’s interflow and communication with the mainland is not just an anti-epidemic matter but also a critical issue related to people’s livelihood and regional economic development.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 28, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Of the 8 confirmed imported cases the day before yesterday, 7 had received two doses of vaccine. ...Read More Of the 3 confirmed imported cases yesterday, all have been vaccinated with two doses. The claim that vaccines can prevent infection is completely untenable. The effectiveness of vaccines has been over-exaggerated, include herd immunity. If vaccination is a product for sale, I am afraid that it has already violated the Trade Descriptions Ordinance. This means that the government does not need to push for vaccination so much, especially that it is not a necessary condition for border crossing between Hong Kong and the mainland.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 27, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “A meeting on the anti-epidemic work of the Mainland and Hong Kong was held in Shenzhen yesterday. Mainland experts and our government officials ...Read Morediscussed in detail matters related to the resumption of quarantine-free travel in a gradual and orderly manner, including the risk of quarantine-free travel. The government is also taking a multi-pronged approach to arrange for young people of age 12 to 17 to receive a dose of the BioNTech vaccine. I hope that the government would lift the restriction on gathering as soon as possible, so that people can resume their normal life.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 24, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “After months of lockdown, Hong Kong peoples could finally spend some holidays in local attractions....Read More During last weekend and the Mid-Autumn Festival, people poured out to the countryside and the outlying islands. In Tai O, the lanterns festival host even decided not to turn on the lights due to security concerns. People have been trapped so long that they need ways to relive their pressure. If the government ignores such urge and strictly enforces the gathering bans, there would be adverse consequences. Fortunately, the epidemic is subsiding, otherwise there would be many more depression cases.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 23, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The Education Bureau is collecting data and will announce the vaccination rate of all secondary schools in early October. ...Read MoreSince the medical profession has found that herd immunity is no longer feasible, I suggest dropping all hurdles for resuming full-day classes, and that all secondary schools should resume full-day classes as soon as possible.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 21, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The requirement for ‘Come2HK’ Scheme is very loose, it does not require vaccination, probably because the mainland considers the effectiveness of vaccination...Read More not that good. It reduces the symptoms, but not isolate the virus. That be the case, the government should shift its vaccination efforts from the less symptomatic groups, such as the young people, to the more vulnerable groups.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 20, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic around the world, a structural global economic crisis has occurred due to border closure. As the virus...Read More continues to mutate, people who have received two doses of the vaccine are still at risk. Zero infection is just an illusion, while border closure and gathering restrictions are not practical at all. The industry can no longer tolerate them, for fear that they will starve to death before getting infected. Some people even prefer to live with the virus and stop the struggle. I hope the government would seriously consider lifting the group gathering ban so that Hong Kong can start afresh.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 17, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “It seems that our government officers never dine out, nor move around ...Read Morein crowded area. When you walk into a restaurant or go downtown, you certainly query the current group gathering ban (GGB) of 4 persons. You see so many peoples around. The restaurants are so full and the streets so congested. This is typical Hong Kong life! When the GGB can neither prevent peoples from gathering, nor eradicate COVID-19, why do we still need this ineffective ban?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 16, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Hong Kong government has reached an agreement with the mainland to introduce ...Read Morethe ‘Come2HK’ Scheme. This allows 2,000 non-Hong Kong residents from Guangdong Province or Macao to come to Hong Kong every day without compulsory quarantine. This is definitely good for Hong Kong’s economy. However, almost all border crossing arrangement in the world include vaccination, ‘Come2HK’ Scheme does not, making it the most lenient scheme of the world, even among those places adopting the ‘coexistence with the virus’ strategy. It seems that the government has misunderstood the mainland’s emphasis on vaccination and acted differently.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 15, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “As Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, ‘dining’ and...Read More ‘gathering’ are traditional celebration activities. Despite the government’s extension of the 4-person group gathering ban (GGB) to 29 September, around two-thirds of the nights in the coming month has been fully booked in many restaurants. It reveals the contradiction between government policies and public opinion. Instead of holding the line of 4-person GGB, why not our government finds more ways to manage case tracking and vaccine coverage? After all, no one wants a surprised moon-cake dinner.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 14, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “Hong Kong’s situation continues to be stable, with only one imported case yesterday without any local case of unknown...Read More origin. However, more and more schools are experiencing influenza outbreaks, and since the symptoms are similar to those of COVID-19, the government may need to adjust its strategy. In fact, both COVID-19 and influenza have become endemic diseases of the earth so ‘coexisting with the virus’ is the only way out. The government should better move early.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 13, 2021 | Convenor of Hong Kong Public Health Research Collaborative, Dr Crystal Chan observed, “As the pandemic persists, the ...Read Morepublic is getting exhausted with the social distancing measures. It is vital to seek other solutions to the prolonged pandemic situation worldwide. Public attention may focus on epidemic prevention these days as new cases emerge. This could be a golden chance for members of the public to encourage vaccination among the elderly, and lay plans to build resilience against future epidemic outbreak in the community.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 10, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “It is a good start for the government to resume quarantine exemption for persons returning either...Read More from Macau or Mainland areas other than Guangdong Province under Return2hk Scheme. I hope the government will soon lift the barrier for the local industries, and also relax the restrictions on gathering for Hong Kong people. The only way out for Hong Kong is to accept ‘coexistence with the virus’. The government should formulate a strategy immediately without delay.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 9, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The Chief Executive pointed out yesterday that the strategy of ...Read More‘coexisting with the virus’ cannot be adopted because ‘otherwise border crossing will be more indefinite’. This is not scientific reasoning. The primary target of border crossing is mainland China. Maybe it is the Chinese government which requires Hong Kong to maintain zero infection before resuming border crossing. The Chief Executive’s high profile dismissal of the ‘coexistence strategy’ has made all industries panic. If the number of confirmed cases rises, work and classes would be suspended again, and people’s livelihood would be in crisis again.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 8, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The Return2hk and Come2hk Schemes that we discussed in the past two days have brought some comfort to us. After establishing a mechanism...Read More to come to Hong Kong, the next step is to discuss with the mainland authorities the arrangement for cross-border quarantine waiver for travelling to the mainland. After all, it is impossible to boost tourism when there is still quarantine arrangements for entering and leaving Hong Kong.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 7, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The collapse of the anti-epidemic barrier has a great meaning....Read More The medical profession has found that a large number of people who have been vaccinated can still be infected and then infect others. The idea that vaccinations can protect others is outdated, it can only reduce personal symptoms when one is infected. This deviates completely from the original intent when the vaccine was introduced. The responsibility for vaccination has also shifted significantly from the perspective of public interest to individual rights and freedom, and the individual’s health is largely in the hands of the individuals. Therefore, I think the government no longer needs to take too much responsibility for vaccination, nor put too much pressure on different sectors.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 6, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “After mass vaccination worldwide, many countries in Europe and the America have ...Read Moreadopted a ‘live with the virus’ model to combat the epidemic. However, the Hong Kong government has not kept abreast with the times, which not only affects people’s livelihood but also Hong Kong’s status as an international financial center. I suggest the government adopt the ‘living with the virus’ concept and establish a clear exit strategy for current anti-epidemic measures. It should turn its defensive strategies to aggressive ones so that Hong Kong can recover from the epidemic as quickly as possible.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 3, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The government announced that it would waive 36 types of...Read More licence fees for one more year, resulting a drop of about 2 billion dollars in treasury income. Even though licence fee is just a small part of the operation cost, it is still an encouraging move to the trades. The Chief Executive would soon deliver a Policy Address, let us wait and see if our government could remain small while taking big ventures, and lead Hong Kong to economic recovery.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 2, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Yesterday the schools started classes in an orderly manner, and...Read More there was not much problem in epidemic prevention. However, no school had applied for resumption of full day classes, with the condition that vaccination rate reaches 70%. Many experts have pointed out that the vaccination rate needs to be further increased, some even said the concept of anti-epidemic barrier had already burst. Therefore, the rationale for achieving 70% vaccination rate before resuming full day classes is no longer valid. I think the Education Bureau may need to reconsider whether the requirement of 70% vaccination rate is still appropriate.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Sep 1, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “‘Back to school’ was the talk of the town at the end of August, ...Read More‘get a jab’ is now the only slogan of our government. Personally, I agree that vaccination is one of the most practical measures to fight COVID-19, but it has now become an incapable and only government slogan to combat the epidemic. When so many trades and peoples are waiting for the relaxation of social gatherings and border crossing, if all our hopes are put on vaccination and if it would finally burst like other fantasies, then we will be taking a risk which is solely man-made.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
Aug 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “Experts believe that herd immunity is impracticable due to virus mutation. However, the Hong Kong government is ...Read More blindly insisting for universal vaccination, and intends to introduce the ‘Health Pass’ which only allows vaccinated people to enter certain premises. Most businesses like restaurants, cinemas and beauty salons, which do not have vaccination requirement yet are likely to be the target. These businesses have been hard hit by the epidemic, they are set to suffer more. This move is totally against people’s will and would drive all businesses to the brink of extinction. I think the government should think again and again.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 30, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Local experts have recently raised the vaccination target for herd immunity again, even to the point...Read More of universal vaccination. This is an impossible task, no country in the world that can reach that level. If it is necessary to reach this extreme level before relaxing the epidemic preventive measures, then there is simply no chance at all. Developed regions around the world are now relaxing vaccination measures to revive their economies, but Hong Kong is going against the tide. The situation is rather worrying.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 27, 2021 | Kenneth Lee, Chairperson from Hong Kong Clerical, Administrative and Executive Employees Union observed, “The epidemic has gradually receded and the public has begun to discuss the...Read More conditions under which they could resume normal life. With the government’s further relaxation of epidemic preventive measures and the issuing of the first phase of $2,000 electronic consumption vouchers to citizens in August, the market immediately boomed, and long queues appeared in many shopping malls and restaurants during weekends. While it is encouraging to see the recovery of Hong Kong’s economy, I think the public should not be complacent, otherwise the epidemic can come back anytime. Even if gathering restrictions would be relaxed, it should be done gradually and linked to the vaccination rate. The government should provide more incentives for people to get vaccinated, and makes them understand that this is the most effective way to ask the central government for re-opening the border and to let people go back to their normal life!” | Special Announcement Press Release |
Presentation Slides |
| Aug 26, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Two days after the suspension of the bilateral Air Travel Bubble (ATB) between Hong Kong and...Read More Singapore, government appointed expert Prof KY Yuen said that ‘the hope of herd immunity has gone down’ due to virus mutation. Moreover, our government once said it would liaise with mainland authority about cross-border quarantine waiver after a period of zero infection. With the summer vacation coming to an end, all these fantasies will vanish like burst bubbles.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 25, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The Chief Executive yesterday strongly suggested private companies to follow the government’s lead in requiring...Read More their staff to vaccinate. The private companies generally considered no such need. In fact, some employees are worried that vaccination would affect their health, and some have been certified by doctors as unfit for vaccination. If a company forces these employees to undergo testing at their own expense, it will inevitably lose them to other companies that do not require compulsory vaccination, causing manpower shortage which affects normal operations. If these companies subsidise the test fees, it would increase costs and hinders operations, thereby slowing down economic recovery after the epidemic.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 24, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “As the epidemic continues to stabilise in Hong Kong, many people have resumed their spending activities. The unemployment...Read More rate continues to drop, the situation in the retail and catering industries has improved significantly. The government has also started to issue the electronic consumption vouchers, which is helping the economy. Vaccinated foreign domestic helpers from the Philippines and Indonesia, which were previously classified as high-risk areas by the government, are expected to enter Hong Kong within a week. I think the restriction on gathering should be relaxed so that the Hong Kong economy can recover as soon as possible.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 23, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The governments of Hong Kong and Singapore decided not to pursue further...Read More discussions on the bilateral Air Travel Bubble (ATB) due to ‘differences in the anti-epidemic strategies currently adopted by the two places’. Although Mainland China is the primary target of Hong Kong border crossing resumption, so we may need to match with their anti-epidemic strategies, considering the geographical and social similarities between Hong Kong and Singapore, I think our government should proactively review and optimize our overall anti-epidemic philosophy.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 20, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “According to the results of the class resumption survey ...Read Morereleased by PORI last Friday, 71% and 58% of parents in primary and secondary schools considered it inconvenient to maintain half-day classes. On the other hand, 44% and 71% of parents in primary and secondary schools respectively agreed to resuming full-day classes in September. Although primary school parents felt more inconvenient than secondary school parents, it is interesting to note that they were less in favour of having full-day classes. Perhaps they thought that although half-day schooling would be more inconvenient, full-day schooling would be more dangerous for primary students who could not be vaccinated. Another possible reason is that primary school parents thought that half-day schooling would provide more time to cultivate parent-child relationship, for children to participate in extracurricular activities, revisions and rests, so they still felt it worth practising.” | Special Announcement Press Release |
Presentation Slides |
| Aug 19, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The government discovered one confirmed local case this Tuesday, ...Read Moreand also considered the situation overseas posting a ‘serious threat’. However, the government will only impose more stringent boarding, quarantine and testing requirements on inbound travellers from Friday morning, meaning a window period of three days. Our government has claimed so often that it would stem out COVID-19, but it is now giving a 3-day window for the virus to spread. Such policy contradictions and delays will eventually kill Hong Kong.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 18, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “From 0 to 1, the appearance of a local COVID-19 case, although just an indirect ...Read Moreimported case, revealed the difficulties to put the disease (especially a respiratory infectious disease) under control. On the one hand, we need to keep our caution to COVID-19. Furthermore, we need to assess and balance all risks scientifically from the angle of public health. 100% eradication, 100% vaccination, 100% safe… all sounds like empty talks behind closed doors.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 17, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “While the epidemic situation in Hong Kong continues to improve, a global outbreak of the Delta variant is underway. The government ...Read Morehas already indicated through the media that in case of a fifth outbreak, it is very likely that only Category D premises will be allowed to provide evening dine-in, while Category B catering staff would need to be tested every seven days starting from 19 August before they can work in the premises from 26 August onward, but those who have completed vaccination would be exempted. The government is obviously trying its best to boost the vaccination coverage, while ignoring the critical conditions of the restaurants. If there is really a fifth wave of outbreak, I would suggest applying a ‘curfew’ which would be more practical than regulating the catering industry!” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 16, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Summer holiday is traditionally the peak season of tourism, but now more and more tourism ...Read Moreworkers are leaving the industry, not because of the tough moments but because of its dim future. On the other hand, there are crowds in shopping centers and theme parks. Many restaurants have learned to break a banquet into different compartments to get more business. Look around the whole city, only our government is still sticking to the social group gathering ban.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 13, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The food expo started yesterday, and the venue was crowded with people. With the experience of book fair, I think Hong Kong ...Read Morepeople have got used to taking epidemic preventive measures in the crowd. This is a good sign, it proves that as long as there is good border control, the danger of crowd gathering is not too high. Therefore, I hope the government can further relax the gathering ban.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 12, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “Since the launch of the vaccination, over 6.38 million doses have been administered to Hong Kong people, and about 3.6 million people have...Read More received at least one dose of the vaccine, accounting for 52.9% of the population aged 12 or above. Based on the current situation, it is believed that the target of herd immunity will be achieved soon. Coupled with the government’s effective border control, restrictions on gathering could be relaxed. I hope the government would not use various reasons to suppress the survival of the catering industry, and take action to prove that it is not incompetent.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 11, 2021 | Convenor of Hong Kong Public Health Research Collaborative, Dr Crystal Chan from The Chinese University of Hong Kong observed, “The government recently announced the extension of ...Read More, the epidemic prevention measures in response to the ongoing epidemic worldwide. As the epidemic takes its toll, the public would easily get fatigued with the preventive measures, which may become a breakpoint for the fifth wave of the epidemic. With half of the population already received at least one dose of the vaccine, it is important to make early arrangements for the elderly to get vaccinated and to inform the public and the different sectors as soon as possible of various arrangements after the closure of the community vaccination centres.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 10, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “Vaccines around the world seem unable to cope with the mutating virus, as the pandemic continues to spread. The Hong Kong government ...Read Morehas become inflexible in its response to the pandemic, not ready to relax the social distancing measures significantly. It keeps saying that the fifth wave of pandemic outbreak will happen any time, and forecasts the tightening of the restrictions on Category B restaurants regarding virus tests for staffs in August, putting the livelihood of small business owners at stake. In the long run, people will have to rely on their own luck, to wear their own masks properly, and to rely on themselves more than on the government.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 09, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “A few days ago, the government decided to provide another round of anti-epidemic fund to the tourism industry, ...Read Moreamounting to over $300 million. The government once said it would not provide any anti-epidemic fund again, but it has now taken back its words, which is good. Although the amount is just a drop in the bucket, it is still better than nothing. The tourism industry, however, still needs to think of more solutions.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 06, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “No defence can stand forever, zero infection is considered too ideal especially ...Read Morewhen new COVID-19 cases in Macau and the mainland have spoilt their clean sheets. Medical professionals are traditionally trained to provide individual-based services, they of course welcome zero infection. However, we are now encountering a global health problem that requires us to live with the virus. If gathering ban cannot guarantee zero infection, why should our government still worship it blindly?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 05, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Yesterday, Macau has newly confirmed cases that may be caused by a study tour...Read More returning from mainland China, so it immediately implemented a number of emergency measures. Hong Kong people may start to think whether it is safe to open the border with the mainland. Earlier on, some Hong Kong people thought that if Hong Kong controls the epidemic well, we could lift the border control with the mainland, and the economy would start to recover, but the current situation is that mainland’s situation is more dangerous than ours. Do we still want to open the border?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 04, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “As we enter August, the electronic consumption voucher scheme becomes the talk of the town. The scheme really boosted the retail ...Read Moremarket substantially especially for daily necessities. However, the catering industry has gained little from the scheme because only a fraction of the restaurants could accept the vouchers, while the gathering ban continues. Meanwhile, the local tourism industry is still struggling in the mud. It seems that the bad days have not yet ended as new infection cases are appearing in many mainland cities.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 03, 2021 | Independent commentator KC Poon observed, “From December 31, 2019 till yesterday, the epidemic has caused a total of 212 deaths in Hong Kong. Recently, the epidemic has spread rapidly to 15 provinces and cities in Mainland China ...Read Moredue to a breach in air traffic control. Although local infections in Hong Kong are barely contained, three cases were recently found to be imported by Hong Kong residents returning to Hong Kong, so a high degree of caution is still needed in sea, land and air transport controls.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Aug 02, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The consumption vouchers are being despatched starting yesterday. What we see on the news screen is mainly related to the retail and catering industries. Although...Read More the response of the retail industry seems relatively better, the actual effect needs further observations. In any case, some industries are not helped by the consumer vouchers, such as the private education center industry and the art and culture-related industries, which hardly get any benefit from the consumption vouchers. I hope the government can find more ways to help these industries which are left out of the consumption voucher scheme.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
Jul 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 30, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Hong Kong International Travel Expo opened today. The numbers inspire us. There were usually 60 million travellers coming to Hong Kong annually...Read More and now we only have one-thousandth of them. The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau said that while the tough situation of the tourism industry could not be reversed in the short run, the industry should get prepared and reformed to attract more tourists. The message is that tourism has no hope in the near future. The terms ‘prepared’ and ‘reformed’ are just typical bureaucratic jargons.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 29, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “More and more parents, teachers and students now believe that the new semester starting September should maintain half-day classes....Read More Especially in elementary schools, almost all parents believe that it would be more suitable. After three semesters, everyone has adapted to the rhythm of half-day classes. Although progress at class is slightly slower, parents have more parent-child time with their children, and they can also choose different types of extracurricular activities more freely. I hope the Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung can take note of the benefits of half-day schooling to primary school students, and maintain half-day classes in the new semester, even after the epidemic.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 28, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The current epidemic situation is relatively stable. However, some affected industries are still in deep trouble....Read More For example, tourism industry is still facing severe hardship after they struggled for more than one and a half years. A group of tourist guides who speaks Korean would rather take up cashier jobs in Korean supermarkets rather than organizing local tours under the ‘Green Lifestyle Local Tour Incentive Scheme’ subsidized by government. If there is no tourist crossing the border, there will be no chance for these guides to survive.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 27, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The Economist Intelligence Unit pointed out that with the restart of the global economy, those countries or cities which...Read More do not resume border crossing with have their status as commercial centers permanently damaged. I believe that many industries in Hong Kong share the same feeling. If we would just pursue zero infection and open our border later than other regions, Hong Kong’s overall economy would definitely be damaged in the long run. I hope the government would change the goal of zero infection as soon as possible to save our economy.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 26, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “We have a taste of the ‘new’ lifestyle when we see so few audience in the Olympic opening ceremony in Tokyo....Read More Recently, the epidemic situation in Hong Kong is rather stable, and the few imported cases were all traced and handled properly. Judging from the numbers, both Hong Kong and mainland are controlling the pandemic well, so people are urging for ‘normal’ border crossing. It is no longer a new concept to ‘live with the virus’. It is time to see how our government can transform scientific knowledges into political wisdom.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 23, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Daily life in Hong Kong is somewhat going back to normal. Streets and restaurants...Read More are bustling, meaning that peoples are less cautious than before. These scenes contrast sharply with existing group gathering bans. As the pandemic situation of the surrounding areas remains, there is little chance of out-bound traffic in the near future. However, when Hong Kong peoples have to shop and dine locally, they may risk breaking the law. If our government does not take heed of public concerns, how can it lead us out of the deadlock?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 22, 2021 | On the implementation of group gathering bans, Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “On the 17th of this month, the police conducted ...Read Morean inter-departmental blitz lockdown operation outside a restaurant in Causeway Bay. They issued penalty tickets to 229 people at the scene with a total fine of more than a million dollar. If the government just wants to reduce the risk of infection, is it necessary for the police to spend so much time and effort? In fact, is it possible to just send two to three police officers to remind people of the need to comply with the group gathering ban before issuing the penalty tickets? On the other side of Wan Chai District, there was a book fair going on many thousand times more crowded. This may make people feel that ‘only the state officials are free to set fires, while common people are forbidden to even light a lamp.’” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 21, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Grand events keep coming with the start of summer holiday. Hong Kong Book Fair just ended after 7 days...Read More of exhibition where the number of visitors fell slightly below last time. Luckily there was no COVID-19 case related to the event and could therefore be considered as having ‘passed’ the test. The procedures of crowd control and tracing, as well as allowing convenient access for those vaccinated, have provided a good reference for social gathering controls in business activities. The only difference is that there were significantly fewer exhibitors and visitors coming from mainland China, so it would still be a long time before the ‘bubble’ of Hong Kong would merge with the ‘bubble’ of mainland China.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 20, 2021 | Ben Leung Lap-yan, Charter President of the Licensed Bar and Club Association of Hong Kong proposes, “The catering industry considers current group gathering restrictions and measures acceptable. ...Read MoreThe number of people allowed per table and the total number of people per event are increased according to the level of vaccination and the use of the ‘LeaveHomeSafe’ mobile app. Although it is not yet relaxed to the normal level, it has helped the overall business environment. For the bar and karaoke industry, requiring guests to be vaccinated before entering the premises is still a heavy restriction, so there is still a long road to recovery. In response to the emergence of different types of viruses around the world, although there are no more local cases, the number of imported cases per day is still high. The government has not relaxed the restrictions for three consecutive weeks, and it seems unlikely to be changed until the vaccination coverage reaches over half or 70%. To sum up, provided that the government strengthens the border control, it would be possible to further relax the anti-pandemic measures and group gathering restrictions.” | Special Announcement Press Release |
Presentation Slides |
| Jul 19, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Starting today, UK has lifted all quarantine requirements on citizens who have completed the vaccination. ...Read MoreThis move would definitely let her tourism, commerce and related industries recover quickly. Although the number of newly confirmed cases in UK is still close to 50,000 every day, she no longer uses it as a basis for enforcing epidemic prevention measures. Looking back at Hong Kong, we are still fixated at ‘zero infection’, meaning that we would be extremely nervous even for one single confirmed case. Aren’t we falling behind in our mindset about epidemic prevention?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 16, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “There is less news about local COVID-19 compared with one month ago. On the other hand, ‘vaccination’ and ‘border crossing (to mainland)’ ...Read Morehave been mentioned much more. Our Chief Executive said there are 2 prerequisites for crossing border quarantine waiver: 1) over 70% of vaccine coverage, and 2) maintain the strategy of ‘preventing the importation of cases’, thereby skilfully placing vaccination and border crossing in a causal relationship. However, to the tourism industry, 70% looks more like the current unemployment rate. The government officials see the figures, but the industry sees the doom.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 15, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Last year due to the epidemic, the government first postponed the book fair and then...Read More cancelled it. As many publishers actually rely on the annual book fair to maintain their income, many publishers have disappeared this year. The Anti-epidemic Fund for the culture and publishing industry was deadly insufficient last year. This is definitely a blow to the education sector, because the number of books available for educational institutions and parents has now diminished.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 14, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Hong Kong Book Fair is the first grand event in the summer holiday, it would bring a big challenge of crowd control during ...Read MoreCOVID times. Traditionally, the period from August each year to the next lunar new year is the golden season for the retail industries. The fortune of retail business will critically depend on how practical the government is, and whether it would relax the group gathering ban. Our Chief Executive has pointed out that Hong Kong is getting more experienced and capable in coping with COVID-19, why do we still need strict gathering control?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 13, 2021 | Professor Meanne Chan, Associate professor (Research) of WoFoo Joseph Lee Consulting and Counselling Psychology Research Centre in Lingnan University, observed, “Multiple misconceptions about vaccination circulates ...Read Morein popular culture and society. Getting vaccinated because of fear of contagion compared to a general inclination to return to normality are not only different social drivers, but could also have different biological consequences. Studies in behavioral medicine about immunity have demonstrated that stress could directly impact antibody production after a vaccine, greatly reducing the effectiveness. While figures have indicated that the Hong Kong people are currently under multiple sources of stress, policy makers can consider the social, economical, and political environment during vaccination to optimize vaccine efficacy, in addition to the usual concern of vaccine uptake.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 12, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The Singaporean government renamed ‘travel bubble’ to ‘travel corridor’ the day before yesterday. The name is now different from ...Read Morethat of Hong Kong’s mutual tourism border crossing arrangements. Singapore says ‘bubble’ is easy to burst, so it needs to find a more appropriate term. Hong Kong now has ‘travel bubble’ and ‘vaccine bubble’. Would the government consider changing the term ‘bubble’? More importantly, the vaccine approved by Singapore is already different from that of Hong Kong starting last week. Sinovac vaccine is no longer recognized, so the ‘travel bubble’ arrangement is now facing big trouble. It is very likely that only BioNTech vaccinators would be allowed to enter Singapore, while more countries are not recognizing Sinovac. Those who had taken Sinovac vaccines might have done it for nothing.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 9, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “Although there have been zero local COVID confirmed cases in Hong Kong for 30 consecutive days, the latest social distancing measures have ...Read Moreonly been relaxed very slightly relaxed. Group gathering ban, mask order and social distancing measures in catering outlets have not been changed. The existing requirements and restrictions for the catering business remain the same. It seems that current impractical and ‘off-the-ground’ arrangements will only be fine-tuned selectively and ploddingly. I hope the public would continue to tolerate them and refrain from making unreasonable objections.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 8, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung said last week that the government is studying whether or not to resume...Read More full-day classes in secondary schools after the vaccination rate reaches a certain level. After a year and a half of the epidemic, some parents have gradually believed that half-day classes are more suitable for their children, because they could have more time in the afternoon to do their homework, revisions and participate in extracurricular activities outside schools. If these parents think that vaccination is unnecessary, they may not let their children get vaccinated. I think the Secretary needs to respond to the demands of these parents.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 7, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “For peoples who live and run business in Hong Kong,...Read More group gathering ban (GGB) has become part of life, and will continue to be an essential feature in the foreseeable future. People’s persistent objection to GGB from the community will be a norm as long as our government insists the relatively restricted GGB. Those industries and groups more affected by GGB are still obedient, but they will have to make the very best use of the grey areas in order to survive.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 6, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung pointed out last Saturday that ...Read Morefull-day classes could be resumed after the vaccination rate in secondary schools reaches a certain level. I believe that the parents would like the Secretary to negotiate with the experts to set a reasonable and achievable target vaccination rate, so that most secondary schools can resume normal full-day operations in September. As for primary schools and kindergartens, because of age problem, the Secretary said that it could only maintain half-day operation in the new school year. In that case, the parents would be quite disappointed that their primary school and kindergarten children cannot return to full-day classes before the pandemic disappears.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 5, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The Hong Kong government is eager to implement the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau cross-border travelling, but ...Read Moreunfortunately, a suspected local case has appeared and added uncertainty to it. In fact, the epidemic in Hong Kong has recent subsided, but the government has insisted on keeping the group gathering at four people, while hastily arranging for the implementation of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau cross-border travelling. This makes people doubt the real purpose of the ‘group gathering ban’. I hope the government would carefully examine the impact of the restriction on public life and quickly bring Hong Kong back to its prosperous track.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jul 2, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The government announced the relaxation of some epidemic prevention measures with effect from 24 June. ...Read More Religious gatherings, wedding ceremonies where no food or drink is served and annual general meetings of shareholders will be relaxed to 50% of the venue capacity, or 100% if 2/3 of the attendees have received one dose of vaccine; local tours will also be relaxed to 100 persons; restaurants maintain the A/B/C/D model, but the maximum number of persons per table for Category C restaurants (where staff have received one dose of vaccination) was increased from half of the seating capacity to 75%; the maximum number of persons per table for Category D restaurants (where staff have received two doses of vaccination for 14 days and 2/3 of customers have received one dose of vaccination) was increased from 75% to 100%, and the maximum number of persons per table relaxed to 12, while the number of persons at banquets was relaxed to 180; the maximum number of persons per table in bars and nightclubs was relaxed to 4; the maximum number of persons per table in party rooms and karaoke rooms was relaxed to 8; the maximum number of persons in public and private swimming pools is relaxed from 30% to 50% of the current capacity; all members of training groups in fitness centres can exercise without mask if they have been vaccinated and there is sufficient distance between them; the group gathering prohibition limit was maintained at 4 persons. I think the government’s selective approach to the relaxation of some epidemic prevention measures has left many in the catering industry helpless. I hope the government would relax the restrictions again before re-opening the Hong Kong-Macau border, so that all trades and industries in Hong Kong can get back on track.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
Jun 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 30, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “As I said before, vaccination coverage and crossing border...Read More quarantine waiver are the two key issues of relieving people’s livelihood, and they are like chicken and egg. The business sector has already provided a lot of incentives for vaccination, while the government fine-tunes the quarantine requirements of cross-border travelling, these are what Hong Kong peoples want to see. The public now needs to be very careful about the mutant virus, while the government needs to carefully regulate the inflow of people from high-risk areas. We are just seeing the light of hope, so the government, the commercial sector and the people must learn the lessons together to keep our ship afloat. As a matter of fact, Hong Kong can no longer afford to be hit by another wave of pandemic.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 29, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Although the mutated virus has recently been widely discussed in...Read More the community, there seems no sign of its spread, so the public need not worry too much. Last Thursday the government relaxed the restrictions, but there has not been any surge in economic activities. I believe it is because the extent of the relaxation was too small, and the government’s aim was just to increase vaccination coverage, not to revive the economy. The industry does not want to see this.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 28, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The catering industry considers the government’s policy which started last Thursday (24th) to be a strategic move only....Read More There are less than 1,000 Category C restaurants and only 19 Category D restaurants, accounting for only 5% to 6% of the total number of restaurants in Hong Kong. If the government does not relax Category A and B restaurants, it is practically the same as no relaxation at all. If full vaccination is needed before full relaxation for the entire industry, it would be seen as purely a vaccination drive and the industry would be rather discontented.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 25, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The Hong Kong government’s relaxation of quarantine on tourists has led to the re-emergence of mutated viruses. Its failure ...Read Moreto learn from the mistakes of itself and others is the reason. The government now has no way to escape responsibility, it must review the loopholes and strengthen border inspections in order to prevent further infections.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 24, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “There was a suspected case of local infection yesterday, which may put an end to the many days of zero ...Read Morelocal infection. In any case, more than 90% of citizens still consider current gathering restrictions too tight, probably because people think that a few isolated cases would not lead to large scale infection, and that the current restriction measures are already sufficient. Some people may think that the new suspected case is related to the relaxation measures announced on Monday, the fact is that such measures would only be implemented today so the two are not related. The public needs not feel too worried.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 23, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “This Monday, the government relaxed some of the anti-epidemic measures and lifted the maximum number of ...Read More customers allowed in various catering premises. This is an encouragement for the catering industry although the proportion of restaurants benefiting from it is small. Furthermore, the government would also shorten the quarantine period for arriving people who are fully vaccinated and who satisfy antibodies checks. This is one step towards normal life. The government should quickly establish effective communication channels with authorities of surrounding areas, and along with defences like ‘vaccine passports’ and ‘health codes’, prevent the reappearance of imported cases.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 22, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The government finally announced yesterday that it would relax its anti-epidemic measures, which it...Read More should have been done a long time ago. However, the industry generally does not have much response, as the relaxation is so little. Restaurants still have to maintain four complicated classifications, only the most demanding Categories C and D are relaxed, but they are too difficult to achieve anyway. Moreover, the restrictions on bars and karaoke are still very tight, the new measures can help very little. As a matter of fact, there was zero local confirmed case in the community for many days, I think the epidemic prevention arrangements can definitely be relaxed a lot more, so that the people can live a more normal life.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 21, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The fourth wave of the epidemic in Hong Kong is coming to an end. The once suspended non-scheduled...Read More medical consultation service is gradually returning to normal as the epidemic subsides. However, family members of some hospitalized chronically ill patients said that it was very inhumane for the government not to relax the visiting arrangements. I hope the government would consider allowing those family members who have received two doses of vaccine to visit these hospitalized patients under some restricted conditions.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 18, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The fourth wave of the epidemic in Hong Kong is coming to an end. The once suspended non-scheduled...Read More medical consultation service is gradually returning to normal as the epidemic subsides. However, family members of some hospitalized chronically ill patients said that it was very inhumane for the government not to relax the visiting arrangements. I hope the government would consider allowing those family members who have received two doses of vaccine to visit these hospitalized patients under some restricted conditions.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 17, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The Education Bureau is consulting the schools, trying to arrange medical...Read More staff to vaccinate the students in schools, but it would be quite challenging. As the decision to require students to be vaccinated is quite controversial, many parents may not feel comfortable in letting their children get vaccinated. If parents know that it was the school which arranges medical staff to vaccinate the students, they might feel annoyed. It is therefore better to let parents themselves take their students to get vaccinated.” |
Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 16, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The government officials have apparently relaxed their strict approach and proposed to reduce or waive...Read More some quarantine measures when people travel out of Hong Kong, provided that they have vaccinated and doubly tested negative in COVID-19 tests, which would become the new norm. The government would also relax the group gathering ban when the vaccination coverage is relatively adequate to protect the local community. These measures could really rescue the local economy and people’s livelihood. We hope the government would make good preparations to implement these plans pragmatically, including to proactively liaise with the governments of the surrounding regions, to enhance the records of tests and vaccination, and to work well to match with other authorities in ironing out the technical details.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 15, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “With such a remarkably low number of daily infected cases, it is no longer necessary for ...Read Morethe government to continue the gathering restriction measures. Because there is almost no infected person in the community, it is already sufficient and effective to prevent the pandemic by controlling the border properly, in order to stop any infected person from entering the community.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 11, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The government has been very successful in preventing the mutated virus from entering Hong Kong through foreign visitors. It is time to relax the group ...Read Moregathering ban by raising the gathering limit. However, the catering industry is very unhappy with the government’s arrangement for ABCD zones. They think the design is confusing, illogical and impractical. Since 29 April, only a minority of the industry has been able to set up D Zones. The catering industry is now facing a greater risk of collapse. I suggest the government to follow the public’s wish to adjust its policies without delay.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 10, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “A few days ago there was an imported confirmed case leaked into the community, reflecting a huge loophole in the government’s cross-border epidemic...Read Moreprevention arrangements. These measures must be reviewed so as to reduce the chance of leaking even one confirmed case, because we just cannot afford another wave of outbreak. Because multiple waves of outbreaks are invariably caused by imported cases, as long as a government controls the border properly, we would be able to relax the restrictions on gatherings and loosen the ties on Hong Kong’s economy. The South Korean government is discussing the implementation of tourism bubbles with other countries, studying on how to allow vaccinated people move in and out of the country. The Hong Kong Government should join the negotiations and seize the opportunity to revitalize our tourism industry, and to let Hong Kong people travel around to catch some breath.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 9, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “To many hopeless members of the tourism industry, self-help local tours have become their final struggle. They are not too worried about recent outbreaks in Guangzhou ...Read Moreand Shenzhen because the mainland government has been quite efficient and experienced in dealing with the situation. However, they are rather disappointed at Hong Kong government’s failure in organizing the vaccination campaign. They urge our government to step up the coverage of vaccination, otherwise we would not see any quarantine exemption for cross boundary activity this year, but only the doomsday of the tourism trade.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 8, 2021 | Vice Chairman of Young Innovative Entrepreneurs Association, Benjamin Yeung observed, “The Government announced earlier to further extend all social distancing measures, applicable to the catering ...Read Morebusiness and scheduled premises including sports premises. The government also extended the requirements for group gatherings and mask wearing. I consider the current measures for ‘sports premises’ too tight. For some high-intensity trainers and coaches, a 4-person training group or class requiring everyone to wear a mask throughout the training is really unbearable, and there is also the chance of suffocation. I suggest relaxing these strict rules and restrictions to cover only classes of 8 people or more.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 7, 2021 | Joel Wang, member from Tin Shui Wai Community Concern Group observed, “The new round of mutated virus started in the Tin Shui Wai community, making many residents in Tin Shui Wai worried. ...Read MoreBoth the government and the public should take note of this. I would suggest the government suspend the scheme of Return2hk and the public reduce unnecessary activities, and if they really have to go out, they should honestly report the information to the ‘Leave Home Safe’ system so that the government can have accurate information to formulate appropriate policies. Although we all want to lift the restriction on gathering, unfortunately the epidemic is so volatile that the best thing to do is to maintain personal hygiene and cut down unnecessary activities.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 4, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The social gathering ban (SGB) and quarantine free clearance have always been the two key issues...Read More of recovering Hong Kong’s economy and people’s livelihood. Small-scale outbreaks in some mainland areas have ruined the negotiation between the local and mainland governments. It is high time that our government reviewed its social gathering policy. We hardly found any support of the current ban limit from public surveys or various industries based on their actual operations. The SGB should be the most important protective measure of our fight against Covid-19, but it has now become more like a curse than a protection net.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 2, 2021 | Nelson Ip, Chairperson of Federation of Beauty Industry (HK), observed, “The gathering restriction has affected many commercial activities in Hong Kong, especially ...Read Morethe catering industry. Although the government has set up four types of divisions ABCD, shared space still exists and there is not much effect. As the epidemic subsides, I think the restriction on gathering should be relaxed, especially for large gatherings like celebration and funeral events, and I don’t think it is too much to allow ten people sharing one table.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| Jun 1, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Yesterday (31 May), the Chief Executive announced that the fourth wave ...Read Moreof the epidemic was over, in line with what Professor Yuen Kwok-Yung said on Saturday. The government introduced a number of new measures to boost vaccination, but did not announce any relaxation of the prohibition on group gathering. I think, for both the society and the economy, it is meaningless to announce the end of the fourth wave of the epidemic if there is no relaxation of any gathering restriction. I would rather see the government not announce the end of the fourth wave if it would tighten the restrictions again. According to Professor Yuen, the fifth wave of the epidemic is bound to happen in the future, so it would be meaningless to maintain such tight epidemic measures. Hong Kong people have lost so much, including the cinemas, karaoke, and other different places and shops with Hong Kong characteristics. Statistics show that 90% of Hong Kong people think that the restrictions on gathering are too tight. How much more would Hong Kong people lose if we still do not relax the restriction on gathering?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
May 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 2021 | Kenneth Lee, Chairperson from Hong Kong Clerical, Administrative and Executive Employees Union, observed, “The epidemic is changing and so is the world. ...Read MoreIt is inevitable that the Government has to adjust its policies in response to the external environment. However, it also needs to gain public support, by strengthening publicity and education. The current restrictions on gathering have affected many part-time workers, and the industry also has certain difficulties in implementing these measures. There is still room for the Government to improve.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 28, 2021 | Jason Poon, Chairperson from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “Hong Kong’s gathering restrictions have gradually become more and more complicated and incomprehensible, ...Read Morejust like the ABCD zones and packages for restaurants. The industry’s hesitation in accepting the restrictions is an indication of the government’s lack of consultation and communication in the policy making process. In foreign countries, the government would put forward the different scenarios of policy implementations, for the citizens to foresee and understand the policies more easily. Hong Kong’s goal of zero infection has always been a mirage, and just like the restrictions on gathering, everything is so difficult to be understood.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 27, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Today, 96% of people think that the anti-epidemic measures are too tight, which reaches all-time record high of the survey. ...Read MoreHowever, the Hong Kong government just announced that the current group gathering restrictions would remain unchanged for two more weeks. This decision is contrary to the wishes of all Hong Kong citizens. I think the government should quickly take measures to bring back normal life again. It should at least relax restrictions that are most relevant to the economy across different industries. In terms of education, elementary and middle schools have entered the exam period and will soon go into summer vacation. There is not much point to revert to full-time schooling now. The Education Bureau should encourage schools to arrange summer classes as soon as possible, to help students catch up with their learning progress.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 26, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Our fantasy of cross-border travel without quarantine went down again as new confirmed cases of COVID-19 appeared in GuangDong ...Read Moreand Hong Kong over the past days. There was also confusing information released by the authority regarding the scheme of Return2hk, showing the poor risk management skills of our government. Peoples keep asking why there is no contingency plan for such an important arrangement which affects thousands of peoples returning to Hong Kong. If our authority only expects to ‘get the job done’ instead of trying its best to serve Hong Kong heartfully, how can our government be trusted by peoples, and how can our government lead us to be out of the woods?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 25, 2021 | Ben Leung Lap-yan, Charter President of the Licensed Bar and Club Association of Hong Kong proposes, “The bar industry has been cooperating with the Government to implement anti-epidemic measures, ...Read Moreand has called on all operators to comply with the government guidelines. However, what happened after the resumption of business on 29 April has proven that the conditions for resuming business are too strict. While requiring staff members to receive the first dose of vaccine and customers to use the ‘Leave Home Safe’ application are both workable, it is not feasible to require customers to have their first dose of vaccine. The Federation’s statistics show that business during this period is only 10% of normal times and it seems that the authorities have overestimated the willingness of the public to visit the bars and opt for vaccination at the same time. I urge the authorities to honour their pledge to help the industry, to strike a good balance between the need to fight the epidemic and the need of survival of the industry, by relaxing some of the restrictions.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 24, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The epidemic has been going on for over a year and a half now, with wave after wave of outbreaks, mostly caused by imported cases. If the Government continues to ...Read Morebe ineffective in gate-keeping and does not strictly quarantine all people coming to Hong Kong, it will not be of much help in preventing the epidemic even if Hong Kong people strictly adhere to the gathering restrictions and all of them are vaccinated. Mutant viruses will continue to affect Hong Kong through importation. I hope that the Government will impose stricter quarantine measures on visitors coming to Hong Kong, even requiring all entrants to be vaccinated, and to implement a longer quarantine period to prevent the virus from infecting the public.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 21, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “As of yesterday May 20, Hong Kong has reached the 27th day of zero infection from unknown sources. I suggest relaxing the preventive measures for Category A and B ...Read Morerestaurants to 6-8 persons per table as soon as possible so that the business environment can be restored. Meanwhile, the Government should continue its gate-keeping efforts to prevent the recurrence of the epidemic from overseas.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 20, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “Facing so much chaotic information, peoples are becoming more and more ‘indifferent’ to the group gathering ban. ...Read MoreAlthough they know there is not much they can do, they still expect our government to take up a leading role. Businesses in small or medium catering services have been rejuvenated but this is not the case for large restaurants, nor the whole tourism industry. We found that the traditional tourism areas like Tsim Sha Tsui and Yau Ma Tei are deserted at night. Quite some shops are closed or even vacant. Hong Kong peoples are well-known to be tough and can survive many ups and downs. This time, we may become indifferent when facing the crisis, but the government cannot.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 18, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho proposes, “Since the government announced last Tuesday that all students would return to school after May 24, while keeping the rest of the restrictions unchanged, ...Read Morewe have found that the proportion of people who considered the restriction measures too tight has further increased to 92%, it also reached a record high of 94% in two days within one week. This number is worrying because last week only 20% were satisfied with the government’s epidemic prevention arrangements. The very tight epidemic prevention measures may now cause people’s satisfaction rate with the government to drop further. I hope that the government can assess the situation, and relax the restrictions in various industries, so as to further loosen the strangulating curse of Hong Kong’s economy.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 17, 2021 | Ben Leung Lap-yan, Charter President of the Licensed Bar and Club Association of Hong Kong, observed, “The Government’s measure of requiring guests to wear masks when leaving their seats is already sufficient, ...Read Morewhy is it necessary to impose time and number limits? It is discriminatory and unjust to impose stringent restrictions on the bar trade and to require customers to take injections, and it is fundamentally an unacceptable condition. In the past two weeks since the implementation of the new rules, the business of the industry has only been 10% of what it used to be. Not to mention business, it is not even possible to survive. The new rules do not help at all.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 14, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The government’s new measure based on ‘vaccine bubble’ has been implemented since 29 April, but the law enforcement units and ...Read Morevarious industrial sectors are still working hard to sort out the legislated measures. In view of the development of the epidemic, it seems that the government should starts to strengthen the testing of foreign arrivals instead of punishing Hong Kong people by imposing restrictions on group gathering. I hope that the Hong Kong government will further relax the restriction on the number of people who can gather, so that people can lead a normal life again.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 13, 2021 | Bibiana Yuen, Chairperson of Frontline Health Inspector Union, called on the industry to be more tolerant, she observed, “Frontline enforcement staff are receiving information about...Read More the ‘vaccine bubble’ at the same time as the general public. As the legislation is relatively complicated, it will take time for everyone to understand it. At this education period, law enforcement officers will first help the public and restaurants understand the details and technicalities of implementation. Given the limited manpower of our frontline colleagues, we hope the industry can be more tolerant.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 12, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “With the relatively low number of confirmed cases in recent days and ...Read Morezero local infection for many consecutive days, our daily life has become more lively. Although the government’s attitude is far from meeting the expectations of the public, it is already relatively open. However, business activities in certain industries like large restaurants and tourism are still struggling hard to follow the group gathering ban, which has become a strangulating curse to them. I hope the government would make forward-looking arrangements for these businesses.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 11, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “The percentage of Hong Kong citizens who believe that the group gathering restrictions ...Read Moreare too tight have been maintained at an extremely high level for many days, reflecting public’s belief that the restrictions need not be so tight. The government has been calling for people to get vaccinated for several months, but the proportion of people who have been vaccinated has stayed at a very low level, at less than 20%. I think many people do not think it is necessary to get vaccinated now because they think that the existing vaccination measures are sufficient enough. What can be considered is, if the government wants more people to be vaccinated, can it consider further relaxing the epidemic prevention measures?” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 10, 2021 | Cat Hou Chui Shan, Chairperson of Bartenders and Mixologists Union of Hong Kong, observed, “Many restaurants have difficulties in enforcing the group ...Read Moregathering restrictions because there are too many categories and so many policy changes from time to time. Moreover, the enforcement criteria also varies across different government departments, making the catering industry hard to follow. Licensed premises are subject to restrictions at all times, many customers therefore turn to unlicensed nightclubs for entertainment, which is contrary to the industry’s wish and makes it even more difficult for the industry to survive. Many staff would also choose to leave the industry if they are forced to take vaccinations. I hope the Government will address the problem and hear the voice of the people.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 7, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “With the messy anti-epidemic policy and the failure of the BGI Group in performing its duties, ...Read Morevirus carriers are now free to wander around, further endangering the community. The mutated virus has also made the fifth wave even more violent. The restriction on group gathering has lost its original meaningful, contrary to the will of the people. Had the team leading the fight against COVID listened to and accepted Dr Ho Pak-leung’s advice earlier, the epidemic might not have been as bad as it is.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 6, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “The relatively low numbers of local COVID-19 cases somehow relieved public pressure ...Read Morewhile the mutant strain has become a growing threat, and many more peoples are getting concerned with the side effects of different vaccines. The current prohibition on group gatherings keeps suppressing the catering business by complicating a simple scenario. A limit of 4 persons per table is not equal to 1/3 of a full table of 12 in terms of consumer style, numbers of guest and the operational costs. There was a little fantasy of booming business last week in the catering trade. However, such hope turned out to be a damp squib by the wasting ‘strategy’ of our short-sighted government.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 5, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho observed, “Although the government has relaxed the epidemic prevention measures last week, ...Read Morea vast number of citizens still considered the epidemic prevention measures too tight. This shows that the relaxation of the epidemic prevention measures has not met the expectations of the public. I suggest the government further relaxes the epidemic prevention measures within a short period of time, especially to relax the proportion of students in primary and secondary schools, kindergartens and tutorial schools from two-thirds to full capacity, but just attending half-day school to begin with. This can help the students recover their learning progress towards the end of the semester, while also reducing the pressure on parents and teachers.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| May 3, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “New measures for vaccine bubble keep coming waves after waves, with forever changing contents. People are confused, ...Read Moretheir reviews cannot be worse. In order to alleviate people’s grievance, I suggest the government send more officials to visit the community to understand the practicality of these new measures before implementing them.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
Apr 2021
| Date | Comments | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 30, 2021 | Simon WONG Kit-Lung, Chairman of Institution Of Dining Art, observed, “The industry is already very cooperative in carrying out the new measures, but because their classification is so complicated, ...Read Moreit is very difficult to implement them. The government has apparently not considered the actual situation thoroughly, so it would require quite some time for both the customers and service providers to adapt. I think there is still room for the government to relax the gathering restrictions, in light of the real situation and the wish of the people.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 29, 2021 | Sam Ng, the Principal and Artistic Director of the VIVA DANCE, observed, “Effective epidemic control mainly depends on people’s self-discipline. As long as everyone pays attention to public health and ...Read Moreconsciously wears a mask, the situation will definitely improve. The relaxation of the gathering restriction order is a very good arrangement for the catering industry, and the new regulations can help many industries find a way out of the crisis. Regrettably the number of gatherings is still too tight. I consider it more ideal to permit gatherings of 8 people if not more.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 28, 2021 | KC Poon, researcher from the CHINAT Monitor, observed, “The new measures announced by the government are becoming more and more complicated, and the restrictions are still too harsh. ...Read MoreThe industry’s resistance to their implementation would remain high. Because the government only announced the new measures yesterday, April 27, the public sentiment would take time to settle, after the information is digested by the industry and the common people.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 27, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy and Livelihood, observed, “I hope the government will not ignore that 92% peoples disagreed with the current group gathering ban. ...Read MoreThe inbound transmitted path has to be blocked when the new double-mutated strain is knocking our door. On the other hand, people do expect a more relaxing gathering policy as the number of local cases drops. If the above jobs are not done, the travel bubbles proposed by the government will only be a belated remedy.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 26, 2021 | Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres Yam Wai Ho proposes, “It has been several days that more than 80% of the people consider the group gathering ban too strict, ...Read Morethe government should allow schools to open all classes back to school for half a day, and also allow tutorial schools to open all capacity for teaching. That will alleviate the pressure of parents to take care of their children at home for a prolonged period, and also allow students to have better learning effectiveness.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 23, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy & Livelihood, observed, “This week, we have seen rather varied numbers of confirmed cases. However, ...Read Morethe difference between GGPI and the limit of group gathering ban has stayed rather stable over the month past, at about 9 people. This reveals a psychological gap between government group gathering ban and people’s expectation. I wonder if our government is willing to narrow this gap and eventually eliminate it so as to respond to the aspirations and needs of the community. After all, the limit of group gathering is not only a medical speculate but also an integrated consideration of epidemic risk, people’s overall well-being and our government’s confidence against the COVID-19.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 22, 2021 | Mr Yam Wai Ho, Vice Chairman of The Hong Kong Chamber of Education Centres, observed, “On April 22, 94% of the respondents believed that the anti-epidemic group gathering ...Read Moreban was too tight, which has surged to the peak since the epidemic. This means that the public is extremely dissatisfied with the over-tightening anti-epidemic policy over these months, and the severeness of the current epidemic prevention measures in general is completely out of proportion. The government should use these figures as references, and relax the epidemic prevention policy as soon as possible in response to the demands of Hong Kong people.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 21, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy & Livelihood, observed, “Low infection numbers in the past two days made us feel rather relaxed, ...Read Morethus people wants to have larger group gatherings. However, we have seen a huge number of imported infections these two days (29 cases in 18 April, 11 cases in 19 April). After considering the difference in population base, I am surprised to see the extremely high risk of infection among the inbound sector. The government must block the inbound routes more effectively, otherwise all efforts would be in vain.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 20, 2021 | Dr Tung-fai Cheung, Spokesman of Alliance of Revitalizing Economy & Livelihood, observed, “The current restriction order is considered to be too tight by mainstream society, ...Read Morebecause the order has excessively disturbed peoples’ daily life and business operation in Hong Kong. With the growth of vaccination coverage, more people would want a more relieved gathering order. I urge medical experts to evaluate the pandemic risk in a practical manner, and to value the experiences and wisdom learnt in recent clinical practice, so as to accelerate the recovery of our daily life and our depressed economy.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 19, 2021 | Manager (Research and Fieldwork) of HKPORI Frank Lee observed, “As the number of the confirmed cases rebounded over the weekend, ...Read Morethe reading of GGPI has significantly dropped to 8.7 today, and 42% and 41% respectively considered the current ban too strict and too lenient, back to the level registered in mid-March in general. In view of the erratic epidemic, we started to conduct our eighth benchmark survey last Friday. Once finished we will update our GGPI calculations in order to gauge people’s new sentiment in response to the new policies.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 16, 2021 | Data Science Manager of HKPORI Edward Tai observed, “The reading of GGPI is 14.3 today, and 87% considered the current ban too strict. ...Read MoreThe number of the confirmed cases has dropped slightly in recent days, concurring with the government’s announcement of ‘conditional relaxation measures’ for restaurants and bars. Today, we will start to conduct our eighth benchmark survey, lasting for about a week. We will then update our GGPI calculations in order to gauge people’s new sentiment in response to the new policies.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 15, 2021 | Legislative Council Medical Constituency Member Dr Pierre Chan made the following comments, “My personal observation is that the tightening or relaxation of the gathering ban in Hong Kong ...Read Moreis a political decision coupled with economic considerations. It seems ‘not directly related’ to science, medicine, or public opinion.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 14, 2021 | President and CEO of HKPORI Robert Chung observed, “The reading of GGPI stays at 11.4 today, due to the same number of infected cases. ...Read MoreMost people want to see a relaxation of the ban, as 69% considered the current ban too strict. Since the government has announced new measures to conditionally relax restrictions on restaurant and bar operation, POP will conduct our eighth benchmark study as soon as possible, in order to update our base of GGPI calculations.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 13, 2021 | On the latest figures of GGPI, Deputy CEO of HKPORI Kim-Wah Chung observed, “The CE announced some measures to relax restrictions on restaurant and bar operation. ...Read MoreMany people doubt that the government intends to compel more people to download and to use LeaveHomeSafe. The reading of GGPI as today is 11.4, and 69% considered the current ban too strict. This clearly indicates that the government’s measures are still behind public expectations.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 12, 2021 | On the latest figures of GGPI and their computation method, President and CEO of HKPORI Robert Chung observed, “The reading of GGPI is 11.4 today, and 69% considered the current ban too strict. ...Read MorePeople obviously want to see a relaxation of the ban. Moreover, starting today, we will include more figures and explanations in our daily GGPI press releases for public consumption, like the maximum values used in our benchmark data simulations.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 9, 2021 | President and CEO of HKPORI Robert Chung observed, “The reading of ‘Group Gathering Prohibition Index’ stands at 11.4 today, which is 7.4 persons higher than the official limit. ...Read MoreMost people want to see a relaxation of the ban, as 69% considered the current ban too strict. However, the intensity of such a wish has dropped to a 3-day low, obviously due to the gradual increase in the number of confirmed infected cases to a double-digit figure during this period.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 8, 2021 | Data Science Manager of HKPORI Edward Tai observed, “The reading of ‘Group Gathering Prohibition Index’ stands at 14.1 today, which is much higher than the official limit....Read MoreAs many as 84% of the general public considering the current ban too strict, meaning that the current ban is only acceptable by one-eighth of the people. This reflects people’s wish for the government to relax the ban. Since mid-March this year, the Group Gathering Prohibition Index has been standing at more than 10 people, government should consider gradually relaxing the ban after balancing the COVID risk.” | Press Release | Presentation Slides |
| April 7, 2021 | President and CEO of HKPORI Robert Chung observed, “The reading of ‘Group Gathering Prohibition Index’ stands at 14.3 today, which is 10.3 persons higher than the official limit....Read MoreWith 87% of the general public considering the current ban too strict, people obviously want to see a relaxation of the ban as soon as possible. We hope the government would hear the people’s voice. Please note that starting today, we will announce this index daily for public consumption via our standard press releases.” | Presentation Slides |