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The following is issued on behalf of the Business Facilitation Advisory Committee Secretariat:
The Business Facilitation Advisory Committee held its 17th meeting today (July 12).
The committee commended the latest initiatives of the Companies Registry, including the provision of electronic company incorporation service and a one-stop electronic company incorporation and business registration service at the e-Registry (www.eregistry.gov.hk).
The Administration briefed the committee on the introduction of the Personal Data (Privacy) (Amendment) Bill 2011.
The committee also reviewed the work of the three business facilitation task forces. Notable progress and developments include:
(a) The Retail Task Force (RTF) supports the proposed Imported Game, Meat, Poultry and Poultry Eggs Regulation under the Food Safety Ordinance. As suggested by the RTF, the Administration will consider allowing submission of e-applications for import licences of poultry eggs to facilitate trade. The Administration will also explore the feasibility of introducing e-application services for imports of meat and poultry at the same time;
(b) The RTF supports the proposed extension of the Environmental Levy Scheme on Plastic Shopping Bags to all retailers and offers comments on the Consultation Document;
(c) Regarding mandatory registration of proprietary Chinese medicine (pCm), the Chinese Medicines Board has endorsed a specific set of registration requirements for export-only pCm with a view to facilitating the export trade without compromising public health. The Administration will continue to provide possible assistance to the trade to facilitate smooth implementation of the remaining provisions on labels and package inserts on December 1 this year;
(d) Regarding the planned implementation of the Undesirable Medical Advertisements (Amendment) Ordinance 2005, the Administration, following publicity in 2006, has been organising further publicity activities since January 2011 to facilitate the trade to comply with the amendments. The Administration will continue to provide possible assistance to the trade to facilitate smooth implementation of the amendment ordinance;
(e) The Food Business Task Force (FBTF) welcomes the Administration's relaxation of the food room requirements for licensed restaurants and factory canteens with effect from August 1, 2010. The FBTF encourages the trade to leverage the initiative to increase their seating capacity. Based on the input of the relevant food business trade, it is estimated that the relaxation initiative could help the trade achieve potential additional revenue of about $5.9 billion per annum;
(f) In response to the FBTF's request for the setting up of a performance pledge, the Secretariat of the Municipal Services Appeals Board has undertaken to fix the hearing of each liquor licensing appeal on a date which is within 45 working days after the receipt of the appeal as far as reasonably practicable;
(g) To facilitate sale of food in bazaars, carnivals, exhibitions, etc, the Administration agrees to consider granting a Temporary Food Factory Licence to cover on-site cooking on the merits of individual applications;
(h) The Administration has facilitated the sale of frozen yoghurt through self-service by customers subject to compliance of appropriate additional licensing conditions;
(i) The Pre-construction Task Force (PCTF) appreciates the Administration's efforts in conducting a mid-term review on revitalisation of industrial buildings and in facilitating implementation of the revitalisation measures. The PCTF has suggested possible improvement areas for the Administration's consideration; and
(j) As suggested by the PCTF, the Lands Department has provided hyperlinks of all the relevant practice notes, guidelines and information sheets regarding tree pruning and removal on its website for the trade's easy access.
The committee was pleased that the Administration has sustained efforts to improve business licensing services under the "Be the Smart Regulator" Programme. Major progress is highlighted below:
(a) The Land Registry has launched a new search system and extended its online search service hours from 16 hours to 20 hours daily to facilitate the search of land records and property transactions;
(b) With effect from June 1, 2011, the establishment of a unitary regime of arbitration under the Arbitration Ordinance encourages the business community and arbitration practitioners to choose Hong Kong as a place to conduct arbitral proceedings. The object of the new regime is to facilitate the fair and speedy resolution of disputes by arbitration without unnecessary expenses. The new regime limits the opportunities for judicial intervention and promotes greater parties' autonomy on the resolution of disputes by arbitration;
(c) With the commencement of the Import and Export (General) (Amendment) Regulation 2011 in May, the Trade and Industry Department has removed the licensing requirement for textiles imports and exports involving "non-sensitive markets", and for all textiles transhipments;
(d) The opening of a Customer Service Centre at the new Customs Headquarters Building allows the public to access various types of customs licensing services under one roof; and
(e) The Lands Department has shortened the time for the supply of Government digital maps from seven days to four days since April this year through the establishment of the new online Hong Kong Map Service system. This new system provides for one-stop e-ordering, e-payment and e-delivery of Government digital maps.
Papers for the committee meeting will be available at www.gov.hk/en/business/supportenterprises/bf/advisory/index.htm for public access.
Ends/Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Issued at HKT 17:45
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