Following is a question by the Hon Benson Luk and a written reply by the Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan, in the Legislative Council today (April 30):

Question:

     It is learnt that quite a number of premises (including shopping malls, retail shops, restaurants and indoor entertainment venues) have promoted pet-friendly policies in recent years, allowing members of the public to bring their pets onto the business area of the premises, which have been well received. However, the requirement under section 10B of the Food Business Regulation (Cap. 132X) that no person shall bring any dog (except guide dogs) onto any food premises has remained unchanged for many years. In January this year, a pet-friendly restaurant in Tai Po was even reportedly ordered to suspend business for seven days after allowing dogs on its premises, and the incident has aroused widespread concern. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it has compiled statistics on the number of pet-friendly restaurants in Hong Kong in the past five years;

(2) given that in the reply to my question on February 21 last year, the Government indicated that the Environment and Ecology Bureau and the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department would review Cap. ‍132X and the existing provisions prohibiting dogs from entering restaurants, and it was expected that the review would take around one year, but the relevant work has not yet been completed so far, whether the Government has formulated a concrete timetable for the review and legislative amendment work; and

(3) in the past five years, of the number of cases that required law enforcement officers to arrive at the scene to handle situations due to people bringing dogs into commercial premises (including shopping malls, retail shops and restaurants), and among these cases, the number of prosecutions instituted?

Reply:

President,

     The reply to the question raised by the Hon Benson Luk is as follows:
 
(1) There are restaurants that advertise themselves as pet-friendly in recent years, but there is no specific or consistent definition of this type of restaurants. The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) does not have statistics on the number of all self-claimed pet-friendly restaurants.

(2) Society is divided on whether to allow pet dogs to enter food premises. The Government needs to take into account different factors when examining the legislation, including public health, operating environment of food premises, and social acceptance. In particular, food premises in Hong Kong are generally cramped. It is necessary to consider the reaction of pet dogs in a crowded and cramped environment (possibly with different types of dogs), as well as the potential impact on other diners. The Environment and Ecology Bureau, together with the FEHD, is conducting research on practices and experiences in other places, and will carefully consider whether there is room for relaxing the restrictions.

(3) Upon receipt of complaints about dogs in food premises, the FEHD will carry out investigation and issue advice or warning to or take prosecution action against the persons and food premises concerned in the light of the actual situation. The number of complaints about dogs in food premises received by the FEHD and the number of prosecutions instituted in each of the past five years (from 2020 to 2024) are tabulated below:
 

	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Number of complaints	58	364	222	304	418
Number of prosecutions	2	6	3	4	2 (Note)

Note: one of the cases is pending for trial.

     Regarding private premises (such as shopping malls), land leases generally do not restrict on bringing dogs in or out of private properties. The property owner may decide whether dogs are allowed in their premises and privately operated common space. The FEHD does not have statistics on the number of complaints in relation to bringing dogs onto non-food premises.

Ends/Wednesday, April 30, 2025
Issued at HKT 12:15

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