Following is a question by the Hon Lee Chun-keung and a written reply by the Secretary for Innovation, Technology and Industry, Professor Sun Dong, in the Legislative Council today (February 4):

Question:

     Government departments have been actively promoting environmental protection policies and measures, including "paperless" practices in offices. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it has compiled statistics on the total paper consumption of all government departments in each of the past five years (set out in a table);

(2) whether it has plans to co-ordinate relevant government departments and public utilities to arrange for the unified issuance and processing of utility bills (such as water, electricity and gas charges, rates and tax demand notes) on the "iAM Smart" platform; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(3) whether the Government has formulated specific policies and plans to promote the use of "paperless" communication by the Government and the community; if so, of the details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that?

Reply:

President,

     ​In consultation with the Environment and Ecology Bureau and the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, our reply to the three parts of the question is as follows:

(1) The Government has all along attached great importance to environmental protection, waste reduction and recycling. The Environmental Protection Department has issued internal guidelines requiring all bureaux and departments (B/Ds) to take measures to reduce waste at source, including double-sided printing, recycling of waste paper, and prioritising the use of electronic means, such as websites and emails, for information dissemination with a view to minimising paper consumption. Each B/D is required to publish an annual environmental report on its website, setting out the actions taken to uphold environmental management in their daily operations, including relevant measures to reduce paper consumption. However, the Government does not compile annual statistics on the total paper consumption of all departments.

(2) To promote e-government services and reduce paper usage, the Government has strengthened the integration of issuance and processing of utility bills through "iAM Smart", the one-stop personalised digital services platform, while supporting electronic payment options. This not only improves the efficiency of public services but also helps reduce administrative costs and paper consumption, thereby optimising resources utilisation.

     At present, "iAM Smart" supports over 1 300 online services and e-forms provided by the Government as well as public and private organisations, including the "eWater" service of the Water Supplies Department (WSD), the "eRVD" bill service of the Rating and Valuation Department, "eTax" of the Inland Revenue Department (IRD), "Account-On-Line" of the Hongkong Electric Company Limited (HK Electric), the "Towngas eService Centre" of the Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited (Towngas), and the "CLP One" mobile app of the CLP Power Hong Kong Limited. Citizens can log in to relevant services via "iAM Smart" to view and manage various utility bills. The "Bills" function on the "iAM Smart" personal assistant page already supports payment of water and electricity bills from the WSD and HK Electric respectively. In addition, relevant functions for Towngas and the IRD will be launched soon. These initiatives facilitate electronic viewing and payment by citizens, thereby reducing the use of paper bills and receipts and further advancing the "paperless" delivery of public services.

(3) At present, all government departments have adopted "iAM Smart" to provide convenient and one-stop online services for citizens. The number of registered users has exceeded 4.1 million, with more than 180 000 daily usages, achieving the goal of providing a single portal for online government services. The Government has been actively promoting "iAM Smart" through various channels, introducing its services and functions to citizens with a view to helping them understand the convenience it brings, which in turn helps drive "paperless" practices.

     In addition, the Digital Policy Office and the Government Records Service have fully implemented the electronic recordkeeping system across all departments by the end of 2025. This enables departments to store and manage records electronically, which helps enhance efficiency and reduce paper use.

     As regards society and corporations, since April 17, 2025, the Government has implemented new arrangement to allow companies to adopt implied consent mechanism for disseminating corporate communication by means of website, in order to promote "paperless" corporate communication for Hong Kong companies. The Government also promotes "paperless" procurement through implementing the e-Tendering System.

     Various B/Ds will continue to take measures to promote "paperless" communication and operations in the Government and in society.

Ends/Wednesday, February 4, 2026
Issued at HKT 12:03

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