​​Following is a question by the Hon Andrew Lam and a written reply by the Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs, Miss Alice Mak, in the Legislative Council today (May 6):
 
Question:
 
     The Government regularly publishes government notices in newspapers, which mainly include statutory notices and tender notices, for dissemination of information. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
 
(1) of the government expenditure on publishing notices in newspapers in each of the past five years; and
 
(2) whether the Government has assessed the cost-effectiveness of publishing notices in newspapers (such as whether it has compiled statistics on the number of readers of government notices and the trend concerned); if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
 
Reply:
 
President,

     Upon consulting bureaux and their departments, the expenditure on posting statutory notices and tender notices in newspapers in the past five years are tabulated below:
 

Year	Expenditure (HK$ million)
2021	33.24
2022	28.95
2023	18.25
2024	22.29
2025	18.94

     In general, statutory notices are published by bureaux and departments in accordance with legal requirements and shall be published on newspapers as stipulated by relevant ordinances. As for tender notices, bureaux and departments may, depending on the circumstances such as the intended readership or the fee level, choose the newspapers in which to place the notice, so as to achieve cost-effectiveness.
      
     Apart from publishing notices in newspapers, bureaux and departments also release information through the relevant websites with a view to broadening coverage and conveying messages more effectively to the public.

Ends/Wednesday, May 6, 2026
Issued at HKT 12:00

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