In response to the Office of The Ombudsman's direct investigation report on "Public Niche Allocation" released today (August 25), a spokesman for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) said that the department accepts the recommendations in the report. As noted in the report, the allocation of public niches has already been standardised and enhanced through a monthly allocation arrangement. The FEHD will carefully study the Office of The Ombudsman's other recommendations and continue to improve the quality of its services.

     The FEHD has long been committed to improving its funeral services and ensuring a stable supply of public niches. Whether monthly allocation can be adopted depends largely on whether the requisite conditions are in place at the time. As early as 2020, following the completion of the Tsang Tsui Columbarium in Tuen Mun, which provided 160 000 niches, the FEHD launched a pilot monthly allocation arrangement there for the convenience of the public. In recent years, more public columbaria have been completed, including the Shek Mun Columbarium, which was completed in the fourth quarter of 2025. The overall supply of public niches has remained ample and there was generally no need to wait for allocations. Against this background, the FEHD considered that the time was ripe to draw on the successful experience of the Tsang Tsui Columbarium and apply the monthly allocation arrangement to all four columbaria where new extendable niches are available: Tsang Tsui Columbarium in Tuen Mun, Wo Hop Shek Columbarium Phase VI in Fanling, Cape Collinson-San Ha Columbarium in Eastern District, and Shek Mun Columbarium in Sha Tin. The enhanced arrangement was announced in March this year and implemented from August 1. More than 1 600 extendable public niches are now made available each month. Following the ballot, applicants are notified of the results on the same day by SMS or email. Applicants who are not allocated a niche at their preferred columbarium will automatically be allocated a niche at Tsang Tsui.

     As the Office of The Ombudsman pointed out, public niches are precious and limited public resources. The FEHD's new arrangement not only meets the overall demand for niches but also strikes an appropriate balance between public preferences and the number of niches available at individual columbaria. This helps maintain a stable supply of niches at the various venues in the medium to long term, so that future applicants will continue to have a choice among different venues. The FEHD will continue to closely monitor applications for niches and make timely adjustments as and when necessary.

     The spokesman added, "The FEHD will, as always, continue to respond to community needs, elevate the standard of funeral services and provide people-centric, quality services for the community. Apart from strengthening education on green burials and encouraging the public to use green burial services, the FEHD will also streamline procedures and use resources efficiently."

Ends/Tuesday, August 25, 2026
Issued at HKT 16:05

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