Issued by Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government Information Services
Garden Road, 5th-8th Floors, Murray Building, Hong Kong. Tel: 2842 8777
Sunday, February 22, 1998
CONTENTS
========
1. Transcript of FS's media session
2. Fire drills held in Wan Chai and Sha Tin
3. TDD moves to new offices in North Point
1. Transcript of FS's media session
********************************
Following is the transcript of a media session by the
Financial Secretary, Mr Donald Tsang, at the Kai Tak
Airport before departing for Beijing this (Sunday)
afternoon:
Mr Tsang: I have been invited by the Hong Kong and Macau
Affairs Office to visit Beijing. In addition to seeing
the Head of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office,
Mr Liao Hui, I'll be meeting the Minister of Finance,
Mr Liu Zongli, and also the Governor of People's Bank of
China, Mr Dai. I understand the Vice-Premier, Mr Qian
Qichen, has agreed to meet me too. I will take this
opportunity of discussing Hong Kong's economic situation,
particularly since the Handover, and also the economic
prospect in the region. I hope to be able to exchange
views with Mr Dai and Mr Liu. This will be the first
visit since the Handover. I am going to Beijing. I'll be
there for two days. I'll come back very early on
Wednesday and I hope that there will be more opportunities
in the future for me to go up, and I hope to see Mr Dai
and Mr Liu coming to Hong Kong as well to exchange views
on matters of common interest. This is my whole programme
so far.
Reporter: What's the topic of the agenda in this trip, and
is the Budget included?
Mr Tsang: I do not have a firm agenda. The main purpose
of my going up is to make friends, to familiarise with the
main officials dealing with the economic and financial
matters. Naturally we will be discussing the Asian
regional financial matters, and if any of my contacts wish
to raise questions or to talk about the Budget, I will be
happy to discuss as well.
End
2. Fire drills held in Wan Chai and Sha Tin
****************************************
The Wan Chai District Officer, Mrs Elaine Tang, today
(Sunday) urged members of owners' corporations (OCs) to
maintain a high standard of building management and fire
equipment in their buildings.
Speaking at a joint fire drill organised by the Wan
Chai District Office and the Fire Services Department for
residents of two adjacent buildings, Mrs Tang suggested
that each OC could appoint someone to deal with matters
relating to fire prevention.
Expressing sympathy over the recent tragic fires
which claimed a number of lives and caused serious
property damage, Mrs Tang believed such tragedies could be
avoided if residents were alert to the dangers of fire
hazards and abide by all fire safety regulations.
She said the Wan Chai District Office would organise
a number of courses on building management and form a Wan
Chai District Fire Safety Committee to strengthen building
management and promote public awareness of fire safety in
the district.
"I am pleased to note that the fire drill we held
today in Wai Lun and Sun Hey buildings was well supported
by the residents. About 200 persons from around 60
households took part, which represented a substantial
proportion of the residents. They all received a valuable
experience in proper evacuation in the event of fire. I
am sure it also impresses upon them the importance of
keeping the fire escape routes, mainly the staircases,
clear of obstructions.
"The participants also found the subsequent
demonstration on the use of fire fighting equipment and
talk by Fire Services Officers very useful," Mrs Tang
added.
At another fire drill held at Ka Tin Court, Sha Tin,
which attracted some 250 participants from 110 households,
Assistant Sha Tin District Officer, Miss Angela Lee, said
the exercise was aimed at conveying the message of fire
prevention and enhancing residents' awareness of fire
risks and knowledge of fire prevention and evacuation in
the event of fire.
Officers of the Fire Services Department monitored
both exercises and discussed their assessments with the
respective OC members and residents afterward.
End
3. TDD moves to new offices in North Point
***************************************
The Territory Development Department's (TDD)
Headquarters and Hong Kong Island and Islands Development
Office (HKI&I DevO) will operate from the new premises at
12th and 13th floors, North Point Government Offices, 333
Java Road, North Point from tomorrow (Monday).
The public enquiry telephone numbers for the
Headquarters and HKI&I DevO will be changed to 2231 4524
and 2231 4400 respectively.
However, their fax numbers (2577 3562 for the
Headquarters and 2577 5040/2576 9792 for HKI&I DevO) will
remain unchanged.
With five regional offices, the TDD's major role is
to provide land and infrastructure territory-wide to
facilitate the development of new towns and major growth
in urban districts.
The HKI&I DevO is responsible for major new
developments on Hong Kong Island, North Lantau and in the
Islands District. It also works on the Tung Chung and Tai
Ho new towns.
End
