Issued by Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government Information Services
Garden Road, 5th-8th Floors, Murray Building, Hong Kong. Tel: 2842 8777
Saturday, February 28, 1998 CONTENTS ======== 1. Segregation of chickens and water birds 2. Monetary statistics for January 1998 3. Buildings Department achieves performance pledge 4. Best Project Awards on "Youth Action on AIDS" 5. Campaign to promote safe use of heavy equipment 6. Exhibition to spread public health messages 7. Eight groups to raise funds 1. Segregation of chickens and water birds *************************************** Birds brought into Hong Kong to be slaughtered for food have to be imported through certain points and transported to designated markets under new controls. The new controls are contained in the Public Health (Animals and Birds) (Amendment) (No.2) Regulation 1998 which was published in Government Gazette yesterday (Friday). Under the new regulation, all birds imported to be slaughtered for food may be imported only through Man Kam To Control Point, the pier at Western Wholesale Food Market (water birds only), the pier at Cheung Sha Wan Wholesale Food Market (birds other than water birds), or the airport. Imported water birds, such as ducks and geese, have to be carried separately from other birds and be taken from the point of entry to the Western Wholesale Poultry Market by the most direct route. The Government has previously announced that importation of ducks and geese for food will resume on March 31 and that slaughtering of water birds will be centralised in Western Wholesale Poultry Market. Similarly, birds imported to be slaughtered for food which are not water birds, such as chickens and pigeons, have to be taken directly to the Cheung Sha Wan Temporary Wholesale Poultry Market. Any person who contravenes the above segregation requirements will be liable on summary conviction to a maximum fine of $25,000. The birds concerned may also be forfeited. A government spokesman today (Saturday) said that the new regulation effective from February 27 was a key step towards implementing the Government's policy of segregating water birds from chickens so as to minimise the risk of transmission of the H5N1 avian influenza virus from water birds to live chickens and subsequently to humans. As regards birds bred on local farms, he said that the Agriculture and Fisheries Department would amend farm licensing conditions so that local farmers would not be allowed to keep water birds and other birds within the same farm. Local farmers had agreed with the department that they would transport their water birds to the Western Wholesale Poultry Market for slaughter, he said. End 2. Monetary statistics for January 1998 ************************************ According to statistics published today (Saturday) by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, total deposits rose while loans and advances fell further in January 1998. Table 1 gives a summary and comparisons with earlier months. Deposits Total deposits increased by a modest 0.2 per cent in January 1998, having risen by 0.3 per cent in December 1997. HK$ deposits fell by 2.2 per cent, while foreign currency deposits rose by 3.4 per cent. During the month, HK$ demand and savings deposits dropped by 11.2 per cent and 9.4 per cent respectively, while time deposits rose by 0.9 per cent. The fall in demand and savings deposits was partly due to the long Chinese New Year holiday at around end-January, which reduced the transaction demand for money, and partly due to the seasonal demand for cash for "lai-see" during the Lunar New Year. In addition, as there was a renewed volatility in financial markets due to the Asian currency turmoil in January, the offering of higher time deposit rates by banks in response to tightened liquidity stimulated a switch from demand and savings deposits to time deposits. During the month, US$ deposits rose by 4.9 per cent, having increased by a modest 0.6 per cent in December, while non-US$ foreign currency deposits rose by 1.8 per cent, having fallen for three consecutive months. Loans and advances Total loans and advances fell by 0.4 per cent in January. The fall was across-the-board. In line with the slowdown in economic activities across the region, offshore loans shrank by 0.8 per cent and domestic loans contracted by 0.1 per cent. Of the total credit for use in Hong Kong, loans for trade financing edged down by 0.5 per cent, while other loans were virtually unchanged. During the month, HK$ loans registered a decrease of 0.3 per cent, following a rise of 0.7 per cent in the previous month, while foreign currency loans contracted for three months in a row, falling by 0.4 per cent. As HK$ deposits decreased at a faster pace than HK$ loans, the HK$ loan-to-deposit ratio rose to 115.5 per cent at end-January 1998, from 113.3 per cent at end-December 1997. Money supply HK$ M1 rose by 2.1 per cent in January, as a 19.8 per cent growth in cash held by the public stemming from the seasonal demand for currency for red packets more than outweighed the fall in demand deposits. Meanwhile, HK$M2 and HK$M3 were down by 0.9 per cent and 1.0 per cent respectively. In the twelve months to January 1998, HK$M1 dropped by 13.1 per cent but HK$M2 and HK$M3 grew by 6.2 per cent and 6.1 per cent respectively. End 3. Buildings Department achieves performance pledge ************************************************ The Buildings Department scored an average of 97.6 per cent in achieving its performance targets in the last quarter of 1997, according to the Department's 13th report on Performance Pledge released today (Saturday). Full achievement rate was recorded for four types of services to the community. "These services are disapproval for re-submission of plans, issuing occupation permits, processing applications for inclusion in Authorised Persons' and Registered Structural Engineers' Registers and processing new restaurant licence applications," a spokesman for the department said. Performance results for disapproval for first submission of plans and major revisions was 99.7 per cent; reports on potentially dangerous buildings, signs and slopes 99.4 per cent; 24-hour emergency service relating to dangers in buildings, and approval of first submission of plans and major revisions were both 99 per cent. Achievement rates for other types of services were 98.2 per cent for inspection of potentially dangerous demolition or building activities and 97.4 per cent for approval for re-submission of plans and issuing of consent for demolition and new building works. The spokesman noted that a slight rise of 0.2 percentage point was also recorded for reports on unauthorised building works and defective drains. "Resources have been reprioritised to expedite screening and inspecting the large number of reports," he added. "In achieving our performance targets, we make the built environment safe and healthy for the community," the spokesman said. "Our mission has always been to set and enforce safety, health and environmental standards for private buildings," he added. End 4. Best Project Awards on "Youth Action on AIDS" ********************************************* The three best project awards on "Youth Action on AIDS 1997" were announced today (Saturday) for their outstanding presentation in spreading positive messages about AIDS to young people. In the form of training courses, educational activities, exhibitions and competitions, the three best projects won prizes for the Hong Kong YWCA Tuen Mun Integrated Social Service Centre; St Paul's Convent School and Peer Counsellors' Society of Haking WONG Technical Institute. They were selected among youth groups which participated in the scheme last year. Under this scheme, a total of $96,290 subsidy was granted to 21 participating groups. The projects which they organised enabled 40,000 young people to learn more about AIDS and its impact on the community. Officiating at the prize presentation ceremony were the Deputy Secretary for Health and Welfare, Mr Gregory Leung; the Assistant Director of Social Welfare, Mr Carlos Leung; the Assistant Director of the Hong Kong Council of Social Service, Miss Kay Ku; and the 1997 Asian Fencing Championship Silver Medalist, Miss Ho Ka-lai. Established since 1991, the "Youth Action on AIDS" Funding Scheme is run annually by the Task Force on Youth of the Committee on Education and Publicity on AIDS to encourage and mobilise young people to organise innovative projects on education and publicity on AIDS. Successful applicants would be given a ceiling amount of $8 000 in subsidy to implement their proposed programmes. The Committee on Education and Publicity on AIDS is now inviting young people to take part on the "Youth Action on AIDS 1998" Funding Scheme. Copies of a leaflet on the 1998 funding scheme and application forms are available from the Red Ribbon Centre. Enquiries can be made to Mr Mak Sik-yan of the centre at 2304 6268. End 5. Campaign to promote safe use of heavy equipment *********************************************** The Labour Department will launch a safety campaign to promote the safety use of heavy equipment in March. Heavy Equipment include lifting appliances, suspended working platforms, hoists, forklift trucks, container handling appliances and earth-moving machines Acting Chief Occupational Safety Officer (Operations), Mr Wong Ching-kwok today (Saturday)appealed to equipment owners, contractors and operators to adopt all safety measures to reduce accidents and risks at work. He said: "Accidents arising from the use of heavy equipment in the construction industry have increased from 818 in 1996 to 1,008 in 1997. "The causes of these accidents can be attributed to the abuse, misuse, or negligence on the part of operators or owners of such equipment. "During the campaign, occupational safety officers from the Department will inspect major undertakings where such equipment are used. "The officers will distribute safety booklets and give relevant advice on the safety use of heavy equipment to the operators and owners," Mr Wong said. He said prosecutions would be taken against the people concerned when they were found in breach of the safety regulations of the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance (FIUO). He said improvement notices would be issued where conditions warrant and suspension notices would be issued upon discovery of hazardous of serious nature. Mr Wong reminded contractors, equipment owners, operators and workers that failure to comply with the ordinance would be prosecuted without further warning. Anyone failing to comply with the safety regulations of the FIUO is liable to a fine of $500,000 and six months' imprisonment. End 6. Exhibition to spread public health messages ******************************************* A "1988 Public Health Exhibition cum Health Education Video Competition Prize-winning Videos Show" will be held next Friday (March 6) to enhance public awareness and knowledge on public health. Jointly organised by the Provisional Urban Council, the Provisional Regional Council and the Department of Health, the event will mark the successful conclusion of the Health Education Video Competition held in last December as part of the territory-wide Health Education Programme for the community. Judging panels comprising professionals from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, the Hong Kong Baptist University and Government officials had already adjudicated the entries submitted by teachers, students and the public under the themes of food hygiene, environmental hygiene and personal hygiene. All winning entries will be shown in the exhibition to widely disseminate the health messages to the public. Also on display will be exhibition boards and models, audio-visual shows, computer games and game stalls, while health education materials and souvenirs will be distributed. Teachers and students will be invited to the event and guided tours will be arranged for group visits. The exhibition will be held at the Exhibition Hall, Hong Kong City Hall from March 6 to 10, and at the Exhibition Gallery of the Sha Tin Town Hall from March 14 to 18. Admission is free. The exhibition will be preceded by an opening ceremony to be officiated by a member of the Provisional Urban Council and a member of the Provisional Regional Council at the Exhibition Hall, Hong Kong City Hall, at 3 pm on March 6 when prizes for the winning video entries will be presented. End 7. Eight groups to raise funds *************************** Eight organisations have been granted permission to raise funds next month (March), a spokesman for the Social Welfare Department said today (Saturday). They will either sell flags, tokens or similar items, or place donation boxes in designated public places. Members of the public can call the Department's hotline 2343 2255 in case of doubt. Any organisation planning to hold activities involving collection of money or sale or exchange for donation of badges, tokens or similar articles in a public place for charitable purposes should apply for a public subscription permit from the Social Welfare Department. The spokesman appealed to organisers to take precautions against any possible fraud. "Sellers should display the permit or carry copies of the permit for inspection upon request if the fund-raising is mobile," he said. The spokesman also advised them to prepare guidelines for sellers, setting out the places and the schedule for selling and the collection points for bags. "Organisers should inform the Police in case of loss of property, and seek their help when fraudulent acts, such as tampering of collection bags or making unauthorised selling, are found," he added. Permits are given to the following organisations for raising funds next month: Flag Day ---------- Event Date Organisation ---------- ------------ March 7 Hong Kong Society for the Protection of Children March 14 Wu Oi Christian Centre Ltd March 21 Breakthrough Ltd March 28 Hong Kong Blind Union Public Subscription ------------------- Event Day Organisation --------- ------------ March 1 Kwun Tong Methodist Social Service March 7 Land of Virtue Centre Ltd March 14 & 15 Kwun Tong Methodist Social Service March 20 - 22 March 15 Sowers Action March 22 Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (HK) End
