Following is the transcript of remarks by the Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Mr Tse Chin-wan, at a media session after attending the launch event for the Blueprint for the Sustainable Development of Agriculture and Fisheries (December 14):
 
Reporter: About the urban farm, what is the aim or the purpose? Is the Government planning to open more farms in different districts later? And the second question is, what kind of support will the Government give to the agriculture and fisheries sector and what is their response?

The Secretary for Environment and Ecology: The purpose of the urban farm as explained by the Director (of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation) is that Hong Kong is basically a heavily developed city and therefore we are competing lands for different purposes and uses. Hence, we are experimenting a new concept, that is, in the urban area, in the new buildings, whether we can merge farming and development and we believe that is technically possible. If that can be done, it can enhance the agricultural development in the city a lot. Therefore, in Ma On Shan, next year, we will try to have a pilot project there. We believe this is a good concept. After gaining more experience from the Ma On Shan project, we will put up more projects and try to develop an urban farming direction.
 
     As to your second question, you can see in the Blueprint that we are offering the sector a number of support. It covers land, finance, technology, training, etc. As I have explained, the process of developing this Blueprint is through a lot of discussions and working together with the trade. You can see in general, they all welcome the measures in the Blueprint. Of course, the next challenge is the implementation and that is another area. We will join hands with the trade to implement the measures and make sure it will actually benefit and help the long-term development of the agriculture and fisheries sector in Hong Kong.
 
Reporter: How is the Government’s plan to attract young people to become farmers?
 
The Secretary for Environment and Ecology: Firstly, we are going to go for technology. When the young people see that agriculture and fisheries is actually high-tech and it is not something of the past generations, they will feel interested. And also, science and technology can improve the working environment for the sector and both will improve the attractiveness. And the last one, of course, is the reward. If we can increase the value of the product, that will increase the reward. That will also attract young people to join the trade. 

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)

     Following is the transcript of remarks by the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, at a media session after attending the Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit this afternoon (November 7):

Reporter: What will be your message to APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation), and what will you tell the US politicians who proposed to further sanction of cabinet members and judges and so? And do you think such proposal will hurt international business confidence for Hong Kong?

Financial Secretary: At the moment, the itinerary of my trip to APEC is still being arranged. Currently, I do not anticipate any specific meetings with US government officials. As to the so-called unilateral sanctions that you mentioned, of course, this kind of threatening is totally unacceptable. For us, in face of this, we will never compromise. We never fear. Thank you.

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
 

     Following is the transcript of remarks by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, at a media session after hosting a reception for representatives of consulates and local and foreign chambers of commerce today (October 31):

Reporter: Are there any concerns or challenges from the foreign chambers about whether the measures in the Policy Address are adequate for them? What does the Government think about the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) growth? It seems slow given the Government had rolled out different activities to boost spending and the economy?

Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development: When I spoke to the chambers and the Consuls General to explain the Policy Address’ different measures in promoting the economic growth, they showed a lot of understanding and appreciated all the initiatives introduced in the Policy Address by the Chief Executive. The GDP growth is increasing in the third quarter, despite the challenging situation all around. And with all the measures and initiatives introduced by the Government like the night market, which I enjoy myself as well, I am very confident that the economy of Hong Kong will be improving and increasing.

Reporter: Do the chambers show any concerns about the measures not being enough?

Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development: They appreciated all the measures introduced and we have different kinds of funding to help all the SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises).

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)

     Following is the transcript of remarks by the Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn, and the Director of Buildings, Ms Clarice Yu, at a media session today (October 18) on the application for renewal of registration of a contractor:
 
Reporter: First of all, can you just talk about what is the criteria to deny the renewal of Aggressive Construction’s registration? You mentioned they cannot convince you that they can provide sufficient monitoring and safety measures on sites. Can you just elaborate further on what do you mean by that? What do you mean by sufficient monitoring and safety measures? And also before delisting the contractor, what else can the department do to suspend their registration before the whole review is completed? Is there a plan to review the whole mechanism, seems like it takes almost a year to review the registration or renewal. So do you think it takes too long? Finally, how do you ensure smooth handover of the affected construction sites while the handover is ongoing?
 
Secretary for Development: Quite a number of questions. Perhaps I take the one on the various enforcement actions taken first. As I have mentioned just now, the Government has a multi-pronged approach in enforcing against mishaps in construction sites. And this multi-pronged approach will involve prosecution under the relevant laws; disciplinary action against the relevant contractors or professionals, again, also under the relevant laws; and also this process of considering whether an existing registration should be removed; and finally we have another measure for contractors which are listed in our tendering list for public works projects, we may consider suspending or removing their status as a potential tenderer altogether. So this is a multi-pronged approach. And I have to say that the various approaches under all the regimes involve very serious investigation, prosecution and other follow-up actions. So inevitably, it may take some time because when we talk about investigations, particularly investigations involving possible criminal liability, we have to be very careful. But I have to emphasise that justice will be done and must be done. So we do not worry that justice will at the end be left undone. We are pretty confident about that. So it is a matter of time and we will expedite our work as much as possible. On your other questions, I would like to invite the Director of Buildings.
 
Director of Buildings: The authorised signatories representing the contractor needed to attend interviews with the Contractors Registration Committee (CRC). The interviews focused on the authorised signatories’ abilities and their competence in site supervision and also in safety management matters. The CRC asked them questions surrounding and related to these subjects and they needed to demonstrate that they had the knowledge and abilities to implement effective measures. During the interviews, the authorised signatories had not been able to demonstrate their abilities and competence in these areas. So, the application was refused.
 
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)

     Following is the transcript of remarks by the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, at a media session before the Executive Council meeting today (September 26):
 
Reporter: I’m wondering, has Hong Kong received an invitation to attend APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation)? And will you be attending APEC in November? And if not, who will the city send as a representative? And then secondly, what are the lessons you’ve learned from the JPEX and whether crypto is simply too dangerous to use for retail?
 
Chief Executive: According to APEC guidelines and protocol, the organiser should send an invitation to the leader of the respective economies. I am still waiting for the invitation letter to be sent to me. We will attend in accordance with standard protocol.
 
     In regard to the incident of JPEX, I have explained very clearly the Government position, which is first of all, investors must invest on platforms which are licensed so as to ensure that they are properly protected. The second is we have to ensure that information we disseminate should be transparent and as clear as possible. The third is we should promote investors’ education, so that they will understand how the products work, and also how they can assess the risk that they have to face. I have seen that SFC (Securities and Futures Commission) has already published information regarding platforms that are licensed, that are deemed to be licensed, or platforms that have been closed down, or platforms which have made applications. This clear information will assist investors to make a decision as to what they should do when they consider making investments.
 
     But I must repeat, their interest will be best protected if they invest on platforms which have been licensed. That means these platforms will be properly regulated. There will be proper risk control and proper standards that they must fulfil. If investors choose to invest on platforms that are not licensed, they have to face their own risk. I advise them not to do so. That is why the Government is so concerned about enforcing an effective licensing regime, and I urge everyone to try to understand the products and the risks as much as possible if they choose to invest in virtual assets. The Government, the responsible authorities, and I think also people engage in this business, should all try to promote education in this regard.
 
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)