John Lee Engages Public in District Forum on Hong Kong's Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address (with photos/video)

The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, today (August 9) led Principal Officials to attend a District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan (Hong Kong's Five-Year Plan) and the 2026 Policy Address at Kowloon Tong Government Primary School to listen to views and suggestions from members of local communities on Hong Kong's Five-Year Plan and the Chief Executive's fifth Policy Address. About 120 members of the public from different backgrounds participated in the District Forum.

The two-hour District Forum consisted of two sessions. In the first session, Mr Lee and the Principal Officials listened to views expressed by members of the public, covering a wide range of topics including accelerating the Northern Metropolis development and advancing spatial planning in other areas; economy, finance and trade; innovation, technology and industry development; people's livelihood and social development; development of regional co-operation; and integrated development of culture, sports and tourism, green living, and more. The second session featured group exchanges where participants were divided into four groups to exchange views with Mr Lee and the Principal Officials, focusing on the two themes of "pursuing development and economic growth" and "improving people's livelihood and building our future together". Mr Lee engaged directly with participants of each group in turn and listened to their views.

Mr Lee said, "I attach great importance to the District Forums, which provide an important channel for understanding the issues of greatest concern to members of the public. My governing team and I have engaged with members of the public at District Forums over two consecutive Sundays, and gained an in-depth understanding of their views on Hong Kong's current and long-term economic and social development. We will consolidate these valuable views in a holistic manner, analyse them and consider incorporating them into Hong Kong's Five-Year Plan and the Policy Address, ensuring that policy measures are effectively implemented by the Government, as well as translating our blueprint into tangible outcomes for economic development and the improvement of people's livelihoods."

The Government launched the public consultations for Hong Kong's Five-Year Plan and the Policy Address in June, and has held a number of consultation sessions to date including two District Forums, to extensively collect views from all walks of life. Members of the public are welcome to continue submitting their views through various channels, including the dedicated websites for Hong Kong's Five-Year Plan and the Policy Address, and by email.

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address (with photos/video) Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address (with photos/video) Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address (with photos/video) Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address (with photos/video) Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address (with photos/video) Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

CE attends District Forum for Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan and 2026 Policy Address Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Allowing dogs to enter restaurants running smooth in first month

The new measure of allowing dogs to enter permitted restaurants has been implemented for one month since July 9. A spokesman for the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) said today (August 9) that during this one-month adaptation period, the overall operation was generally smooth with a satisfactory level of compliance. Members of the public and restaurants made their choices according to their preferences and needs, and have gradually adapted to the new arrangement.

The spokesman pointed out that the first phase of the new measure sets a quota of 1 000 restaurants, and the number of permitted restaurants has increased from about 940 at the beginning to over 980 at present, reflecting the steady and continuous implementation of the measure in responding to community aspirations. However, the FEHD reminded operators that before applying for allowing dogs to enter, they must carefully consider the market positioning, customer base, and operational conditions of their restaurants, and make sufficient preparations before implementation to achieve the intended outcomes. A waiting list mechanism is established under the policy to ensure that when individual restaurants decide to withdraw, the released quotas can be reallocated swiftly and in an orderly manner.

The spokesman added that it was within expectations that assistance from the department regarding compliance with relevant regulations would be needed in the initial stage of implementation. Following continuous inspections, publicity, and education by the department, individual non-compliant behaviors have been properly rectified. As the adaptation period ends today, the department will conduct flexible inspections based on risk assessments. If non-compliance is detected, enforcement action will be taken immediately without prior warning.

Over the past month, FEHD's dedicated team continued to inspect restaurants across various districts to provide support to each permitted restaurants, as well as enhance the compliance awareness of them and customers through publicity and education. All parties were generally able to comply with the relevant regulations. As of August 8, dedicated officers have conducted about 29 600 inspections of permitted restaurants across various districts, issued a total of 77 verbal warnings, and taken enforcement actions against serious non-compliance behaviors, including issuing warning letters to licensees of three permitted restaurants for persistent non-compliance of cooking or heating food on dining tables, and instituting two prosecutions against failure to securely hold dogs on leashes. In addition, dedicated officers also proactively inspected non-permitted restaurants, and instituted prosecutions against six of them in breach of the regulation for allowing dogs to enter.

The FEHD emphasised that both restaurants and customers must abide by the law and regulations, and expressed hope that all parties will respect each other, earnestly fulfill their respective responsibilities, and jointly promote pet inclusivity.

Source: AI-found images