

Hong Kong Today
Description:
RTHK's morning news programme. Weekdays 6:30 - 8:00
Presenter:
Janice Wong and Vicky Wong2023-02-14
Tuesday
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Selected audio segments:
Govt postpones rollout of new tunnel eToll
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The government is postponing the launch of its new tunnel toll system by nearly three months, to give people more time to adopt the new scheme. HKeToll was meant to be rolled out at the Tsing Sha Control Area just before the end of this month to replace manual toll booths and Autotoll lanes for the Eagle's Nest Tunnel. But, as Damon Pang reports, it has now been pushed back until May 7:
HKeToll needs more publicity, driver education
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The honorary life president of the Hong Kong Automobile Association says the government made the right decision in postponing the launch of its new e-toll system for tunnels. Wesley Wan says many drivers still have not applied, nor received their toll tag. He told Vicky Wong that the government should have been better prepared and needed to do more to publicise its scheme, especially to commercial drivers:
HA says e-sick notes will save time
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The Hospital Authority is launching an electronic medical certificate system for patients using public hospitals and clinics. From early next month, doctors will be able to issue sick notes through the authority's HA Go app - where they can be amended, shared and stored for up to two years. The certificates will be encrypted with a designated QR code for verification purposes. Larry Lee, a chief Hospital Authority manager, told Kelly Yu the new system would save public health patients a lot of time:
Privacy concerns over HA patient data
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The chairman of Hong Kong Patients' Voices, Alex Lam, says it is inevitable that sick notes should eventually be made electronic and the health system move towards becoming paperless. But he told Janice Wong that he hoped authorities would beef up security measures to protect data on the HA's computer system:
Pro-Beijing group calls for delay over Article 23
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The vice-chairman of the All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese, Lo Man-tuen, says the government should not bring in Article 23 national security legislation in the current legislative year. As Damon Pang reports, he says Hong Kong should instead focus on economic development:
Oyster Bay project tender withdrawn
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The MTR Corporation says it rejected all three bids received from developers for the first phase of its Oyster Bay project in northern Lantau. The project for 1,900 flats will be built on top of a new Tung Chung Line station. Mike Weeks reports:
Analyst unsurprised at land-sale tender fail
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A property analyst says the authorities are likely to see more land-sale tenders fail because developers do not have much appetite for new projects at the moment. Peter Churchouse from Portwood Capital told Damon Pang that market sentiment was weak:
Tax Institute wants subsidies to attract talent
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The Taxation Institute of Hong Kong is urging the financial secretary to provide more tax incentives in next week's budget to attract and retain talent, and conduct a comprehensive review of the local tax regime. Ahead of Paul Chan’s announcement of his spending blueprint, the institute urged him to cap the top salaries tax rate at 15 percent as opposed to the current 17 percent. It is also calling for a range of subsidies to attract overseas talent, including subsidies for rent and their children's schooling. Carol Liu, the taxation institute's president, told Ada Au what else the government could do to help Hong Kong:
Rare duck spotted for the first time in HK
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The Hong Kong Bird Watching Society says a very rare type of duck has, for the first time, been spotted here, at a reservoir in the New Territories. The scaly-sided or Chinese merganser normally breeds in north-eastern China and southern Siberia before migrating south for the winter - chiefly to Hunan, Jiangxi and Zhejiang. The society's director, Yu Yat-tung, says the visit of the highly-threatened species has created a lot of excitement in Hong Kong, though he urged people not to disturb it. He spoke to Vanessa Cheng:
Beijing accuses US of flying balloons in its airspace
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China has accused the United States of flying balloons over its territory - charges that Washington denies. Relations between the two countries soured after the US shot down an alleged Chinese espionage device in early February, which Beijing said was for civilian purposes. Vanessa Cheng reports: