MR CHAN KIN-POR (in Cantonese): President, there are comments in the community that Hong Kong’s failure to resume quarantine-free travel is due to our refusal to use the national health code, but part (3) of the main reply points out that OGCIO has been collaborating with the “Health Code” technical teams of the Mainland on enhancement of the code conversion system, believing that it can be put into service when cross-boundary travels among the three places are resumed. I would like to ask whether the Secretary will confirm that the application of the health code technology is not the main reason why Hong Kong has failed to resume quarantine-free travel.
SECRETARY FOR FOOD AND HEALTH (in Cantonese): President, during the meeting on anti-epidemic work in the Mainland, we had an in-depth discussion on all the different work areas and anti-epidemic measures ranging from risk management to prevention of the importation of cases and the spreading of the virus in the community, and both parties had gained understanding of the practices and standards of their counterparts. Despite some differences between the systems, we have fostered deeper mutual understanding.
The health code or code conversion was also one of the subjects for discussion. In this regard, we have also pointed out in the main reply that OGCIO has been collaborating with the “Health Code” technical teams of Guangdong Province and Macao on enhancement of the code conversion system with a view to incorporating the vaccination records into the code conversion function and making technical preparations for the gradual resumption of cross-boundary travels among the three places when conditions are ripe. This approach will also facilitate the overall arrangement in future. Accordingly, the system will be launched when quarantine-free travel is possible and it is ready to be put into service.