Thank you, President. President, today’s motion is entitled “Pursuing the concept of ‘Tourism is everywhere in Hong Kong’ and developing Hong Kong’s mega event economy”. Regarding the several amendments to the motion, I would like to give a consolidated speech as follows.

To stimulate the local economy, one of the directions is to develop the concept of “Tourism is everywhere in Hong Kong” and drive the diversified development of industries with the mega event economy, so as to go all out to develop the economy and improve people’s livelihood. This is a gift bestowed on Hong Kong people by the Director of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, Mr XIA Baolong, which is profoundly meaningful.

According to Director XIA’s instruction, we have to support the concept of “Tourism is everywhere in Hong Kong” with mega events, and then turn popularity into prosperity. No doubt the SAR Government is making an effort to plan a number of mega events but I think mega events should be held one after another and success cannot be achieved by relying solely on slogans. Mega events require all trades and industries to work together to map out plans and suggest policies. The amendment proposed by my fellow party member, Mr SHIU Ka-fai, has precisely incorporated this viewpoint as his amendment stated the key point right at the outset: “As one of the four pillar industries of Hong Kong, tourism can drive the local catering, retail and wholesale, transportation and logistics industries, among others, as well as economic growth, providing a large number of employment opportunities and adding impetus to the growth of Hong Kong”.

As the representative of the catering industry and with decades of experience in running a business in this sector, I would say that the catering industry has no lack of brilliant ideas whenever mega events are held. First of all, I wish to take this opportunity to share with Members an idea. After months of planning, I have been preparing for a Hong Kong Creative Recipe Competition to be held at the end of this year. The highlight of this competition is that unlike ordinary cooking competitions among chefs, the focus will be “creative recipes”. Firstly, participating restaurants are required to submit their creative recipes for assessment by the organizer. After the creative recipes have been shortlisted, the contesting chefs will be invited to cook according to the recipes for our tasting and then we will select winners of the Gold, Silver and Bronze prizes based on their performance. These recipes will be made public after the competition for public information. Even if some restaurants do not have enough chefs, they can still follow these creative recipes to cook their dishes.

Besides, regarding the four points made by Mr SHIU in the amendment which he urged the SAR Government to study, I think the catering element can also be included. My personal suggestions are broadly as follows.

Firstly, on “setting up pedestrian precincts in various districts across the territory and implementing a system for the orderly management of street performances”, I think while these types of activities can promote the business of the surrounding catering establishments, consideration should also be given to arranging in an orderly manner for local hawker stalls of a temporary nature to operate there in tandem.

Secondly, in developing blue tourism resources, we can fully make use of Hong Kong’s natural conditions of being surrounded by waters on three sides and having many scenic islands in its vicinity and set up an appropriate number of light refreshment stalls (such as open-air cafes) to “sell” a leisurely feel. Many overseas tourism spots with characteristics have also made full use of sceneries at seaside, riverside and hillside to set up an appropriate number of cafes there, and the results are obvious to all. In fact, a decade or so ago I also proposed in different councils or commissions that the promenade should be further widened so that it would not be confined to a width of 15 m as stipulated now. It is because back then, it was said that a width of 30 m could accommodate the setting up of food stalls in the middle of the promenade.

Thirdly, on strengthening tourist-friendly and facilitative initiatives, I propose to further set up gourmet zones in some major stations or terminals. Take the airport as an example. The authorities can draw reference from Japan in setting up “food streets”, “souvenir streets” and special shops in the terminal buildings of international flights. The more the number of dinning outlets, the better; and there can be a mix of affordable and upscale restaurants. The key is to ensure a thriving market and when these places can gain popularity, prosperity will naturally follow.

Fourthly, in order to continuously promote the development of the night economy, “food” is one of the elements. Now that there are already night food markets and this, I think, should continue, and we can also act in a timely manner and seize the opportunity of other mega events to promote these night activities, with a view to giving full play to the synergistic effect. Take night drone shows as an example. The Government should make public the timetable for these activities as early as possible, so that on the one hand, food establishments in the vicinity can have sufficient time to make preparations and on the other hand, arrangements can be made for setting up an appropriate number of temporary snack food stalls.

President, I speak in support of the motion.