Minutes of the Second Meeting of the Food, Environment and Hygiene Committee under Eastern District Council

Date: 17 February 2020 (Monday) Time: 2:30 pm Venue: Open Space outside Eastern Law Courts Building

Present Time of Arrival Time of Departure (pm) (pm) Mr WONG Chun-sing, Patrick 2:30 end of meeting Mr KU Kwai-yiu 2:32 end of meeting Mr HO Wai-lun 2:30 end of meeting Mr NG Cheuk-ip 2:30 end of meeting Mr LEE Yue-shun 2:30 end of meeting Ms LEE Ching-har, Annie 2:30 end of meeting Ms ISHIGAMI LEE Fung-king, Alice 2:30 end of meeting Mr YUEN Kin-chung, Kenny 2:30 end of meeting Mr CHOW Cheuk-ki 2:30 end of meeting Ms WEI Siu-lik 2:30 end of meeting Mr CHUI Chi-kin 2:30 end of meeting Mr CHEUNG Chun-kit 2:30 end of meeting Mr CHEUNG Kwok-cheong (Chairman) 2:30 end of meeting Mr LEUNG Siu-sun, Patrick 2:30 end of meeting Ms LEUNG Wing-sze 2:30 end of meeting Mr KWOK Chi-chung 2:30 end of meeting Mr KWOK Wai-keung, JP 2:31 3:49 Mr CHAN Ka-yau, Jason 2:30 end of meeting Mr CHAN Wing-tai 2:30 end of meeting Ms CHAN Po-king 2:30 end of meeting Mr MAK Tak-ching 2:30 end of meeting Ms FU Kai-lam, Karrine 2:31 end of meeting Ms TSANG Yan-ying 2:30 end of meeting Mr TSANG Kin-shing, Bull 2:30 end of meeting Ms WONG Yi, Christine (Vice-chairlady) 2:30 end of meeting Mr PUI Chi-lap, James 2:31 end of meeting Dr CHIU Ka-yin, Andrew 2:30 end of meeting Mr CHOI Chi-keung, Peter 2:30 end of meeting Mr CHENG Tat-hung 2:30 end of meeting Mr LAI Chi-keong, Joseph 2:30 end of meeting Ms LAI Tsz-yan 2:50 end of meeting Mr NGAI Chi-ho, Derek 2:30 end of meeting Mr SO Yat-hang 2:30 end of meeting

Absent with Apologies

Ms TSE Miu-yee

Action Opening Remarks

The Chairman welcomed all Members to the meeting.

I. Confirmation of the Draft Minutes of the 1st Meeting of FEHC

2. The above draft minutes were confirmed without amendments.

II. Terms of Reference of FEHC (FEHC Paper No. 1/20)

3. The Food, Environment and Hygiene Committee (FEHC) noted the Terms of Reference of the FEHC as set out in the Paper.

III. Requesting the Departments to Comprehensively Strengthen the Tackling of Wuhan Pneumonia (FEHC Paper No. 2/20) IV. Concern about the Use of Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village as Quarantine Centre for Wuhan Pneumonia (FEHC Paper No. 3/20) V. Requesting the Government to Comprehensively Enhance the Preventive Measures against Infectious Disease (FEHC Paper No. 4/20) VI. Use of Jockey Club General Out-patient Clinic as Designated Clinic for Wuhan Pneumonia (FEHC Paper No. 5/20) VII. Urging the Government to Give an Account for Designating Shau Kei Wan Jockey Club General Out-patient Clinic as Designated Clinic for 2

Action Wuhan Pneumonia (FEHC Paper No. 6/20) VIII. Requesting the Government to Give an Account of the Operation Details of Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village as Quarantine Centre (FEHC Paper No. 7/20)

4. The Chairman said that the agenda items III, IV, V, VI, VII and VIII were related and hence would be combined for discussion. Ms Annie LEE, the Vice-chairlady, Ms CHAN Po-king, Mr HO Wai-lun, Ms LEUNG Wing-sze and Mr Bull TSANG briefed the meeting on Paper Nos. 2/20 to 7/20 respectively.

5. Members noted the written replies from the departments.

6. The Chairman made a conference call with Mr KWOK Chun-sum, Chief Health Inspector (Eastern)1 of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD).

7. The views and enquiries of various Members about the agenda items were summarised as follows:

(a) Ms CHAN Po-king enquired about the sufficiency of protective equipment provided to outsourced workers of the FEHD.

(b) Ms Alice ISHIGAMI LEE said that the case concerning Island Resort had been rumoured within the area as early as on 8 February before it was confirmed on 10 February. She was of the view that the departments’ lateness in disseminating the information had sparked panic among the residents and therefore asked the FEHD and the hospitals to promptly report any confirmed cases. In addition, she asked whether the FEHD and the hospitals would issue guidelines on the measures to be taken by residents if there were confirmed cases in the area.

(c) Mr CHUI Chi-kin said that currently there was no hand sanitiser at public markets and asked the FEHD to consider its provision. He also said that currently the FEHD failed to provide daily street cleansing services at busy streets such as Yee Fung Street, and hoped the FEHD would consider stepping up cleansing services.

(d) Mr KU Kwai-yiu learnt that outsourced cleansing workers had to arrange their own masks. He questioned that although the FEHD had indicated

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Action that masks would be distributed to outsourced workers, the relevant arrangement had yet to materialise. He also said that as demonstrated in the constituency, despite the FEHD’s claim that several rounds of cleansing operations had been conducted at the private lanes in the area, he noted that some of the private lanes in the area had not been cleansed for over a month. In view of the inconsistency between the FEHD’s claim and the actual arrangement, he hoped the FEHD would ensure a genuine provision of sufficient protective equipment to frontline staff for their protection.

(e) Mr Kenny YUEN urged the FEHD to step up cleansing at crowded places in various districts, such as bus stops, markets, etc. He opined that the FEHD should carry out targeted cleansing of commonly touched facilities, such as railings, to prevent the transmission of the virus. He also said the FEHD had told him that it would step up the street cleansing services. He hoped the FEHD would report the relevant details, including the cleansing frequency and photo comparisons of the streets before and after cleansing services were stepped up. In addition, he enquired whether the FEHD had deployed additional manpower for cleansing. He learnt from the frontline cleansing workers that the FEHD had not deployed additional manpower and it was difficult to further enhance the cleansing services in the district.

(f) Mr Bull TSANG requested the FEHD to undertake to provide one mask per day to each cleansing worker and outsourced worker for their use at work. He indicated that the contractors only cared about their interests and neglected the well-being of frontline staff. Therefore, he hoped the FEHD would give an account of the number of outsourced workers currently working in the Eastern District and distribute its masks to the outsourced workers directly on an exceptional basis. In addition, as there were home confinees at Neptune Terrace, he enquired about the FEHD’s support for them apart from refuse collection. He further enquired about their daily life and meal arrangements and hoped District Council (DC) Members could provide assistance in this regard. Nevertheless, the FEHD had yet to issue clear guidelines at present.

(g) Mr CHENG Tat-hung commended the FEHD for its efforts. He enquired the FEHD about its stock level of masks and how it would define the sufficiency of protective equipment provided for its staff. He also

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Action enquired about the stock level of masks maintained by its contractors and the follow-up actions to be taken by the FEHD if there was insufficient stock. He further enquired about the penalty imposed on contractors for failing to fulfill their obligations as employers to provide protective equipment. In addition, he indicated that most of the FEHD staff wore ordinary clothes to work and enquired whether the FEHD could provide easily washable clothes, such as windbreakers, or even protective clothings for staff protection. Lastly, as there were confirmed cases in various locations in , he hoped the FEHD would step up street cleansing in the district to prevent the transmission of the virus.

(h) Mr Jason CHAN said that the FEHD had promptly deployed staff for cleansing operation after the emergence of the cluster associated with a meal gathering in Fortress Hill. However, the restaurant concerned had closed its business since 6 February and the FEHD was unable to access the place to inspect the hygiene condition. Apart from the above case, the FEHD was neither able to access a relevant building in to understand the situation, which reflected that the FEHD lacked understanding on the places visited by the confirmed cases and even the mode of cleansing of the relevant buildings. He hoped the FEHD would take the initiative to monitor the places visited by the confirmed cases.

(i) Mr MAK Tak-ching said that some confirmed cases resided in and some others had visited Sai Wan Ho. Although he was aware that the FEHD had carried out cleansing operations at places visited by the confirmed cases, he hoped the FEHD would give an account of the criteria for determining the priority of cleansing operations, such as the scope of cleansing, frequency, etc. He found that the FEHD had conducted frequent cleansing on the Holy Cross Path, yet it failed to cleanse other areas, such as the vicinity of Shing On Street. In addition, he reflected that local residents were concerned about the cleanliness of indoor areas visited by the confirmed cases and enquired whether the FEHD would consider accessing the buildings or premises with confirmed cases for cleansing operations.

(j) Mr Andrew CHIU thanked the FEHD for its prompt cleansing operation upon the emergence of confirmed cases in Taikoo Shing. He hoped that the FEHD would cleanse other areas in the district with confirmed cases in the same manner as that in Taikoo Shing. In addition, in view of

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Action Members’ concerns about the contractors’ treatment towards their staff, he hoped the FEHD would instruct the contractors to distribute protective equipment properly.

(k) Mr Joseph LAI thanked the FEHD for responding to Members’ enquiries. He hoped there would be inter-departmental communications for sharing their respective expertise and launching joint cleansing operations with a view to benefit the public. He also hoped the FEHD could strengthen communication with private property management practitioners (PMPs) to deal with livelihood issues properly.

(l) Mr LEE Yue-shun said that he had made contact with cleansing workers and found that some of the workers in the district were in lack of masks. He considered that cleansing workers should be given at least two masks every day for their use. The FEHD should ensure the genuine delivery of protective equipment by contractors to cleansing workers and review from time to time the sufficiency of equipment provided by the contractors.

(m) Mr CHAN Wing-tai said that he received frequent complaints by the residents about bird droppings and asked whether the FEHD would clear the bird droppings blackspots.

(n) Ms TSANG Yan-ying said that she had conducted site inspection(s) with the FEHD on local environment and noted the poor hygiene conditions of some vegetable and fruit stalls and fresh meat stalls in the district. She was of the view that the problem could not be solved by stepping up cleansing alone and hoped that the FEHD would strengthen enforcement to make the stalls concerned improve their hygiene conditions.

(o) The Vice-chairlady said that masks were disposed of everywhere on the streets and cleansing workers often had to come into contact with used masks. She asked how the FEHD handle such refuse that could potentially spread virus.

8. Mr KWOK Chun-sum of the FEHD responded to the views and enquiries of Members as follows:

(a) The FEHD noted Members’ views on the protective equipment of its staff and street cleansing services and also understood Members’ concerns about

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Action its epidemic prevention work. Currently, there were approximately 500 street cleansing workers engaged by the FEHD contractors working in the Eastern District. Based on the inspection results, the workers were sufficiently equipped with protective equipment at present. The FEHD also required the contractors to provide appropriate protective equipment for their employees in accordance with statutory and contractual requirements. For the time being, the FEHD distributed the additional masks produced by the Correctional Services Department which were reserved for the cleansing workers of government contractors to the workers as announced earlier by the Government.

(b) Currently, the FEHD would disinfect the residences of the confirmed cases in accordance with the arrangements of the Centre for Health Protection (CHP). As regards the common areas of the buildings, the CHP and the FEHD would remind or advise the building management staff to carry out disinfection work. From experience, the PMPs were prompt to respond at present. Meanwhile, the FEHD would use diluted bleach to enhance the cleansing of streets near the buildings with confirmed cases. The FEHD would also flexibly deploy resources to cleanse other streets.

(c) As regards the cases associated with a Chinese restaurant in North Point, the FEHD had contacted the person in charge of the Chinese restaurant and confirmed that the Chinese restaurant had closed its business and the items inside had been cleared out. The FEHD was communicating with the building owner to grasp the situation.

(d) Hand sanitisers were provided at FEHD’s public markets. Nevertheless, the utilisation rate at individual markets was high and the suppliers might be unable to replenish in time. The FEHD had requested the contractors to supply hand sanitisers as required by the contract and would deploy staff for inspections and follow-up actions.

(e) In light of the epidemic, the FEHD had all along flexibly deployed manpower resources to meet the environmental hygiene needs of the public. Generally speaking, the FEHD would prioritise street cleansing in the vicinity of buildings with confirmed cases and redeploy resources of other areas to maintain routine cleansing services. As cleansing of on-street facilities was undertaken by other departments, the FEHD did not have the information.

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Action

(f) In respect of home quarantine, currently the FEHD was only responsible for collecting refuse from home confinees under mandatory home quarantine while the rest of the supportive works were undertaken by other departments.

(g) At present, if there was a confirmed case in a public housing estate managed by the Housing Department (HD), the FEHD would carry out disinfection at the unit of the confirmed case with HD staff according to the CHP’s arrangement.

(h) With the current tight supply of masks, contractors might encounter difficulties in the procurement. The FEHD would make arrangements in accordance with the Government’s announcement on masks earlier, but the contractors were still required to comply with the terms and conditions of the contract to provide sufficient and appropriate protective equipment for staff use.

(i) As regards the bird droppings issue, apart from arranging for the cleansing of the locations, the FEHD had also deployed staff to prosecute those who dirtied public places by feeding birds.

(j) The FEHD would handle the disposed masks through general refuse collection.

9. The Chairman said he was unable to make a conference call with the Department of Health (DH). After discussion, the FEHC agreed to speak on the Papers related to the DH for the DH’s follow-up actions.

10. The views and enquiries of various Members about the agenda items were summarised as follows:

(a) Mr Bull TSANG urged the DH to give a public account of the setting up of quarantine centre at Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village (the Village) and the detailed sanitary facilities therein, as well as its impact on the surrounding environment. Besides, he asked how the DH would arrange for the quarantine of home confinees, so that Members could provide support to them.

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Action (b) Mr KWOK Chi-chung requested the DH to provide the number of units constructed with modular integrated construction method (MiC units) in the Village, and give an account of the partitioning, capacity, types and target groups of the units. He worried that admitting the family members of the confirmed cases or probable cases to the quarantine centre would increase the risk of cross infection. In addition, he asked the DH whether the sanitary and disinfection equipment in the units was in compliance with the epidemic prevention requirements, whether the DH could arrange sufficient manpower to take care of the persons undergoing quarantine and how they were segregated.

(c) Ms WEI Siu-lik enquired whether the DH could provide a more efficient channel for residents and community workers to obtain first-hand information about confirmed cases without having to rely on media reports. In addition, she opined that residents often had to visit Sai Wan Ho Health Centre for follow-up consultations and asked whether the DH would provide special services for non-emergency patients, so that they did not have to visit places where they were susceptible to contracting diseases. She also enquired about the epidemic-based contingency plans formulated by local clinics.

(d) Mr Jason CHAN opined that home confinees might have a chance to infect others like the cluster associated with meal gatherings. Therefore, he asked the DH to disclose to DC Members the addresses of home confinees, so that the local community could take actions on their own accord to protect residents.

(e) Mr HO Wai-lun said the DH had indicated that it would communicate with stakeholders but he expressed regret that the DCs was not considered one of its stakeholders. He hoped the DH would take residents’ views seriously. He further remarked that the DH’s refusal to release quarantine-related information had stirred up public resentment. He hoped the DH could disclose the information so that DC Members would not make unnecessary speculations.

(f) Mr NG Cheuk-ip said it was not until he saw police officers assessing Estate with a pink list did he realise the household of a unit in Wan Tsui Estate was under home quarantine. He hoped the DH would make public the information on cases under home quarantine at public housing

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Action estates, such as floor levels, number of members, etc., so that residents could be free from panic and the buying spree of protective equipment thus caused.

(g) Mr Kenny YUEN said that foreign domestic helpers (FDHs) were still seen gathering on streets in the community at present. The emergence of the cluster associated with meal gatherings still failed to make the DH issue relevant guidelines on the appropriate measures to be taken by the FDHs and their employers. He had earlier written to the Chief Executive and the CHP to reflect the problem but the relevant departments had yet to respond. He hoped the DH would take the matter seriously. In addition, he enquired about the guidelines issued by the DH to the housing estates with confirmed cases.

(h) Ms LAI Tsz-yan said it was not until she received requests for assistance from home confinees did she realise there were home quarantine cases in Upper Siu Sai Wan Estate. She asked the DH to take the initiative to disclose to DC Members the relevant information on home quarantine to facilitate their follow-up actions. In addition, she said it was rumoured that Y Loft in would be used as a quarantine facility after the Village, she hoped the DH would respond to the rumour.

(i) Ms Alice ISHIGAMI LEE said that the case confirmed on 10 February had been rumoured within the area as early as on 8 February. She hoped the DH could release the epidemic information as soon as possible to ease residents’ concerns.

(j) Ms Karrine FU indicated that although there was a confirmed case in a commercial building in the Fort Street constituency, the DH had not released the information to other occupants of the building, which caused panic among them. Furthermore, these occupants were unable to contact the relevant DH staff for epidemic information. She hoped the DH could provide the contact information to the occupants. Lastly, she opined that the DH should issue appropriate guidelines to occupants that were still opened for business.

(k) Mr CHENG Tat-hung expressed understanding for the heavy workload of healthcare practitioners and hoped the DH would give an account of the maximum capacity of the healthcare system in the Eastern District.

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Action Meanwhile, he questioned why the boundary control points (BCPs) were not closed in time if medical resources were tight. In addition, he enquired the DH about the reasons for not setting up an epidemic prevention committee to handle the epidemic in a centralised manner with a view to enhance efficiency.

(l) Mr LEE Yue-shun said that some residents had expressed concerns about the DH’s setting up of quarantine centre in the district and hoped the DH would explain the criteria for site selection to allay public concerns. In addition, he enquired about the sources, disinfection procedures and partitioning of the MiC units at the Village.

(m) Mr SO Yat-hang indicated that the delivery of patients to hospital by the DH staff in full protective equipment had raised concerns among the residents. Nevertheless, as it was difficult for DC Members to access relevant information at present, residents’ concerns could hardly be relieved. Therefore, he asked the DH to first inform DC Members of the probable cases in the district. In addition, he also considered that using the Village as a quarantine centre would increase the risk of community infection in Eastern District.

(n) Mr Patrick LEUNG said that the DH had to release information on the confirmed cases as soon as possible. Meanwhile, he indicated that the DH’s selection of clinics as the designated clinics sparked a huge response in the community. He asked the DH to explain the specific work of the designated clinics.

(o) Mr Andrew CHIU commented that the DH had performed poorly in both the setting up of quarantine centre and the tracing of close contacts of confirmed cases. He asked the DH to provide information such as floor plans, photos to Members on its use of the Village as a quarantine centre, so as to facilitate Members in explaining its operation to residents. In addition, he pointed out that since the DH released vague information on confirmed cases, members of the public had no means to find out the places where the confirmed cases had visited.

(p) Mr MAK Tak-ching was of the view that the DH should, in accordance with the Prevention and Control of Disease Ordinance (Cap. 599), request the well-equipped Police Force instead of departments such as

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Action the Civil Aid Service to assist in dealing with the epidemic.

(q) The Vice-chairlady said that the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in 2003 was a man-made disaster. Nevertheless, the Government disregarded the DCs by not consulting them and provided vague quarantine-related information at present had caused panic among the community. She hoped the DH could show concerns about the frontline healthcare practitioners and provide them with sufficient protective supplies and accommodation.

(r) Mr James PUI said that with respect to the confirmed case at 663 King’s Road, there was a 10-day gap between the day of the patient’s visit at the above location and the day of confirmation by the DH, the confirmed case would have visited many places and spread the virus during the 10-day- period. He also opined that there would never be enough quarantine camps if BCPs were not closed.

(s) The Chairman said that the DH had not released the information on confirmed cases all along. He had made enquiries with the DH but it failed to provide any information. He asked the DH to give an account of the operation of the quarantine measures.

11. Mr CHAN Wing-tai and Ms Alice ISHIGAMI LEE proposed the following motion which was seconded by Mr CHEUNG Chun-kit:

“The Food, Environment and Hygiene Committee under the Eastern District Council condemns the officers of the Department of Health for reneging on the attendance of the meeting by conference call and refusing to respond at the meeting to Members’ enquiries.”

12. After discussion, the FEHC passed the motion with 29 votes in favour, no against and 1 abstention.

13. Mr CHENG Tat-hung and Mr Jason CHAN proposed the following motion which was seconded by 3 Members, namely Ms Karrine FU, Mr James PUI and Mr LEE Yue-shun:

“Requesting the Food, Environment and Hygiene Committee under the Eastern District Council to allocate in full the remaining funding

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Action for community involvement activities and festive celebrations cancelled due to the epidemic for epidemic prevention and control.”

14. After discussion, the FEHC passed the motion with 31 votes in favour, no against and no abstention.

FEHD, DH 15. The Chairman concluded by asking the relevant departments to note the above motions.

IX. Date of Next Meeting

16. The 3rd FEHC meeting would be held at 2:30 pm on 21 April 2020 (Tuesday).

17. The meeting was adjourned at 5:10 pm.

EDC Secretariat April 2020

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