Individual Visit to Hong Kong Program
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Officials consider changing rules to visit Hong Kong
Regulations covering individual visits to Hong Kong and multiple-entry permits are to be revised to promote contact between tourists from the mainland and the region's residents, according to an official from the State Council's Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office. "We are talking with the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's government about refreshing the policies covering visits," Zhou Bo, the office's deputy head, told China Daily. Zhou, who is also a deputy to the National People's Congress, did not say when the talks would be concluded, but added, "It will not take a long time". During the past few months, there has been a rise in sentiment against parallel trading in Hong Kong, with a series of protests occurring in some popular destinations for mainland visitors. Parallel traders from the mainland use multiple-entry permits to travel to Hong Kong, where they buy tax-free goods and take them back home to resell at a profit. The practice has caused shortages of household goods in some parts of Hong Kong. The mainland implemented an individual visit program in 2003, allowing residents of four cities in neighboring Guangdong province to travel to Hong Kong and Macao within a limited period of time. The program was later expanded to 49 mainland cities, covering more than 300 million people. Since April 2009, residents of Shenzhen have been allowed to visit Hong Kong multiple times within a year. Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said previously that the individual visit program should be tightened up, according to media reports. Zhou said, "Both policies have helped greatly to boost Hong Kong's economy and create jobs by accelerating the growth of industries such as tourism, hotels, restaurants and retail." However, he said the increasing number of visitors from the mainland in the past few years has become a heavy burden for Hong Kong and Macao. "Any city would be unable to host such a dramatically increased number of tourists," he said, adding that facilities for visitors should be upgraded. Lee Tak-lun, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said: "Parallel traders account for only a small number of mainland tourists, and Hong Kong itself has thousands of parallel traders. "The key to solving the problem of an overflow of people is to deal with parallel traders in an effective way by cooperating with the mainland government." Felix Chung Kwok-pan, a NPC deputy from Hong Kong and chairman of the Liberal Party, said parallel traders should be dealt with separately from normal tourists. He suggested building a shopping center near the border to relieve the pressure on popular tourist areas. In addition, he said restrictions should be placed on multiple-entry permits issued in Shenzhen, while the individual visit program should be extended to more cities.
Officials consider changing rules to visit HK
Protesters wearing masks shout at mainland Chinese travellers (C) during a demonstration inside a shopping mall in Hong Kong February 15, 2015. Anti-mainland Chinese demonstrators on Sunday protested against parallel traders and confronted police, government radio reported. [Photo/Agencies] Regulations covering individual visits to Hong Kong and multiple-entry permits are to be revised to promote contact between tourists from the mainland and the region's residents, according to an official from the State Council's Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office. "We are talking with the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's government about refreshing the policies covering visits," Zhou Bo, the office's deputy head, told China Daily. Zhou, who is also a deputy to the National People's Congress, did not say when the talks would be concluded, but added, "It will not take a long time". During the past few months, there has been a rise in sentiment against parallel trading in Hong Kong, with a series of protests occurring in some popular destinations for mainland visitors. Parallel traders from the mainland use multiple-entry permits to travel to Hong Kong, where they buy tax-free goods and take them back home to resell at a profit. The practice has caused shortages of household goods in some parts of Hong Kong. The mainland implemented an individual visit program in 2003, allowing residents of four cities in neighboring Guangdong province to travel to Hong Kong and Macao within a limited period of time. The program was later expanded to 49 mainland cities, covering more than 300 million people. Since April 2009, residents of Shenzhen have been allowed to visit Hong Kong multiple times within a year. Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said previously that the individual visit program should be tightened up, according to media reports. Zhou said, "Both policies have helped greatly to boost Hong Kong's economy and create jobs by accelerating the growth of industries such as tourism, hotels, restaurants and retail." However, he said the increasing number of visitors from the mainland in the past few years has become a heavy burden for Hong Kong and Macao. "Any city would be unable to host such a dramatically increased number of tourists," he said, adding that facilities for visitors should be upgraded. Lee Tak-lun, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said: "Parallel traders account for only a small number of mainland tourists, and Hong Kong itself has thousands of parallel traders. "The key to solving the problem of an overflow of people is to deal with parallel traders in an effective way by cooperating with the mainland government." Felix Chung Kwok-pan, a NPC deputy from Hong Kong and chairman of the Liberal Party, said parallel traders should be dealt with separately from normal tourists. He suggested building a shopping center near the border to relieve the pressure on popular tourist areas. In addition, he said restrictions should be placed on multiple-entry permits issued in Shenzhen, while the individual visit program should be extended to more cities.
China influence can soften blow of Brexit
The outcome of Brexit is expected to be catastrophic for Britain, and the price paid will be substantial for a very long time, David Dodwell, executive director of Hong Kong-APEC Trade Policy Study Group, told a roundtable forum on Friday in Hong Kong. Dodwell told China Daily that it is not the phenomenon of Brexit that will worry investors, it is that Brexit is the product of a rather disturbing political and social development that is occurring across a large number of economies. If the malaise continues to get worse, it will hurt all of us, Dodwell warned. Brexit is a setback for a lot of aspects of the British economy, Dodwell said. He mentioned that the UK will have to face the substantial challenge of renegotiating trading agreements with other countries and regions; meanwhile, the situation will make it very difficult for labor to move around Europe. "People moving around is positive to the economy, as labor can match their skills against needs," he explained. But Dodwell pointed out that China is a stabilizing force for the world, and he believes that the British government as well as British companies are hoping that despite the difficult situation they have created, still the buoyant companies from China can create jobs and help stabilize things in the UK. "From a bilateral point of view, I see China beneficially impacting the UK to help them in a rather difficult situation. I don't see the UK has such powerful influence over China, since China is a much bigger economy." He said that going forward, the best thing that the Chinese mainland can do is to continue to grow, focusing on stimulus economic growth. As a large economy like the Chinese mainland grows steadily, small and specialized economies like Hong Kong will continue to benefit from it. Dodwell warned that it is irrational to talk about shutting the doors to the Chinese mainland due to the anxiety and depression that people have been feeling from economic setbacks, as a free flow of business can only be beneficial to Hong Kong people. He suggested that there are some things that the central government can do to help Hong Kong, such as inclusion of more mainland cities into the Individual Visit Scheme. Mainland residents who are not eligible to apply for the endorsement under the visiting program have to come to Hong Kong in groups, Dodwell said. "Think about it, when tourists have to move in groups, they are very noticeable and will attract a lot of attention," he said, adding that if they come as couples or families they will be less noticeable and likely to spend more, which will help tourism and the retail industry in the city.
Knowledge Graph
Examples
1 The individual visit program（Individual visit to Hong Kong program） for non-hukou holders in Guangdong is expected to attract more inland tourists and boost Hong Kong's tourism that has been flagging from the A/H1N1 outbreak.
2 The individual visit plan（Individual visit to Hong Kong program） began July 28, 2003. It allows travelers from the mainland to visit Hong Kong and Macao on an individual basis.
3 In addition, as more travelers from the mainland are allowed to visit Hong Kong as individuals under the Individual Visit Scheme（Individual visit to Hong Kong program）, upscale goods no longer seem like a privilege.