New HK leader vows to review hotel quarantine policy

Hong Kong’s incoming leader John Lee Ka-chiu said he plans to “quickly review” mandatory quarantine measures for incoming travelers, including suggestions to isolate at home or reduce the number of days required to stay in designated hotels.

Lee, who will succeed Carrie Lam as Hong Kong’s chief executive on July 1, told a local media that he would seek to reduce inconveniences for international travelers “without bringing extra risk to the mainland at the same time.” He also plans to prioritize the full reopening of the China border, without saying how he could accomplish both goals.  

“One thing I will do very quickly together with my secretary for health is a quick review, looking at statistics and figures to ascertain how we can achieve the best result with the least cost,” the report cited Lee as saying in an interview. A representative from Lee’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Meanwhile, incoming health minister Lo Chung-mau said on Thursday that he will strive to cut restrictions for returnees as he assumes office on July 1, including shortening the quarantine requirement for returnees from seven days to five days.

Lo pointed out that Hong Kong has the conditions to shorten the quarantine requirement if authorities can identify infections early. Currently, only 1 percent of travelers coming to Hong Kong are infected with Covid, Lo cited figures and said.

The measure can also be implemented along with home isolation and point-to-point transportation. On the other hand, the city needs to enhance testing capability, speed and accuracy, according to Lo.

When asked if this means Hong Kong is gradually returning to normalcy or even heading towards “living with Covid,” Lo wished to avoid the term “living with” and noted elderly and chronic disease patients remain vulnerable to the coronavirus.

He hoped the tragedy of the city's fifth Covid wave -- where over 9,000 patients lost their lives – will not repeat.

Hong Kong has endured some of the world’s strictest quarantine measures to keep Covid at bay for more than two years, effectively shutting it off from the rest of the world. The curbs have led to an exodus of expat workers and residents and damaged the economy, raising questions about the city’s future as a financial center. 

While a travel ban on non-residents was lifted last month, provided they are fully vaccinated, all international arrivals are still subject to seven-day hotel quarantine. The border restrictions stand in contrast to much of the rest of the world, which has dismantled pandemic curbs and is treating the virus as endemic. 

“The second thing is, what are possible interim measures and interim goals before we can reach the final goal?” Lee added in the interview. “The quarantine period is causing inconvenience to travelers. Is there a way of addressing that inconvenience so that [we can] reduce it a little bit? These are options.”

It is understood that the interim measures could include point-to-point travel for individuals, like a “closed-loop” arrangement.

Hong Kong’s future will come under the spotlight next week as the city marks 25 years of Chinese rule in the former British colony. Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 to snuff out a pro-democracy movement that brought millions of protesters to the streets a year earlier, generating an international outcry and sanctions on key leaders. 

The city is rife with speculation over whether Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Hong Kong to mark the celebrations, an event that has also led local officials to tighten Covid controls in the past few weeks. The question afterward is whether Lee will be able to diverge more completely with Xi’s rigid Covid-Zero policy on the mainland to allow Hong Kong to again serve as a financial hub connecting the city with the rest of the world. 

(Staff reporter/Bloomberg)