Isolation hotel scheme checks in too late, says lawmaker

It could be too late to launch on December 22 a program of designated hotels to house Hongkongers returning home for the Christmas and New Year break for the scheme to be effective, Roundtable legislator Michael Tien Puk-sun warns.

Still, authorities look set to push on with existing plans and to announce today a list of hotels to be used for quarantine, where returning travelers will be sent on shuttles directly from the airport for a 14-day compulsory quarantine.

The city has seen a big increase in the number of travelers arriving by air this month as the holidays approach.

Tien said he had suggested to government officials that the scheme should start by next Friday or else it would become meaningless as most locals would have already returned before December 22 to be with their families.

"Parents and students want the family to get together for Christmas and the New Year," Tien said. "Arrivals coming back on December 22 will need to be quarantined until January 5, and festivals will be over by then."

He added: "Now is the peak of people returning to Hong Kong. But they have to find a quarantine hotel on their own now and they will not move to another hotel once they have booked a room."

Tien said the 24-hour rate at quarantine hotels could be as low as HK$500 plus three meals a day.

But people can order takeaways from restaurants outside the hotel as long as the packaging of food complies with the requirements of the Department of Health.

Tien noted that around 10 percent of hotels participating in the government's quarantine scheme are five-star establishments and only a few would be charging more than HK$1,000 a day.

Authorities are said to have rented around 40 hotels, providing 10,000 rooms. But Tien said the 10,000 rooms may not be enough during Christmas as the number of people returning will be peaking at that time.

He suggested 5,000 more rooms be reserved to cope with the demand.

Michael Li Hon-shing, executive director of the Federation of Hong Kong Hotel Owners, confirmed to The Standard that the scheme will start on December 22.

He said it is necessary to leave some time for hotels and travelers to be prepared before the scheme goes into effect. But he refused to reveal the details of the hotel list or the possible prices. Li also said it was irresponsible for people who are not familiar with negotiations between the authorities and hotels to comment on the issue.

"Recently, some people are talking about the date when the scheme should start and whether the rooms will be enough," he said. "But those people do not represent the hotel industry."

He added: "They do not know the details about the scheme."

In the past few months, only a few hundred people arrived in Hong Kong by air due to the pandemic. But the number of daily arrivals has already exceeded 1,000 for some days this month.

Last Sunday saw the highest number so far, when 1,883 people arrived at the airport, including 1,837 residents.

wallis.wang@singtaonewscorp.com