Gary B. Dean, Naramata, British Columbia, Canada

The government is way off base - it is either intentionally misleading the public and the industry or it simply does not understand the economics involved. In either case, it is unacceptable. The budget misses the point again. Reduce the wine tax to zero, and Hong Kong will be the wine centre of the world.

Forget about all the nonsense that it can be easily put in bonded warehouses. Make it free and easy. The duty earned is minimal and dropping almost every year in any case.

Name and address supplied

Q Should the Central- Wan Chai bypass go ahead?

The Central-Wan Chai bypass as currently proposed in Central is illegal. It does not meet any of the criteria set by the government as to being a reasonable alternative to electronic road pricing [ERP] in terms of economic, social and environmental implications or cost and time incurred. Demand-management measures can be used instead of reclaiming the harbour. Since the alternative of ERP is available, the reclamation proposal should not be considered further.

The Central-Wan Chai bypass will encourage rather than suppress traffic. It will take at least four years longer than ERP, cost $10 billion more and yield no future income. Regarding through traffic, ERP can give a 100 per cent discount on the charge if vehicles stay on existing trunk roads.

ERP will reduce traffic by 24 per cent and so will achieve the objective of relieving traffic congestion.

Clear the Air will be presenting this Technical Circular to the Town Planning Board as evidence as to why the bypass is illegal under the Harbour Protection Ordinance.

If we are going to present the government's own arguments against the bypass and all the proposed surface roads, then why has the Central reclamation not yet been stopped? If the government pays off the contractor with a few hundred million, we will save billions. The money for this could come from the $1 billion that ERP would earn annually. It is time to restore the harbour to the people as required by law, and to implement ERP.

Annelise Connell, Clear the Air

Q Should the government introduce compulsory waste recycling?

Every year, millions of tonnes of waste are generated and dumped as landfill. Municipal waste has grown 1.6 per cent for the past five years.

There have been reports that landfill sites are running out of room. The three main landfills that were supposed to last until 2020 are now expected to last only until 2011-15, due to the annual growth in waste. More and more people are worried about this.

However, many Hongkongers don't recycle waste, even if the bins are placed right next to their residences.

If every Hong Kong citizen was aware of the waste crisis, co-operated with the government and contributed their views, it would help the government to solve the problem. I suggest that everyone does their part in safeguarding the community's health and welfare in dealing with this difficult issue.

Nicholas Ho, Happy Valley

Q Should McDonald's be allowed to deliver to schools?

Schools are places for children to learn, not proving grounds for free-market economics. It's one thing for kids to choose what kind of food they want to buy with their money outside school, but it's quite another for schools to encourage the consumption of junk food by opening their doors to one of its biggest purveyors.

Parents have a responsibility to ensure their children eat more wholesome food.

If they don't like the caterers their children's schools are allowing onto their premises, they should speak up or bag their meals from home.

Chohong Choi, Kwun Tong

On other matters...

Around 9.15am on March 19, a Saturday, I went to the sixth floor of the Wan Chai Immigration Tower to apply for the renewal of my domestic helper's employment contract. I was shocked at the poor hygiene in the waiting area.

There were locks of hair, pieces of paper and debris scattered everywhere, and cockroaches crawling on the floor. It was clear that no thorough cleaning, sweeping or mopping had been carried out before the office opened in the morning, to say nothing of pest control. Moreover, black PVC bags had been placed near the dustbins for visitors to dispose of their refuse, because the bins were so small.

Is there any mechanism to ensure that the staff and the cleaning contractor carry out proper cleaning and pest control? And is there any penalty on the contractor for their poor performance?

Name and address supplied

We refer to the letter from Julian Glaser and Julia Shapiro published in the Post on March 19 regarding RoadShow's Multi-media On-board (MMOB) programming.

We appreciate the suggestions from your readers regarding MMOB programmes. As a value-added service designed to make travelling on our buses more enjoyable, MMOB aims to provide a programme mix suitable for all ages and which appeals to a broad cross-section of the community.

Our programmes include messages from charity organisations, travelogues, highlights of sports events, entertainment programmes, celebrity chat, cartoons, music, movie trailers and drama. We also emphasise civic education, including crime prevention, environmental protection and health education. And all our programmes are censored by the Television and Entertainment Licensing Authority.

We value the opinions of viewers and have reminded our programming section to review carefully the content of MMOB programmes, in line with our aim of meeting the expectations of our passengers.

Should passengers have any comments on programmes, they are welcome to call our customer service hotline on 2745 4466.

Susanne Ho, Kowloon Motor Bus