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SCMP Reporter

What do you think of supermarket prices?
Most housewives would agree that items sold in supermarkets will cost more than products in smaller grocery stores.
However, many of them prefer to use the supermarkets because they are generally cleaner and tidier, provided the price difference is not too great.
However, thanks to the effects of inflation, price differences are growing and so a larger number of shoppers are going to the smaller stores in search of a bargain.
Claire Lau Ka-yiu, Tsuen Wan
The letter writer, Wan Ka-ka (Talkback, May 10),  referred to a survey of prices by the Consumer Council ('Supermarkets not so super with their prices', May 8).
The council's survey has revealed that supermarkets are frequently charging higher prices than other retail outlets.
However, supermarkets point out that they offer special discounts at weekends.
However, I have noted that Tung Chung  Citygate's  Taste supermarket  bakery operates in a different manner by increasing bread prices by 25 per cent at weekends (from HK$12 to HK$15).
When asked, the salesgirl had no explanation for the weekend price increases, other than that  it was the manager's decision.
D.A. Park, Discovery Bay
What is the best way to support our elite athletes?
Universities have vowed to ease the plight of elite athletes, who are trying to juggle their studies with their sporting commitments.
Some of the ideas the institutes have come up with are to defer the commencement of studies, grant them leave to undergo training and take part in competitions, and allow them to extend their period of study. However, even these measures will not do enough to  support those talented athletes studying at university.
One undergraduate, for example, had to turn down the chance to take part in an invitational tournament in Thailand, as it would clash with her final exams ('Universities vow to ease athletes' woes', April 22).
Many Hong Kong parents hold to traditional values and think that study is the most important thing in the lives of their children.
This belief is caused by Confucian thinking and parents do not encourage children to spend lots of time playing sports. Besides, athletes are always looked down on by others in a city that cares more for materialism. The government has said repeatedly that it wants to improve the situation of athletes in Hong Kong, but where is the evidence of this?
What  athletes need is effective action from the administration, rather than promises.
Mainland athletes earn generous salaries.  The government must help our elite athletes by ensuring they earn a salary and promising them generous bonuses when they win international events.
If we want something, we have to pay for it. Our elite athletes cannot thrive unless the administration acts.
Helen Lam, Lam Tin
On other matters ...
I refer to M. Parker's letter (Talkback, May 6), concerning the loss of a Speedpost item. Mrs Parker posted the item, which contained golf clubs worth almost HK$14,000, as she declared  herself, at Sai Kung Post Office, on March 26.
Upon receipt of the inquiry from her, on April 3, our mail tracing office immediately looked into the matter. We made inquiries with Australia Post both by e-mail and long-distance calls and, at the same time, conducted an exhaustive search involving the airline and ground-handling agents in Hong Kong and in Australia.
Our records show Mrs Parker's Speedpost item was handed over to the airline for conveyance to Australia in the normal course on March 26.
There was, however, no record of receipt of the item at the other end. We informed Mrs Parker of these facts and what we had done on the same day.
While the airline is still investigating the case, Hongkong Post had to treat Mrs Parker's item as having been lost and offered compensation of HK$1,000 together with the postage paid on the lost item to Mrs Parker, which is already the maximum amount we could pay under the terms of the Speedpost Service.
In the past year, we handled more than 2.3 million outbound Speedpost items. Less than 0.02 per cent was loss in transit by airlines, which was unfortunate, but unavoidable. That is why we always advise customers to insure valuables against loss and damage for greater protection. In this regard, Speedpost offers a comprehensive insurance service covering documents, samples and merchandise.
We regret the inconvenience caused to Mrs Parker. We have, however, done our best to trace it. We will continue to liaise with the airline concerned on the progress of its investigation and keep Mrs Parker informed as soon as we are informed of the outcome.
Mary Chung, for postmaster general
I write to respond to reader A.Wong's letter in (Talkback, April 26) regarding scenes of movies being blurred  on our MGM channel.
We wish to inform your readers that MGM is an acquired channel on the Cable TV platform, and we carry a signal from this channel exactly as we receive them, without alteration. We do not censor movies, either by blurring or other means.
We have brought the reader's view to the attention of MGM, who advised that 'MGM believes it is very critical to adhere to local tastes, sensitivities and mores when programming the channel.'
Garmen Chan, vice-president, external affairs, Hong Kong Cable TV
Every day, I get on the bus instead of other transport options even though it can be more expensive, because I know I can always get a seat.
Unfortunately, the Roadshow  is getting increasingly annoying, especially with those inappropriate adverts  that air every 15 minutes. But this is not the main  thing that bothers me;  it is the TVs onboard.
I have noticed that they are never turned off even when the bus is empty.
I have explained this problem to Kowloon Motor Bus, but it has  said the TVs do not affect power consumption.
I do not understand why TVs do not affect the power consumption because, of course, TVs need an energy source to operate.
Would a representative of KMB please reply, through these columns?
Samuel Chan, Sha Tin



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