Top officials, government advisers and lawmakers attending celebratory events to mark the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to Chinese rule on July 1 will only need to quarantine at designated hotels for one day under a revised and looser “closed-loop” arrangement, the Post has learned. According to a memo seen by the Post , those covered by the health protocol should avoid going anywhere apart from their workplaces and home from June 23 until the day before the July 1 celebrations. They must undergo polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for Covid-19 at designated government testing centres every day and be fully vaccinated. Incoming Hong Kong leader unveils team, while Beijing lays out key expectations “The rules will include not going to crowded places, like pubs, and we are not allowed to take public transport or attend gatherings with friends,” said a pro-establishment politician who received the memo from the Home Affairs Bureau on Sunday. “We are still not being informed what events we will be attending, or whether state leaders will meet us.” On June 30, they must isolate at a government-designated hotel to undergo “closed-loop” management. Family members and drivers of these guests are also required to take a virus test every day from June 23, according to the memo, which was sent to certain lawmakers and members of the Executive Council, the city leader’s de facto cabinet. “In order to ensure the smooth progress of the event and strive to eliminate the risk of contracting the coronavirus, you must comply with these epidemic prevention requirements and arrangements,” it said. Those who want to attend must fill in a declaration form and provide a photo for registration. The government would further tell them about anti-pandemic requirements, such as quarantine arrangements, with a proper invitation later, the memo said. ‘Hong Kong’s border control rules untenable’, city logs 1,276 Covid cases Bernard Chan, the Exco convenor, said he had received an invitation to the main official event on July 1 and would undergo PCR tests daily from June 23 and stay in a hotel for quarantine on June 30. “This is the message I have received so far, but some of the arrangements can be changed too. I will attend the event,” he said. On Monday, Hong Kong confirmed 1,327 Covid-19 infections, comprising 1,186 local and 141 imported ones. The city’s coronavirus tally now stands at 1,227,896 cases, with 9,396 related deaths as one more fatality was recorded. Government adviser Professor David Hui Shu-cheong on Monday said the Covid-19 situation could rebound as more people dined out together or went for activities for Father’s Day, leading to higher infection risks. But Hui said it would not become a big problem if most patients only had mild symptoms. “As long as there are few severe cases and deaths and the medical system can cope, it is not a bad thing as the city’s economy will be able to recover,” he told a radio programme. Health authorities reported a new cluster at Longevity Palace (Rainbow Villa), a care home for the elderly where five residents were infected. Six classes were also suspended at five different schools after they reported five or fewer cases recently. Putting the numbers in context, Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch said about 700,000 students and more than 100,000 teachers took rapid antigen tests every day before going to school. “There has been no virus spread across any school as a whole … the current measure [suspending individual classes] is effective,” she said. The government has been repeatedly fine-tuning the closed-loop arrangement since the beginning of this month, as part of the preparations for a possible visit by state leaders to mark the 25th anniversary of the handover. The Post earlier reported that seven days of hotel isolation was being considered for guests, with Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, ministers and permanent secretaries, as well as non-official members of Exco, to be placed under a stringent system preventing them from meeting outsiders for a week before the potential arrival of a delegation from mainland China. The health protocol was also expected to cover incoming leader John Lee Ka-chiu and his governing team, together with about 1,000 staff, security guards and police officers involved in the anniversary celebrations. Overseas Hong Kong students struggle to book quarantine rooms for summer return But the plan was further relaxed last week to four days of self-monitoring plus a three-day hotel quarantine arrangement for all officials and staff. Another source said while officials and top advisers would only be subject to one day of hotel quarantine, the government was still considering whether staff and police officers involved with the event needed to undergo three days of hotel isolation. While it remains unclear whether Chinese President Xi Jinping will head the mainland delegation, Lam had earlier vowed that the city government would “wholeheartedly devote itself to creating conditions” for state leaders to visit at the end of the month. Lam made the pledge last Tuesday, but Hong Kong has seen a rebound in cases with more than 1,000 infections each day since June 15. Additional reporting by Gary Cheung and Victor Ting