Coronavirus: Singapore ‘won’t rule out’ extending travel ban to Hong Kong
- City state was among first countries to implement travel restrictions on arrivals from mainland China in bid to contain the deadly coronavirus
- Hong Kong has fewer confirmed cases than Singapore at present
Member of Parliament Lee Bee Wah had asked in Parliament whether the city state planned to expand its ban on all foreign visitors arriving from mainland China to include its special administrative region of Hong Kong.
“Hong Kong is very near [mainland] China, and there’s concern among residents as well,” said Lee, who represents the Nee Soon ward.
The National development minister Lawrence Wong replied that the country would not dismiss such a possibility, but said various things needed to be considered first.
“Our approach is to [look] at evidence, at the source of where the virus is, how widely it is spreading, and which are the at-risk sources,” said Wong, who co-chairs a multi-ministry task force dealing with the virus.
“We will not rule out more action on travel restrictions but it has to be based not just on geographical proximity or distance but based on evidence on the nature of the virus [and] how widely it is spreading.”