Call it animal instinct, Hong Kong schoolchildren want a big zoo
More than 90pc of pupils want to get closer to wildlife in the city, study finds
Children in Hong Kong say they want a "real zoo" in the city.
While this may not be a great revelation, a new study has confirmed that 90 per cent of primary school pupils yearn for an affordable, large-scale zoo.
"The entrance fee at Ocean Park has been rising, and most families find it hard to afford more than one visit a year," lawmaker Bill Tang Ka-piu, of the Federation of Trade Unions, said.
The FTU, which polled 3,300 children from 40 primary schools between February and this month, found that 92 per cent of them wanted a large zoo here. About 43 per cent wanted free entry, and 35 per cent said the fee should not exceed HK$60.
Around 12 per cent had never been to Ocean Park. The theme park, which charges HK$160 per child and HK$320 per adult, is the closest thing in Hong Kong to a large-scale zoo.
Entry is free for the Zoological and Botanical Gardens on the northern slope of Victoria Peak, but it houses only a small variety of monkeys, birds and tortoises.
Tang said Ocean Park's high fees and focus on tourism had alienated local families, depriving Hong Kong children of the chance to appreciate and learn about the animals in the park.