Coronavirus: every eligible Hongkonger needs to get vaccinated for ‘normal life’ to return, minister says

Cross-border travel dependent on ‘really high’ uptake, Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip says, while refusing to rule out barring the unvaccinated from public venues

In a milestone for jabs campaign, 50 per cent of eligible population had received a second Covid-19 shot as of Sunday

3-MIN READ3-MIN

99+

Hongkongers queue to receive the BioNTech vaccine. Photo: Winson Wong

Published: 1:56pm, 29 Aug 2021Updated: 11:17pm, 29 Aug 2021

Everyone eligible for Covid-19 jabs must take them if Hong Kong ever hopes to return to “normal life”, the minister in charge of the city’s immunisation drive has said, refusing to rule out barring the unvaccinated from entering public premises.

Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen on Sunday said bookings for coronavirus shots had slowed in recent days, even as the coronavirus pandemic continued to rage globally.

“Ultimately, if we want to resume normal life and cross-border travel on a wider scale, the vaccination rate needs to be really high, it basically means everyone who can must get the shot,” Nip said during a televised interview.

But he stopped short of suggesting authorities would make jabs mandatory for all, saying only that the government would continue to monitor the situation.

Under the city’s current rules, people in certain categories, such as civil servants, airport workers and school staff, are required to either be vaccinated or pay out of their own pocket for regular testing.