Coronavirus: Hong Kong, mainland Chinese officials to meet in Shenzhen to talk pandemic-control measures; city confirms 9 imported cases
- Meeting has been touted as an important step in restoring quarantine-free travel for residents crossing the border
- Meanwhile, arrivals from Macau will no longer be exempted from quarantine under two local travel schemes after two Delta cases were detected there
Led by Chief Secretary John Lee Ka-chiu, the local delegation arrived in Shenzhen on Saturday to prepare for the meeting.
The delegation includes Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee, Secretary for Innovation and Technology Alfred Sit Wing-hang, pandemic adviser David Hui Shu-cheong, and representatives of the Department of Health and the government’s information technology office.
The sit-down with mainland officials was first suggested by Lam earlier this month in hopes of speeding up the broader reopening of Hong Kong’s border with the mainland.
Hong Kong’s recently launched “Come2HK” scheme has seen an average of 400 non-residents a day come to the city from the mainland and Macau without having to undergo quarantine, but Beijing has resisted extending such an arrangement to travellers heading in the other direction.