Hong Kong moves to tighten tour guide rules as visitors overwhelm Lantau after mega bridge opens
- Tourism Commission to push for Travel Industry Bill to undergo second reading in the legislature to make it a criminal offence for a guide to operate without a licence
- Visitors from mainland China have swamped Tung Chung following the opening of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge last month
Hong Kong is moving ahead with a law to tighten requirements for tour guides after Tung Chung was inundated with holidaymakers led by agents from mainland China allegedly operating illegally.
The normally quiet town on Lantau Island has been swamped by tourists in recent days following the opening of a major new cross-border bridge to Macau and Zhuhai.
Some guides were accused of flouting employment laws which prevent mainlanders working in Hong Kong, but a bill currently making its way through the city’s legislature would specifically make it a criminal offence for a guide to operate without a licence.
The Hong Kong Tourism Commission, a government body tasked with promoting the industry, on Monday said it would push for the Travel Industry Bill to undergo a second reading by the end of the year.
Tempers flared over the past two weekends when tens of thousands of mainland travellers, many in tour groups, crossed the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge and flooded Tung Chung, rekindling memories of similar scenes in other border towns that have witnessed tensions between locals and visitors.