‘Bad timing’: industry experts pan expanded fast-track immigration scheme by Hong Kong government to lure tech talent
- Lawmaker Charles Mok bemoans city’s battered global image amid protest violence and coronavirus outbreak, while experts say plan could be more beneficial if extended to other industries
The Innovation and Technology Commission on Thursday said it sought to raise the city’s attractiveness and spur innovation through its upgraded Technology Talent Admission Scheme (TechTAS), despite the lack of uptake.
Under the expansion, the scheme will double the number of areas in the industry that can receive support, with more firms able to take advantage of fast-tracked visa entries.
Francis Fong Po-kiu, one of Hong Kong’s leading IT experts, suggested the government had got its priorities wrong, questioning why the scheme’s expansion was not delayed for several months in light of the challenges the city was weathering.
“The virus outbreak is a public hygiene concern. I don't think people want to come to Hong Kong,” he said, also citing the negative images of long queues for masks compared with the organised distribution in Macau.
“The scheme comes at a very bad time because no one wants to visit.”
He added that while he welcomed the scheme, it would have more benefits if it were expanded to different industries, with a wider net for different countries.
