Coronavirus: Hong Kong’s Ocean Park needs HK$5 billion lifeline but are taxpayers being taken for a ride?
- The attraction, which has been running at a deficit for years and steadily losing visitors, could be forced to close by June if no help comes
- The legislature will review the proposal on Friday, but not all lawmakers think the money is a wise investment
Hong Kong’s cash-strapped Ocean Park could go bankrupt next month unless it receives an urgent bailout of HK$5.4 billion, the government warned on Monday, even as lawmakers questioning the use of taxpayers’ money looked set to make funding approval a rough ride.
The proposal, which the Legislative Council’s Finance Committee will review on Friday before a possible vote, could buy the tourist attraction enough time to stay afloat for another 12 months, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Edward Yau Tang-wah said.
The emergency funding could provide a window for management to come up with a better plan for the park’s survival and allow payment of HK$3 billion in commercial debt, he said, describing the operational and financial challenges the park faced as “unprecedented”. Another HK$5 billion is owed to the government.
“Without the help, there will only be one outcome: that Ocean Park will cease operation,” Yau said. “That means Hong Kong will lose a recreational and educational park that has benefited so many Hong Kong people in the past few decades, and an important tourism infrastructure.”