Finance Group Wants Vaccine Passports For HK

The Asia Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association warned on Tuesday that Hong Kong's current quarantine measures could threaten the SAR's status as an international finance centre and its long-term economic recovery and competitiveness, as it urged the government to consider vaccine passports.

Its chief executive, Mark Austen, said there was "a lack of a plan" going forward.

"There's a lack of certainty and businesses and individuals really need certainty," Austen told RTHK, while stressing that the government deserved plaudits for its success in fighting the pandemic.

"It's kept Hong Kong safe and it's allowed us to live within this bubble. But now we really need a plan to get out of this. That's one of the major, major concerns," Austen said.

He said the 21 day quarantine period for some inbound travellers seemed excessive, noting that between June and August more than 160,000 people entered the SAR and only two people tested positive in the last seven days of their 21 day quarantine - or a rate of 0.001 percent.

"That's very, very low, so we'd like to see that change," Austen said.

He also called for the government to push the vaccination rate, and suggested it could require vaccine passports for all public events and for restaurants. He said this could also be a requirement for all public and private sector employees.

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