'People Can Start Flying To Singapore By Late Nov'

The secretary for commerce and economic development, Edward Yau, said the government is finalising the details of a "travel bubble" with Singapore, and is hopeful that people will be able to start flying to the Lion City by the end of the month.

Speaking to reporters after attending a TV interview, Yau said travel agencies will most likely start selling tickets by the middle of the month, adding that he expects at least one designated flight to fly between the two cities every day during the initial phase of the “travel bubble”.

The commerce minister stressed that while more flights could be scheduled if the bubble proves popular, there'll also be measures in place to suspend travel arrangements should there be a rebound in Covid-19 cases in either city.

Yau added that discussions are ongoing with Guangdong authorities over a plan to reopen borders with the mainland, saying the move is crucial in giving the local economy and embattled tourism sector a much-needed boost.

His comment was supported by former hospital authority chairman, Anthony Wu, who brushed aside concerns that a recently confirmed case may have been imported from the mainland.

Health officials had previously said they didn’t know how a 44-year-old man who returned to the city from Shenzhen in early October got infected, but stressed he was in the SAR during the incubation period.

The man was exempted from a 14-day quarantine.

Wu, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said it's more likely that the man caught the virus locally.

“I think if somebody came from Shenzhen a month ago and got a confirmed case, I think it may be that he contracted this in Hong Kong”, he said.

“If you look at the mainland, the number of confirmed cases are so low, and so few. And if you look at Shenzhen, they've had zero confirmed cases for a long, long time. So it’s quite safe… but of course testing at the border, whether it’s the airport or the border, is important", Wu added.