'Threshold For Flight Suspensions Still Too Strict'

Tourism sector lawmaker Perry Yiu has urged authorities to ease the threshold regarding the number of Covid infections among passengers that triggers a suspension of flights, saying the current rules are too strict.

The government earlier announced that from Friday, it will halve the suspension period to one week for flights that breach testing rules or carry three or more passengers found to have Covid.

On a radio show on Monday, Yiu noted that the threshold that triggers a flight suspension has remained unchanged and said it's unreasonable that airlines that have done their duty are punished over infected passengers.

"It may be better if the suspension mechanism is only triggered when over 10 percent of passengers test positive," Yiu said.

The lawmaker said flight suspensions have disrupted the plans of airlines and passengers alike and officials should consider how much they can help with infection control.

"Currently, people coming back are Hong Kong residents and very few of them are young children or elderly, and they've already been double-jabbed and had tested negative," Yiu said.

"Say, touch wood, people are found to be infected after they come back, they still may not have a big impact on Hong Kong's medical system, because they may have little-to-no symptoms."

He urged the government to communicate with the industry so that the right balance can be struck.

Airlines would therefore be able to provide more stable services, making it easier and cheaper for Hong Kong residents to return, Yiu said.