HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong will tighten COVID-19 restrictions regardless of a scarcity of native outbreaks to raised align with China’s insurance policies and improve possibilities of quarantine-free journey between the territory and mainland, chief Carrie Lam stated Tuesday.
It can step up contact tracing, reminiscent of requiring using its LeaveHomeSafe app in authorities premises to file the approaching and going of holiday makers. It can additionally tighten quarantine guidelines to exempt solely emergency staff or these in important industries reminiscent of logistics. At present, these exempt from quarantine embody airline crew, banking and insurance coverage executives, administrators of public corporations, in addition to crew members on cargo and passenger ships, amongst others.
Hong Kong has not had a significant native outbreak for the reason that starting of the 12 months, with just about no native transmission in current months. However it’s largely closed to worldwide journey, and vacationers from international locations deemed high-risk such because the U.S. should serve a 21-day quarantine.
Authorities say resuming quarantine-free journey with the mainland is the highest precedence, in comparison with reopening journey internationally.
Lam stated tightening restrictions to be “extra according to mainland practices” is important to offer Chinese language authorities confidence to renew quarantine-free cross-boundary journey.
“If Hong Kong had been to loosen the border controls for individuals arriving from abroad or undertake what different international locations have completed … to stay with the COVID-19 virus, then the possibilities of resuming journey with the mainland will probably be decreased,” she stated at a weekly information convention the place she wore a brace after lately breaking her arm.
She dismissed issues that Hong Kong’s restrictions will make it much less engaging as a world enterprise hub. “Hong Kong’s major benefit lies in being the gateway to the mainland of China,” she stated.
The mainland authorities has maintained a zero-tolerance coverage towards the pandemic, utilizing lockdowns, quarantines and obligatory testing to stamp out COVID-19 outbreaks shortly.
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