Travel bubble resumption underway

July 6, 2021

Chief Executive Carrie Lam:

Specifically, on facilitating travel on a bilateral basis, that is between Hong Kong and other places, I would say that Singapore is still our priority candidate for consideration. 

So now that Singapore’s (COVID-19) situation has stabilised, we certainly will revive the earlier scheme that we have devised. I understand that Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Edward Yau has been discussing with his Singaporean counterpart recently on when and how we could commence the air travel bubble arrangement with Singapore. 

But the fact is, there are some new factors. One is we heard that Singapore is moving into a new strategy. So we need to understand more about that new strategy and whether it will have any impact on the arrangements that we have devised. 

Second is both Singapore and Hong Kong are now pressing ahead with vaccination. You would remember that when the scheme was first announced, there was a unilateral requirement on the part of Hong Kong people travelling to Singapore that they need to be vaccinated. Now that Singapore also has a very high vaccination rate, so another factor that we need to consider, on top of what we have agreed on previously, is whether both sides should require vaccination as a condition for participating in the air travel bubble. 

I would say that we accord a lot of importance to having travel resumed with Singapore because we have a lot of contacts, the two governments are very friendly and the situation is very stable on both sides. So this is something that we will be working very closely on.

(To watch the full media session with sign language interpretation, click here.)

Chief Executive Carrie Lam today said the Government is working closely with Singapore to revive the air travel bubble arrangement between the two places.

“Now that Singapore’s (COVID-19) situation has stabilised, we certainly will revive the earlier scheme that we have devised. I understand that Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Edward Yau has been discussing with his Singaporean counterpart recently on when and how we could commence the air travel bubble arrangement with Singapore,” said Mrs Lam ahead of the July 6 Executive Council meeting.

Noting that Singapore is going to implement a new anti-epidemic strategy, she said the Government will study whether it will affect the arrangements.

COVID-19 vaccination is another factor to be taken in account, she said.

“Now that Singapore also has a very high vaccination rate, so another factor that we need to consider, on top of what we have agreed on previously, is whether both sides should require vaccination as a condition for participating in the air travel bubble.”

The Government is keen on resuming the air travel bubble with Singapore because of the close contacts with each other, she added.

“The two governments are very friendly and the situation is very stable on both sides. So this is something that we will be working very closely on.”