The new higher penalty levels have a deterrent effect against environmental hygiene offences as the number of fixed penalty notices issued has dropped substantially, Deputy Chief Secretary Cheuk Wing-hing said today.

Responding to lawmakers' questions at the Legislative Council, Mr Cheuk noted that the penalties for littering and shopfront extension offences were raised from $1,500 to $3,000 and $6,000 respectively with effect from October 22, 2023 to enhance the Government’s effectiveness in handling environmental hygiene problems.

Comparing the six months before and after the effective date of the new penalty levels, the number of fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued by enforcement departments against hygiene offences such as littering decreased by over 30% to about 15,000.

In the same period of comparison, the number of FPNs issued against shopfront extensions and illegal disposal of large amounts of waste dropped by around 80% to about 630.

“This reflects that the new penalty levels have quite a substantial deterrent effect, and the improvement in cityscape can also been maintained,” Mr Cheuk added.

He also outlined the Government’s next step would be to introduce legislative amendments and implement new administrative measures to enhance its efficiency and effectiveness in tackling environmental hygiene problems, such as further strengthening the Food & Environmental Hygiene Department’s enforcement power to handle shopfront extensions more effectively.

The requirements for premises to co-operate with the Government’s investigation and the penalty on violating such requirements in cases of public health nuisances such as water seepage in buildings, water dripping from air-conditioners and “garbage apartments” will also be stipulated in the law.

Mr Cheuk said the Environment & Ecology Bureau is drafting the relevant bill and is expected to introduce the amendment bill into LegCo by the fourth quarter of this year.

The Deputy Chief Secretary also pointed out that he discusses thorny district environmental hygiene problems with relevant departments and gives instructions as necessary, adding that the hygiene conditions of 90% of the 738 black spots identified have markedly improved over the last two years.