The ex-gratia allowance payable upon clearance of Housing Authority factory estates will not be jeopardised by the factory marking scheme, the Housing Department says.

The scheme took effect today with a two-week grace period, to deal with the irregularities generally found in factory estates for tenancy enforcement.

The scheme targets offences associated with abuse in use of the factory unit and common areas, or that have adverse effects on building control, fire safety and environmental hygiene, or pose a hazard to public safety.

Five or seven points will be allotted according to the degree of seriousness of offences and will be held valid for two years. Tenants will be alerted once the accrued points reach 10 or more. Action for tenancy termination will be triggered at 16 points.

Following the authority's endorsement of the scheme in April, the department launched a consultation in May. To address the operational need of tenants for loading and unloading of goods, time allowed for the loading and unloading of goods and removal of the same will be extended from 24 hours to 48 hours.