Cleaning up: Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare & Food Carrie Yau inspects a clean-up operation in Kowloon City.

Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare & Food Carrie Yau advises people to maintain good hygiene to guard against flu, warning that global warming may lead to more intense breeding of viruses.

Mrs Yau issued the caution today after inspecting year-end clean-up activities in Kowloon City, part of a Food & Environmental Hygiene Department three-week clean-up campaign.

Noting the Chinese tradition of a Lunar New Year clean-up, Mrs Yau called on the public to keep the environment clean and maintain a pleasant living environment.

"Good personal and environmental hygiene is important in the prevention of disease and we need everybody's co-operation and participation to maintain public and environmental hygiene," she said.

"To sustain our efforts to keep Hong Kong clean, community involvement is the driving force of sustained environmental hygiene improvements.  Everyone has a role to play in this regard."