MOTION ON “FOLLOWING UP ON MEASURES FOR NEW MIGRANT TALENTS TO INTEGRATE INTO HONG KONG”
President, in recent years, the Government has been intensifying its efforts to attract and recruit talents. As at September this year, approximately 160 000 people, representing nearly 4% of Hong Kong’s working population, have arrived in Hong Kong for long-term employment through various talent admission schemes. In his new Policy Address, the Chief Executive has pointed out the establishment of the Committee on Education, Technology and Talents to coordinate and promote the integrated development of these three sectors. Furthermore, the Talent List will be updated to include professional talents needed for promoting the “Eight Centres”, and the list of universities under the Top Talent Pass Scheme will be expanded. These measures are believed to help further enrich the local talent pool.
While talents are certainly a crucial foundation for any region’s development, and different regions have their own approaches to trawl for talents, attracting talents is only the first step. The real challenge for any regional government lies in retaining these talents and enabling them to maximize their potential in contributing to the development of the region. I am very grateful to Mr SHANG Hailong for proposing this motion, urging the Government to formulate and refine multilevel measures to inspire confidence and create opportunities for all kinds of talents to establish themselves in Hong Kong.
It has come to our attention that Mainland cities are sparing no effort in competing for talent retention. Take Shenzhen as an example, the government there has introduced a series of policies covering support measures in areas such as obtaining visas, housing, education, medical care and elderly care. These measures ensure that professional talents moving to Shenzhen can readily access services and meet their needs in aspects such as work, travel, housing, living and service applications, enabling them to adapt to life there without expending excessive energy and cost. I believe the SAR Government similarly needs to ensure that talents coming to Hong Kong develop a strong sense of belonging.
At present, the authorities have provided quite a lot of support to assist One-way Permit holders in integrating into Hong Kong, while non-governmental organizations (“NGOs”) have organized and hosted a rich variety of activities. Could the Hong Kong Talent Engage (“HKTE”) consider extending the same support measures to new migrant talents? For example, NGOs in various districts offer adaptation courses for teenagers and children, covering contents such as understanding the community, learning traditional Chinese characters and Cantonese, and understanding cultural differences between Hong Kong and their places of origin. These courses are also suitable for new migrant talent families. It would be appropriate to broaden the service targets for these courses and incorporate additional information on topics such as interview skills, accommodation renting, children’s education, and healthcare services. Such categorized adaptation courses could spare these talents from the daunting task of searching through complicated and scattered information.
Securing employment and settling down are arguably the first steps towards integrating into local life. In addition to providing them with skills, practical assistance is also needed. While the Secretary has just pointed out HKTE’s role in spearheading or encouraging large enterprises to hold job fairs for high-calibre talents, I hope consideration can be given to organizing more industry-specific recruitment activities for high-calibre positions in the future, particularly in the financial industry which employs the largest number of people. This would help improve the matching of talents with positions and prevent serious job mismatches.
Housing represents the major expense for new migrant talents. The Government could consider assessing their assets and monthly incomes and, following the approach of the Youth Hostel Scheme under implementation, formulate a dedicated short-term accommodation scheme. Such a scheme could also be provided through the private market to accommodate talents during their initial period of arrival in Hong Kong. This is believed to facilitate their adaptation to Hong Kong’s living environment.
Given that Mainland talents are accustomed to using mobile applications and WeChat public accounts or apps for handling matters and obtaining information, it has been noted that the Immigration Department, the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau, and HKTE have all launched WeChat public accounts. Such platforms can be fully utilized and relevant support services and activities can be promoted more extensively through WeChat public accounts.
At the same time, many newly arrived young Mainland talents are also keen to obtain tips about living in Hong Kong through Mainland social media platforms such as Xiaohongshu. Following the example of the Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department and the Police, who use Xiaohongshu to disseminate crime prevention and anti-fraud information to young people, other relevant government departments and organizations should also adopt this approach where appropriate.
The Government is conducting follow-up surveys on approved scheme applicants to understand their situation and plans after settling in Hong Kong. I strongly hope for the prompt completion and publication of these survey results. This would provide relevant government departments and NGOs with more information about this group of talents, enabling future support services to more effectively address the challenges and pain points they face while living in Hong Kong.
President, with these remarks, I support Mr SHANG Hailong’s original motion and the two amendments.