Circulars

2017/06/09

Getting Rid of Red Tape: A Golden Opportunity

Dear Member,

Hong Kong's Chief Executive- elect, the Hon Mrs Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, will take office on 1 July 2017- less than four weeks from now. She has been appointed on a manifesto platform that includes a pledge to streamline the Government and make it more efficient. This should logically include cutting unnecessary "red tape"- that is, rules and regulations which serve no useful purpose. This has also been a firm part of the Chamber's agenda for many years.

The appointment of a new Chief Executive therefore gives Chamber members a golden opportunity to tell us about the problems they have in their business operations due to unnecessary red tape, so that we can make a submission to the new Administration arguing for the relaxation or removal of the relevant legislation or regulations. We are particularly interested in hearing about outdated legislation which is totally out of touch with today’s business realities.

You will appreciate that trying to persuade the Government to remove or amend legislation is a long and difficult process. Even if the Government can be persuaded, new legislation may have to be put before LegCo, which will also have to be persuaded about the merits of the changes. But without a strong submission from the business community to the Government about the need for reform, there is unlikely to be any pressure for change. And if we are successful, the reward for our efforts could be significantly lower compliance costs and burdens for Hong Kong businesses.

Therefore, we strongly urge you to take the time to fill in our survey via this link before 1 July 2017. In the event that you have any questions, please contact Ms Karen Au at email: [email protected] or tel: 2823 1200. We look forward to hearing from you.

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