Following is the transcript of remarks by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Dr Law Chi-kwong, on foreign domestic helpers (FDHs) matters after attending a radio programme this morning (November 11):

Reporter: Would the Government try to negotiate with the Filipino Government about the suspension of the approval of the VISA? And what is your assessment of the problem? How serious is it?

Secretary for Labour and Welfare: I would not say we negotiate with the Philippine Government. We will definitely express our concern because thousands of families would be affected because of this delay of issuing of VISA (Overseas Employment Certificates (OEC)) for FDHs from the Philippines coming to Hong Kong. We have expressed our concerns and we hope that the Philippine Government would consider the reason of the present suspension of issuing VISA (OEC) which is not really due to the concerns of what is happening in Hong Kong but due to that in other countries. So, we hope that they will shorten that particular period as quickly as possible so that the FDHs coming from the Philippines will be able to come to Hong Kong. But I can also use this opportunity to say that for those families who, because of this incident, have been caught in surprise and unable to deal with some of the caring of their elderly persons at home, then they should seek assistance from the Social Welfare Department or NGOs (non-governmental organisations) nearby to see if there is any respite service that would be able to help them.

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)

Ends/Saturday, November 11, 2017
Issued at HKT 12:01

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