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| One of the proposals is to put a monthly cap to the fare subsidy to the elderly |
Finance Secretary Paul Chan has told a radio program that most people are for changing Hong Kong’s $2 public transport subsidy for residents aged 60 and above, but are not clear as to how to do it.
"I think there's a
public consensus that the current scheme isn't financially sustainable over the
long run, if no changes are made to it. So how should we change it?" Chan
said in a Commercial Radio program.
"There are so many
different views. We're collecting them and then officials will assess them and
discuss them internally. We're all looking at different proposals in
detail."
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| PRESS THIS FOR DETAILS |
Chan said the intentions behind the $2 scheme were very good, but expenses have mounted since the eligible age was lowered to 60 from the original 65 in 2022.
The subsidy applies
to eligible commuters who take public transportation, including cross-harbor
buses and the MTR, regardless of their destination or residency status.
Legislators are among those
calling for a rethink of the transport subsidy in light of the government’s
budget shortfall of more than $100 billion for the past fiscal year.
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| Basahin ang detalye! |
Among the proposals suggested
is to put a monthly cap of $1,000 per eligible user.
With his budget speech coming up on Feb 26, Chan hinted subsidies could also be introduced in areas like education and healthcare to tackle the government’s budget deficit.
For instance, he said
universities have relatively large amounts of reserves, indicating that they
could withstand a cut in subdisy.
However, he assured the
government will minimize the effects of expenditure cuts on the public.
