Hongkonger Chan Sai-chiu considers the 60 sq ft subdivided flat he rents to be home, going out of his way to make the cramped space in Sham Shui Po’s ageing Yee Wa Building more liveable by repainting the walls and setting up his own kitchen. The 72-year-old considers the flat’s HK$3,000 (US$383) rent to be…
Hong Kong’s improving fiscal position has prompted a groundswell of calls for the government to offer more “sweeteners” in the coming budget, including a cross-party demand for more tax relief for the middle class, but economists have cautioned against such across-the-board measures. They were more supportive of targeted spending, a cause taken up in recent…
As a cold spell grips Hong Kong, scores of homeless residents are choosing to endure the chill rather than take refuge in government shelters, where they say it feels “like being imprisoned”. When the Post visited the 5.5-hectare Tung Chau Street Park in Sham Shui Po – one of the most popular spots for street…
Hong Kong mother Amy Chan* often feels overwhelmed caring for her nine-year-old son, who has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The 39-year-old said her son, diagnosed with the condition two years ago, seldom listened to her and lost his temper easily, putting tremendous pressure on her and taking a toll on her mental health. Chan,…
Hong Kong security guard Yau has been caught in a protracted cycle of back-and-forth communications with social workers ever since she applied for a medical fee waiver early last November. The 63-year-old, who only gave her surname, shared her frustrations with the Post as she sought financial assistance amid a new fee regime in public…
Hong Kong’s public hospitals will raise a range of charges from January 1, while anxious lower-income patients who face higher bills but do not qualify under new fee waiver thresholds are calling for more government help. From Thursday, patients will need to pay more in general, but the safety net will also be widened to…
A woman accused of killing her mother and younger brother before attempting suicide is believed to have acted under mental stress, Hong Kong police have said, while the government is facing mounting pressure to rapidly expand its carer services. Welfare groups on Tuesday urged authorities to widen their database and related services to cover more…
Temperatures in substandard housing in Hong Kong reached as high as 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) over the past week, while about 40 per cent of tenants in such homes reported having poor quality or no windows, a concern group has found. The results came from two studies published by the Society for Community Organisation…
Hundreds of underprivileged Hong Kong families fear they will need to cut back on essentials, including academic support for their children, when the government ends a trial handout scheme next month for those awaiting public housing, a survey has found. The Society for Community Organisation (SoCO) said on Sunday that half of the 330 poor…
Widow Law Wai-ho, 82, lives alone in Hong Kong and worries that no one will be there to help if anything happens to her. Law recalled her helplessness when she fell on the street and could not get up until a security guard arrived and took her to hospital, where she spent a week with…