Lackluster sale of Games tickets

The sale of tickets for the London 2012 Olympic Games in Hong Kong has been poor compared to ticket sales for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, according to Travel Service Limited (CTS), the games' sole authorized ticket reseller in Hong Kong.

Applications for the tickets started April 12, 2011 and closed on May 11, 2011. CTS started selling unsold tickets via its branches and website on July 4. CTS attributed Hongkongers' lack of interest to the long traveling distance and the high costs of lodging in London.

Subsidy for green transport

The Environmental Protection Department announced approval of the fourth group of applications for the trial of green transport technologies on Tuesday. The trial is operating under the Pilot Green Transport Fund, including the first group of electric taxis.

The five newly approved applications include trials of five electric taxis and two electric buses for non-franchised bus services. Total subsidy involved is about HK$11 million.

This brings the total number of approved applications under the fund to 35, amounting to a total subsidy of about HK$84 million. The approved trial projects comprise five electric taxis, 19 electric buses, 12 electric goods vehicles, 24 hybrid goods vehicles and eight hybrid light buses.

Booking for free sports facilities

Booking for the leisure facilities on the "sports for all day" on August 5 will start on Sunday.

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) will make various fee-charging leisure facilities available for free use by members of the public on August 5 when "sport for all day" is held as part of the department's efforts to encourage people to do regular exercise.

Bookings can be made at all leisure link booking counters at LCSD venues from 9:30 am on July 29 (Sunday) on a first-come, first-served basis. This applies to facilities which have not been block-booked by organizations on August 5.

Restaurants suspended

The director of food and environmental hygiene has ordered two restaurants, one in Yuen Long and another in Kwai Chung, to suspend business for 14 days.

Chung Hing Restaurant, at 44 Fook Tak Street in Yuen Long, has been handed two convictions for failing to store open food properly in the premises in November 2010 and October last year. "Jumbo Delicacy", at Kwai Chung Centre, has two convictions for illegal extension of its food business area between the end of last year and this April.

National edu worries dismissed

The Education Secretary Eddie Ng has again sought to dismiss concerns about the National Education curriculum. In his blog, Ng said students would not have to take exams on the subject, and it would not therefore affect their future studies.

Ng also rejected allegations that the curriculum would encourage students to write biased answers, in order to impress teachers. He noted that course guidelines state clearly that the administration doesn't recommend schools to compare scores of students through tests or exams.

China Daily

(HK Edition 07/25/2012 page1)