16 shops quit 'store registry' scheme in defiance of Travel Industry Council

The Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong (TIC) will step up inspections of tour guides and related shopping spots from today (Friday) to combat misconduct in the city's tourism industry. It hopes the measures can woo back tourists from the mainland.

However, a travel agency alliance started a campaign against the city's tourism self-regulatory body by renouncing its "store registry" scheme, which aims to tighten regulations on cooperation between travel agencies and local retail stores.

Up to Thursday, only 56 out of 72 previously registered stores of the scheme had confirmed they would extend their membership. The other 16 had already chosen to leave the scheme from today (Friday), according to the TIC. Membership of the scheme means tour guides can only take tourists to the 56 shortlisted stores in the city for organized shopping.

The TIC will multiply its manpower to inspect stores and tour groups. If any tour guide takes his or her group to unregistered stores, the TIC will impose heavier punishments on the related travel agency, such as downgrading or disqualifying their membership of the council.

Details would be announced after the next committee meeting, TIC Executive Director Joseph Tung Yiu-chung said.

Other inspection targets include whether the tour guides are wearing the correct badge and whether tour buses are properly labeled.

The scheme was seen as a response to the incident in October where a mainland tourist died in Hong Kong after being beaten by a gang of four men while he was trying to mediate a dispute between a fellow visitor and their tour group leader.

Tung said the council was just "carrying out its duties" to strengthen industry regulation. He said the scheme was voluntary. Therefore, he would not seek to persuade those who had left to rejoin it. But he expected more new stores would join the scheme.

However, though they were not invited to the press briefing, travel agencies hit back. Hong Kong Travel Agent Owners Association Chairman Lam Siu-lun said the TIC's regulation terms were too harsh and questioned its authority.

Being a non-official institution, the TIC had no right to regulate the tourism industry, Lam said. He urged the government to set up an official tourism watchdog to better manage the industry.

Lam called on the tourism industry to be uncooperative in the TIC's inspections, as the newly tightened regulations would cause inconvenience to frontline colleagues.

luisliu@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 01/01/2016 page5)