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23 building plans approved in Jan

The Buildings Department approved 23 building plans in January - four on Hong Kong Island, 10 in Kowloon and nine in the New Territories.   Of the approved plans, 15 were for apartment and apartment-commercial developments, five were for commercial developments, two were for factory and industrial developments and one was for a community services development.   Consent was given for works to start on nine building projects which will provide 117,013 sq m of gross floor area for domestic use involving 2,755 units and 144,989 sq m for non-domestic use.   Additionally, the department received notification of commencement of superstructure works for five building projects.   The department also issued 17 occupation permits - six on Hong Kong Island, three in Kowloon and eight in the New Territories.   Buildings certified for occupation have 152,580 sq m of gross floor area for domestic use involving 3,178 units and 35,955 sq m for non-domestic use. http://dlvr.it/SlPVDC
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Advice on vaccine use published

Two scientific committees and the Chief Executive's expert advisory panel have considered that the benefit of using the Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine generally exceeds the risk of not using any vaccines in people aged 60 or above.   The Scientific Committee on Vaccine Preventable Diseases and the Scientific Committee on Emerging & Zoonotic Diseases under the Centre for Health Protection (JSC) today published the consensus interim recommendations on using the CoronaVac COVID-19 vaccine by Sinovac Biotech (Hong Kong) in Hong Kong.   The Advisory Panel on COVID-19 Vaccines had earlier submitted its recommendations to the Secretary for Food & Health and considered that, under the current epidemic situation, the benefits of authorising the use of Sinovac's vaccine for protecting against COVID-19 outweigh the risks.   It also recommended that the appropriateness of using CoronaVac in the elderly aged 60 or above should be advised by the two scientific committees.   The committees convened a meeting today, joined by the Chief Executive's expert advisory panel (EAP), to provide interim recommendations to the Government on the use of the Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine in the city.   Given that phase 3 clinical studies of the vaccine have not been published in peer-reviewed journals, the JSC-EAP reviewed the data and information available, based on materials submitted to the advisory panel by Sinovac.   The interim recommendation might be updated based on additional safety and efficacy data from phase 3 clinical trials, international developments and conditions of emergency use approval in Hong Kong.   The impact of vaccine delivery on non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) was also deliberated at the joint meeting.   It was considered that at the current phase of the vaccination programme, there is limited evidence on the effects of vaccination on preventing transmission and there are constraints in vaccine availability. Population level protection will not be achieved in the short term.   It was also agreed at the meeting that vaccination is only one of the tools in the overall public health response to COVID-19 and the combination of NPIs with vaccination will allow for maximum protection against the virus.   There is a need to continue public health strategies on NPIs, including social distancing, good hand hygiene and wearing a mask in public places, to reduce the risk of transmission.   Delays in vaccine supply and suboptimal vaccine uptake would mean that NPI measures have to be kept in place for longer.   Click here for the interim recommendations.
http://dlvr.it/Rt67pD

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