Financial Secretary Paul Chan today said the Government has earmarked resources for support work after the Tai Po fire and for community care, such as increasing the number of vouchers under two elderly care service schemes.

Delivering his 2026-27 Budget today, Mr Chan said the Government has provided comprehensive support for people affected by the Tai Po fire.

He added that the Government has just announced the long-term housing arrangements and earmarked $4 billion accordingly.

The Government also proposed to allocate $300 million to the Urban Renewal Authority to launch an enhanced version of “Smart Tender” in the second half of this year, and to provide subsidies to encourage owners to utilise the scheme’s paid services to reduce the risk of bid-rigging in building repair works. 

Mr Chan also noted that the Government will earmark $3 billion for the Development Bureau to conduct a comprehensive review of Operation Building Bright 2.0 to draw up a new subsidy scheme.

Furthermore, the Government will allocate $1 billion to extend the Lift Modernisation Subsidy Scheme.

Beginning in the next financial year, the Government will increase the number of Community Care Service Vouchers for the Elderly by 4,000 to 16,000 and the number of Residential Care Service Vouchers for the Elderly by 1,000 to 7,000, with estimated full-year expenditures of $1.2 billion and $1.97 billion respectively.

Meanwhile, the Elderly Health Care Voucher Pilot Reward Scheme will be extended by two years until end 2028.

Elderly persons who have accumulated voucher spending of $1,000 or above within the same year on specific primary healthcare services, such as examinations and chronic disease management, are eligible for a $500 voucher reward. Mr Chan said the measure will involve an additional expenditure of about $1 billion.

The Government will also implement new arrangements for portable cash assistance in the middle of this year, under which elderly participants of the Guangdong Scheme, Fujian Scheme and Portable Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme may opt to receive government assistance directly through their accounts with designated Mainland banks.

Regarding support for youth, the Financial Secretary said the Government will introduce a new media thematic internship programme in the Mainland and allocate an additional $60 million toward implementing the Funding Scheme for International Youth Exchange under the Home & Youth Affairs Bureau continuously.

The Government will also provide around 3,600 short term internship placements in government departments and public bodies for post-secondary students.

Mr Chan also announced that the annual funding for the Women Empowerment Fund will be increased to $30 million from the next financial year.

To support persons with disabilities, the Government will enhance rehabilitation services by providing about 450 additional places for day, residential and pre-school services in the next financial year, involving an additional annual expenditure of about $107 million. 

For school children receiving On-site Pre-school Rehabilitation Services, the Government will provide bridging and support services during their first term in primary school, involving an additional annual expenditure of about $260 million.

Meanwhile, the provision for the Re-employment Allowance Pilot Scheme will be increased to $222 million in the coming financial year.

Regarding healthcare service enhancements, Mr Chan said the Government will further develop primary healthcare in the community by launching the Primary Healthcare Co care Network, which will extend screening to include hepatitis B and other diseases, strengthen cross disciplinary collaboration, and improve support services such as medical laboratory testing and diagnostic radiology. 

The target participation for the first five years is for around 700,000 individuals, he added.

The Government will also implement the community drug formulary and launch the community pharmacy programme in the second half of this year.

To enhance the price transparency of private healthcare services, the Government will introduce the relevant regulation to the Legislative Council this year.