Hong Kong to offer HK$20,000 in subsidies to help elderly and disabled voters

Hong Kong authorities will offer a one-time HK$20,000 (US$2,570) subsidy to each community centre serving the elderly and disabled to help more voters cast their ballots in the coming Legislative Council election, expanding on an arrangement in place during the previous citywide poll two years ago.

Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han said on Tuesday that the subsidies would be used to provide transport arrangements to elderly residents and people with disabilities, as well as their carers, who were planning to vote.

“On the election day, elderly care centres and district support centres for people with disabilities throughout Hong Kong will arrange for vehicles and staff to transport them and their carers to polling stations to vote,” he said.

“[The facilities] will provide care services for the elderly and people with disabilities while their carers are under way to vote, and also encourage them to actively participate in the poll.”

The bureau and the Social Welfare Department had already held various election-related activities in such facilities to promote the poll among service users, he added.

Meanwhile, the city’s six major charity groups – Tung Wah Group of Hospitals, Po Leung Kuk, Yan Chai Hospital, Pok Oi Hospital, the Lok Sin Tong Benevolent Society Kowloon and Yan Oi Tong – will also help the government in publicising the election and offer additional half-day leave for staff members to cast their votes that day, according to Sun.

“I encourage all social welfare organisations to follow this practice and provide measures to facilitate voting among their staff, so that the social welfare sector can unite and vote enthusiastically on election day,” he said.