Chief secretary promises efforts on manpower needs
Consultation on government population policy faces complaints from some sectors about crippling shortages of skilled workers
Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor yesterday deflected criticism of a population policy consultation paper, saying the government would do its best to assess the manpower needs of the local economy.
The city's second-highest official said she believed training and educational institutes were the key to solving staff shortages.
Training local talent "is our top priority", Lam said. "We have put training of local talent before admission of overseas talent" in the paper.
Meanwhile, a member of the government's Steering Committee on Population Policy defended a proposal to import more foreign labour. Professor Francis Lui Ting-ming, of the University of Science and Technology, said bringing in overseas workers could salvage struggling industries, which would in turn boost the local job market.
The four-month consultation on population policy began on Thursday.
It comes at a time when the city is facing a shortage of certain skilled workers, such as in the food and beverage industry.
J. R. Robertson of El Grande Concepts, which runs the likes of Grappa's Cellar and Cochrane's in Central and the Hong Kong Brewhouse in Lan Kwai Fong, said it was impossible to get staff.
