Latest news with #Leung
HKFP
3 hours ago
- Politics
- HKFP
New code of conduct for lawmakers to introduce meeting attendance requirements, tougher penalties
Hong Kong lawmakers have unanimously approved a new code of conduct that specifies requirements for meeting attendance, voting, and other duties while introducing tougher penalties for misconduct. Eighty-eight lawmakers on Thursday voted for two motions by legislator Paul Tse aimed at enhancing the Legislative Council (LegCo)'s operations. It came a day after they also unanimously passed the Legislative Council (Powers and Privileges) (Amendment) Bill, which outlines the implementation of the code at the core of the two motions. LegCo President Andrew Leung hailed the passages, saying they marked a 'new milestone' for the opposition-free legislature, as he led a group of veteran lawmakers to meet reporters after the vote. '[The new code of conduct] stipulates the requirement for the behaviour and performance of lawmakers, so that there will be rules to follow for lawmakers in the new term,' Leung said in Cantonese. The code will take effect when the new LegCo term begins on January 1 next year. Leung did not cast a vote on Thursday in keeping with the tradition of the LegCo president maintaining neutrality. The new Code for Members of the Legislative Council states that legislators should attend meetings and 'actively and conscientiously' participate in voting. Absence without a valid reason that causes disruption to LegCo meetings could result in a financial penalty for lawmakers, according to the new rules. The LegCo's existing Rules of Procedure do not explicitly set out attendance requirements for lawmakers, except for mandating quorum for its general and committee meetings, in which a minimum number of lawmakers must be present for the meeting to begin. The new code also requires lawmakers to 'sincerely support' the chief executive and the government. It says they should not 'deliberately undermine or weaken the effectiveness of executive-led governance.' Lawmakers must adhere to strict rules when declaring their interests, including those related to employment, election donations, sponsorships and gifts, the code stipulates. As part of the changes, the Committee on Members' Interests will be empowered to investigate complaints against lawmakers and recommend sanctions. The committee will be renamed the 'Legislative Council Supervisory Committee.' Misconduct under the new code could be met with sanctions ranging from a written warning to suspension of duties. A suspended lawmaker will not receive pay and allowance, including end-of-service gratuity, during the period of suspension. During the meeting on Thursday, lawmaker Tse, who also chairs LegCo's Committee on Rules of Procedure, described enacting the new code of conduct as a means of 'mending the fold after a sheep is lost,' using a common Chinese idiom. 'Although the current [LegCo] term has been more efficient than previous terms… we still hope to further regulate the work of lawmakers,' Tse said in Cantonese. Beijing overhauled Hong Kong's LegCo elections in 2021 to ensure only 'patriots' hold office. The move reduced democratic representation in the legislature, tightened control of elections and introduced a pro-Beijing panel to vet candidates. Most of the city's opposition politicians have either been jailed, left Hong Kong, or quit politics after Beijing imposed a national security law in 2020 following large-scale pro-democracy protests and unrest. The current Legislative Council term began in 2022 and will finish at the end of the year. Elections are scheduled for December. Leung said the new rules would not deter potential candidates from running in the LegCo elections. Martin Liao, a veteran lawmaker, said it would be 'fair' for the candidates to understand society's expectations for a lawmaker before running for a seat. 'I think the legislators in the next term are expected to comply with the [new] rules of procedures just inasmuch as we are expected to comply with our current rules of procedures,' Liao added.
Business Insider
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Insider
DBS Keeps Their Buy Rating on Link Real Estate Investment (LKREF)
DBS analyst Percy Leung maintained a Buy rating on Link Real Estate Investment today and set a price target of HK$46.30. The company's shares closed last Thursday at $5.38. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. According to TipRanks, Leung is a 3-star analyst with an average return of 9.3% and an 86.36% success rate. Link Real Estate Investment has an analyst consensus of Strong Buy, with a price target consensus of $6.53. The company has a one-year high of $5.90 and a one-year low of $3.80. Currently, Link Real Estate Investment has an average volume of 6,478.
New Paper
17-07-2025
- Sport
- New Paper
Poon wins Tony Cruz Award by a whisker
HONG KONG Matthew Poon withstood an inspired season-finale push from Derek Leung, to claim his first Tony Cruz Award as Hong Kong's leading home-grown jockey in dramatic circumstances at Happy Valley on July 16. With Leung's wins on Me Tsui's Vulcanus in the Class 4 Let Me Fight Handicap (1,200m) and Frankie Lor's Regal Gem in the Class 3 Sun Jewellery Handicap (1,200m), officials resorted to a countback for thirds after both Poon and Leung finished tied on 36 wins and 38 seconds. Poon, who honed his craft in Adelaide where he earned his nickname the Poon Train, claimed the award named after the former legendary Hong Kong jockey, now a top trainer, with 56 thirds to Leung's 35. "It's a really great competition and good motivation for all of us. We stay very focused and hungry throughout the season," said Poon, who enjoyed successful stints at Kranji as an apprentice jockey attached to the Shane Baertschiger yard in 2017 and 2018. "All of the local jockeys improve as a result. I think it really encourages every local jockey to improve. "I'm so glad I can get there and it means a lot to win my first one. Hopefully I'll win a second one." Without a win in 39 rides since June 4, Poon owed his eventual crowning - his second after the Hong Kong champion apprentice title seven years ago in the 2017-18 season - to his second placing on Ragnarr behind Speedy Smartie in the opening event, the Class 5 Silver Grecian Handicap (1,200m). Incidentally, Speedy Smartie handed trainer Benno Yung, 66, a perfect send-off with win No. 361 on his last day before retiring. The destiny of the Tony Cruz Award hovered in the balance until the 847th and final race of the season with Matthew Chadwick still able to clinch the coveted prize for the second time with a win on Thriving Brothers, while Poon could have sealed victory with success on Copartner Fleet. Thriving Brothers loomed to take the lead in the straight before finishing fourth, while Copartner Fleet faded into ninth place, leaving Leung to celebrate aboard Regal Gem. Leung finished the season in a blaze with seven wins across the closing eight meetings, but even that late flourish at the eleventh hour proved too little too late for that decisive blow. "The competition is a positive for the local jockeys," said Leung. "It's a good result for me and I hope I can bring this form for next season and have a good start - tonight, I can't catch the (Poon) Train." Already crowned eight-time champion jockey Zac Purton took his final season tally to 138 wins with a race-to-race double on Francis Lui's Highland Rahy and Tony Cruz-trained Beauty Waves in Race 8. Australian trainer John Size who sealed his 13th title last week, returned home empty-handed at the finale, settling on a score of 69 winners. As a spin-off to the trainers' premiership, Caspar Fownes reclaimed his King of the Valley title as Happy Valley's leading trainer of the season when James Orman piloted Monarch County to victory in Race 2. Fownes, who holds the record for the most wins by a trainer at Happy Valley with 628 victories, topped the city circuit's standings this season with 27 to Mark Newnham's 24. HKJC
Straits Times
17-07-2025
- Straits Times
‘Sex first, then you can sell my flat': Women property agents fend off indecent proposals and harassment
ERA property agent Desiree Leung initially thought it was either a complimentary letter or letter of complaint. SINGAPORE - Property agent Susan Mariam was in a Jurong West HDB flat speaking to the owner about selling his home 13 years ago when he suddenly locked the door, and tried to force her to have sex. She ran into the master bedroom, locked the door and screamed for help from the window of the second-floor unit. Her husband, who was waiting for her at the carpark, heard her screams, and ran up to the unit. He yelled at the homeowner, and told him to let his wife go before the police arrived. Ms Mariam, 44 , who is now divorced, got away unscathed, and the man was later taken away by the police. Ms Mariam, a senior associate branch director at OrangeTee , is among several property agents who spoke to The Straits Times about how they had encountered instances of sexual harassment or indecent proposals in the course of their work to market homes. ERA property agent Desiree Leung, for instance, got a handwritten letter on July 1 , likely from a prospective home buyer, that was mailed to her office . In the letter - seen by The Straits Times - the writer said he would engage her services to buy a flat but only if she had sex with him. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Fatal abuse of Myanmar maid in Bishan: Traffic Police officer sentenced to 10 years' jail Singapore Man charged over manufacturing DIY Kpods at Yishun home; first such case in Singapore Singapore HSA launches anti-vaping checks near 5 institutes of higher learning Business 5 things to know about Kuok Hui Kwong, tycoon Robert Kuok's daughter and Shangri-La Asia head honcho Singapore Jail for elderly man for using knife to slash neighbour, who later died of heart disease Singapore Maximum $7,000 fine for caterer involved in ByteDance food poisoning case World UK to lower voting age to 16 in landmark electoral reform Opinion Grab tried to disrupt taxis. It now wants to save them Ms Leung, 30 , said: 'When I read the first few lines, I thought it was a normal inquiry to meet up and discuss a property sale but when I read the sentence 'I want to f**k you for an hour', I was shocked. 'I showed it to my colleagues in the office immediately, and later made a police report.' Ms Leung , who has been in the real estate business for four years, said there was no way to know who the sender was. The letter did not have a return address, phone number or any other details. This was not the only instance of harassment that she has faced, she said. In another incident, a tenant made a video call to Ms Leung late at night and exposed himself during the call. Ms Leung decided to go public with her experience, and leaned on close friends and family for support. She said: 'Many people don't speak up out of fear. 'Since sharing my story, I've already received personal attacks online... comments like 'she asked for it' or 'she's not pretty'. It is painful.' Responding to queries, ERA key executive officer Eugene Lim said: 'ERA considers this a case of sexual harassment and we take a very serious view of such behaviour. No agent should ever be subjected to abuse or inappropriate conduct in the course of their professional duties.' When agents inform the company that they were sexually harassed, the human resource and legal departments will step in to support agents, assess the situation, and guide them on what to do next, including filing a police report if needed. In response to queries, Ms Sugidha Nithiananthan , advocacy and research director at the Association of Women for Action and Research (Aware), said employers need to provide harassment-free work environments. This includes protecting employees from harassment by customers and other third parties that employees encounter. Employers should also have anti-harassment policies in place and procedures to handle harassment cases when they occur, she said. When asked how women can better protect themselves from sexual harassment, Ms Nithiananthan said: 'Rather than asking what victim-survivors should do, the primary focus should be to address why some men feel it is acceptable to send such insulting and derogatory messages to women agents.' Watershed Law director Christian Teo said the law in Singapore does not specifically define sexual harassment, but what happened to Ms Leung certainly falls within the scope of what one would consider sexual harassment. He added that there are, however, laws to protect against harassment, called the Protection from Harassment Act or Poha. Mr Teo said: 'A victim can rely on Poha to commence a civil action for remedies against the perpetrator, such as a protection order or damages.' He added that if the police decline to investigate, the victim can file a Magistrate's Complaint. This will enable the victim to seek criminal recourse for punishment. Mr Teo said the victim should preserve evidence of any harassing act, especially where digital media is involved, by taking screenshots or downloading chat logs. 'Increasingly, digital media platforms allows users to unilaterally delete messages,' he added. He advised victims to make a police report as soon as possible and alert their workplace supervisors so that security measures can be implemented if needed.
Boston Globe
11-07-2025
- Health
- Boston Globe
‘Panic is for wimps': What do Trump's funding cuts mean for Boston hospitals?
The following is a lightly edited transcript of the July 10 episode of the 'Say More' podcast. Shirley Leung: I'm Shirley Leung. Welcome to 'Say More.' It's a uniquely challenging time for our nation's medical community. The Trump administration has set its sights on slashing federal funding for healthcare and research by tens of billions of dollars, which could be catastrophic for the National Institute of Health (NIH) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funding is tenuous to say the least. Then there's mounting political pressure to restrict access to care for low income families on Medicaid plus care for at-risk health groups like transgender Americans and immigrants. So how are healthcare leaders navigating these uncertain times? Today we're bringing you a live episode recorded at the Boston Globe's Health Equity Summit. It was held in May at Cambridge's Sanofi headquarters. It's a conversation with Dr. Kevin Churchwell, CEO of Boston Children's Hospital. We discuss how major changes at the federal level are impacting healthcare workers and patient care in Boston, and beyond. Okay. Here's the show: Dr. Churchwell, thank you for being on 'Say More.' Kevin Churchwell: It's a pleasure to be here. Leung: So, Dr. Churchwell, can you tell me about that moment when you realized your year wouldn't go as planned? Churchwell: I think it's been my decade. So, usually that moment happens on a Friday, at about four o'clock when there is an announcement about reducing the facility's administrative rate for NIH funding to 15 percent. And you could imagine the amount of angst and just a bit of panic that occurred when that was announced. I tell my team, my phrase is 'panic is for wimps.' In pediatric critical care, you just can't panic in an environment like that. And so taking that was our mantra. We basically then said, 'Okay, what's the next step? What is going to happen? What does this really mean?' And it took a period of time. It takes that weekend to understand it and to understand what will be the next step in terms of things go to court, things get stopped, and then how do we deal with that moving forward. Leung: So when you heard about this 15 percent cap, how much funding is at risk then at Boston Children's? Churchwell: So, the first calculations for us would be, each year we would lose about $80 million. As you can imagine, you just can't find that on the street. And that would change just existentially what we can do in research, if that would go through from that standpoint. Leung: Can you talk about specific projects that won't get done if these cuts stick? Churchwell: Well, it's just not the projects that are happening now, but the new projects or the new opportunities that are just being held up right now. You know, research is not just about the present, it's about the future. And what we do at Boston Children's is continue to support that present future by finding and supporting the next investigators that have great ideas, that are looking at particular mechanisms of how sales work, diseases, et cetera. What that funding does is support those individuals to start that work that ultimately leads to treatments and cures. Ultimately, it leads to what we were talking about outside in terms of what's happening with the care of the individual with Cystic Fibrosis or the care of the individual with sickle cell disease. Leung: Can you talk about, just in your career, the progress made in terms of treating Cystic Fibrosis and if you could explain what the disease does and how it affects children. Churchwell: Absolutely. Cystic Fibrosis is a problem in how cells really process sodium and potassium electrolytes. That leads to a problem in how lungs clears mucus. As an example, it also leads to how the pancreas works and et cetera. It's a disease that for a long period of time, had a mortality. And what I mean by that is that the kids who had the disease knew that at some point in their life they were going to die prematurely. And so they really developed their life based upon that for a period of time, they would die in adolescence. We got better in terms of the treatment, and these children would sort of then have a life in their twenties and their thirties, but still, they knew that at some point their life was going to stop. Leung: It was a hard life too, right? Churchwell: It's a tough life every two weeks, every four weeks back in the hospital. With the research that occurred, first understanding the fundamental mechanisms of how cells work, ion transport, understanding the genetic defect in the disease, and then asking the question, 'Can we actually affect that defect?' You were talking 30 years of work, 20 to 30 years of work, which ultimately led to the development of drugs. There's a three-drug cocktail that 90 percent of the kids with Cystic Fibrosis can take, that has totally changed their life. It's phenomenal what we've seen, and it's due to that discovery that's occurred. Leung: And a lot of it was federal funding, right? Churchwell: Federal funding, plus foundation funding and Joe O'Donnell's work with Cystic Fibrosis locally here. It's just incredible work. It took a lot of dollars that needed to really fund that sort of understanding of the mechanisms and then the drug development. That was the relationship that we've had, this partnership with the federal government for 80 years, which has led to incredible discoveries across the board of medicine on all parts of science. Leung: You mentioned earlier that federal dollars support research, support the future. So when those dollars are cut, what are you most worried about that won't get done? Churchwell: I'm worried about who we will not be able to support these individuals who have these great ideas. And I'm worried about how they will decide, 'I don't think I'll go into medicine or biological research. I think I'll be a computer scientist because that's where the money is.' These are brilliant individuals. They could probably do anything they want in life. These individuals, if we can support them, change the world, change individuals, change our children and give them a real future. And that's what I worry about. Leung: I want to ask about a specific Boston Children's program. It's the first pediatric and adolescent transgender health program in the country. President Trump, through a series of executive orders, has stripped away many rights of trans and non-binary individuals, including defunding gender affirming care for youth. Even before Trump was elected, there were some questions about paying for this type of care. And now he's really doubled down with threats of withholding federal funds and other penalties. So do these headwinds make Boston Children's rethink how you provide care to these patients? Churchwell: They've not created an environment where we're rethinking. We are totally committed to the care of all of our kids and the goal of any pediatric hospital, especially Boston Children's Hospital, is to work to create the best future for that child, so our gender affirming care program is a great example of that. The important part that I would stress to everyone is that these kids have a real issue that they're grappling with, that is affecting their life from a medical, physical, and mental standpoint. And our ability to intercede and support them has been transformative for that child, for that adolescent, for that young adult that they can see a future for themselves. And so our commitment to that is straightforward, has not wavered, and we have committed our support to our gender-affirming care program. In that regard, I will tell you that our state leaders have been incredibly supportive. Our governor has been incredibly supportive. Our attorney general has been incredibly supportive of the work that we're doing because it's work that really supports that individual child, that family. And so we continue that work because we know that there are headwinds. And, we've seen this across the country. A little known fact is that, we see a lot of kids, families from other states now because they can't get care in their state, so they're coming to us, in that regard. There will be, and there are going to be, challenges moving forward. We're trying to be very smart about it. We're working to make sure we're supporting our caregivers in that regard, in the care and in the work that they're doing. Leung: Do you depend on any federal funding or government funding for this type of care? What do you do if that funding disappears? Churchwell: Right now, the support and care of those kids really comes from either commercial insurance or Medicaid. And that's where the rubber may meet the road there, in terms of decisions made about Medicaid funding or how the commercial payers decide about that support Leung: As a black doctor and now the hospital's CEO, you've long championed health equity. If DEI programs are to be rolled back, do you think they will be hard to re-implement? Churchwell: That's an important question. I've never seen DEI as some separate thing. It's a separate program that sort of sits out there, as opposed to integrating it into what we do every day. And that's always been my goal and that's what I've always tried to help lead in terms of what we've put in place. And so given that, we will continue to do the work that we have done, in terms of providing an environment where every child gets the best opportunity for care that they can receive at our hospital. Part of that is the work that we've done in diversity, equity, inclusion, and you can call it another name. Whatever you want to call it, it's integrated in what we do, and it's for every child. To me, the discussion kind of gets lost when the discussion tries to pit it as something that's different or wrong, as opposed to, 'No, it's the ability for us as a society, us as a children's hospital to provide the best care. The most optimal care for every child that we see.' Now, what does that mean in reality terms? Well, we work to try to understand where the child and the family are coming from. And in doing that, we're better able to actually provide care for the child, who they interact with, how the interaction occurs, how we are viewed from their standpoint. You know, if you walk into our children's hospital and you stand in the lobby, it's always a great thing. I always encourage everybody to do that because what you'll see is the United Nations. You'll see everybody from all parts of Boston, the New England region, and all over the world. So the question is, given that, how can we best provide the most excellent care if we don't reflect who they are and we're able to pull from the entire range of talent that's out there? And so that's what we're trying to do and that's how we've integrated it into what we do. That's how I view it. We'll continue to move forward. Leung: So in higher education, we're seeing some presidents, like at Harvard University and Princeton University, stand up to the Trump administration over proposed funding cuts. Do you see hospital CEOs doing the same thing? Churchwell: Yes. I'll say that we believe in what we are doing and the importance of it. The issues that our colleagues are facing, our brethren are facing in the university setting, those issues are profoundly important and what Harvard has done is so important, and it is going to be that question that has to be answered, in terms of the ability for universities to teach and to educate in a way that is across the spectrum. It has never been the question for me who's right and who's wrong, that you shouldn't talk or they shouldn't talk. Everyone should be able to talk of course, and present views and have the discussion because that's how we learn. That's how we were able to move things forward. And to preserve that ability for our universities to do that, I think is profoundly important. Leung: At Children's, we think of you as seeing patients, the clinical side, but you also do a lot of research. Often you work with the universities, too. Your fates are kind of tied together. So I was just wondering if you could talk about when we read about what's happening at Harvard or Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) there are layoffs, they're pausing research, there's a hiring freeze. What is happening at Boston Children's Hospital? Have you had to do any of that? Churchwell: What we've done is take a very measured approach around what's happening. We have paused what we call our 'capital projects.' These are major projects that run into the 500 million range because they are associated with what we call our 'planning exercise,' a 10-year capital plan with the assumptions that we've made, that have been very consistent about where dollars would come from, like from the federal government, so that we can move forward. So what has been created is an incredible instability. You can't plan right now. I've told our folks, our board, that I think the next six to eight months will clear that fog. We call it a 'fog,' in terms of the rules of the road here. And given that, we will then figure out how we can move forward. But right now we've paused those major things. We've paused any major recruitments. We've also really maintained that those that are part of Boston Children's Hospital, we are supporting, especially our research community. How do we bridge them, as we get through this fog that we're dealing with right now? Leung: When we were talking earlier, you said you have about 14,000 to 15,000 employees, right? At Children's, it's quite a big enterprise, between clinical and research, so anxiety must be really high among your employees right now? Churchwell: Yes. Shirley: How do you talk to them? What do you say to them during these uncertain times? Churchwell: Well, we talk a lot and we try to do it in multiple forums to try to answer their questions. We've tried to be very transparent. Every third answer is, 'I don't know. I can't give you an answer.' But, that's okay. It's more the ability for them to ask the question and to actually know that we're thinking about it. What our promise to them is that we will continue to follow up and continue to have that dialogue. And so we are doing that on a regular basis in as many forms as we can: email, town halls, Zoom, and et cetera to try to keep everybody up to date and try to let everyone know where we are and what's going on as we go through this. Leung: Is it like another pandemic for you? Churchwell: It's like the pandemic. It's kind of like Groundhog Day. I thought I was not gonna hear Sonny & Cher, but I keep hearing Sonny & Cher. Leung: This has been a heavy conversation. It's been like this all day long at the Health Equity Summit. So I was just wondering, in light of everything that is going on, what gives you hope during this time? Churchwell: Let's all remember the arc of justice, and let's remember that we live in a country that has a phenomenal history, but an important history. It's never been just roses and incarnations. The work to continue to move forward has been important work, difficult work, but work that we all are committed to continue to move us forward as a country. My mom was born in 1931. My dad was born in 1917, so my dad went through two world wars. He was born at the end of World War I, he went through World War II and I, and I'll tell you, he didn't volunteer. He then started his work as a newspaper man at a daily southern newspaper. Leung: I didn't know that. You buried the lead. Churchwell: I buried the lead. He's actually in the Smithsonian Institution. So looking back on their life, what they went through, I missed it. I missed it just by a few years in terms of colored bathrooms. Now I have brothers that are eight years older than I am, and they went through it. And so just to appreciate the arc of our country. It's never been easy. It's been hard. You keep moving forward and I think that we have to continue to keep moving forward in this piece of work. Leung: Dr. Churchwell is the CEO of Boston Children's Hospital. Thanks for joining us on 'Say More.' Listen to more 'Say More' episodes at Kara Mihm of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Shirley Leung is a Business columnist. She can be reached at
