Hong Kong Today
Description:
RTHK's morning news programme. Weekdays 6:30 - 8:00
Presenter:
Carol Musgrave and Ben Tse2024-06-06
Thursday
Now playing: New teaching kit for autistic teens to make friends
Selected audio segments:
Seats sell out on first overnight train to Beijing Listen
Seats on the first overnight speed train service to Beijing have sold out on the first day of ticketing. Travellers queued at West Kowloon Station on Wednesday, to buy tickets for the new high-speed trains to Beijing and Shanghai. They include sleeper trains between Friday and Monday. Vanessa Cheng reports:
Tough rules imposed under new taxi fleet regime Listen
Transport officials say an upcoming regime that aims to improve the taxi industry's service quality could see fleet holders suspended from doing business or even have their licences revoked. It comes after authorities received a surge in complaints against taxi drivers last year. Raymond Yeung reports:
Taxi trade gears up for courtesy campaign Listen
The Hong Kong Taxi Council says courtesy ambassadors will be stationed at some of the SAR's busiest taxi stands from Thursday until August 27. They will hand out souvenirs and leaflets to passengers and drivers as part of the Tourism Board's hospitality campaign. Transport-sector lawmaker Frankie Yick told Hailey Yip that it was hoped the initiative could improve the image of taxi drivers:
Augmented reality tours expanded to Lei Yue Mun Listen
A cultural tourism project involving the use of augmented reality has been expanded to Lei Yue Mun. Visitors can use their smart phones to learn more about the cultural and historical significance of the area, which is famous for its seafood. Elvis Yu reports:
'Interviews with senior villagers enriched tour project' Listen
A project manager of a cultural tourism initiative says its research team conducted interviews with senior villagers from Lei Yue Mun to enrich the tour's narrative. The "City in Time" project was launched by the Tourism Commission in 2021, with the initial phase featuring popular spots, such as Central and the Peak. Project manager Yip Tsz-lam told Elvis Yu that expanding the initiative to Lei Yue Mun was challenging due to the limited number of archived images:
Govt coffers cannot fund huge pay hike for staff Listen
The government says its financial situation does not allow it to give civil servants pay rises as high as levels indicated by the latest pay trend survey. On Tuesday, the Executive Council agreed to a proposed three percent rise for government staff. Damon Pang reports:
HKU president in the dark over senior staff changes Listen
The president and vice-chancellor of the University of Hong Kong says he was not told about new senior staff appointments made by its governing council. Zhang Xiang said this severely undermined the institution's "academic autonomy." It comes amid reports of in-fighting within the HKU council, as Kelly Yu reports:
New teaching kit for autistic teens to make friends Listen
The Wai Ji Christian Service says it hopes a new teaching kit it introduced with the Family Planning Association for autistic teens can help them navigate romance and friendships. The educational tool features games and story cards, in both physical and online forms, that teach the teenagers to interact with others in 30 different social scenarios. Maggie Fung, a clinical psychologist with the Christian group, told Carol Musgrave about the challenges and struggles faced by autistic adolescents:
HK's wealth connect scheme gets an upgrade Listen
Hong Kong's financial authorities are looking into the feasibility of further widening a wealth connect scheme to attract capital from other parts of the Greater Bay Area. Chloe Feng reports:
Putin warns against western arms deliveries to Ukraine Listen
Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Moscow could provide long-range weapons to others to strike Western targets, saying arms deliveries to Ukraine were "a very dangerous step". He also said the West was wrong to assume Russia would never use nuclear weapons. Frank Yung reports:
Biden imposes asylum ban at US-Mexico border Listen
Migrants entering the United States illegally can be deported quickly under an executive order signed by President Biden. The asylum ban was imposed as immigration became a priority issue ahead of November's presidential election. As Raymond Yeung reports, the Latino community had mixed views on the measure, which took immediate effect:
Corals scorched by record temperatures in Thailand Listen
Corals in Thailand have been hit by record high temperatures on the sea surface and underwater. Their deterioration is affecting not only marine biodiversity but also the livelihoods of fishermen there. Jacqueline Guico reports:
Google to face UK legal battle over dominance Listen
A British competition watchdog has ruled that Google's parent, Alphabet, must face a lawsuit worth up to 13.6 billion pounds for allegedly abusing its dominance in the online advertising market. Sean Kennedy reports:
Rugby teams face final bid to qualify for Paris Games Listen
Both the national men's and women's rugby sevens teams are preparing to make a final push to qualify for the Olympics next month. They will have to win the repechage tournament in Monaco at the end of the month for the trip to Paris. Damon Pang reports:
First-person zombie shooter dominates exhibition Listen
Have you ever been to an art exhibition where the main attraction is a zombie shooting game? How about a recital surrounded by candles inside a historical castle? And what does the work of the greatest contemporary Chinese ink painters look like? Ben Tse and Jacqueline Guico find out more in RTHK's weekly arts and culture-inspired podcast, Broad Strokes: