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Concerning the Environmental Levy Scheme on Plastic Shopping Bags, the Association generally welcomes the proposal to extend the scheme to all retailers, in so much as the levy is kept by retailers. We believe that removing unnecessary administrative burdens and minimising the cost of compliance will help retailers, especially SMEs. However, some members have expressed concern about the levy exemption not covering "securely packed frozen/chilled food" and flat-top plastic bags. They believe that the Government should reconsider this suggestion due to concerns about food hygiene. The Association submitted a position paper to the Legislative Council Bills Committee on 18 June, 2013 outlining these issues.

We have also submitted our views to the Government in response to the public consultation on the Producer Responsibility Scheme ("PRS") on glass beverage bottles ("GBB") and the public engagement on Municipal Solid Waste ("MSW") Charging. While we do not doubt the good intentions behind all the green measures that support sustainable development in Hong Kong, we believe the Government should equitably spread recycling fees to all PRS on GBB stakeholders. Only when manufacturers, retailers and consumers pay their share can the "polluters pay" principle be truly reflected. In addition, we urged the Government to implement MSW Charging across the board rather than by picking individual sectors. Last but not least, whenever feasible, a thorough Business Impact Study should be conducted for any new initiatives the Government would like to push forward.

As a reflection of our ongoing support to SMEs, the Association successfully completed the third project funded by the Government's SME Development Fund this May. We are pleased to announce that this project helped roughly 1,500 SME retail practitioners develop and refine their customer service, business skills and know-how. An application for a fourth project, covering a full range of activities aimed to enhance the competitiveness of SME retailers, was submitted to the Trade and Industry Department in June. We expect to hear the result in the last quarter of this year.

Our annual Retail Conference has become a key idea forum for the Hong Kong retail industry. Our fifth annual conference was held on 9 May, 2013 and was graced by nine prominent speakers who shared their remarkable achievements in branding, business innovation and leadership to some 600 guests. I would encourage those who were not able to attend this year's conference to view videos of our speakers, which have been uploaded to the Association website. I think they are too good to miss!

I am pleased to report that the Association's effort in retail Qualifications Framework (QF) finally came to fruition when the industry's first draft of the Specifications of Competency Standards (SCS) was released this year. The draft was officially launched on 6 June, 2013 and is holding a three-month public consultation. The SCS provides an enabling environment that allows for great progress on skills development and training for the industry. To leverage the progress we have made on the QF, the Association has joined hands with the Vocational Training Council (VTC) to offer a QF-recognized Professional Diploma in Retail Management (PDRM), which will commence in October 2013.

To formalise our cooperation, the Association and VTC held a Signing Ceremony for our Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on 9 July, 2013. A Career Talk, which brought in more than a hundred guests and students, accompanied the Signing Ceremony. In celebration of the Association's 30 th anniversary, we presented a $100,000 scholarship fund to VTC for awarding both pre-employment and in-service students with outstanding academic achievements in retail-related courses. We awarded three outstanding VTC students of Higher Diploma in Retail & Merchandising Management with an HKRMA scholarship at the ceremony

The Association has a busy calendar for its members in the coming months, offering many events and opportunities that shouldn't be missed. The 2013 Service & Courtesy Award will feature 822 frontline retail practitioners from 144 companies participating in the competition. The preliminary and final interviews of the Award will be held in September and October respectively. We are also pleased that the new Chairman of the Hong Kong Tourism Board, Dr. Peter Lam, has agreed to be our Guest of Honour at the AGM Luncheon on 18 October. Last but not least, our Annual Ball will be held on 5 December to commemorate the Association's 30 th anniversary. This will be the most special event of the year, and we are honored to have the Finance Secretary, Mr. John Tsang as our Guest of Honour to celebrate this joyous occasion with us. I would like to call on your support by attending these events and making early reservations.

Let's celebrate the Association's 30 th anniversary together, and look forward to another prosperous 30 years ahead!

另外，協會贊成將塑膠購物袋環保徵費計劃擴大至所有零售 商，並由零售商保留徵費的建議，相信此舉將有助零售商， 尤其是中小企，減少不必要的行政負擔及降低成本。然而， 就政府對「已妥為包裝的冷藏／冰鮮食物」及平頭膠袋，表 示不豁免徵費，部分會員基於食物衞生理由，認為政府應重 新考慮此建議。協會已於2013年6月18日向立法會法案委員 會提交意見書。

至於政府就飲品玻璃樽生產者責任計劃進行公眾諮詢，並就 都市固體廢物收費展開社會參與過程，協會早前已向政府提 交意見。我們固然支持有利香港可持續發展的環保措施，但 在飲品玻璃樽生產者責任計劃上，政府應列明各持份者，包 括製造商、零售商及消費者，攤分的回收再造費，以真正體 現「污者自付」的原則。至於都市固體廢物收費，協會促請 政府在各行各業實施，不要針對個別行業。最後，我們希望 政府在推出任何新措施前，應進行研究，詳盡評估對商業的 影響。

在支援中小企方面，協會於五月完成由政府中小企業發展支 援基金資助，為期一年的第三期項目，協助了約1,500位中 小企零售從業員提升客戶服務及增進營商知識。協會已於六 月向工業貿易署提交第四期項目的申請，希望能透過一系列 活動提升中小企零售商的競爭力。申請結果將於今年第四季 公布。

協會一年一度的零售研討會已成為本港零售業重要的交流平 台。第五屆零售研討會已於2013年5月9日舉行，邀請了九 位重量級講者，與約六百位來賓分享他們在品牌發展、業務 創新及企業領導方面的成就及心得。未能親臨研討會的業界 人士，可於協會網站重溫當日活動精彩影片，相信一定受益 匪淺。

協會致力推動零售業資歷架構，努力終於取得成果，業界首 份《能力標準說明》草稿已於2013年6月6日正式展開為期三 個月的公眾諮詢。設立資歷架構後，相信業界的人才培訓發 展將會更上一層樓。與此同時，協會亦與職業訓練局聯手合 辦與資歷架構掛鈎的零售管理專業文憑課程，並將於2013年 10月開課。

為隆重其事，雙方於2013年7月9日假職業訓練局柴灣分校舉 行合作備忘錄簽署儀式暨職業講座，共有逾百位嘉賓及學生 出席。為慶祝協會創立30周年，我們特別向職業訓練局撥出 十萬港元獎學金，以獎勵在零售相關學科成績優異的職前及 在職學生。首批三位表現優異的職業訓練局零售及採購管理 高級文憑學生，已於簽署儀式獲頒發獎學金。

協會未來數月的活動十分豐富，不容錯過。2013「傑出服務 獎」吸引了144間公司的822位前線員工競逐，準決賽及總決 賽面試將分別於九月及十月舉行。至於2013年10月18日舉 行的周年大會暨午餐交流研討會，協會邀得新任旅遊發展局 主席林建岳先生擔任主禮嘉賓。而全年壓軸的周年晚會將於 2013年12月5日舉行，屆時財政司司長曾俊華先生將會蒞臨 主禮，並與我們一同慶祝協會成立30周年，希望各位踴躍參 加，盡早預訂座席。

讓我們一齊慶祝協會30周年誌慶！

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