The 2026 Policy Address proposes enhancing the 1823 hotline service and setting up lead departments to coordinate cross-departmental service requests and complaints. Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration Cheuk Wing-hing said on a radio programme on Tuesday (Sep. 22) that a lead department must give a preliminary reply within 10 days and is responsible for monitoring whether other departments respond in a timely manner. However, he stressed that setting up a lead department does not mean replacing all departments.
Cheuk said that in the past some cases were "kicked around like a football", with different departments saying they were not within their scope. Of the complaints received by 1823 last year, about 30% involved more than one department. In a small number of cases, the departments concerned were unclear whether they should follow up. In two cases, it could not be determined which department should take charge, and they were eventually referred to District Officers for resolution. Under the new arrangement, lead departments will consolidate responses from various departments and give a preliminary reply within 10 days.
He added that a lead department does not replace all operational departments. Each government department has its own division of duties and will follow up cases according to its own resources. He believes the new mechanism will make departmental responsibilities clearer and stressed that departments must do their utmost to resolve problems.
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