Gov’t to revamp 1823 hotline, pledging 10-day response time for public enquiries

Hong Kong's government has unveiled plans to revamp the 1823 hotline, aiming to respond to public inquiries and complaints within a 10-day timeframe. The Deputy Chief Secretary, Warner Cheuk, explained the need for this change, stating that various departments often assign blame to one another when handling complaints involving multiple parts of government.

Launched in 2001, the 1823 Call Centre operates 24/7 and is managed by the Digital Policy Office. CE John Lee announced intentions to overhaul the service during his annual Policy Address, pledging to appoint a "lead department" to oversee coordination across departments involved in cross-departmental complaints.

Under the proposed enhancements, the lead department will work closely with other implicated departments, delivering an "initial response" within 10 days and a comprehensive "actual response" within 30 days. In the first seven months of this year, the hotline fielded approximately 2 million oral and written inquiries and complaints, with 30% of cases implicating more than one department.