His comments came as dine-in restrictions at restaurants, bars and regulated premises will be lifted from Thursday- two years after the Covid control measures were put in place. At least 150 public barbecue sites will also reopen in a further relaxation of social distancing measures, authorities announced.

Speaking on a radio program on Friday, the health expert said the removal of dine-in restrictions at eateries and regulated premises would not affect the city’s epidemic situation, especially when certain premises still require patrons to undergo rapid tests before entry.

As for the reopening of barbecue sites, Tsang said people should not be too worried about the risk of transmission as the sites are located in open areas, and he believed citizens will get tested for Covid before they engaged in gatherings among families.

Meanwhile, Tsang called on citizens not to be stunned by the rising figure of imported cases after the implementation of the “0+3” quarantine scheme.

He noted that the increase is within expectation, and the current border control measures could effectively identify infected individuals.

“There is still room for further relaxation to the ‘0+0’ quarantine scheme,” Tsang added.