Here's the pitch. Bring in foreign domestic carers, but only for looking after old people, and pay them more than a regular helper gets. Labour minister says 10 to 20 percent more. RTHK and SCMP both had it Thursday. On paper, sounds fair. Harder job, harder training, more money.

But think about who's doing the sums here. Every helper already in Hong Kong is doing cooking, cleaning, kids, AND grandma, all for the old rate. Now the government's telling agencies: for the exact same task, pay someone new 20 percent more, as long as they came in through the right visa box. Every family that already has grandma covered is watching that gap and wondering why loyalty costs them less than a fresh hire. Good luck explaining that one to your own helper over dinner.