Hong Kong | 2022 "Seeking Progress through Change"

　　(Year-end special) Hong Kong | 2022 "seeking progress amidst changes"

　　China News Agency, Hong Kong, December 26 (Reporter Zeng Ping and Liu Dawei) 2022 is the first year of the sixth Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government.

Chief Executive Lee Ka-chau has changed the traditional thinking, adhering to the spirit of "results as the goal", leading the new governance team to "seek progress through change" and proactively seek development for Hong Kong.

The central government fully affirmed Li Jiachao's work during his first report on his duties, and Hong Kong is making steady progress on the correct track of "one country, two systems".

Data map: On July 1, at the West Kowloon Station of the high-speed rail, Li Jiachao, the sixth chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, met with the media for the first time after taking office.

Photo by China News Agency reporter Cui Nan

　　Hong Kong's first chief executive election after improving its electoral system was held in May this year. Li Jiachao was elected with 1,416 support votes.

In June, the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passed the SAR Government Structural Restructuring Plan. This plan strengthens high-level coordination and command capabilities, and also makes the division of powers and responsibilities of various policy bureaus clearer.

In July, the new SAR government, which underwent structural reorganization, took office.

　　Governance thinking shows a new trend

　　Lee Ka-chao proposed "result-oriented" problem solving during his campaign for the chief executive. Since he took office, his governance philosophy and work culture have been reflected in different areas.

　　In his first policy address published in October, Li Jiachao announced the establishment of a new "Hong Kong Investment Management Co., Ltd.", with the SAR government leading the investment strategy industry, and announced a new "high-end talent pass plan".

Hong Kong's initiative to "grab enterprises" and "grab talents" has become a hot topic.

　　In terms of land and housing, the SAR government actively promotes amendments to streamline land construction procedures, plans "simplified public housing" to shorten the waiting time for public housing, and legislates to regulate the rental of "subdivided flats" to avoid substantial rent increases by owners.

　　At the same time, within six months of taking office, the SAR government has issued a development blueprint involving the insurance industry, primary care, youth, and innovation and technology.

　　"The policy report and the recently promulgated development blueprints in different fields reflect the change in the SAR government's governance thinking." Fang Zhou, research director of the Hong Kong "One Country, Two Systems" Research Center, told a reporter from China News Agency that Hong Kong has changed from passively providing resources to the industry to actively guiding it. Industrial development, the rare macro blueprint in the past is similar to the five-year plan of the mainland, and the change of better combining government initiative and market flexibility is not easy for Hong Kong.

　　Positive interaction between administration and legislation

　　Under the principle of "patriots governing Hong Kong," Hong Kong's executive-legislative relationship is no longer tense.

　　After Li Jiachao took office, he proposed the "front office exchange meeting", a new mechanism to strengthen exchanges between SAR government officials and members of the Legislative Council.

The "front hall" of the Legislative Council is separated from the conference hall by a corridor, where director-level officials regularly lead delegations to communicate with members of parliament on different issues behind closed doors.

So far, the "Front Office Exchange Meeting" has been held 5 times. For the first time, Li Jiachao led 3 directors and other key officials to attend.

　　This year, the SAR government has submitted a total of 25 government bills, of which 17 have been passed by the Legislative Council.

It is worth mentioning that two important bills were passed, including the abolition of the MPF "offsetting" arrangement and the renewal of the Copyright Ordinance. The former protects the interests of millions of "wage earners", and the latter brings Hong Kong's copyright system in line with international standards.

　　Fang Zhou believes that the "front hall exchange meeting" creates a good atmosphere and makes the executive-legislative relationship closer. The successful passage of the above two important bills is not only the foreshadowing of the previous Legislative Council, but also related to the improvement of the executive-legislative relationship.

　　Demonstrating determination to maintain national security

　　Jimmy Lai, the founder of Next Media, was accused of violating the Hong Kong National Security Law. The High Court approved an overseas barrister without local full qualifications to defend him.

Seeing that this case might lead to a gap in national security, Li Jiachao proposed overnight to submit relevant legal issues to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for interpretation.

　　The SAR government has also taken timely follow-up actions in response to repeated incidents of incorrectly playing the national anthem at international sports events.

　　"The SAR government has been more determined than ever in dealing with these major issues." Fang Zhou said that after the implementation of the Hong Kong National Security Law and the improvement of the electoral system, the political situation in Hong Kong has improved significantly, but there are still undercurrents or potential challenges. Prepare for related internal and external challenges.

　　To sum up, Fang Zhou believes that the new SAR government has shown many new trends in its administration, the most important of which is the innovation of its governing philosophy, and at the same time, it has shown a more courageous and responsible mentality in terms of political will.

　　He looks forward to better cooperation between the SAR government and all sectors of society, to further enhance governance capabilities on the basis of the current good start, to continuously learn and innovate policy measures, and to truly promote Hong Kong from chaos to governance to governance and prosperity.

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