In a written question, one member asked Ms Tam, a founding member of the Civic Party, whether she thought communicating with Beijing was important, and what weight she placed on party affiliation.

'Your failure to maintain communications with China over the past four years gave rise to misunderstandings that our sector is against China. Young accountants are asked to explain their stance when they work on the mainland,' the member said.

Ms Tam said a lawmaker's major duty was to supervise the government.

'Whether or not I maintain good relations [with the central government] does not affect our accountants' job opportunities on the mainland. The door is always open. I welcome communicating with people from all sectors,' she said.

Of the five contenders in the constituency, Ms Tam is the only one with political affiliations and has been criticised for not seeking opinions from the sector before joining the party.

'Joining a party is not a burden,' she said yesterday. 'Its provision of deep resources enables me to better supervise the government.'

Asked if he would consult the sector before joining any political parties, her rival, Paul Chan Mo-po, who is backed by the Beijing-loyalist camp, said: 'I shall remain as an independent candidate.'

Mr Chan said he carried no 'burden' from political parties and thus could compromise easily with other sectors.

Ms Tam accused another of her opponents, Ronald Kung Yiu-fai, of adopting an 'unstable political stance' after he stood as a pan-democrat candidate in the 2004 Legislative Council election and then joined Mr Chan's team for the Election Committee sub-sector elections in 2006.

Mr Kung, who is seen as a threat to Ms Tam because of his appeal to younger accountants, replied that 'short-term combination does not relate to any political ideas'.

The other candidates are district councillor Wong Wang-tai and Francis Yim Ting-wai.