Top official adviser Lau Siu-kai - the man who is supposed to be the government's eyes and ears, admits he did use the term 'critical point' - in relation to Hong Kong's governance - while talking to reporters last week, something which he had previously denied several times.
He said he realised his denials were incorrect when a colleague told him that he had used the term - and it was on video record.
But Lau (pictured), who is head of the key Central Policy Unit, said he did not use the term in relation to any grievances that might be being felt by Hong Kong people, as has been claimed by observers, but that he used it to indicate it was time people started thinking about the role of government in Hong Kong.
Lau is in Beijing attending the annual parliamentary sessions. He raised many eyebrows last Thursday when he told reporters that Hong Kong 'has reached a critical point'. A few hours after making the comment, however, Lau publicly denied he had used the term, and denied it again the next day.
That has triggered a furore over his credibility. Commentator and former legislator Albert Cheng King-hon called on him to resign.
Speaking to the South China Morning Post on Wednesday, Lau conceded he did use the phrase last Thursday when asked about people's dissatisfaction over the Hong Kong budget. He said he later forgot that he had used the term - until a colleague told him otherwise.
Lau blamed his faulty memory for the confusion. He said that what he really meant was that people should start to reflect on government's role. He was not suggesting grievances within the community had reached boiling point. 'Hong Kong has upheld the 'big market, small government' principle for a long time,' he said. 'But recently we have more people demanding the government take a bigger role in wealth redistribution.