On Tuesday, the ran a story about the rising costs of English-language education in Hong Kong, which drew heated debate online.

Among the usual accusations of racism, cultural insensitivity and government indifference, one commenter, XYZ, wrote that "the limited availability and high cost of international-style education in Hong Kong is part of a deliberate government policy to rid the city of bolshie, lower-income expatriates". He or she claimed to have been "told this by someone with excellent sources in government circles".

Interestingly, on the same day, the ran a story headlined, "Let market drive Beijing exodus, says planner", in which economic incentives were recommended as the means by which to depopulate the congested capital, rather than force. The said planner is advocating the use of economic carrots but might it be the case that us "lower-income expats" (defined as those with household incomes of less than HK$100,000 a month, by XYZ) are being prodded out of Hong Kong with an economic stick?