CY Leung may become first chief executive without thanks motion approved for policy addresses

Pan-democrats, who have enough power to vote down proposal, say he did not fulfil his election promises

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Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying at his swansong policy address. Photo: Edward Wong

Published: 6:01pm, 15 Feb 2017Updated: 6:15pm, 15 Feb 2017

A traditional motion of thanks for Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying’s fifth and final policy address was hanging in the balance as the Legislative Council kicked off a three-day debate on Wednesday.

The vote on the motion is expected to take place on Friday night. If it is voted down, Leung will become the first chief executive since the 1997 handover to fail in receiving any lawmaker recognition for his policy addresses.

Of seven policy addresses by Leung’s predecessor Donald Tsang Yam-kuen, Legco approved the motion of thanks for two.

The city’s first chief executive Tung Chee-hwa received Legco’s approval of the motion for three of his eight annual blueprints.

The motion of thanks will only be approved with a majority of support from lawmakers in both the functional and geographical constituencies.

The pro-establishment camp dominates the former group, while the pan-democrats enjoy a narrow 17:16 margin of advantage in the latter – meaning that if all pan-democrats in the geographical constituency show up to vote or at least force a tie, the motion will be voted down.

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CY Leung may become first chief executive without thanks motion approved for policy addresses

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Pan-democrats, who have enough power to vote down proposal, say he did not fulfil his election promises

Pan-democrats, who have enough power to vote down proposal, say he did not fulfil his election promises