Accountant brings a 'fresh point of view'

Anthony Wu Ting-yuk is not the first non-medical professional in recent years to take the helm of the Hospital Authority (HA). Two former chairmen, Leong Che-hung and Lo Ka-shui, are doctors, but another, Peter Woo Kwong-ching, is a businessman.

'As an accountant, I don't carry the same burden as a doctor, I can see things from a fresh point of view,' Mr Wu said.

He joined Ernst and Young as a trainee in London in 1975, the first Chinese hired by the firm in the British capital.

After returning to Hong Kong in 1982, he became a partner in 1985, and was elected chairman in 2000. The firm has since expanded from 1,200 to 4,000 staff.

Mr Wu is a national committee member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and vice-chairman of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce.

In 1997, he started his work for the Hospital Authority as a member of the governing committee of the Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital.

He was appointed as an authority board member in 1999 and chairman of the authority's finance committee in 2000.