Independent legislator Emily Lau Wai-hing has demanded to know why laws on sedition and treason will not be amended before the handover.

In the Governor's Legco question and answer session, Ms Lau said reforms concerning Article 23 of the Basic Law - cessation, subversion, sedition, treason and the theft of state secrets - were ignored.

'The fact that Article 23 offences are not in the programme sends a very strong signal to me and to many people . . . that you have no desire to tackle that problem,' she said. 'What the hell are you going to do about it?' Mr Patten said: 'I'm grateful for the direct and demotic way in which the honourable lady has asked the question.