The money would be better spent battling unemployment or the deficit than paying stars like the Rolling Stones, they say
Critics of the decision to spend up to $80 million on the Harbour Fest concerts say the money could be better spent reducing the deficit or the record unemployment rate.
The three-week-long series of shows next month and in November, including concerts by the Rolling Stones, Santana, Jose Carreras and Jay Chou, has been jointly organised by the American Chamber of Commerce and InvestHK, the government's investment arm. It is being partly paid for by the government's $1 billion Sars rescue fund, designed to revitalise Hong Kong in the deadly outbreak's wake.
Legislator Emily Lau Wai-hing said she asked whether it was wise to pledge so much to the Tamar-site festival when she spoke to Financial Secretary Henry Tang Ying-yen at a Taskforce on Employment meeting on Tuesday. InvestHK director-general Mike Rowse has said it is prepared to cover $80 million of Harbour Fest's $130 million cost.
'I have received some complaints from Hong Kong people asking whether we should be spending this money,' Ms Lau said. 'They ask, 'Are the Rolling Stones seriously a popular group?' and if they are, why can't the private sector fund the festival then?
'I am not opposed to the festival, in principle, if Hong Kong can do something to raise its international profile. But I am concerned about whether we should be spending this money on a festival given the high unemployment rate. Should it not be spent on that?'
But Richard Pinder, regional managing director of Leo Burnett - an international advertising company that has been given the task of helping gather support for the festival within the local community - said the event would send a 'powerful message' to the world that Hong Kong 'was back on its feet'.
