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Chief executive outlines an 'important reference' for next government's term

Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen said yesterday's summit on the 11th five-year plan had paved the way for an action plan to serve as an 'important reference' for the  next Hong Kong government.

He dismissed suggestions of a link with his re-election bid.

Mr Tsang was speaking after the one-day summit to discuss how Hong Kong could seize opportunities from the national plan.

The summit involved 33 leading businessmen, professionals and academics from the city.

Describing the meeting as the 'beginning of a mammoth project', Mr Tsang said more experts would be involved  in the exercise, which aims to set out an action checklist for Hong Kong by the end of the year. An interim report is due late next month  or in early November.

'The action plan will become an important reference in the five-year term of the next HKSAR government,' he said.

He highlighted that the city needed to focus on how, instead of what, to do to cement its roles as an international financial, shipping and trading hub in the next five years.

The city should also be more proactive and seek to attain a world standard  in those three core areas.

Asked if the summit's work was meant to help him draft his election platform, Mr Tsang said Hong Kong needed to seize every opportunity from the 11th five-year plan.

'We should not let our thoughts on the matter be affected by the fact that there are some [ongoing] political activities,' he said, noting that the exercise would help the city  gather experience for the 12th five-year plan spanning 2011-2015.

Following a morning plenary session attended by mainland officials, summit panellists joined four  focus group discussions  on trade and industry; financial services; maritime, logistics and infrastructure; and professional services, information technology and tourism.

Banker David Li Kwok-po,  convenor of the financial services focus group, said: 'Hong Kong's financial platform can help improve the efficiency of  financial intermediation and support sustainable economic growth on the mainland. It will also help enhance Hong Kong as an international financial centre.'

Victor Fung Kwok-king,  convenor of the trade and business focus group, said the mainland market represented a key area to develop for 90,000 Hong Kong factories operating in the Pearl River Delta region.

Tung Chee-chen,  representing the maritime, logistics and infrastructure group, and Leung Chun-ying,  for the professional services, information, technology and tourism group,  highlighted the need to improve cross-border flows.

Other suggestions by panellists included the building of common platforms for 3G, broadband and wireless connection links with the mainland, and the provision of more dormitory places at universities to cater for the needs of mainland students as Hong Kong moved to attract more talent from across the border.

Mr Tsang said the mainland had included Hong Kong in the five-year plan and had said clearly that it would support the city's  financial, logistics, tourism and information technology industries. It also would preserve Hong Kong's status as an international financial, trade and shipping centre.

'This is support from the mainland. It confirms Hong Kong's status and the expectation of our country on us,' he said.



Tsang sets scene for five-year action plan