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Ambrose Leung

Chief executive ready to bend rules to keep party members on Executive Council: insider

Beijing has asked the Liberal Party to stay in Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen's new cabinet because a withdrawal would hurt the administration's credibility.

A source said in exchange for the Liberal Party's support on the Executive Council, Mr Tsang would be willing to 'bend' Exco rules on confidentiality and collective responsibility to allow the two sides to 'sit closer'.

Ahead of the announcement of the new Exco lineup, which could be made today, the source said Liberal Party vice-chairwoman Selina Chow Liang Shuk-yee would remain despite the party's earlier decision to decline the position.

'The central government wants to keep the Liberal Party inside Exco although the party considered it  meaningless to stay,' the source said.

'Beijing didn't want to give people the impression that support by the patriotic camp towards Mr Tsang has declined because the Liberal Party would not stay in Exco.'

A government source said the outgoing Chief Secretary Rafael Hui Si-yan would join the council as a non-official member.

Apart from adding Mr Hui, the present membership of Exco would remain unchanged.

At a conference marking 10 years since the handover yesterday, Tsang Yok-sing, an executive councillor and member of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong,  indicated that all current members had already received invitations to continue.

'I believe that the chief executive thinks Exco members have been providing useful support and advice. So the decision to invite all members to continue shows that he feels the Exco has been operating well,' he added.

In recent years, the pro-business Liberal Party has felt aggrieved because of the government's failure to take many of its views into account when formulating  policy. Party leaders had earlier declared that they would not send a representative to Mr Tsang's cabinet because it would achieve little.

But during his election campaign in February, Mr Tsang said he would like to 'sit closer' with the party and to raise co-operation. The party is demanding more involvement in policy making.

The source said in exchange for Liberal support, Mr Tsang  promised to 'bend'  cabinet rules on  confidentiality and collective responsibility.

'Collective responsibility will only mean being responsible to vote for the policy in a Legco vote and Selina Chow can have different views publicly before the vote is taken.

'Confidentiality will mean she can consult the party on policies discussed as long as the party does not  publicise it,' the source said. The source said the arrangement would create a 'win-win situation', but warned that Mr Tsang might still fail to get  Liberal support in the Legislative Council.

'The party will give him one year as a trial period until the Legco election, and if this new co-operation doesn't work, the party will quit,' the source said.

However, a government official said the rules on confidentiality and collective responsibility would probably not be changed, while a government spokesman   would not comment on when the new Exco lineup  would be announced or whether there would be a change in its rules.



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