At the start of the video, a Hong Kong man demands an apology from the girl and her mother but the tourists refuse, saying it is not a big deal. Others then join in on both sides.

One of the Hongkongers presses the emergency button and notifies platform staff. An MTR employee tells the tourists they can't eat inside the train and a mainland woman says sorry in English. A Hong Kong man then says sarcastically: 'Oh, she knows English'.

A mainland woman tries to explain the situation to the MTR staff member but is interrupted by the Hongkongers as the quarrel resumes. At the end of the video, a Hong Kong man says: 'No need to speak to them. That's what mainlanders are like.'

The Sina survey found that 35 per cent of around 4,000 respondents supported the Hong Kong passengers' demands that tourists abide by local public order rules. Ten per cent said Hongkongers held a grudge against mainland tourists and 31 per cent said Hongkongers and mainlanders should show each other more respect.

Mainland internet users posted comments on several popular online chat rooms and bulletin boards.

'Hong Kong people tend to have a superiority complex and discriminate against mainlanders,' one man said. 'The woman already said sorry at the end.'

Another wrote: 'Eating in the MTR carriage is wrong. The mainland mother should apologise first, rather than fight back.'

Earlier reports quoted an MTR spokesman as saying the quarrel took place on a Lo Wu-bound train at Mong Kok East station.

The clip has also sparked debate among Hong Kong internet users, some of it hostile. One called @tempe1208 said the behaviour was 'uncivilised as usual' and that Hongkongers had shown too much patience towards mainlanders.

Additional reporting by Emily Tsang