Lawmakers expressed concerns about smuggling, marine damage and an increase in pregnant mainlanders coming to Hong Kong if a cross-border sailing scheme for private vessels is implemented.
Discussing the scheme at a finance committee meeting yesterday, legislators said they expected the government to consult Legco before the plan would be rolled out.
The administration is studying the feasibility of a cross-border sailing scheme first suggested by the Guangdong government last year, the transport and housing chief told the Legislative Council.
This follows confirmation last month of a plan to allow more private cars from Hong Kong and the mainland to cross the border, which has not proved popular and triggered a 1,500-strong street protest.
Secretary for Transport and Housing Eva Cheng told the finance committee that the cross-border sailing scheme was still at a 'very preliminary' stage, after a Chinese newspaper reported that officials from both sides of the border would start discussing the plan soon.
'To my understanding, we first heard of the plan in the end of last year,' she said. 'We haven't even talked about the related policies.'
Director of Marine Francis Liu Hon-por said the Guangdong government first suggested the scheme, and had agreed to examine any technical issues before deciding whether it would go ahead.