With their complete lack of understanding of public sentiment on the controversial extradition bill, the privileged members of the Executive Council have let down Carrie Lam, and possibly done serious damage to ‘one country, two systems’.

In her election manifesto, the chief executive promised a new consultative style of governance that is absent in her initial response to opposition to the extradition bill. Her Executive Council must also share the blame for not stepping up sooner to deter Lam from rushing through the bill.

A lawmaker’s attack on a homemaker’s petition against the government’s extradition bill, suggesting that housewives are politically irrelevant and worthy of ridicule, is profoundly misogynistic.

Billionaire Joseph Lau’s statement suggests that opposition to the extradition bill signals a lack of patriotism, an impression the government has done nothing to counter.

The take-up rate of the letting scheme for subsidised flats in Hong Kong has been outrageously low, with only 13 of 13,000 eligible owners signing up. Did the government pull the policy out of thin air, instead of doing research and evaluation?

Government initiatives aimed at ‘improving’ our young people in various ways miss the point. It’s the mismatch between youth expectations and economic opportunities that breeds social discontent, and what officials must address.

While the government’s move to amend Hong Kong’s extradition law has dominated the headlines recently and consumed the energy of the administration, the city’s most critical problem remains the lack of affordable housing.

The Lam administration has not been able to sell Hongkongers on anything, from Lantau reclamation to extradition. And its tough stance on the extradition bill is dangerous, when all signs point to a repeat of the political disaster of 2003.

The sentencing of the protest leaders doesn’t really close the case for the city. The protests had their roots in political and social problems of the last administration that need to be solved before they crop up again.

Measles is making a global comeback because of misinformation and ignorance. The Hong Kong government needs to dispel the false claims and ensure all the facts are freely available, to avoid an epidemic in the densely-populated city.

Kaohsiung’s Han Kuo-yu pulled off an impressive political tightrope walk during his trip to Hong Kong and the mainland. But the success of his visit and a remark made by Hong Kong lawmaker Abraham Razack also speak volumes about Beijing’s tolerance.

With a recent study finding that fibres found in deep-sea creatures came from textiles, it’s time for everyone in this city to realise that our obsession with fast fashion is killing Planet Earth.

If plummeting public confidence in the government translates into an electoral defeat for the pro-establishment camp, it may set alarm bells ringing for Beijing, putting at risk the city’s high degree of autonomy.

‘Legacy places’, wealthy donations, pricey tutors and education consultants – the education systems in Hong Kong and elsewhere routinely favour the wealthy even without this most recent outrage.

Hong Kong is deep in a rut so it’s no wonder the city is falling down many regional and international rankings. If it can’t even address its miserable record on women’s safety and opportunities, then it deserves to be forgotten.

Paul Chan successfully lowered public expectations for his most recent budget and, most unusually for this government, has showed the ability to apologise sincerely.

Hongkongers would appreciate the government spelling out the plan to link cities in Pearl River Delta region in pragmatic terms instead of indulging in grandiose sloganeering. Meanwhile, the usual predictions of doom also ring hollow.

A ban on the sale (but not use) of e-cigarettes will only push young people to black markets, or perhaps to traditional tobacco products that may be even less healthy.

There’s no need to read fortune sticks to know what looks really ominous for the city this year: Lam’s mishandling of various government proposals, from elderly welfare to toll adjustments, is dashing hope for change.

The government’s ‘we know best’ attitude to policymaking did it no favours in the Year of the Dog. The Lunar New Year should herald a more humble and consultative approach.

While the chief executive stressed the importance of building an inclusive society, at the World Economic Forum, the government’s callous attitude to the poor and the elderly is evident in its recent handling of welfare payments.

The chief executive once congratulated herself for improving relations with Legco, but her changes to elderly welfare payments have instead united rival legislators against her.

Carrie Lam’s pending hike in the welfare age limit caught lawmakers off guard, and they may take out their frustrations on the justice secretary she has sheltered.

Taiwan’s Tsai Ing-wen made a provocative New Year’s Day speech following Trump’s commitment to arms sales to the island. Xi Jinping responded with fighting talk, urging Taipei to accept ‘one country, two systems’, though Hong Kong is still struggling with it.

The justice minister wanted the public to focus on her department’s work, not her illegal structures scandal. Now, ironically, after the saga of the CY Leung case, she’d rather they didn’t scrutinise her work too closely.

Hong Kong must recognise that it needs to do more for children suffering from depression, kids on welfare, and even gifted children. But how much of the educational system is the city ready to change?

Hongkongers have been unhealthily obsessed with the Huawei executive’s three Hong Kong passports. But this diversion from the trade war actually reflects a crisis of faith in the Hong Kong government.

When Hong Kong penalises women for becoming mothers, we shouldn’t be surprised when an increasing number say they don’t want to have a family. It’s up to the government do more to change attitudes in society

Chinese scientist He Jiankui’s shocking creation of genetically edited babies has finally woken up the world to the dangers of DNA editing – and of leaving important issues in the hands of a few.