The scheme is open to abuse with many recipients no longer living in their New Territories village. Perhaps future beneficiaries should be required to live in the small houses they build.

The farewell speech by the departing chief justice stressed that no one is above the law, even the government. Hopefully, his words resonated with those in power.

The battle to save the pier in 2007 showed its importance to the people of Hong Kong. Now the promise to reassemble it not far from its historic home should be kept.

This has been a tough year for Hong Kong and the world but, with the promised vaccines, we can look ahead to 2021 longing that life may return to normal.

The law upheld by the Court of the Final Appeal belongs to a different time. The protests have stopped and Covid-19 means that people should be encouraged to wear masks rather than take them off.

So this is Christmas and what have you done? Not a lot, I expect. Celebrations will be subdued this year as the world struggles to curb the Covid-19 pandemic.

It would be easy to dismiss the party as a front for Beijing. Yet some of the comments made by one of its founders reflect the views of many and are refreshing to hear

Hong Kong’s courts need to be left alone to get on with the job of deciding cases freely, fairly and in accordance with the law

A surge in Covid-19 cases has cast a cloud over the festive season and led to greater restrictions. Yet we still need something to lift the gloom at the end of a miserable year

Activist Leung Kwok-hung’s six-year legal fight against the haircut rule for male prisoners is a victory for the principle of equal treatment that benefits us all

The government must ensure they can visit in a way that protects public health and their own well-being. There is a need for clarity, compassion and common sense.

Hong Kong’s judiciary should not be afraid of reform to modernise the courts, but any attempt to erode judicial independence or reduce judicial power would be devastating.

While the government will want to bring back the tourists, it must first win over residents by revealing how it will narrow the divisions and restore the city’s reputation.

Whether you blame the democrats for quitting or the government for putting them in that position, the vacuum in Legco discredits the Basic Law. It can only be hoped that the democrats will return when elections are held next year.

It is encouraging that the judges emphasised the importance of protecting rights and the application of common law principles, which should help ensure the legal system maintains its core principles amid pressure from both sides of the political divide.

We might be yearning to get away from hot and sweaty, Covid-19-restricted Hong Kong, but sit tight and be thankful. The pandemic is not over yet.

Much needs to be done to ensure the national security law is clearly understood and implemented in a way that limits its impact on Hong Kong’s freedoms. Some will welcome Beijing’s move if it restores order, but even if achieved, this will come at a price.

The way Beijing is rushing through the law – with little transparency – casts a sombre mood over the city’s handover anniversary. The most worrying features concern the court system – it appears Beijing does not entirely trust the city’s judges.

Hong Kong’s response to the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown was seen as subversive and prompted Beijing to adopt a more hardline approach to the drafting of the Basic Law. Those effects are still being felt today.

Though details are forthcoming, China’s national security laws are expressed in broad terms and have been used to target critics and suppress dissent.

For all its flaws, the Basic Law protects Hong Kong’s separate system and can continue to do so beyond 2047, provided work begins now to resolve some of the deep-rooted contradictions. This cannot happen without basic trust.

By calling into question Hong Kong courts’ power to declare laws unconstitutional if they breach the Basic Law, Beijing threatens the city’s legal system and the local judiciary’s ability to protect human rights.

At times of crisis in Hong Kong, Beijing tends to tighten its grip on the city. This happened after previous mass protests in 2003 and 2014, but has only led to further public frustration, opposition – and the current movement.

The use of a colonial-era emergency law has raised tensions at a time when Hong Kong needs to calm down. In invoking the draconian law from 1922, the Hong Kong government should draw the right lesson from history.

As more arrests are made amid the continuing unrest and criticism of judges’ decisions begin to roll in, Hong Kong should be reminded of the need to respect the judicial process. A repeat of the pressure that judges have had to bear working through the Occupy cases would undermine confidence in the courts.

After three months of sometimes violent protests, the government has relented on the extradition bill. But, for the city to truly move on, it must end the silence on alleged police abuses, put universal suffrage back on the agenda, and examine why young people are angry with Beijing.

If Hong Kong is to survive this ordeal, the protesters must avoid provocative acts that make crackdowns more likely. The SAR government is most responsible for the escalation, though, through its misguided bill and recent inaction.

The extradition controversy is a symptom of a deeper problem: the chief executive is seen as Beijing-friendly and Hong Kong’s political system, too business-friendly. To ensure stability, our core values, separate system and way of life must be respected.