Regina Ip

Regina Ip served as Hong Kong's secretary for security from 1998 to 2003. After three years’ studies in the US, she returned to Hong Kong with a view to improving Hong Kong’s governance. She is now chairperson of New People’s Party and a legislator elected on Hong Kong Island.

A cordial relationship between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump has not prevented a sharp deterioration in relations between the two countries over the past year. Photo: AFP

Opinion

China and the West: from trade war to a clash of civilisations?

20 Jan 2019 - 2:57am 58

Hong Kong’s first-ever same sex marriage wedding service organiser BEvisible Production makes its debut at the Hong Kong Wedding Expo at the Convention and Exhibition Centre, Wan Chai, in June 2013. Since then, a slew of court cases have seen progressive judgments on same-sex unions, but legislation has not kept up. Photo: David Wong

Opinion

Using Chinese tradition to oppose same-sex marriage is misguided

1 Dec 2018 - 7:37pm 14

Hong Kong's colonial flag is held up during a protest march in Hong Kong on July 1, 2017, on the 20th anniversary of the city's handover from British to Chinese rule. Photo: AFP

Opinion

Hong Kong’s Chinese and Western influences have to coexist

4 Nov 2018 - 4:09pm 11

The Court of Final Appeal, Hong Kong’s highest court, has been at the centre of more than one dispute about the independence of the judiciary in 2018. Photo: Sam Tsang

Opinion

Back Beijing or support the courts? Carrie Lam has to choose

6 Oct 2018 - 9:32pm 13

People enjoy the view of the city skyline along Marina Bay in Singapore. Photo: AFP

Opinion

Singapore’s strong leadership leaves Hong Kong dragging behind

15 Sep 2018 - 9:14pm 108

Shap Sze Heung in Sai Kung. Sun Hung Kai Properties last year reached an agreement with the government to build housing on the converted farmland in Shap Sze Heung, after paying a record premium of HK$15.9 billion for the conversion. Photo: SCMP

Hong Kong

Beware the developers who promise flats for a land deal

25 Aug 2018 - 5:45pm 3

The Wings residential project, developed by Sun Hung Kai Properties, in Tseung Kwan O. The Hong Kong government is grappling with rising housing prices and a shortage of available land for residential development. Photo: Bloomberg

Opinion

Singapore’s housing vision is beyond Hong Kong’s reach

28 Jul 2018 - 5:01pm 40

Stanley Wong, chairman of the task force on land supply, meets protesters at the Leighton Hill Community Hall in Happy Valley on June 16. Photo: Winson Wong

Hong Kong

Why Hong Kong’s land supply consultation is just a charade

23 Jun 2018 - 6:51pm 10

A researcher works at the State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases at the University of Hong Kong Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine in Pok Fu Lam. Hong Kong’s 16 state key labs and six national research centres will receive one million yuan each from the mainland government. Photo: Nora Tam

Insight & Opinion

Why Hong Kong should be celebrating the breakthrough in science funding from Beijing

2 Jun 2018 - 7:48pm 2

Students read at a pop-up library run by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, in April. Hong Kong parents want their children to be proficient in both English and Chinese, but in the public school system, it is hard to find teachers, let alone students, who are truly proficient in both official languages and in speaking Mandarin. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Insight & Opinion

Cantonese or Mandarin: how Hong Kong failed where Singapore succeeded

19 May 2018 - 7:39pm 35

A bullet train runs on the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway in September 2017. Mainland China has overtaken Hong Kong as an innovator and early adopter of new technology. Photo: Xinhua

Insight & Opinion

Greater Bay Area could be Hong Kong’s ticket to tech progress

29 Apr 2018 - 10:13am

Regina Ip says Hong Kong must address the four factors of supply, demand, liquidity and expectations that are causing the lack of affordable housing in the city. The task force on land supply is moving in the right direction by exploring all possibilities

Insight & Opinion

Hongkongers see homeownership as an investment. It has to stop

7 Apr 2018 - 7:03pm 36

Pan-democrat candidate Edward Yiu, who lost in the by-election on March 12 for the Kowloon West constituency Legislative Council seat, appears at the election results announcement event at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai. Yiu was criticised for his unusual campaigning strategy. Photo: Sam Tsang

Insight & Opinion

Pan-democrats’ politics of anger is losing its lustre

17 Mar 2018 - 7:28pm 1

The plans for linking Hong Kong to China’s Greater Bay Area scheme, along with Macau, Guangzhou and eight other cities, may be among the brightest prospects for the future of the city and its young people. Photo: EPA-EFE

Insight & Opinion

Hong Kong’s youth should know the benefits of mainland integration

24 Feb 2018 - 7:07pm 16

Agnes Chow speaks at a press conference on January 27, after she was banned from taking part in the March by-elections. A copy of Hong Kong’s Basic Law lies on the table. Photo: AP

Insight & Opinion

Hong Kong election ban may be legal, but the row will rumble on

3 Feb 2018 - 8:32pm 5

A rooftop shack in Cheung Sha Wan. The government’s priority should lie in improving the lot of those who live in abject conditions, such as those in subdivided cubicles or rooftop squatters. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Insight & Opinion

Hong Kong housing policy must first focus on those in dire straits

13 Jan 2018 - 7:09pm 1

The Yat Tung market in Tung Chung reopened in August 2016 after a refurbishment. The Link Reit has argued that it has improved facilities under its management. But many tenants fear upgrading as it usually means another round of price increases. Photo: Nora Tam

Insight & Opinion

Can Hong Kong tame Link Reit’s greed for profit?

16 Dec 2017 - 6:56pm 14

In the past 20 years, the Hong Kong SAR government has lost every battle to protect national security and enhance national identity. Photo: AP

Insight & Opinion

Hong Kong’s lost youth need help to see themselves in China’s future

25 Nov 2017 - 7:17pm 8

The Hong Kong SAR and Chinese national flags are displayed in Central district, Hong Kong. Nation-building should be promoted as a shared project binding people together. Photo: EPA-EFE

Insight & Opinion

In Hong Kong, a genuine love for the nation cannot be forced

4 Nov 2017 - 7:24pm 11

People walk past a property agency in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong. Encouraging home ownership may not free up as many public rental units as the government would like. Photo: EPA

Insight & Opinion

Push for home ownership won’t ease Hong Kong’s housing crisis

14 Oct 2017 - 8:17pm 4

Posters advocating Hong Kong independence are put up on Chinese University’s “democracy wall”, on September 7. Photo: AFP

Insight & Opinion

Writing’s on the wall: China is losing the battle to win over Hong Kong youth

28 Sep 2017 - 12:48pm 53

Demonstrators hold yellow umbrellas, the symbol of the Occupy Central movement, in protest at the jailing of student leaders Joshua Wong, Nathan Law and Alex Chow during a rally on August 20. Photo: Reuters

Insight & Opinion

Student leaders’ jailing marks end of Carrie Lam’s honeymoon

26 Aug 2017 - 6:55pm 3

Diploma of Secondary Education Examination students apply for self-financed degrees, associate degrees and higher diplomas at the Institute of Vocational Education campus in Cheung Sha Wan, on July 12. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Insight & Opinion

Education subsidies are all very well, but where are the jobs?

5 Aug 2017 - 7:15pm 1

Carrie Lam would probably prefer to score quick wins in her first 100 days than to lock horns with the Legislative Council on contentious issues. Photo: David Wong

Insight & Opinion

What Hong Kong can expect from Carrie Lam’s first 100 days

1 Jul 2017 - 9:27pm 3

Despite challenges, Hong Kong’s position as the sole international financial centre in China remains unrivalled. Photo: Xinhua

Insight & Opinion

Can Hong Kong find the leaders and spirit to adapt to new realities?

3 Jun 2017 - 9:33pm 2

Hong Kong commuters travel on a tram with a design commemorating the 20th anniversary of its return to Chinese sovereignty. The obsession with safeguarding the city’s pre-1997 lifestyle and separate systems has blinded Hong Kong’s leaders to the profound and systemic technological change taking place in the rest of the world. Photo: AFP

Insight & Opinion

Regina Ip: Why Hong Kong is a city in decline

29 Sep 2017 - 2:45pm 111

Then chief executive Tung Chee-hwa with his new financial secretary Henry Tang (left) after announcing the appointments of new principal officials at the government headquarters in 2003. Tung introduced the appointment system in 2002. Fifteen years after the city’s experiment with political appointments, a few facts have emerged. Photo: Robert Ng

Insight & Opinion

Carrie Lam must put destiny of Hong Kong in safe hands

15 Apr 2017 - 9:13pm 9

Regina Ip (right) shakes hands with Carrie Lam on election day. Photo: David Wong

Hong Kong

Regina Ip: universal suffrage is an issue Carrie Lam cannot ignore

26 Mar 2017 - 11:25pm 7

Chief executive candidates John Tsang and Carrie Lam attend an election debate on Tuesday. Beijing has made known its preferences through various channels from an early stage – no to Tsang, the former financial secretary who is leading in the opinion polls, but full support for former chief secretary Lam, the likely winner. Photo: Reuters

Insight & Opinion

Regina Ip: can Carrie Lam balance China’s might and HK’s autonomy?

18 Mar 2017 - 7:03pm 8

The sun breaks through the clouds in Hong Kong. It must be stressed that a vision is to be distinguished from a civil servant’s work report. Photo: AFP

Insight & Opinion

Next chief executive must have a vision for Hong Kong

10 Dec 2016 - 8:10pm 12

Protesters raise a Hong Kong colonial flag as thousands of people rally earlier this month against the latest NPC interpretation of the Basic Law. Photo: AP

Insight & Opinion

For restless Hong Kong, revolt against Beijing is futile

21 Nov 2016 - 9:40am 37

Tung Chee-hwa faced a rude awakening after he took over as chief executive following the exit of Chris Patten, Hong Kong’s last governor. They are seen here after a meeting at Government House on December 23, 1996. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Insight & Opinion

Beijing’s quandary: how to best ‘manage’ Hong Kong’s chief executive election

15 Oct 2016 - 7:36pm

Making their voices heard are (from left) Paul Zimmerman, one of five pan-democrats who stepped aside to consolidate the anti-establishment vote, Lau Siu-lai, Eddie Chu, Leung Kwok-hung and Nathan Law. Photo: Sam Tsang

Opinion

Hong Kong people have spoken, and it doesn’t bode well for the government

10 Sep 2016 - 7:51pm 5

A protester carries yellow balloons featuring umbrellas, the symbol of the Occupy Central movement, during a protest march on July 1 this year. Photo: Reuters

Insight & Opinion

Radical politics will make Hong Kong’s 2016 legislative election the most important in the SAR’s history

9 Jul 2016 - 8:39pm 6

The convenor of Hong Kong National Party, Chan Ho-tin, attends a rally in Mong Kok last month. The newly formed group advocates independence for Hong Kong. Photo: Sam Tsang

Opinion

The closed minds of our youth are the No 1 threat to Hong Kong’s future

11 Jun 2016 - 11:01am 48

A student protests against the introduction of national education in 2012. In the past few years, young people’s dissatisfaction with the status quo has grown. Photo: EPA

Opinion

Why talk of an independent Hong Kong fails the test of reality

7 May 2016 - 11:45pm 32

John Tsang deserves full credit for stashing away mountains of cash for future use. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Insight & Opinion

John Tsang should know that easy money doesn’t last, and Hong Kong must urgently adapt to new realities

9 Apr 2016 - 12:03pm 9

A supporter of Edward Leung attends a pre-election campaign event. Photo: AFP

Insight & Opinion

When it comes to serving the Hong Kong public, being popular is not enough

12 Mar 2016 - 12:01pm 5

Mong Kok became the scene of riots unseen in Hong Kong for decades, sending shock waves throughout the nation. Photo: Edward Wong

Insight & Opinion

Regina Ip: the Mong Kok riot was no spontaneous outburst, but just who was behind the violence?

20 Feb 2016 - 7:10pm 61

(L-R)Wong Yuk-man, Albert Chan Wai-yip of People Power and "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung of League of Social Democrats, meets the media on their plans to filibuster when the Legislative Council begin debating the budget 16APR13

Insight & Opinion

When politics trumps reason: Continual filibustering by Hong Kong’s pan-democrats has gone too far

19 Sep 2016 - 3:35pm 19

President of Legislative Council Jasper Tsang Yok-sing attends Legco meeting at Legco Building in Tamar. 04JUN14

Opinion

Can embattled Hong Kong vanquish the ‘five horsemen’ of its apocalypse?

19 Dec 2015 - 9:30am 6

The "umbrella soldier" group Youngspiration won a seat through Kwong Po-yin (fifth from left). Photo: Dickson Lee

Insight & Opinion

There's no ignoring Hong Kong voters' support for youthful underdogs in district council elections

28 Nov 2015 - 9:30am 4

A flag-raising ceremony being held as part of celebrations in Hong Kong to mark National Day this year. Photo: AP

Insight & Opinion

Debunking popular myths about Hong Kong's constitutional design and separation of powers

19 Oct 2015 - 11:25am 11

The government has expended tremendous efforts to increase the supply of land for housing, but has run into fierce objections in many parts of the city. Photo: Bloomberg

Insight & Opinion

Without a long-term land bank, Hong Kong faces a development crisis

21 Sep 2015 - 5:57pm 9

It cost HK$8.2 billion to build yet is under-used. Photo: Dickson Lee

Insight & Opinion

Kai Tak Cruise Terminal is a stellar example of government misallocation

11 Aug 2015 - 1:41pm 22

The erosion of self-confidence on the part of Hong Kong people has compounded Hong Kong's difficulty in cultivating a sense of national identity. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

News

A popular mandate is no silver bullet for declining, divided Hong Kong

11 Jul 2015 - 11:00am 24

The pan-democrats leave the Legco chamber after voting down the government' electoral reform package. Photo: Kyodo

Insight & Opinion

Reckless drive for democracy would only derail Hong Kong

27 Jun 2015 - 10:30am 7