China upgrades Hong Kong affairs with new chief
- Former Zhejiang boss takes over the reins from Zhang Xiaoming, who becomes deputy director for daily affairs
- Move will fix reporting-line issues between Beijing and Hong Kong, source says
Beijing has for the first time put a state leader, Xia Baolong, in charge of the cabinet-level office that oversees Hong Kong affairs, strengthening direct supervision over the implementation of its policies in the city while reducing incumbent chief Zhang Xiaoming’s authority in an unexpected demotion.
Xia, the secretary general and vice-chairman of the country’s top political advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), will be the HKMAO’s director.
He has a reputation for being hard-handed and is widely regarded as a trusted ally of President Xi Jinping, as they worked together for more than four years in Zhejiang province in the mid-2000s – Xi as Communist Party chief and Xia his deputy.
The reshuffle was also seen as leaving Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor in no doubt as to the reporting hierarchy – the leaders of Hong Kong and Macau were previously ranked at the same level as the directors of the two offices.