China’s Hong Kong chief steps down from top political advisory post

Xia Baolong leaves the CPPCC’s national committee just days before the body convenes in Beijing

Xia, who has a reputation of a capable administrator, will be replaced by former National Health Commission chief

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Xia Baolong has stepped down as secretary general of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference’s national committee. Photo: Weibo

Published: 11:37pm, 19 May 2020Updated: 3:08am, 20 May 2020

Beijing’s top official on Hong Kong affairs has stepped down from his post in China’s top political advisory body as the capital prepares for the country’s top annual political gathering.

Xia Baolong stepped down as secretary general of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference’s national committee, state media reported on Tuesday.

He will be replaced by Li Bin, the former chief of the National Health Commission.

Xia was appointed to head the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office in February, becoming the first state leader to head a cabinet-level office overseeing Hong Kong affairs. The move was seen as an effort by Beijing to better directly supervise the implementation of central government policies in Hong Kong.

By stepping down from the advisory body, Xia is widely expected to focus on managing Hong Kong affairs.

Xia has a reputation as a capable administrator with a wealth of experience in local government. He worked with President Xi Jinping for more than four years in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang in the mid-2000s, when Xi was the province’s Communist Party chief and Xia his deputy.

Xia was later promoted to be the party boss of Zhejiang overseeing one of China’s richest provinces for five years until 2017.