Budget vote to go ahead after Legco chief ends filibuster
The marathon debate on the budget bill finally ended after Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing cut off a filibuster on Tuesday afternoon.
The marathon debate on the budget bill finally ended after Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing cut off a filibuster on Tuesday afternoon.
The budget bill and some 710 amendments will now be put to a vote after legislators return from a break later on Tuesday.
The almost two-week-long filibuster was launched by four radical lawmakers from People Power and the League of Social Democrats aiming to force the Hong Kong government to launch a consultation on introducing a universal pension scheme and include a HK$10,000 cash handout in the budget.
The government, which refused the demands, has said that many of its services could be affected if the filibuster continued to drag on.
Tsang has said preiviously that he decided to cut off the filibuster after talks between Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah and the radical lawmakers on Friday proved fruitless.
