Plan for new M+ firm met with doubt
Lawmakers question arts hub on who will sit on the museum's proposed board
Lawmakers have voiced concern over an "ambiguous" plan to set up a subsidiary company with an independent board to run the West Kowloon museum.
They raised questions about the M+ museum during a Legislative Council subcommittee meeting on the development of the West Kowloon Cultural District yesterday as the arts hub's management tabled the proposal for discussion.
The management told the lawmakers that the arts hub, which aims to be Hong Kong's leading platform in showcasing visual culture, will set up a subsidiary company to operate the M+ museum.
The proposed company would be wholly owned by the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority and there would be an independent board to develop M+'s vision and operating strategies, the management said.
"It is an important step to put M+ in line with museums around the world," the authority's CEO Michael Lynch said, adding that the proposed structure would give the M+ museum greater artistic freedom, curatorial independence as well as an advantage in fundraising.
Sabrina Law Chung, principal assistant secretary for Home Affairs, said the government agreed with the authority's plan.