Applying mainland Chinese law to part of Hong Kong’s high-speed rail terminus is constitutional: Court of Appeal
- Judicial review raised debate on whether decisions made by nation’s top legislative body were binding on Hong Kong even without a formal interpretation of the Basic Law
- Judge says courts must ‘give due regard’ to such decisions and seek a consistent interpretation of the Basic Law in constitutional challenges
Mr Justice Jeremy Poon Shiu-chor, the High Court chief judge, said on Friday that Hong Kong courts must “give due regard” to decisions made by the National People’s Congress Standing Committee and strive for a consistent interpretation of the Basic Law in constitutional challenges.
But he stopped short of saying whether those decisions were binding on the city’s courts as a matter of Hong Kong law, noting that the bench had “not been given full assistance” to answer the question and would have to wait for another occasion.
The joint checkpoint, or so-called co-location arrangement, was launched at the West Kowloon terminus on September 23, 2018, amid claims from critics it would be damaging to the “one country, two systems” framework that governs relations between Hong Kong and Beijing.
Three months later, the Court of First Instance ruled that the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (Co-location) Ordinance, which gave form to the arrangement and allowed for the application of national laws, was constitutional.