Hong Kong’s pro-democracy and pro-Beijing camps join forces in Legislative Council to call for government U-turn on elderly assistance age change

Non-binding motion will go to a vote on Thursday morning, urging rethink on lifting eligibility age for welfare payments from 60 to 65

‘I haven’t seen such a united front among lawmakers,’ says 19-year veteran of the chamber

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CSSA (Comprehensive Social Security Assistance) Rights Defence and a group of elderly protest against raising the age threshold for the programme at the central government offices in Tamar on Wednesday. Photo: Jonathan Wong/SCMP

Published: 9:58pm, 16 Jan 2019Updated: 2:57am, 17 Jan 2019

In a rare show of unity, legislators from across Hong Kong’s political divide were set to pass a motion on Thursday calling on the government to shelve its controversial increase in the age threshold for elderly welfare payments.

The non-binding motion will be put to a vote on Thursday morning, after a majority of lawmakers showed their support during the Wednesday debate.

The government announced last Monday that the eligibility age for elderly comprehensive social security assistance (CSSA) would be increased from 60 to 65 from February 1.

The move drew a heavy backlash from lawmakers, especially after Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor expressed shock at the criticism, noting that lawmakers had approved the change, which was among hundreds of measures in the government’s budget last year.

Legislators from both the pro-establishment and pro-democracy camps accused the government of callousness. They extended their criticism on Wednesday, discussing a motion raised by social welfare representative Shiu Ka-chun, urging the government to review the entire CSSA system.

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