As it happened: Carrie Lam backs down and 'suspends' Hong Kong extradition bill, sets no new time frame

The Hong Kong government is backing down and suspending its highly unpopular extradition bill, without setting a new time frame for its reintroduction. It maintains the legislation's intention of plugging legal loopholes is still valid.

At a press conference on Saturday, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, using the words "suspension" and "halting" interchangeably, admitted her government had not communicated the need for the bill well enough. "I feel deep sorrow and regret that deficiencies in our work – and various other factors – have stirred up substantial controversies," she said.

The climbdown came in the face of two massive protests last week, one ending in violence and injuries to 80 people.

Organisers of the historic march on June 9, the Civil Human Rights Front, and the pro-democracy Confederation of Trade Unions have vowed to carry on with another march this Sunday.