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Hong Kong to take ‘at least until next year’ to draft local version of anti-sanctions law
- Beijing is expected to add the national law that punishes firms for carrying out Western sanctions to Hong Kong’s mini-constitution on Friday
- While local authorities are set to draft their own version, lengthy talks with the business community will be needed before a bill is drawn up, sources say
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Hong Kong authorities will work on a local draft of the national anti-sanctions law until at least next year before sending it to legislators as time is needed to gauge the concerns of the business community, the Post has learned.
While Beijing is expected to formally approve the law for the global financial hub on Friday, Hong Kong ministers and legislators will then need to examine each of national version’s 16 articles and decide which should be copied, dropped or amended, according to sources. That process could not be finished before the Legislative Council ended its current session in October, they said.
Insiders also revealed that Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po was scheduled to meet lawmakers over the matter this week, but the discussions were abruptly called off.
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Given the deep apprehension among foreign investors and businesses over the new regulatory regime, financial officials needed more information from Beijing before consultations could begin, lawmakers said.
Some clarity was expected from Huang Liuquan, a deputy director of the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, when he visited the city next week to brief legislators and officials about the nation’s latest five-year policy blueprint, they added.
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