Xia Baolong, Beijing’s top man on Hong Kong affairs, visits city on mission to plan ‘new stage of development’ with government, all sectors of society
- Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, says trip is to understand city’s economic development, governance and other conditions
- He was seen arriving at government headquarters in Admiralty in the afternoon for briefings from city leader John Lee and top officials
Beijing’s top official overseeing Hong Kong affairs has set high expectations for the government as he started a seven-day fact-finding trip, saying his mission is to work with the administration and all sectors of society to plan a “new stage of development” for the city.
Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO), on Thursday said the tour aimed to implement the spirit of a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping in December last year and “understand Hong Kong’s economic development, regional governance and other conditions on the ground”, according to an official statement.
Hong Kong’s No 2 official, Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki, said Xia was also briefed about the city’s efforts to enact a home-grown national security law in a meeting with government ministers, who received encouraging words and recognition for their work.
Xia, who arrived in the morning and took no questions from the press, started his tour at Hong Kong International Airport accompanied by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu and Zheng Yanxiong, head of Beijing’s liaison office in the city.
He visited the Integrated Airport Centre, launched last year to support the three-runway system.