https://www.scmp.com/rss/11316/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying's comments in the international media implying that government in Hong Kong must be protected from populism is a timely reminder of the bargain the Chinese Communist Party struck with big business in the 1980s that was then codified in the Basic Law. Leung said that "you have to take care of all the sectors in Hong Kong … and if it's entirely a numbers game and numeric representation, then obviously you would be talking to half of the people in Hong Kong who earn... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1626578/protesters-want-rethink-basic-law-bargain-between-communist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1626578/protesters-want-rethink-basic-law-bargain-between-communist?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Oct 2014 05:00:30 +0000 The civil service is too large and could be cut by up to half. This is a shocking situation for a government that has prided itself on a policy of relative non-interventionism and reliance on the market. Small government should have been Hong Kong's defining characteristic. This situation came about, on one hand, through an uncritical acceptance of government involvement in more and more activities, many of which could have been carried out by the private sector or non-governmental... https://www.scmp.com/article/483113/why-civil-service-should-be-halved?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/483113/why-civil-service-should-be-halved?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Dec 2004 16:00:00 +0000 Civil servants in Hong Kong have had a good ride, but it is now time to bring their pay into line with market rates. Government plans for a pay-level survey will help do this, but the pledge by Secretary for Civil Service Joseph Wong Wing-ping to freeze pay even if the results indicate that civil servants' salaries are too high undermines the credibility of the survey from the start. His actions are consistent with the view that the government and the civil service have, for decades, worked... https://www.scmp.com/article/477838/out-date-out-touch?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/article/477838/out-date-out-touch?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Nov 2004 16:00:00 +0000