Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang on Wednesday held talks with Hong Kong and Macau delegates of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Beijing, with national security legislation under Article 23 of the Basic Law one of the items on the agenda.

One Hong Kong CPPCC delegate, Eliza Chan, confirmed the vice premier had raised the matter of Article 23.

Chan, who’s a solicitor, said Ding told the group that there was consensus in Hong Kong society around the legislation, and everyone wants it approved as soon as possible.

“He mentioned that Article 23 is actually what the Hong Kong community expected and so far based on the submissions made, he believes that over 90 percent of those submitted views support the enactment of the Article 23 provisions,” she told RTHK.

Another delegate, Teng Jin-guang, said Vice Premier Ding told the group that the enactment of the legislation would ensure stability.

But Teng, who’s also the president of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said the state leader was more focused on the economic situation in the SAR.

“He would like to see Hong Kong further prosper economically, and we are confident this will happen,” Teng said.

Meanwhile, CY Leung, former chief executive and vice chairman of the CPPCC National Committee, said Vice Premier Ding’s participation showed the high value that the central government places on "One Country, Two Systems”.

“The meeting also combined the actual work of Hong Kong and Macau, focusing on maintaining the long-term prosperity and stability of the two SARs and speeding up their integration into the development of the country,” Leung said.

CPPCC Standing Committee member Pansy Ho said Ding encouraged Hong Kong delegates to do more on the city’s economic development.

“[He encouraged] Hong Kong to accentuate our strengths on the integration into the country’s development. But at the same time, we have to pay attention to the international situation because there are still unstable factors,” she said.

The director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, Xia Baolong, and the director of Beijing's liaison office, Zheng Yanxiong, were also present at the meeting.

Agnes Chan, CPPCC member and a non-executive director of the Securities and Futures Commission, said she has good takeaways from the meeting with the vice premier.

“About the economic development. I think what we hear is a very positive note about the future of Hong Kong. We have the opportunity of the Greater Bay Area, as well as the One Belt, One Road,” she said.

“With Hong Kong's strength in various areas, in particular as an international financial centre, international trade centre, and international transportation centre, these are all very important developments that will help the growth of Hong Kong's economy.”
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Last updated: 2024-03-06 HKT 12:35