The director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, Xia Baolong, departed Hong Kong on Sunday evening after a five-day inspection tour of the city.

He spent around 15 minutes at a community living room in To Kwa Wan, where he was joined by Chief Executive John Lee and the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Chris Sun.

Xia also met district councillors at the government's headquarters in Tamar, and visited Beijing's liaison office in Western.

Lee was at Shenzhen Bay Port as Xia and his team left the SAR on a minibus in the evening.

The chief executive said Xia gave Hong Kong clear directions on development during a speech on Saturday at a forum to mark five years since the National Security Law came into force.

"Hong Kong must implement the country's concept of comprehensive national security and use high-level security to safeguard high-quality development," Lee said.

"We should also make full use of the SAR's unique advantages in internal and external connections and promote high-quality development through our openness."

Lee added that the director told Hong Kong to rely on its rule of law, maintain its executive-led system and improve governance to help the territory push for high-quality development.

The chief executive said Xia also wrote a poem to district councillors affirming their work, saying they should do everything they can for the people, regardless of how big or small the issue in question is.

Lee went on to say that the director affirmed his work, as well as that of the SAR government, quoting him as saying local officials should balance security and development and make use of the stable environment to focus on improving the economy and people's livelihoods.