Carrie Lam confident in Hong Kong better integrating into national development

HONG KONG -- Hong Kong needs to understand the overall planning of the entire country, find its own position in it, and better fit into the national development while sharpening its advantages, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Carrie Lam said Monday.

Hong Kong's future development will surely be very bright and its biggest advantage is "one country, two systems," Lam said here in a joint interview with several media outlets.

In recent years, Hong Kong's economic development was not an economic issue but instead a political one, she said.

But "now we have a very good start," Lam said, citing the enactment of the national security law in Hong Kong, improvements to Hong Kong's electoral system, the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) for national socio-economic development and a newly-released plan for further developing the Shenzhen-Hong Kong cooperation zone in Qianhai.

"We are confident that Hong Kong can better integrate into the overall development of the country in the future," she said.

The five-year plan has dedicated a chapter outlining strategies to support Hong Kong in improving its status as a global financial, shipping and trade hub, bolstering its offshore renminbi business, wealth management and risk management, developing into a legal and dispute resolution center, and marching toward high-end, high value added services.

Lam in particular highlighted Hong Kong's financial strengths. "We don't fear any slander," she said. "We need to look at the fact, which is that many overseas financial institutions are full of confidence in Hong Kong...and we have seen many financial institutions that have already decided to increase their presence in Hong Kong."

The five-year plan also encourages Hong Kong in developing aviation, innovation and technology, intellectual property trading and international cultural and art exchanges.

To align Hong Kong strategies with national development, Lam believes Hong Kong should adopt a long-term perspective.

While the administration of the HKSAR government used to be hindered by malicious filibusters in the Legislative Council (LegCo) in the past, this year's improvements to Hong Kong's electoral system by the central authorities will make the future legislature rational, balanced and with broader representation, Lam said.

She said the HKSAR government will look into the next 10 to 20 years when planning Hong Kong's development.

The HKSAR will have a new term of LegCo and government in near future, but Lam did not worry about the policy continuity, noting that the policies that benefit Hong Kong people will definitely be implemented by every term of the government.

Lam also emphasized opportunities in the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and especially welcome the new Qianhai plan and the recent launch of a cross-border wealth management program in the Greater Bay Area.

The cooperation with Shenzhen enables Hong Kong to have a bright future in developing technology and innovation, and the Qianhai plan that features a wider opening to Hong Kong's services also gives Hong Kong enormous opportunities, Lam said.

The twin-city relationship of Hong Kong and Shenzhen is unique and will keep developing with time, she said.

To tap the opportunities, Lam urged efforts to improve transport infrastructure, policy alignment and cooperation mechanism between Hong Kong and Shenzhen, as well as strengthen the national identity of Hong Kong residents.

The expanded Qianhai will rally the unity of Hong Kong compatriots and stimulate patriotism, she said.