Front runners for Hong Kong’s sole representative on China’s top legislative body set to be youngest to take up position
- Starry Lee, 48, and Stanley Ng, 53, are the two leading candidates; if either wins they will be youngest delegate to hold the position
- China’s annual parliamentary meetings, also known as the ‘two sessions’, are set to begin on Saturday
The leaders of Hong Kong’s two largest parties are the front runners in a race to be the city’s sole representative on China’s top legislative body, the Post has learned – which would make either the youngest delegate to take up the high-profile position.
Starry Lee Wai-king, 48, chairwoman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), and Stanley Ng Chau-pei, 53, president of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions (FTU), are the two leading candidates for election to the National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee.
The post came up for grabs after political heavyweight Tam Yiu-chung, 73, announced he was to stand down.
“Both [Lee and Ng] are relatively young, but the party machinery and the political assets they have accumulated over the years make them fit for the role,” an insider said.
China’s annual parliamentary meetings, the “two sessions”, are set to begin on Saturday as the country’s two main political bodies – the NPC Standing Committee and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) – reveal their plans for policies for the economy, the military and more.
Hong Kong will also see its top leadership in both bodies changed this year after an earlier reshuffle.