Budget passes through Hong Kong legislature with minimum fuss – but jury still out on better relations

With little filibustering in chamber and relatively few amendments, Legislative Council took just five meetings to debate and vote on financial blueprint – a far cry from bitter wrangling of recent years

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Paul Chan at the Legislative Council. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

Published: 7:48pm, 10 May 2018Updated: 11:30pm, 10 May 2018

Hong Kong lawmakers gave the green light to the government’s annual budget on Thursday evening, marking one of the swiftest passages of the financial blueprint in the past six years.

Major parties however said it was too early to tell whether tensions in the legislature had dissolved, despite there being little filibustering during the budget debate compared with during the term of Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s highly unpopular predecessor Leung Chun-ying.

Among the 43 votes of support in the 68-member chamber were three opposition lawmakers – pan-democrat camp convenor Charles Mok, Kenneth Kai-cheong of the accountancy sector and Joseph Lee Kok-long of the health services sector.

Lawmakers vote on the budget. Photo: K.Y. Cheng

Eleven pan-democrats voted against the budget and eight including the Democratic Party abstained. It was also only the second time since 2008 that the government had secured more than 40 votes for the budget.

Two lawmakers walked out at voting time – pan-democrat lawmaker Shiu Ka-chun of the social welfare sector and Michael Tien Puk-sun of the pro-establishment camp.