Coronavirus: Hong Kong leader concedes anti-pandemic measures contributed to brain drain, ‘fully understands’ anxiety of diplomats, business delegates

Stringent anti-pandemic restrictions have contributed to the exit of business talent, Hong Kong’s leader has conceded, a day after she was grilled by diplomats and industry representatives expressing frustration over the curbs.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor also suggested, for the first time, that it was “hard to tell” whether resuming quarantine-free travel with mainland China should be prioritised over opening up to the rest of the world, as both were equally important.

“We hope to resume personnel exchanges with the mainland and overseas at the same time. It is hard to tell which comes first but it should be launched gradually depending on the actual situation,” Lam said on Wednesday in an apparent shift from a previous stance where she had repeatedly stressed reopening the border with the mainland as a top priority.

Hours after Lam’s press conference, Xia Baolong, director of the State Council’s Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, urged the Hong Kong government to “further step up to shoulder the main responsibility, and to use well the support provided by the central government,” according to pro-China Bauhinia magazine.

Xia urged the government to implement strict measures to prevent a rebound in infections and do its best to reduce the number of deaths and serious cases. The support provided to help Hong Kong fight a fifth wave of Covid-19 infections was an integral part of the overall national plan on epidemic prevention and control, he added.

Business mogul Allan Zeman said Lam’s remarks would help ease the international community’s concerns after complaints of being left out due to the tough travel curbs.

The city confirmed 6,981 new coronavirus infections on Wednesday, the fifth consecutive day the daily caseload was below the 10,000 mark.