Hong Kong to keep ‘one country, two systems’ model indefinitely, minister says

Hong Kong will continue to be governed by the “one country, two systems” principle and retain its common law system indefinitely, well beyond 2047, justice minister Paul Lam Ting-kwok has said, while also calling for the deepening of legal ties with the Asean bloc.

Describing legal services as having the potential of a “win-win” collaboration rather than outright competition, Lam also announced on Monday that Hong Kong would host the 15th China-Asean Prosecutors-General Conference in September – a move that was backed by Beijing.

Taking part in a fireside chat at the South China Morning Post’s China Conference: Southeast Asia 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, Lam said it was natural to ask whether Hong Kong’s current system would continue after 2047. He referred to the agreement for Hong Kong’s capitalist system and way of life to remain unchanged for 50 years under the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution.

Lam cited a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping in Hong Kong in 2022 on the continuity of the one country, two systems principle. Xi had said there was “no reason to change such a good system” and “it must be adhered to in the long run”.

“I think it’s a very clear answer to dispel any possible misgivings that the principle of one country, two systems will change after 2047,” Lam said.

He said Hong Kong’s common law system would also be kept, noting Xi had mentioned it twice in his 2022 speech.