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Alice Wu

Eighty per cent of success is showing up, as they say. So, all but one of Hong Kong’s 89 legislators joining a week-long “national affairs study visit” to Beijing made a good impression.
Lawmaker Stanley Ng Chau-pei called it a “groundbreaking opportunity” for legislators to study and deepen their understanding of national conditions. Showing up eager to learn and to better grasp how Hong Kong can play a more proactive role in national development is indeed commendable.
The legislature had worked overtime to review the bill for the Huanggang Port and legislators committed their first week of summer recess to the study tour. It’s interesting that the delegation was referred to in one news report as “a class”. The group photos, complete with a banner in the front, resemble those of schoolchildren on summer study tours.
Lifelong learning is crucial. We don’t expect our lawmakers to be know-it-alls, but we do expect them to keep themselves abreast of the latest developments and constant shifts in this fast-paced world.
It is also excellent to see that the current slate of legislators has made genuine efforts to show up in the chamber. Only three lawmakers had an overall attendance rate below 90 per cent. It’s hard to imagine, but it hasn’t always been this way.
A damning report in 2023 showed that the new and improved Legislative Council had an issue with showing up. The report found that in the 2022 legislative year, at least two-thirds of bills were passed with under half of all councillors present, falling short even of the 45-member quorum requirement.

Hong Kong’s legislators have come a long way from getting “warm reminders” to attend meetings and to raise around 10 questions a year. Legislators from the previous term passed a new code of conduct, setting in stone that lawmakers should attend meetings and “actively and conscientiously” participate in voting on bills – a low bar, really, but the fact that the bare minimum had to be set spoke to how unsatisfactory performance and discipline were.
The good news is that first-time lawmakers have been kept on their toes. This newspaper has found that about 70 per cent of first-term lawmakers achieved full attendance at general meetings, House Committee and Finance Committee meetings.
However, they raised fewer questions than their more experienced colleagues. Since taking office in January, the 40 newcomers averaged four questions each. The SCMP’s tally also found there were six lawmakers who raised two or fewer questions over the past seven months. Alan Chan Chung-yee, who represents the Election Committee constituency, submitted only one question, while athlete turned legislator Vivian Kong Man-wai was among the five who submitted two.
Chan defended his lack of questions by pointing out that he has devoted his time to in-depth research while stressing that lawmakers should not be judged solely by the number of questions raised. Kong vowed to field more questions and said “there are many issues that need to be conveyed … I have to study and prioritise them”.

However, public expectations must be met. While the public appreciates that lawmakers’ work entails far more than simply attending meetings, voting and asking questions, it is up to lawmakers to show that they are delivering more than just the bare minimum.
Lau Siu-kai, a consultant for the semi-official Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies think tank, came to new lawmakers’ defence, saying that they needed time to identify issues they want to focus on.
Given that lawmakers stood for election, ran on a platform and secured nominations that weren’t easy to get, identifying issues shouldn’t be a big challenge. Seven months is more than enough time, since there are only four years in a term.
The urgency that Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu often attaches to resolving the city’s challenges, such as developing the Northern Metropolis, means lawmakers are expected to hit the ground running. There is simply no time to waste; otherwise, we might need to consider asking our septuagenarian Legco retirees to return.
Lau also said that newcomers may feel anxious since they “have not fully understood the consequences” of Legco’s discipline rules.
Our lawmakers don’t have the privilege of some sort of a foundation year, like new students who get to gradually sample university coursework. Cutting lawmakers too much slack is counterproductive to restoring confidence in the legislature.
The mainland study tour was a class act, but there is more that needs to be done. And self-respecting lawmakers would also say no to being coddled like children.


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Legislative Council of Hong Kong (Legco)

Hong Kong’s lawmakers don’t need to be coddled

The eighth Legislative Council holds its first meeting in the chamber of the Legco complex on January 14. Photo: Karma Lo

Members of the Legislative Council embark on their National Affairs Study Visit on July 19. Photo: Handout 

Lawmaker Alan Chan speaks during the first meeting of the eighth Legislative Council in Admiralty on January 14. Photo: Eugene Lee

Why Hong Kong must fill seat vacated by lawmaker promptly

William Wong Kam-fai is absent from the House Committee of Legislative Council meeting at Legislative Council Complex on July 3. Wong resigned from Legco that day. Photo: Edmond So

Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen (second left), then Legco president, delivers a speech during a seminar on executive-legislative collaboration in Admiralty on October 16, 2025. Also on the dais are Lau Siu-kaim, consultant to the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan, and Tam Yiu-chung, secretary general of the Hong Kong Coalition. Photo: Karma Lo

Hong Kong’s first-time lawmakers ask fewer questions but attend Legco more often

Chief Executive John Lee address the eighth Legislative Council during its first meeting on January 14. Photo: Karma Lo

Lawmaker Alan Chan submitted just one question — the lowest overall – on the hotel industry’s reception capacity. Photo: Eugene Lee

Legco newcomer Vivian Kong, who represents the tourism sector, raised only two questions. Photo: Eugene Lee

Xia Baolong urges lawmakers to ‘assume a greater role’ in helping Hong Kong leader

Xia Baolong (centre), flanked by other officials, meets the lawmakers in Beijing. Photo: Handout


Lawmakers are briefed on work in the Longfu Temple Historical and Cultural District. Photo: Handout

Legco president Starry Lee at the Beijing 12345 Citizen Hotline Service Centre. Photo: Handout

Lawmakers return from historic Beijing trip with insights on Hong Kong’s 5-year plan

Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, meets lawmakers in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Photo: Handout

Legco president Starry Lee and members of the delegation attend the meeting with Xia Baolong. Photo: Handout

Legco could tighten members’ code after William Wong drink-driving case: Starry Lee

William Wong resigned as a lawmaker on Friday. Photo: Handout

Police chief Joe Chow says William Wong’s case is still under investigation. Photo: Elson Li

Opinion

Hong Kong Opinion

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Hong Kong

Politics

While increased attendance in Legco is a welcome development, it shouldn’t be too much to expect first-year legislators to hit the ground running


While increased attendance in Legco is a welcome development, it shouldn’t be too much to expect first-year legislators to hit the ground running.


Hong Kong politics

Hong Kong society

Expresses the views, ideas and conclusions of the author. (Eg. Enough of Crazy Rich Asians, think of crazy poor Hongkongers.)


Hong Kong’s lawmakers don’t need to be coddled

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}While increased attendance in Legco is a welcome development, it shouldn’t be too much to expect first-year legislators to hit the ground running

While increased attendance in Legco is a welcome development, it shouldn’t be too much to expect first-year legislators to hit the ground running