I'll Have To Supervise Everything Myself: Carrie Lam

Chief Executive Carrie Lam said on Monday that the government's work to amend law after law to accommodate Beijing's overhaul of the electoral system is so important that she'll have to supervise every aspect of it herself.

Just like the national security law which was imposed on the SAR last year, Hong Kong has not been involved in the plan to introduce sweeping changes to the way members of the Legislative Council are returned.

Beijing announced this month that the number of seats in Legco will be expanded from 70 to 90, and a "relatively large share" of the members will be chosen by the election committee that selects the city's chief executive. The committee will also take part in nominating all Legco candidates.

In an interview with pro-Beijing newspapers Wen Wei Po, Ta Kung Pao and Hong Kong Commercial Daily, Lam said she estimates that more than 20 pieces of legislation will have to be amended.

She said Legco president Andrew Leung has promised to speed up the process of scrutinising the law changes. But being as the issue is so important, lawmakers will have to hold more and longer meetings and put other matters aside if necessary.

The CE added that she will supervise every detail herself, from the drafting of the amendments, to providing the public with explanations, and she will not delegate the work to others.

She said the government has to make sure that over the next 12 months, the chief executive election committee selects its 1,500 members, that the body nominates and chooses lawmakers, and that it picks the city's next CE.

The schedule will be very tight, but it has to be stuck to and there is no question of just "trying to get it done", Lam said.