I Wrote The Policy Address, Not Beijing: Carrie Lam

Chief Executive Carrie Lam has dismissed suggestions that the Policy Address she will deliver on Wednesday has been put together by Beijing, insisting that she compiled it herself.

This year's address was originally scheduled for October 14. But with just two days to go, Lam unexpectedly announced that it was being postponed to give her time to travel to Beijing to ask for help with Hong Kong's economic recovery.

Lam said at the time that the trip was to make sure that the central government had taken full account of her recommendations and that it "really wants to facilitate those policy measures".

"I am not consulting Beijing on the Policy Address, I am compiling my own Policy Address as the chief executive of the Hong Kong SAR," Lam said ahead of Tuesday's Executive Council meeting.

"But it's clear to everyone that if we want our economy to bounce back, there is no better place than the mainland of China for us to tap into, because other parts of the world are still struggling with the pandemic, with high unemployment, with economic slowdown and so on."

She said the Policy Address, which will be her fourth, will feature initiatives involving support from Beijing but which can't be implemented until Hong Kong has the coronavirus pandemic under control and cross-border travel resumes.

"They may not be immediate measures, but they are the measures which will help Hong Kong's economy to grow and hence give Hong Kong people more confidence at this difficult time," she said.

Lam showed off the booklet for this year's address, saying she again chose sky blue for the colour of the cover as this symbolises "hope".

The CE said there will be 200 new proposed measures this year, but many of them won't involve additional taxpayer money being as the government is facing a huge deficit this year.

"We hope [to roll out] many new measures through reform, streamlining and synergy effect, without using additional resources, to better serve the people."

Lam said this year's fiscal deficit could balloon to as much as HK$310 billion.