Legco Mulls More Anti-filibuster Rule Changes

Sources said on Tuesday that pro-establishment lawmakers are planning to further limit the room for any form of filibusters in the Legislative Council.

Although the chamber is now left with no opposition after the pan-democrats resigned en masse in November last year in protest of the disqualification of four of their colleagues, sources said the rules committee will on Wednesday discuss proposals to limit legislators' power.

One proposal would be to allow the Legco president to reject a quorum call request – a tool often used by pan-democrats to delay meetings – if he or she considers it to be an abuse.

Another proposal is to remove lawmakers' right to table unannounced amendment motions to government funding requests at the Finance Committee.

Councillors used to be able to move an unlimited amount of such motions, but the pro-Beijing camp made a change in 2017 to significantly lower the number allowed.

However, some lawmakers within the pro-establishment camp have reservations about scrapping these motions altogether, as they, too, might want to table such motions against funding requests.

Another suggestion is to introduce time limits for debates on different types of lawmaker motions at the full council – similar to how the president now sets the schedule for the budget debate before it's put to a vote.

Sources said all these are part of a "huge number" of proposed changes to Legco rules to be discussed, but the rules committee is not expected to vote on them on Wednesday.