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Following is the full text of the 2014 Policy Address – Support the Needy, Let Youth Flourish, Unleash Hong Kong's Potential – by the Chief Executive, Mr C Y Leung, in the Legislative Council today (January 15):
Mr President, Honourable Members and fellow citizens,
I. Introduction
1. The current-term Government is committed to promoting economic development, improving people's livelihood, and taking forward constitutional development for more effective governance. We seek change while maintaining stability, adopt an appropriately proactive approach, attach importance to long-term planning and have abandoned the mindset of focusing on short-term needs.
2. Over the past year, the Government has progressively fulfilled the pledges in my Manifesto and my first Policy Address. On economic development, we have taken full advantage of the opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region and the preferential treatment provided by our country. We have capitalised on the advantages of "One Country" and "Two Systems". I, together with the whole Government, have explored business opportunities for Hong Kong at home and abroad. The Economic Development Commission (EDC), the Financial Services Development Council (FSDC) and the Consultative Committee on Economic and Trade Co-operation between Hong Kong and the Mainland are working at full speed, and the relevant government departments are giving all necessary support and taking follow-up actions.
3. The Government is doing its utmost to increase land and housing supply in the short, medium and long terms. We have implemented measures to manage demand and effectively curbed rising property prices. Meanwhile, we are formulating a long-term housing strategy for the first time in 15 years.
4. To demonstrate our courage and determination to tackle the poverty problem, the Government reinstated the Commission on Poverty (CoP) and set an official poverty line for the first time. The Government introduced the Old Age Living Allowance (OALA) to benefit more than 410 000 elderly people. The criteria under the Work Incentive Transport Subsidy Scheme were relaxed to help ease the travel expense burden on the working poor.
5. The Government released A Clean Air Plan for Hong Kong last March. The new Air Quality Health Index, released daily from the end of last month, shows the Government's determination to improve air quality. The Government will allocate $11.4 billion to replace pre-Euro IV diesel commercial vehicles. The Hong Kong Blueprint for Sustainable Use of Resources 2013-2022 published last May maps out the strategy, targets, policies and timetables for waste management in the coming ten years. On municipal solid waste charging, the Government has started a new round of consultations.
6. The Government implemented various measures to benefit the public. These include the Universal Accessibility Programme, increasing the value of elderly health care vouchers, and extending the scheme on a concessionary fare of $2 for the elderly and eligible persons with disabilities.
7. Measures such as the "zero delivery quota" policy for expectant Mainland mothers whose husbands are not Hong Kong residents, export controls of baby formula and the Buyers' Stamp Duty on residential properties have proved effective in meeting local demand first.
8. In its consultation document released last October, the Steering Committee on Population Policy published the objectives of population policy. It is gauging public opinion on measures to be developed.
9. By formally launching last month the public consultation on the methods for selecting the Chief Executive in 2017 and for forming the Legislative Council in 2016, the Government is moving towards universal suffrage on the basis of the Basic Law and the relevant Interpretation and Decisions of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.
(To be continued)
Ends/Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Issued at HKT 11:08
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