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Following is the transcript of remarks by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Gregory So, to the media on the proposed establishment of the Innovation and Technology Bureau after attending the Legislative Council (LegCo) Finance Committee meeting today (October 30):
Reporter: Mr So, can you explain why you are disappointed today? How much more time you expect to pass this (proposal)?
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development: I think anybody would be disappointed. We spent 32 hours in total to talk about the formation of the Innovation and Technology Bureau in the Finance Committee alone. That is not even including the time that we spent in the other panels as well as in the (Legislative) Council meetings with respective establishment of the Innovation and Technology Bureau. Obviously the people of Hong Kong including the stakeholders and the industry proponents are all in favour of establishing the Innovation and Technology Bureau and using filibustering technique to delay the establishment of the bureau is not in anybody's interest, certainly not in Hong Kong's best interest. So I would call upon the LegCo members to really put their heads together next Friday as we reconvene the Finance Committee and vote in favour of the establishment of the bureau.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
Ends/Friday, October 30, 2015
Issued at HKT 20:39
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