HK Chief Executive aims for Legco consensus over livelihood items

Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said the government is trying to reach a consensus with the legislature on which livelihood items to discuss first, in a bid to get as many of them passed as possible.

He said public interest is the top priority as the government assesses around 50 funding applications awaiting approval in the Legislative Council, and 13 bills still pending.

Leung noted there is only 13 weeks remaining in the current Legislative Council (Legco)'s term, but about half of the time is expected to be spent on discussing the Budget and its related Appropriation Bill.

Speaking ahead of the weekly Executive Council meeting, Leung expressed the hope that lawmakers can pass urgent and important livelihood-related items.

If the bills are not passed by July, the government will have to restart the legislative process.