Press Releases

SCA: Major tasks on constitutional development in coming two years

The following is the transcript (English portion) of a standup briefing by the Secretary for Constitutional Affairs, Mr Stephen Lam, in a seminar to mark the eighth anniversary of the Re-unification of Hong Kong with China this afternoon (June 26):

Reporter: With the CE is ... now, what kind of focus would you have in terms of constitutional issues and what will be your work in the months ahead?

SCA: Within 2005, we would need to prepare a fifth report on the part of the Constitutional Development Task Force. We will need to set out in that report what we will put forth as the main stream proposal for amending and taking forward the electoral methods for returning the Chief Executive in 2007 and the Legislative Council in 2008. Within the second half of this year, we would need to publish this report and also to take forward the legislative amendments to Annexes I and II of the Basic Law. Once we have gone past this major milestone, within the first half of 2006 we would be able to table before the Legislative Council the Chief Executive Election Amendment Bill, and then within the second half of 2006 we would need to form the third term Election Committee for returning the Chief Executive in 2007. So, in very broad terms, that would be the outline of our major tasks in the next year or two.

(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)

Ends/Sunday, June 26, 2005