Letters | Hong Kong budget: lack of sweeteners doesn’t make it a bitter pill

Readers evaluate the budget outlined by the finance secretary last week, what impresses mainlanders about Hong Kong, and the importance of preserving Victoria Harbour as a unique attraction

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A man walks by televisions broadcasting the financial secretary’s budget speech at an electronics store in Tai Koo on February 28. Photo: Eugene Lee

Published: 11:30am, 5 Mar 2024

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It’s impossible to please everyone with the budget. Although there were fewer sweeteners in the blueprint, some positive aspects are worth noting. Scrapping property cooling measures, introducing higher taxes for high-income earners, cutting government expenditure and freezing the expansion of civil service manpower, along with an increase in tobacco tax, are just a few examples.

To trim government expenditure, wouldn’t it be wiser to have a smaller, more efficient government? Does Hong Kong really need a 190,000-strong civil service, considering the current fiscal constraints? Is cutting recurrent government expenditure by another 1 per cent enough to restore fiscal health?

The decision to put on hold the Lantau Tomorrow Vision project raises concerns about its future. It’s good the government finally seems to have realised that it’s not viable to fund two mega development projects simultaneously. Should the Northern Metropolis project also be downsized? If the government is unable to secure financing, it may not be able to pursue the project.

Similarly, a proposed review of the HK$2 public transport fare subsidy for the elderly and people with disabilities suggests changes are on the horizon for this scheme.

Launching a new scheme to sponsor renowned scholars and industry leaders to attend overseas events is a positive step, taking into account the ongoing negative and biased portrayal of Hong Kong in the Western media.