I have no regrets about demotion, says 'humble' Lew

Lew Mon-hung said yesterday that he had no regrets about pointing fingers at former ally Leung Chun-ying, after it was confirmed he had been stripped of his seat on the nation's top political advisory body.

While the move was largely expected after he blasted the chief executive in an interview published last week, some delegates said they believed an investigation by the Independent Commission Against Corruption was the nail in his coffin.

Lew's name did not appear on the final list of delegates to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, which was unveiled in Beijing yesterday, and the outspoken member said he "would take it calmly".

"I speak for the nation and the people," Lew said. "I see responsibility as more important than honour."

He said officials from the central government's liaison office in Hong Kong contacted him on Friday "with congratulations" on the renewal of his tenure, so he believed his name had been removed from the list at the last minute.

"Everyone knows the reason but I am not disappointed, and I have no regrets," Lew said.