CY Leung slams pan-democrats over efforts to block Hong Kong tech bureau funding

Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying hit out at pan-democrat lawmakers' attempts to block funding for a proposed innovation and technology bureau as the issue made little progress in the Legislative Council yesterday.

The government is asking for approval for HK$35 million to set up the bureau, which Leung promised in his 2012 election manifesto.

However, most of yesterday's two-hour meeting, which was set aside to discuss funding for the IT bureau, was actually spent debating the withdrawal of a request for a fisheries loan fund. Labour Party lawmaker Lee Cheuk-yan also tabled a motion to adjourn discussion.

In a rare move, the government pulled the fisheries item from the agenda to make way for discussion on the IT bureau.

Leung said the fisheries issue - which had already been scrutinised by Legco's Finance Committee - could be retabled after funding for the new bureau had been approved.

Speaking ahead of the weekly Executive Council meeting yesterday, Leung said the city had suffered "countless losses both directly and indirectly" to the economy because of the filibustering by pan-democrats, who have vowed to block government spending in their campaign for open elections.