Pay cut for Hong Kong lawmakers will not benefit city: Legco president
Andrew Leung says reduced salaries for public servants will lead everyone ‘to have less confidence about spending money’
A reduction in lawmakers’ salaries will not benefit Hong Kong, the head of the legislature has said, while brushing aside concerns the body is a “hand-raising machine” or “rubber stamp” for supporting government bills and funding requests.
Legislative Council president Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen on Saturday also defended a recent trip he and other lawmakers had made to Japan that had prompted accusations of unnecessary spending from the public.
Asked if there was a need to cut the pay of legislators and civil servants in response to expectations that the government deficit for the current financial year would balloon to about HK$100 billion (US$12.86 billion), Leung warned such a move could be counterproductive.
“A lot of people are watching the salaries of civil servants as a benchmark. When civil servants reduce their salaries and the business sector reduces its salaries as well, everyone will have even less confidence in spending money,” he said.
“Everyone needs to be aware, it is easy to say, but the problems that will appear as a result will be much more serious.”
He argued that the best way to counter the effects of the deficit would be to boost public confidence by growing Hong Kong’s economy, so residents would be encouraged to invest, buy homes and spend money.
