Lawmakers urge middle-class body and population plan
SingTao · 2 SOURCES1 day ago6 MIN
Summary
With the 2026 Policy Address and Hong Kong’s first five-year plan due next Wednesday, several lawmakers have set out priorities ranging from population planning and birth incentives to middle-class relief, caregiver support and infrastructure-led job creation. Their proposals centre on longer-term coordination across policy bureaux as the city faces slower-than-expected economic recovery and an ageing population.
Key Points
- New People’s Party lawmaker Judy Chan Ka-pui (陳家珮) said the five-year plan should include a comprehensive population policy led at secretary level, mapping Hong Kong’s population over the next five, 10 and even 15 years
- Chan also urged the government to further strengthen pro-birth measures through bigger cash incentives, more childcare support and wider use of reproductive technology, saying these should align with talent and fertility policies.
- Engineering sector lawmaker Bok Kwok-ming (卜國明) called for a “middle-class affairs committee”, a target for the city’s middle-class population, salaries tax cuts and wider tax bands, plus deductions for domestic helpers, childcare and first-home support for families with newborns.
- Bok said annual infrastructure spending should rise from about HK$128 billion to HK$150 billion, alongside a five-year programme to repair and rebuild ageing underground pipes, pumping stations and sewage plants that have operated for more than half a century
- Welfare sector lawmaker Chan Man-yi (陳文宜) said the five-year plan should rank Hong Kong’s social problems by priority and sequence, while long-term policy should strengthen support for caregivers and review thresholds for schemes such as the Working Family Allowance.
Why It Matters
The proposals point to pressure on the government to use the coming Policy Address and first five-year plan to connect family policy, labour supply, welfare design and economic strategy rather than handling them separately. For residents, the debate matters because any shift in tax relief, childcare support, caregiver assistance or infrastructure spending would directly affect household costs, employment prospects and confidence in Hong Kong’s long-term planning.