Hong Kong leader says has raised case of missing booksellers with Beijing

While discussing R&D, Leung stressed the importance of building a close relationship with mainland China – a topic becoming ever more politically sensitive in Hong Kong.

Such a system, presented by the central government in 2013, sees Hong Kong positioned as the “super connector” between mainland China and the West. In what some have interpreted as blatant brown-nosing, Leung pledged his commitment to the scheme over, and over, again.

Furthermore, rousing thoughts of Singapore, Leung said Hong Kong will pursue a “Smart City” initiative which includes a HKD500-million (US$64.4 million) Innovation and Technology Fund for a Better Living.

Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying told lawmakers in his annual policy address that officials were determined to crack down on the trade in Hong Kong. Many Hong Kong book vendors started pulling politically sensitive titles off their shelves last week fearing backlash from China.

The largest fund is a HKD2 billion (US$258 million) aimed at matching private VC investments to “encourage investment from venture capital funds in local innovation and technology start-ups”.

Gavin Edwards, the Conservation Director of World Wildlife Federation Hong Kong, is also praising Leung’s move.

Pro-Beijing politician Regina Ip said Leung had “overdone it” while skirting key governance and political issues, particularly Beijing’s ties with Hong Kong, a former British colony that returned to Chinese rule in 1997 with the promise of wide-ranging autonomy.

“That comparison sounds like some Hong Kong people when they read the State Council work reports by the country’s leaders… when a few words went missing, [they think] it may mean the country’s main strategy has changed”.

In a summit in the US last year, President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping announced plans to stop the import of ivory as hunting trophies.

Leung’s approval rating has plunged to a low of 37.5%, according to an opinion poll released by the University of Hong Kong on Tuesday. “The current property price and rental levels are much higher than people can afford”, Leung said. He said about 97,100 public housing units will be built over the next five years.

An important legal deadline is expected to lapse today in the case of missing Hong Kong publisher, Paul Lee, also known as Lee Bo.

The chief executive has presided over some turbulent history as Hong Kong’s relationship to Beijing is being contested.

The Hong Kong dollar’s peg to the USA dollar has made it an increasingly expensive destination for mainland Chinese who come to shop and buy property.