Carrie Lam is due to appear in Beijing on December 16 to report on the situation in Hong Kong

A group of democrats has initiated a motion to remove Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, on the grounds of dereliction of duties that has led to six months of unrest in the city.

This attempt through the city’s legislative council, the city’s de facto parliament, is the most high-profile political move on the part of the democrats since mass protests erupted in early June.

Although Ms Lam has the backing of Beijing and the parliament is controlled by pro-establishment lawmakers, it marks a significant effort by the city’s pro-democracy groups to hold Ms Lam directly accountable for the violence that has wracked the city for several months.

Her attempt to introduce a highly unpopular extradition bill that would have allowed Hong Kongers to