No move to cut one-way permit quota: CE

Carrie Lam says cutting the daily quota for mainlanders to move to Hong Kong would send out the wrong message. Photo: RTHK

Chief Executive Carrie Lam said on Tuesday that there is no official proposal at the moment to reduce the number of mainlanders allowed to settle in Hong Kong, saying the scheme is aimed at family reunions which is a human right and freedom.



This comes after Sun Hung Kai Properties executive director Adam Kwok, who also serves as a delegate to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), called for a reduction in the quota.



In a report to a CPPCC meeting, Kwok proposed that the daily quota of 150 one-way permits for mainlanders should be slashed in half to ease cross-border tensions.



Speaking before the Executive Council meeting, Lam rejected the idea. "We still need this policy for family reunions," Lam said, adding that around a third of marriages in Hong Kong involved spouses from across the border.



"If we change this policy or quota at this time, it will give out the message that we are blaming a social problem on a family reunion policy," she said.



Lam also pointed out that there is a four-year queue for one-way permit applications, which are vetted by mainland authorities.



She added that the daily quota of 150 permits had not been used up in the past two years as the authorities are mindful of the system being abused.