Update | Pepper spray and barricades used as new-town protesters try to storm Legco complex

An angry, 200-strong crowd demonstrating against the government's plans for two new towns tried to force their way into the Legco building last night as police officers targeted them with pepper spray through the smashed glass of wall panels.

Protesters kept pushing at the doors behind their open umbrellas in an attempt to protect their faces from the stinging spray. One disabled man was seen reversing his electric wheelchair into a set of doors in an attempt to force them open.

Police used riot shields to beat back the bamboo poles that were being used to try to pry open doors - until officers went on the offensive, exiting the building using pepper spray to force back the protesters. Journalists were also sprayed in the mayhem.

Several people were seen pinned to the floor before being taken away by officers, while others received treatment from paramedics.

The lead-up to the drama started at about 3pm as people began arriving in time for the resumption of the Legislative Council's Finance Committee debate on a HK$340 million funding request for engineering works linked to plans to build two new towns in the northeastern New Territories.