Lam paints rosy picture of Hong Kong at Oxford University

The man nicknamed the “human recorder” – Stephen Lam Sui-lung – was on top form when he made his first public appearance since leaving the government, treating a British audience to a rosy view of Hong Kong and the success of “one country, two systems”.

The optimism of the former chief secretary, in his speech at the University of Oxford, contrasted with growing concerns in Hong Kong about Beijing’s perceived influence in the city’s affairs and fears of a weakening of the rule of law.

But Lam’s performance compared closely to the sort of remarks he was known for as an official.

“I have always said if anyone can make ‘one country, two systems’ work, we can. And we did,” said Lam, who earned his nickname for endlessly repeating government policy and giving the same answers, no matter what question he was asked.

As the constitutional minister in charge of electoral reform in 2010, Lam this week expressed full confidence that universal suffrage was “a promise” from Beijing.

“The central government wanted to help Hong Kong along, and that is why the universal suffrage timetable was adopted in 2007,” Lam said. He was referring to the National People’s Congress Standing Committee’s decision to allow universal elections for the chief executive in 2017 and the Legislative Council in 2020.