Leung Chun-ying's HK$5b plan to boost innovation meets wary response
The government plans to spend HK$5 billion boosting the local innovation and technology sector – and is determined to establish closer ties with mainland cities, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said in his policy address.
The government plans to spend HK$5 billion boosting the local innovation and technology sector – and is determined to establish closer ties with mainland cities to enhance Hong Kong’s competitiveness, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said in his policy address yesterday.
While some business leaders welcomed the measures, some analysts and lawmakers said they did not go far enough.
“I am so disappointed that the government has so few measures in the financial areas,” said Christopher Cheung Wah-fung, the legislator representing the financial services sector. “There is nothing about how to boost international investors’ confidence in the local markets after the Occupy movement. We hope the budget will have more measures to boost the financial market.”
Leung said the government would inject HK$5 billion into the Innovation and Technology Fund (IT Fund), which was launched in 1999, to support research and development.
Part of the money will go into the R&D Cash Rebate Scheme, a separate scheme launched in 2010 that will be merged with the IT Fund to minimise red tape and ensure a stable source of funding.
The IT Fund has provided HK$8.9 billion for more than 4,200 projects and had a cash balance of HK$1.3 billion at the end of September.
