The Second term of Donald Tsang as Chief Executive of Hong Kong, officially referred to as "The 3rd term Chief Executive of Hong Kong" relates to the period of governance of Hong Kong since the transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong, between 1 July 2007 and 30 June 2012. Former civil-servant Donald Tsang was the Chief Executive throughout the duration.
Election
Donald Tsang won the landslide victory by winning 649 votes in the 800-member Election Committee against pro-democrat contender, Civic Party legislator Alan Leong.
Cabinet Ministry The bureaux were reorganised and expanded by adding one new Development Bureau headed by Carrie Lam.
Major change in the office was the Chief Secretary Henry Tang resigned from office in September 2011 in order to run in the 2012 Chief Executive election. The post was filled by the Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Stephen Lam.
Executive Council non-official members The Executive Council consisted of a total of 31 members: 3 secretaries of the department and 12 secretaries of the bureaux and 16 non-official members. In January 2009, Donald Tsang reorganised the Council by appointing 5 new members.
Jasper Tsang Yok-sing, the former chairman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) resigned from the ExCo after he was elected as the President of the Legislative Council. The Chief Executive filled Lau Kong-wah, another DAB Legislative Council member to Jasper Tsang's seat.
Selina Chow of the Liberal Party resigned from the ExCo after she lost her LegCo seat in the 2008 Legislative Council election.
In October 2011, Leung Chun-ying resigned as the Convenor of the Executive Council non-official members to run for the Chief Executive election in 2012. Ronald Arculli became the Convenor until his term expired on 30 June 2012.
MembersAffiliation PortfolioTook OfficeLeft OfficeRefNonpartisanNon-official Convenor of the ExCo (1999–2011);Chartered surveyor1 July 19973 October 2011DABLegislative Councillor1 July 200214 October 2008FTUGeneral secretary of FTU1 July 2002LeungNonpartisanFormer deputy judge of High Court1 July 200220 January 2009LiberalLegislative Councillor22 September 200318 September 2008NonpartisanNon-executive deputy chairman of HSBC19 October 2004LeungAllianceBusinessman and politician26 October 200420 January 2009NonpartisanNon-official Convenor of the ExCo (2011–12);Chairman of HKEx1 November 200530 June 2012NonpartisanFormer chairman of HKEx and director of Cheung Kong Holdings1 November 200530 June 2012NonpartisanCEO of Bank of East Asia and Legislative Councillor1 November 200515 February 2008NonpartisanFormer Chairman of Hospital Authority1 November 200530 June 2012NonpartisanFormer Chairman of Airport Authority1 November 200530 June 2012NonpartisanManaging director of CITIC Pacific1 November 200520 January 2009NonpartisanCEO of Gold Peak Industries1 November 200520 January 2009NonpartisanPresident of the Hong Kong Institute of Education1 November 200530 June 2012NonpartisanFormer Chief Secretary1 July 200720 January 2009DABLegislative Councillor15 October 200830 June 2012Economic SynergyChairman of Heung Yee Kuk21 January 200930 June 2012NonpartisanFormer vice-chancellor of Chinese University of Hong Kong21 January 200930 June 2012NonpartisanManagement consultant21 January 2009LeungNonpartisanCouncil Chairwoman of Hong Kong Polytechnic University21 January 200930 June 2012NonpartisanHonorary chairman of Value Partners Group21 January 200930 June 2012
Second term Five-year policy blueprint Following his re-election as the Chief Executive in 2007, Tsang set out the 5-year blueprint for the Third Term HKSAR Government in his Policy Address (2007–08). He stressed the importance of "progressive development", a core element of which is the promotion of community development through revitalization of the built heritage in the city.which is to be realized by promoting economic development through infrastructure projects, promoting community development through revitalization, and promoting social harmony under the concept of helping people to help themselves.
Ten major infrastructure projects Tsang has undertaken to push ahead with 10 large-scale infrastructure projects within his term of office to boost economic activities and improve the living environment in Hong Kong. Those projects include:
South Island Line (from Admiralty to Wong Chuk Hang) Tuen Ma Line (from Tai Wai to Hung Hom) and East Rail Line Extension from Hung Hom to Admiralty Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (High Speed Rail, to reduce congestion in East Rail Line) West Island Line (from Sheung Wan to Kennedy Town) Kwun Tong Line Extension to Whampoa from Yau Ma Tei Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link and Tuen Mun Western Bypass Hong Kong-Shenzhen Airport Co-operation Hong Kong-Shenzhen Joint Development of the Lok Ma Chau Loop West Kowloon Cultural District Kai Tak Development Plan New Development Areas at Kwu Tung North, Fanling North, Ping Che and Ta Kwu Ling and Hung Shui Kiu.
Education reform Placing a strong emphasis on education, Tsang decided to extend free education in Hong Kong from nine to twelve years starting from the 2008-2009 school year. Coupled with the Pre-primary Education Voucher Scheme, Tsang aimed at reducing inter-generational poverty by helping children of low-income families grow and learn from early childhood to adolescence.
Heritage Conservation Tsang set up a Commissioner for Heritage Office and earmarked $1 billion to revitalize historic buildings. He also proposed a series of revitalization projects that would add a new dimension to Central. For instance, to reduce the development density of the Central Ferry Piers site and open up the public space along the waterfront for entertainment, recreational and cultural uses; to remove the Central Market from the Application List and hand it over to the Urban Renewal Authority for conservation and revitalization; and to convert the Murray Building into a hotel through open tender etc.
Environmental protection The Government is committed to reducing the energy intensity of Hong Kong by at least 25% by 2030, compared to 2005 levels. A series of measures have been introduced to promote the use of cleaner fuel and improved energy efficiency. For example, progress was being made on ensuring the provision of cleaner fuel from the Mainland to Hong Kong including starting work on the construction a pipeline supplying natural gas to the city and the recently renewed agreement on the supply of nuclear electricity for a further term of 20 years.
Political Appointments System
The government named eight newly appointed Undersecretaries on 20 May 2008, and nine Political Assistants two days later, out of a total of 24 newly created positions ostensibly to work closely with bureau secretaries and top civil servants in implementing the Chief Executive's policy blueprint and agenda in an executive-led government. Tsang described the appointments as a milestone in the development of Hong Kong's political appointment system.Diana Lee, "High hopes for appointees" , The Standard, 21 May 2008
A row endured for three weeks over the appointees' foreign nationalities, experience and remuneration levels, and transparency of the selection process. Tsang apologised for not having arranged for the new appointees to meet the public, whilst maintaining there were important points of principle to defend vis à vis the appointees' remuneration and nationalities.Gary Cheng & Ambrose Leung, "Tsang offers partial apology on appointees", Pg A1, South China Morning Post, 11 June 2008 Tsang was criticised for the lack of transparency over the appointments, and his apology was seen as 'grudging' and 'reluctant'.Chris Yeung, "It's going to take more than an apology to end the controversy", Pg A3, South China Morning Post, 11 June 2008 A SCMP poll conducted by TNS showed Tsang's popularity declining sharply following the three-week row over the introduction of the Political Appointments System; his disapproval rating rose from 18% to a record 24%, while his approval rating declined from 66% to 60.8% in the space of three weeks.Eva Wu, "Chief's ratings fall", Pg A3, South China Morning Post, 11 June 2008 His approval/disapproval rating continued to deteriorate, and stood at 39 percent/41 percent as at late August 2008.
Financial stimulus packages
Since the outbreak of the financial tsunami in September 2008, the Hong Kong SAR Government immediately introduced a series of measures with a view to "stabilising the financial system, supporting enterprises and preserving employment". The Hong Kong Monetary Authority introduced a full deposit protection scheme. The Government also launched a loan guarantee schemes to stabilize thousands of enterprises and secure more than 240 000 jobs. The Government's relief measures have amounted to more than HK$87 billion — equivalent to 5.2% of the city’s GDP, higher than the average for the G-20 economies. These measures have successfully stabilized the economy without impairing the Government's fiscal position in the long term.
On 16 July 2008, Donald Tsang announced some "extraordinary measures for extraordinary times", giving a total of HK$11 billion in inflation relief to help families' finances. Of which, the Employee Retraining levy on the employment of Foreign domestic helpers would be temporarily waived, at an estimated cost of $HK2 billion. It was intended that the levy would be waived for a two-year period on all helpers' employment contracts signed on or after 1 September 2008, but would not apply to ongoing contracts. The Immigration Department said it would not reimburse levies, which are prepaid half-yearly or yearly in advance. The announcement resulted in chaos and confusion, and uncertainty for the helpers as some employers deferred contracts or had dismissed helpers pending confirmation of the effective date, leaving helpers in limbo. On 20 July, Secretary for Labour and Welfare Matthew Cheung announced the waiver commencement date would be brought forward by one month. The Immigration Department would relax its 14-day re-employment requirement for helpers whose contracts expired. On 30 July, the Executive Council approved the measures. After widespread criticism of the situation, the government also conceded that maids having advanced renewal of contract would not be required to leave Hong Kong through the discretion exercised by the Director of Immigration, and employers would benefit from the waiver simply by renewing the contract within the two-year period, admitting that some employers could benefit from the waiver for up to 4 years. The administration's poor handling of the matter came in for heavy criticism. The administrative credibility and competence were called into question by journals from all sides of the political spectrum, and by helpers and employers alike.
Leung Chin-man appointment
In August 2008, the appointment of Leung Chin-man as deputy managing director and executive director of New World China Land, subsidiary of New World Development, was greeted with uproar amidst widespread public suspicion that job offer was a quid pro quo for the favours he allegedly granted to NWD. Leung was seen to have been involved with the sale of the Hung Hom Peninsula HOS public housing estate to NWD at under-value in 2004.
After a 12-month 'sterilisation period' after retirement, Leung submitted an application to the government on 9 May for approval to take up employment with New World China Land. The Secretary for the Civil Service, Denise Yue Chung-yee, signed off on the approval for him to take up the job after his request passed through the vetting committee.