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Cooperating for the Prosperity of Hong Kong

The third HKSAR Legco Election brings to an end my work as Legco Representative for the HKGCC, a role that will be taken up by Jeffrey Lam. I want to take this opportunity to thank the Chamber for giving me its full support and trust over the past six years, which allowed me to reflect the voices of the commercial sector and strive for a better business environment in Hong Kong.

Boosting the economy top priority

Looking back, I am honoured to have been the Chamber's representative for the past two Legco terms, a position that has enabled me to contribute positively to the business community. The past few years have been the hardest that Hong Kong's economy has had to face for decades. All businesses were shrinking and facing huge operating difficulties. This is why I stressed, both inside and outside Legco, that the government should give priority to boosting our economy and improving the business environment. Supporting local businesses was an urgent issue that needed immediate attention.

Our successes are numerous. Examples include the SME credit loan scheme, freezing government fees and charges plaguing business, importing professionals from the Mainland, Capital Investment Entrant scheme, pushing the government to reduce spending, assisting industries thumped by SARS, CEPA, Individual Visit Scheme, facilitating economic integration between Guangdong and Hong Kong and Pan-PRD cooperation, among others.  

In fact, our fight for the interests of the business sector can only be successful with the concerted efforts and a united front across the industry. As you all know, apart from being the Chamber's Legco representative, I am also Chairman of Liberal Party. Over the past six years, these two roles seldom conflicted with each other, quite the reverse: they have complemented each other very well. While calling for benefits for the business community both inside and outside the Legco, my dual role allowed me to exercise greater influence.

On the request for CEPA, HKGCC and the Liberal Party both initiated that before the Mainland market opens to the world, Hong Kong and China should agree to enhance their economic and commercial cooperation as early as possible without violating the "One Country, Two Systems" principle and WTO commitments. The string of studies that HKGCC conducted afterwards provided very useful data for a submission to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference as reference for their formulation of CEPA.

Maintain the connection

Even though I am no longer the Chamber's Legco representative, I still hope that cooperation between the Chamber and the Liberal Party will continue, as a united business community can exercise more influence on future economic development. Jeffrey Lam, who is also a member of the Liberal Party, will get full support from the party and me. I am sure he will be a very competent Chamber representative and that he will help to strengthen the connection between the Chamber and the Liberal Party.

In this year's Legco election, I decided to give up the Chamber's seat to run in the geographical constituencies. The decision is based on the Liberal Party's belief that for constitutional development in Hong Kong to move on, and for the realisation of a general election in future, political parties must develop themselves in a mature and comprehensive manner.

By taking this direction, we are trying to represent more different sectors of the community. The Liberal Party wants to follow the examples of political parties in such developed countries as the U.K. and the U.S., not only by representing the interests of the business sector, but also the views of professionals, the middle class and the grass roots. As Chairman of the Liberal Party, competing for a position in the geographical constituency is a good opportunity for me to win support from different communities. 

In my view, the business sector is not always in an antagonistic relationship with other communities; on the contrary, they are always mutually affected and rely on each other. For example, when the economy is good and all businesses flourish, the grass roots have jobs. On the other hand, when businesses suffer, many people may lose their jobs. Moreover, the business sector has been advocating the upholding of the rule by law, justice, human rights and democracy that Hong Kong's success has been built upon. These elements are also indispensable to the rest of our society.

In the future, I will act as a bridge, facilitating communication and narrowing the gap between the business sector and other social communities. I will work hard to maintain social harmony and minimise social antagonism and discord, paving the way for the stability and continuous prosperity of Hong Kong. Although I am no longer the representative of the Chamber and will have new roles, I will still concern myself with the needs of local businesses. Let us work together to drive our economic development forward. Lastly, I wish all of you joy and success in everything you do.

James Tien is the outgoing Legco Representative of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce.