Anti-pandemic, Northern Metropolis, national security key emphases in next year's work: HKSAR chief executive

HONG KONG, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Carrie Lam on Thursday recalled 2021 as a year of Hong Kong further blending in the national development plan, and laid out the emphases of work for the HKSAR government in 2022.

Lam told a year-end press conference of the HKSAR government that the incumbent government will work on assisting the smooth transition to the new-term government after the chief executive election takes place in March, 2022.

In 2022, the HKSAR government will continue to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, promote the Northern Metropolis and safeguard national security, Lam said.

The chief executive added that government-subsidized homes for sale in 2022 will have tightened transfer restrictions, in order to ensure that valuable housing resources will be in the hands of those in need.

She also said that the HKSAR government aims at commencing relevant discussion and consultation for the local legislation of Article 23 of the Basic Law of the HKSAR no later than June 30, 2022.

Lam reviewed on the efforts made by the HKSAR government in 2021, highlighting its outstanding achievements in combating against COVID-19, fully implementing the "one country, two systems" principle and safeguarding the rule of law in Hong Kong.

As for Hong Kong's economy, Lam said that it started to recover in 2021 as the pandemic went under control, noting that she expects the annual economic growth to reach 6.4 percent.