A rare move to implement a year-long pay freeze for the executive authorities, the legislature, the judiciary as well as members of the District Councils have raised some eyebrows, with sources noting that Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu is the driving force behind the initiative aimed at demonstrating governmental unity in addressing the fiscal deficit.
This came after Budget on Wednesday revealed that the pay freeze included the Chief Executive and politically appointed officials; the Non-official Members of the Executive Council; members of the civil service; the President, all Members and Secretariat of the LegCo; Chief Justice of the Court of Final Appeal, judges of the courts at all levels and other members of the Judiciary; and members of the District Councils.
Regarding the approach of not taking pay cuts, sources noted the government has taken into account that reducing the salaries of civil servants will inevitably have a negative impact on their families, the private employment market and even the consumption market sentiments.
As for the reason that the salary freeze lasts for a year, sources said it is anticipated the economy will gradually improve this year and the government has other measures to curb the public expenditures.
Furthermore, the stock market is projected to positively influence the property market while several mega events are expected to stimulate growth across various industries.
Some describe the action as a “historic move” for the SAR government as the pay freeze seldom included lawmakers, district councilors and even the members of the Judiciary.
Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies consultant Lau Siu-kai said he had never witnessed such a massive scale pay freeze from the government in the past.
He noted that the salaries of the executive, legislative and judicial members are formulated under different systems and it is impossible to act beyond the authority when initiating the pay freeze, and he believed Lee had put the utmost effort in bringing parties to reach the agreement.
Lau endorsed the salary freeze, emphasizing that the government must take decisive action to exemplify unity and actively implement measures to tide over the deficit blowout.
To avoid legal risks, analyses believed that Lee had actively communicated with all relevant stakeholders to reach a consensus regarding the pay freeze before the announcement of the Budget.
The city leader acknowledged that the decision to freeze salaries stemmed not only from financial concerns but had also evolved into a significant political issue, as it could induce controversy and legal challenges in the worst possible scenario as the remuneration packages for the members of the government’s “Three Pillars” are drawn up under different systems and structures.
The action could align with societal expectations for the authorities to ride out the difficulties together in times of deficit blowout, while enhancing public acceptance of reducing welfare expenses — such as the amendment to the HK$2 fare scheme — in order to curb expenditures.
