While the chief executive’s policy address did not offer many concessions, there are certainly breakthroughs in some areas.

The portability of welfare has long been taboo in our public policy. There are thousands of descendants of Hong Kong citizens living in Shenzhen crossing the border everyday to study here, and not much has been done to help them. The rationale is we cannot spend public money outside the city even if it is for the benefit of Hong Kong citizens.

In the present policy address, our government takes the initiative to allow three Shenzhen schools to open special Hong Kong curriculum classes catering specifically to Hong Kong children. Taken together with the recent announcement of a joint venture hospital in Shenzhen for Hong Kong citizens, it seems that there is a paradigm shift in our government on the issue of portability of welfare of Hong Kong citizens residing on the mainland.

Previously officials argued that since there are a great number of Hong Kong citizens living outside Hong Kong as a result of massive immigration before the handover, once the government extends welfare to look after those living on the mainland it will have to do the same to those living in Canada, Australia, the UK, etc. The subsequent financial burden is big, and worse still, nobody can estimate how big it is.

The point is, our people living on the mainland are strictly speaking not immigrants. They are just living in other parts of the country. However, under “One Country, Two Systems”, they are not entitled to the welfare benefits of residents there. When they are in need of a certain service, such as education and medical treatment, they will invariably come back to Hong Kong. And when they do so, the costs on both the public and the individuals concerned are much higher than if they enjoy the same service on the mainland. It is therefore a win-win solution to make certain welfare facilities and payments available inside the mainland to Hong Kong citizens living there.

I am glad that Chief Executive Donald Tsang has finally made some experimental moves in the right direction. Next item on the agenda: homes for the senior citizens?