Antony Leung Kam-chung GBS, OBE, JP | |
---|---|
梁錦松 | |
2nd Financial Secretary of Hong Kong | |
In office 29 May 2001 –16 July 2003 | |
Preceded by | Donald Tsang |
Succeeded by | Henry Tang |
Personal details | |
Born | [1] British Hong Kong | 29 January 1952
Spouse | Fu Mingxia |
Alma mater | Ying Wa College University of Hong Kong |
Occupation | Politician,investment banker |
Signature | |
Antony Leung | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Traditional Chinese | 梁錦松 | ||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 梁锦松 | ||||||||||
|
Antony Leung Kam-chung GBS OBE JP (born 29 January 1952 in Hong Kong with family roots in Shunde,Guangdong) is a businessman who served as Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR),from 29 May 2001 until his resignation on 16 July 2003.
He was embroiled in a financial scandal in early 2003 after it was revealed he had bought an expensive Lexus car shortly before imposing a new car tax,creating a controversy over conflict of interest that earned him the nickname "Lexus Leung" and which ultimately led to his resignation in July of that year. [2] [3]
Leung is currently the Chairman of Nan Fung Group and chairman and co-founder of New Frontier Group.
Leung was educated in Hong Kong. He received his secondary education in Ying Wa College and holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences degree,majoring in economics and statistics,from The University of Hong Kong. During his university studies,he actively participated in student activities and was concerned with political issues. It had been a long-term goal of Leung to be Financial Secretary,according to some classmates. He completed Harvard Business School's Programme in Management Development in 1982 and the six-week Advanced Management Programme in 1999. [4] He received an honorary Doctor of Laws at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in 1998.
Leung started his banking career as a currency trader and spent 23 years with Citicorp where he took up regional management positions in investment,corporate and private banking in Hong Kong,New York,Singapore and Manila. Leung rose to senior management positions at big international banks in Hong Kong. He joined Chase Manhattan Corporation in 1996,where he rose to the rank of Asia-Pacific chairman. He oversaw the Asia-Pacific operation of J.P. Morgan Chase &Co.,which became the No.2 U.S. bank when commercial bank Chase Manhattan bought Wall Street investment firm J.P.Morgan in 2000. He relocated to Singapore shortly before he resigned from J.P.Morgan to become Financial Secretary.
Prior to becoming Financial Secretary,he was actively involved in public services. He was an unofficial member of the Executive Council (1997–2001 April) and was responsible for Education Reform when he was the Chairman of Education Commission (1998–2001 April). The Chair of the Commission was succeeded by Dame Rosanna Wong Yick-ming,the former Chairperson of the Housing Authority who resigned before a vote of no confidence in the Legislative Council of Hong Kong following a scandal concerning the improper construction of housing estates under the Home Ownership Scheme.
Leung became Financial Secretary government post on 1 May 2001.
When in office,he proposed,in 2001,to cut the salaries of civil servants by 4.5%. However,in the face of strong opposition,the cut was reduced to 1.8–2.3% and enacted through legislation. After that,the government proposed a further 3% in salary cuts over the following 2 years,2005 and 2006.
He also stated that the government should succeed in balancing the budget by the 2006–07 fiscal year due to the recovery of the economy and further cuts in government expenditure. He claimed that it was necessary to balance the budget as quickly as possible so as to maintain the stability of the economy. He suggested expenditure cuts in different sectors,including university funding.
In September 2002,new HK$10 notes were co-issued by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the Hong Kong government in response to the problem of fake 10-dollar coins. About 10 special features were applied to the new notes.
By the end of 2002,in response to the "penny stock" incident,he set up a 2-person commission,which he was in charge of,to investigate the incident.
After the outbreak of SARS,Leung was responsible for taking action to reinvigorate Hong Kong's economy. After receiving funding of HKD 1 billion from the Legislative Council,Leung was able to launch several initiatives including the "Harbour Fest". Following his resignation,however,the Fest became mired in controversy regarding the chaotic arrangements made with overseas artists like the Rolling Stones,and the financial relationship between the government and the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong to which inexperienced body had been entrusted the Fest's organisation.
Henry Tang,who became Financial Secretary after Leung,said in a TV interview on 29 October 2008 that the contracts between the government and AmCham were signed when Leung was still in office. "AmCham came up with this creative idea for a musical event,... [which] required us to grant it five years' custodial rights,I believe then financial secretary [Leung] thought it was reasonable."
Tang later clarified that the contracts were signed by Rowse and not Leung. Tang said Rowse was a civil servant and as such was not required to be held politically responsible. [5]
Before his resignation,he signed the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) with China,which,it was believed,could help Hong Kong get out of a prolonged economic downturn.
Leung came under severe criticism in January 2003 when he bought a HK$790,000 (US$101,282) Lexus LS 430,just weeks before he raised the tax on new vehicles in his March budget. Although Leung claimed that he had decided on the tax increase after buying the car,which he said his family needed because of the arrival of his first-born in February. [6] [7] [8] Leung denied that he was trying to avoid the new tax,which would have cost him an additional HK$180,000. (US$23,000). However,unlike other members of the Executive Council,Leung had failed to disclose the purchase to the council. [9] [10] [11] News of the car purchase dealt a blow to the Hong Kong government's credibility as well as to the effectiveness of the newly introduced Principal Officials Accountability System (POAS). [11]
In view of the public outcry,he tried to defuse the controversy by donating money to the Community Chest,a local charity. He also submitted his resignation in March,which Chief Executive of Hong Kong Tung Chee-hwa refused to accept at the time. [6] [11] The government's unwillingness to take action after the scandal broke brought into question the sincerity of Tung's commitment to establishing an accountable government.
Hong Kong's Department of Justice said in July 2003,after receiving a report from the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC),that it was considering whether to charge Leung over the car controversy,which came to be known as Lexusgate. [6]
On 16 July 2003 Leung resigned with immediate effect in the wake of mass protests over the government's handling of a controversial anti-subversion bill,having failed to reduce record high unemployment and revive battered consumer confidence. His resignation came just hours after Secretary for Security Regina Ip said she was stepping down,for personal reasons. [12]
On 15 December 2003,the Department of Justice announced that it was dropping the case against Leung. [13]
He served as the chairman of Blackstone Group's Asian office in Hong Kong. [3] He continues to serve as a senior adviser to Blackstone and a member of its international advisory board.
Leung has served as chairman at Nan Fung Group,the Hong Kong-based property and finance conglomerate,since February 2014. [14]
Leung is currently the chairman and co-founder of New Frontier Group, [15] an investment holding company with activities in healthcare, [16] education [17] and internet business. [18]
He is also actively involved in charities,serving as chairman of the board of directors of Heifer International's Hong Kong branch.
Tung Chee-hwa is a Hong Kong businessman and retired politician who served as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong between 1997 and 2005,upon the transfer of sovereignty on 1 July. He served as a vice chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) between 2005 and 2023.
The Liberal Party (LP) is a pro-Beijing,pro-business,and conservative political party in Hong Kong. Led by Tommy Cheung and chaired by Peter Shiu,it holds four seats in the Legislative Council,and holds five seats in the District Councils.
Henry Tang Ying-yen is a Hong Kong politician who served as the Chief Secretary of Hong Kong between 2007 and 2011. He held the position of Financial Secretary from 2003 to 2007. In 2012,he lost the Hong Kong Chief Executive Election to Leung Chun-ying.
The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) is a pro-Beijing conservative political party registered since 1992 in Hong Kong. Chaired by Gary Chan and holding 13 Legislative Council seats,it is currently the largest party in the legislature and in terms of membership,far ahead of other parties. It has been a key supporting force to the SAR administration and the central government's policies on Hong Kong.
Emily Lau Wai-hing,JP is a politician in Hong Kong who champions press freedom and human rights. A former journalist,she became the first woman directly elected on the Legislative Council of Hong Kong in the 1991 LegCo elections. She has served as Legislative Councillor for the New Territories East Constituency throughout the 1990s and 2000s until she stepped down in 2016. She was chairperson of the Democratic Party of Hong Kong until 2016.
Victor Fung Kwok-king is the Group Chairman of Li &Fung group of companies. Together with his brother William,he owns a controlling stake of 32% in the business,which was founded by his grandfather.
Michael "Mike" John Treloar Rowse is a Hong Kong public figure. A naturalised citizen of the People's Republic of China,Rowse was the Director-General of InvestHK,a department of the Hong Kong Government.
The Hospital Authority is a statutory body managing all the government hospitals and institutes in Hong Kong. It is under the governance of its board and is under the monitor of the Secretary for Health of the Hong Kong Government. Its chairman is Henry Fan.
Principal Officials Accountability System,commonly referred to as the Ministerial system,sometimes the Accountability System,was introduced in Hong Kong by chief executive Tung Chee Hwa in July 2002. It is a system whereby all principal officials,including the Chief Secretary,Financial Secretary,Secretary for Justice and head of government bureaux would no longer be politically neutral career civil servants. Instead,they would all be political appointees chosen by the chief executive.
Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen is a Hong Kong politician who is the current President of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (Legco),representing the Industrial (First) functional constituency. From October 2012 to October 2016,he was the chairman of Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong (BPA),the second largest party in the legislature.
Paul Chan Mo-po is the Financial Secretary of Hong Kong and former Secretary for Development of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. He was a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong.
Nan Fung Group is a privately held group of companies carrying on the business of property development as its core business in Greater China,as well as shipping,textiles and financial services. It is also one of the leading property developers and largest privately held developers in Hong Kong.
The 2012 Hong Kong Chief Executive election was held on 25 March 2012 to select the Chief Executive of Hong Kong (CE),the highest office in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR),by a 1,193-member Election Committee (EC) to replace the incumbent Chief Executive. Won by the former non-official convener of the Executive Council of Hong Kong Leung Chun-ying,the election was the most competitive as it was the first election with more than one pro-Beijing candidate since the 1996 election.
The first term of Donald Tsang as chief executive of Hong Kong,officially considered part of "The 2nd term Chief Executive of Hong Kong",relates to the period of governance of Hong Kong since the transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong,between 25 June 2005 and 30 June 2007. Former civil-servant Donald Tsang was elected on 25 June 2005 to fill the position vacated by the resignation of his predecessor,Tung Chee Hwa.
The administration of Leung Chun-ying as Chief Executive of Hong Kong,officially referred to as "The 4th 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 2012 and 30 June 2017.
The Second term of Tung Chee-hwa as Chief Executive of Hong Kong,officially considered part of "The 2nd term Chief Executive of Hong Kong",relates to the period of governance of Hong Kong since the handover of Hong Kong,between 1 July 2002 and 12 March 2005 until Tung Chee-hwa resigned from the office and the rest of the term was taken up by former Chief Secretary for Administration Donald Tsang.
The Wang Chau housing controversy comprises a series of events related to a housing project in Wang Chau,Yuen Long District,Hong Kong. Initiated in 2012,the housing project aims to develop 17,000 public housing units in three phases. Phase 1 refers to ongoing development of 4,000 units in a "green-belt" site;while phases 2 and 3 refer to the deferred plan to build the rest of the targeted units in the "brownfield" site. The case came under media scrutiny after activist Eddie Chu Hoi-dick raised concerns about potential collusion between the Hong Kong government,businesses and rural landlords in his election campaign.
In October 2014,it was reported that Leung Chun-ying,Chief Executive of Hong Kong,had signed an agreement in 2011 with UGL,an Australian engineering firm,in relation to its takeover of DTZ,a UK-listed real estate services company in which Leung was the director of the company. In agreement,UGL undertook to pay Leung £4 million in two instalments in 2012 and 2013 respectively,subject to specific conditions. As these payments concurred with the term of office of Leung Chun-ying as Chief Executive between 2012 and 2017,it has aroused concerns of the public in respect of the nature of payment,potential conflict of interests,relevant systems of declaration of interests and taxation implications.
Fung Wai-wah is a Hong Kong educator,social worker and activist. He is the final president of the Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union (HKPTU),the largest teachers' union in the territory which disbanded in August 2021,and the former convenor of the Alliance for Universal Suffrage,a pro-democracy coalition on the issue of the 2017 and 2020 universal suffrage.
Events in the year 2018 in Hong Kong.