DAB seeks to benefit HK residents in GD

The largest political party in the special administrative region — the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong — proposed when meeting with Guangdong’s provincial governor that Hong Kong residents should be given mainland identity cards, or have their travel permits empowered with mainland identity functions.

The mainland ID cards or functions, different from those for mainland residents, should make life in Guangdong easier for Hong Kong residents when, for example, buying train tickets, booking hotels or using shared bikes, Starry Lee Waiking — DAB chairwoman and Legislative Council member — said after the meeting between DAB’s 15-member delegation and Guangdong Governor Ma Xingrui and other provincial officials in Guangzhou on Thursday.

The proposal is part of a 16-point report the DAB presented during the meeting for facilitating life, entrepreneurship and employment of Hong Kong residents in the province and seeking pilot policies on the Guangdong side.

DAB, which received many suggestions from Hong Kong and mainland people before compiling the report, also proposed Hong Kong residents be allowed to provide a Hong Kong home address, instead of a mainland one, which many do not have, when opening a bank account and making some other applications.

Without a mainland bank account, they cannot make e-payments through Alipay or WeChat Pay, which are prevalent on the mainland and make life highly convenient, Lee said.

The group also proposed that the requirement for acquiring the employment certificate when Hong Kong residents are hired on the mainland be eliminated, or related lengthy procedures be simplified.

More than 520,000 Hong Kong people live in Guangdong and 15,000 Hong Kong youths study in the province. Research indicates many of them hope to seek careers on the mainland because of the opportunities it provides, Lee said.

To encourage Hong Kong youths to start businesses on the mainland, the DAB proposed some taxes be simplified or brought down on par with those in Hong Kong, as excessive tax disparity curbed their enthusiasm, Lee said.

On elderly care, the group hopes more smart-care and hospital facilities become available to Hong Kong retirees living in Guangdong.