Hong Kong’s John Lee sacks tourism and transport ministers in unexpected move

Hong Kong’s leader has fired his tourism and transport ministers, Kevin Yeung Yun-hung and Lam Sai-hung, in an unexpected move, a national news agency has said. According to Xinhua News Agency, the State Council approved the decision on Thursday (Dec 5) based on the recommendation of Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu to replace the secretary for culture, sports and tourism and secretary for transport and logistics.

Yeung has been replaced by Rosanna Law Shuk-pui, the previous permanent secretary for housing. Lam has been succeeded by Mable Chan, who previously served as the permanent secretary for transport and logistics.

In a press conference that day, Lee said the decision was made after a period of observation, without giving further details about what mistakes the two sacked ministers had made.

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He praised the new ministers for having “reform mindsets” and the leadership skills necessary to come up with new ideas for the transport and tourism sectors. Lee expressed gratitude for both Yeung and Lam: “All the people who have joined the government are patriots, and I thank them for all their work, but I want to do more in these two and a half years.”

Shortly after the announcement, Yeung made a post on Facebook. “Thank you all for your concern! The sky is vast and I’m stepping into a new stage of life,” he wrote, with the post featuring a picture of Hong Kong’s sunny skyline.

Yeung joined the civil service in 1992 and became the undersecretary for education in November 2012.

He served as the education minister between 2017 and 2022 under former city leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor. He was then appointed to the current position when Lee took office in July 2022.

In his latest policy address in October, Lee singled out the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau over its delay in releasing a blueprint for growing the art and creative industries sector.

Yeung, in response, said he did not feel that the city leader had made multiple public attempts to push him to deliver, except for the mention in the policy address.

The blueprint was unveiled on Nov 26. But an updated blueprint for Hong Kong’s tourism industry, which Yeung was meant to complete within this year, has yet to be released.

Yeung made his final public appearance as a minister on Wednesday, when he officiated the opening of a new facility at the Hong Kong Sports Institute alongside John Lee.

Throughout his two-and-a-half-year tenure, Yeung faced a number of controversies, including when football superstar Lionel Messi failed to take to the field in a highly-anticipated and much-advertised match between Inter Miami and a city select team, which sparked questions on government handouts to support major sporting events.

Last year, lawmakers also slammed Yeung in a Legislative Council meeting over his poor handling of Kai Tak Cruise Terminal and its surrounding areas.

They said he had failed to make good use of resources which led to fewer visitors and poor transport connections, despite taxpayers’ significant investment into the area.

Lam, a trained civil engineer, was appointed the director of the Civil Engineering and Development Department in August 2016. He then became the permanent secretary for development overseeing public works in October 2018 before he retired in 2021.

It is not the first time ministers have been let go before serving full terms. Carrie Lam, for instance, terminated five top officials in her five years in office, including replacing No 2 official Matthew Cheung Kin-chung with Lee in 2021.

Law, the incoming tourism minister, has been praised for her crackdown on well-off tenants abusing the city’s public housing resources.

As the transport commissioner, she offered a public apology over the initial rocky roll-out of the e-toll payment, which has since seen a smooth introduction.

Like Law, Chan has risen through the ranks as an administrative officer and served in various bureaus and departments.

She last served as the commissioner for transport before being promoted to the current post in August 2020.

Joining the government in 1989, Chan also has experience in handling the government finances, education and constitutional affairs, among others.

Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, convenor of the Executive Council, a key decision-making body, said that boosting Hong Kong’s tourism and expanding its aviation network were key in the government’s strategy for economic growth.

She praised Law for her proactive and innovative approach in cracking down on abuses of rules by wealthy public housing tenants, while also commending Chan for her leadership ability as chief of the Transport Department.

“It is appropriate for the new government at this point in time to put in new blood to officers who have, through their past performances, shown their abilities to take on higher responsibilities,” she said.