ECO 209 Hong Kong Economy Topic: What major problems facing Hong Kings public finance system

and what should the government do to reform it? A. Overall Situation 1. Public Finance Principles i. Achieve fiscal balance and avoid deficits is enshrined in the Basic Law ii. While maintaining a low tax environment, we spare no effort to provide quality services for our people iii. Ensure adequate fiscal reserves to cope with economic contingencies and build a solid financial foundation for the future (The implementation of a linked exchange rate system ) iv. Upholds a small government philosophy and takes its fiscal prudence rules seriously Public expenditure growth rate should be lower than the GDP growth rate. The share of public expenditure in GDP should be lower than 20%. v. User pay principle 2. Government Revenue in Hong Kong i. Sources Profits tax Land premium Salaries tax Stamp duty Investment, returns on fiscal reserves ii. 2012-2013 Estimate

3. Government Expenditure in Hong Kong i. Definition Public Expenditure Government expenditure + expenditure (operating and capital) by the Trading Funds and the Housing Authority. Government Expenditure The aggregate of operating expenditure and capital expenditure. Unlike public expenditure, it excludes expenditure by the Trading Funds and the Housing Authority. Recurrent Expenditure ii. 2012-2013 Estimate

B. Problems 1. Highly susceptible to economic fluctuations, they are affected by the ebb and flow of the economy. Revenue from these sources has fluctuated wildly over the past decade, bringing many challenges to the management of public finances. 2. Narrow our tax base 3. Structural changes in the community such as an ageing population will also bring pressure to bear on public finances. C. Government suggestions and our suggestions 1. Government Suggestions In view of this years economic forecast, and in support of our enterprises, I have put forward proposals, such as offering a one-off reduction of profits tax, waiving the business registration fees, halving the charges for import and export declarations and abolishing capital duty levied on local companies. These measures will benefit enterprises of different sizes in Hong Kong without compromising our established tax neutrality principle or being in favor of a particular type of enterprises. In view of this years economic situation and the needs of taxpayers, I have proposed one-off salaries tax reduction and adjustments to various personal allowances or deductions, including basic allowance, single parent allowance, married persons allowance, dependent parent allowance, child allowance, dependent brother/sister allowance, disabled dependant allowance, and the extension of the entitlement period for the tax deduction for home loan interest. Public expenditure exceeded 20 per cent of GDP on a need basis Government revenue is susceptible to fluctuations in the external economic environment, but it is undesirable to make any drastic changes to expenditure during periods of adversity. That is because almost 60 per cent of our recurrent expenditure is provided for education, health and social welfare, which are closely related to peoples livelihood. Reducing expenditure during an economic downturn will only add hardship to our people. Instead, we

shall increase government expenditure, and our adequate fiscal reserves can provide the headroom for financial manoeuvres under such circumstances. In times of reduced revenue resulting from an economic downturn, the fiscal reserves allow us to maintain all the necessary public services, and adopt counter-cyclical fiscal measures to alleviate peoples burdens, stimulate the economy and invest in the future. Take 2009 as an example. When GDP was forecast to contract by two to three per cent that year, we adopted countercyclical measures. We increased government expenditure and relieved the pressure on our people. The strategy also created conditions favorable for the subsequent economic recovery. During the consultation period, there were quite a number of views on the appropriate level of public expenditure as a proportion of GDP. The share of public expenditure is close to 20 per cent of GDP in recent years. Our policy is to prevent overspending by the Government, which will stifle the development of the private market. We strive to strike a proper balance between increasing government expenditure and maintaining a low tax regime. In the event that our expenditure continuously exceeds this level, we shall need to explore ways of increasing our revenue to maintain a higher level of expenditure. The European and the US governments have to resort to fiscal austerity measures of all kinds to tackle the debt crisis caused by their escalating expenditures in recent years. This illustrates the importance of upholding fiscal principles and maintaining the health of our public finances. 2. Our Suggestions