00:00Hong Kong has set out a plan to nearly double the city's spending on innovation in the coming years
00:05as Chief Executive John Lee seeks to align the financial hub more closely with Beijing's economic priorities.
00:12The new economic targets were announced as Lee delivered Hong Kong's first five-year plan,
00:17a blueprint for the economy, and adopting a top-down planning tool that Beijing has deployed since the 1950s.
00:24Hong Kong will also target GDP growth within a, quote, reasonable range through 2030,
00:31while pivoting AI as a core industry.
00:34The centerpiece of Lee's tech drive is the Northern Metropolis, a mega-project which borders with Shenzhen.
00:40Lee has set a binding goal of increasing spade-ready sites or plots that can be readily used for development
00:47to 900 hectares by 2031.
00:50That's a 750% increase from this year.
00:54Lee also delivered his annual policy address after the five-year plan,
00:59offering more immediate support to households,
01:02which means extending the one-time baby bonus of $2,550 for three years,
01:08boosting child allowances for two or more kids,
01:11and lowering property stamp duty for new parents.
01:15This as Hong Kong tries to attract more talent to the city,
01:18just weeks after Singapore announced several child care benefits to support families in the city-state.
01:24Now, setting a five-year plan does raise a question of whether Hong Kong is moving away from its light
01:30-touch governance and capitalist system.
01:33Lee pledged to preserve Hong Kong's international status,
01:36strengthening the city's role as a renminbi hub,
01:39developing gold trading while boosting its global appeal through tourism,
01:44mega-events, and expanding Hong Kong's Disneyland.
01:47The key question is,
01:49is John Lee the right leader to see through this five-year plan,
01:52which outlasts his term?
01:54This could be his pitch to Beijing to secure a second five-year term,
01:58potentially becoming the first chief executive to do so
02:01since Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
02:05In Hong Kong, I'm Yvonne Mann, Bloomberg News.
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