President, Honourable Members and fellow citizens,
I move that the Appropriation Bill 2026 be read a second time.
Introduction
2. Today is the ninth day of the Chinese New Year, and the city is still brimming with festive spirits. The bustling New Year fairs, the buzzing Night Parade and the dazzling fireworks display above Victoria Harbour have echoed the vigour and vitality symbolised by the Year of the Horse.
3. Over the past year, as a result of the booming economy and capital market, our tax revenue has increased. Coupled with the reinforced fiscal consolidation programme gradually bearing fruit, our public finances have improved sooner than expected. The Operating Account has returned to a surplus this financial year. After taking into account the proceeds from bond issuance, the Consolidated Account has also returned to balance ahead of schedule. All these have enabled us to suitably reinforce support for the people and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) within our means.
4. This year marks the beginning of the National 15th Five‑Year Plan. The stable and high‑quality development of our country is always our strongest backing. Our country's sustained high-standard two-way opening-up, coupled with scientific and technological innovation, have presented us with new opportunities. We must embrace the 15th Five-Year Plan with an innovative mindset, fostering new quality productive forces in accordance with local conditions. Leveraging our edge of having close connectivity with the Mainland and the world, and with a large pool of talents, we will facilitate enterprises in opening up new markets. We expect Hong Kong's economy to sustain good momentum this year.
5. The theme of this Budget is: "Driving High-quality, Inclusive Growth with Innovation and Finance". I will elaborate on this a little later.
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