Apply Hong Kong rules on Shenzhen side of shared innovation hub, adviser to Chinese policymakers says

“I personally feel that the development of the Loop project needs a more radical plan,” Zheng said in a pre-recorded speech.

The academic has widely been viewed as an economic adviser to the Chinese leadership since appearing at a symposium on economic and social work chaired by President Xi Jinping in 2020. He is also a member in the Chief Executive’s Policy Group formed last May.

Zheng also told the forum that while Hengqin, Qianhai and Nansha, the three existing and much larger areas designed to promote cross-border economic integration in the Greater Bay Area, were “rather competitive”, their effect so far “is still quite far from what we expected”.

“Reforms bit by bit can no longer meet the needs of the development of the Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau Greater Bay Area, and cannot meet the development needs of our country,” he said.

The bay area is Beijing’s plan to turn 11 southern cities into an economic powerhouse to rival areas such as Silicon Valley.

Zheng said the Loop offered Shenzhen and Hong Kong a chance to kick start “radical reforms”, and as a first step he advised, Hong Kong’s internationally aligned rules and standards should be more extensively applied over the border.

“The problems of Hong Kong in recent years have mostly been political, and its rules and standards are not having any problems,” he said. “The Lok Ma Chau Loop should align itself with Hong Kong rules.”

Hong Kong, Shenzhen border zone blueprint hopes to offer best of both worlds

He also proposed that in addition to innovation industries such as artificial intelligence, the new zone must incorporate the financial sector, because it was one of Hong Kong’s strengths that no mainland city could replace.

A plan for the Loop released by the State Council last year mentioned applications of technologies for the financial sector including a “supercomputing cluster”, but did not explicitly says that traditional finance services such as banking and wealth management should be included.

Part of the loop zone is currently occupied by makeshift quarantine and medical facilities built during the Covid-19 pandemic, although authorities are planning to empty the plot for development.

The first three buildings, including a residential block for researchers, are set to be completed later this year and among the first companies to move in will be drug giant AstraZeneca.