The Pulse：Interview with Grenville Cross on UGL case and public prosecution & government open data p

Chief Executive Carrie Lam wants Hong Kong to become a Smart City. In last year’s Policy Address, she allocated HK$50 billion for technology initiatives. But is the government’s mindset and policies ready for all this smartness? More on that later. While Carrie Lam was running for the top job she made a promise. She repeated that promise in her first Policy Address: it was to strengthen and to extend Hong Kong’s anti-corruption laws to cover the currently exempted chief executive. Beijing has reportedly rejected her idea, maybe in order to avoid a repeat of the CY Leung/UGL saga. With us to discussion this issue is Ian Grenville Cross, senior counsel, law professor and former director of public prosecutions.

The goal of a smart city is to enhance the quality of life through technology, particularly in the areas of the economy, the ecosystem, and education. But what makes a city a Smart City? Well one basic requirement is that there’s open access to public data so that everyone can use it to improve efficiency of services such as energy, transport, and utilities. In theory, that should reduce both waste and costs. Does Hong Kong sound like it’s becoming a Smart City? Well, the Chief Executive says she wants it to be so. Official are opening up government data for public use, but there’s a lot more to be done.