Lawmaker urges Hong Kong gov’t to introduce comprehensive population policy amid record-low births

A pro-Beijing Hong Kong lawmaker has urged the government to introduce a comprehensive population policy and to study young people’s thoughts on childbearing amid record-low births logged over the past year. Nixie Lam, a legislator with the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), told RTHK Radio 1 on Wednesday that although the government has introduced measures to boost fertility, it has so far presented “no comprehensive population policy.” DAB Legislative Council election candidate Nixie Lam. Photo: Candice Chau/HKFP. Lam urged authorities to set up a population policy task force, led by secretarial-grade officers, to conduct research into what young people think about starting families and raising children. “Different policies [linked to fertility] are scattered around different bureaux and government departments,” Lam said in Cantonese, “but without a comprehensive policy people will wonder if the government is actually doing anything to help.“ “In particular, with regard to whether young people want to have children and what impacts[that decision], what pressures they are facing… the government has not conducted any research in recent years,” Lam said. “Without research, we are still using ideas from the last century to formulate relevant policies.” Fewer than 30,000 babies were born in Hong Kong over the past year – a record low for the territory. The number of new births in 2025 came in at around half that of 2015, according to figures from the Census and Statistics Department. Children in Hong Kong. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. These figures come in spite of new measures introduced to boost the local fertility rate, including a new tax allowance for residents receiving assisted reproductive services. In late 2023, a one-off cash allowance of HK$20,000 was offered as a financial incentive to eligible parents. It is unclear whether the “Newborn Baby Bonus” scheme, which was implemented for a period of three years, will be extended when it expires in October. Speaking to the public broadcaster, Lam called on the government to continue providing these payments. Children look at the skyline of Hong Kong. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. She said authorities should not simply cancel the bonus scheme without introducing a comprehensive population policy. Shrinking primary school classes Enrolment at Hong Kong’s kindergartens and primary schools has been dipping amid the record-low birth rate and emigration from the city. Ming Pao reported on Wednesday that, in the new school year, 127 of 446 government-subsidised primary schools in Hong Kong had cut back on Primary One classes. Of these, 60 offered only one Primary One class in the new academic year and 15 have ceased operating Primary One classes entirely, pushing the schools to the point of closure. Safeguard press freedom; keep HKFP free for all readers by supporting our team Support HKFP | Policies & Ethics | Error/typo? | Contact | Newsletter | Transparency & Annual Report | Apps Make a one-off donation. Irene Chan is a reporter at Hong Kong Free Press and has an interest in covering political and social change. She previously worked at Initium Media as chief editor for Hong Kong news and was a community organiser at the Society for Community Organisation serving the underprivileged. She has a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Fudan University and a master’s degree in social work from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Irene is the recipient of two Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) awards and three honourable mentions for her investigative, feature and video reporting. She also received a Human Rights Press Award for multimedia reporting and an honourable mention for feature writing. More by Irene Chan