Hong Kong will introduce more flexible land use policies by streamlining planning processes under a new set of laws tailored for the Northern Metropolis, according to the city’s development chief.

The remarks by Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn Hon-ho followed the first meeting of a government working group announced in the policy address to expedite the planning and development of the megaproject on Friday.

The group, led by Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong Wai-lun, stated after the meeting that operational details for the Northern Metropolis, including public housing, railways, major roads and other public works, would be finalised by the end of this year.

Announced in 2021, the Northern Metropolis aims to transform 30,000 hectares of land near the border with mainland China into an engine for economic growth and a housing hub.

Linn told the legislature’s development panel that authorities would propose the main framework of the law by early next year, with subsidiary regulations formulated later to accommodate the evolving development process.

“We will examine whether there is room to expand the permitted uses of land in the Northern Metropolis,” she said.