The Central Government's Liaison Office in Hong Kong said it agreed with the HKSAR government's stance that the economy and people's livelihood are the current priorities, Xinhua News Agency reported yesterday.

A person-in-charge of the office said the legislation for Article 23 of the Macao Basic Law is an internal matter of the Macao SAR, which is carrying out its constitutional duty.

The person-in-charge said the current financial crisis has a significant impact on Hong Kong, a fact that was given an objective and sober analysis in Chief Executive (CE) Donald Tsang's policy address, and urged the public to be united under the leadership of the SAR government and the CE to overcome the challenges.

(HK Edition 10/23/2008 page1)