The government on Tuesday outlined details of its plan to introduce dedicated legislation relating to the Northern Metropolis as it seeks to streamline land-use approval procedures to speed up the mega project. The Development Bureau, which unveiled details of the proposal, also said it's looking to set up a “white list” to facilitate cross-boundary flow of people in the Hetao Hong Kong Park. In a paper submitted to the Legislative Council, the bureau said the proposal will include a main legal framework of the law, while specifying six areas where the Executive Council can formulate subsidiary regulations whenever necessary. A key element of the plan is on formulating subsidiary laws to streamline town planning procedures in the Northern Metropolis. It currently may take nine months to process applications on changing land uses and relaxing development parameters for non-conservation zones, but the plan can shorten it to two months. The Northern Metropolis is “still under development with ample infrastructure capacity”, officials said, adding that the applications would still be “comprehensively considered” by the Town Planning Board. The bureau is also proposing to enact subsidiary legislation to facilitate the flow of personnel, beginning with Hetao, by adopting a “white list”. Its spokesperson said the tech park will be responsible to maintain the list and immigration authorities will “have a role to play”. Other suggestions include expediting the compensation payment for land resumed, facilitating the use of innovative construction technology, streamlining procedures for construction noise permit applications, and setting up statutory corporations for designated areas in the Northern Metropolis through subsidiary legislation. The spokesperson said while provisions on streamlining procedures would mainly be for the initial development phase of the project, the government is not inclined to include a “sunset clause” for the proposed laws. It might only be “meaningful” to discuss whether to set an end date for the legislation when the project's development has become more mature, the spokesperson added. The administration will consult the public for around two months from next week, before tabling the bill to Legco and aiming to get it passed this year. Edited by Edmond Fong