Not posted at 7 AM when I was first awake but online now, this SCMP article has too much good stuff in it to just pull out a few excerpts.  And anyway, most sensible people don’t pay the ridiculous annual fee to get at the SCMP’s web site.  So here it is in all its glory:

Construction of the HK$66.9 billion high-speed rail link project faces the threat of further delay, with lawmakers opposed to it planning to hijack today’s funding vote by tabling at least 30 motions for discussion.

But even if the pro-government majority manages to deal with these and passes the funding by the end of the six-hour meeting at 10pm, lawmakers who support the project will still face thousands of protesters who have vowed to surround the building.

Even before tonight’s showdown, scuffles between supporters and opponents of the project broke out in several places yesterday.

At a special Legislative Council Finance Committee meeting to discuss whether transport experts from the Professional Commons group, which opposes the project, should be allowed to present a counter-proposal at today’s meeting, independent lawmaker Chim Pui-chung, who backs the project, engaged Wong Yuk-man of the League of Social Democrats in a shouting match.

The pair shouted derogatory remarks for several minutes, calling each other names such as “beggar”, “prisoner” and “someone with a triad background”, until the meeting’s chairwoman, Emily Lau Wai-hing, ordered them to stop.

Soon afterwards, they shook hands and apologised for their behaviour. “I regret what I did. It looks bad and sets a bad example for the young,” Wong said. “I hope Chim will not take my words to heart.”

Project supporters from the Association of Engineering Professionals in Society were surprised when three Professional Commons members stormed into a press briefing yesterday, challenging them to a debate and handing out leaflets to reporters.

Association senior vice-chairman Yim Kin-ping said: “They have had enough discussion … This man [Paul Zimmerman] is not even an engineer,” Yim said, while a colleague snatched leaflets from reporters.

He said the Professional Commons’ proposed alternative – moving the terminus from West Kowloon to Kam Sheung Road and connecting it to the Airport Express – could not possibly be better than the government’s plan, which had taken billions of dollars and years of study by numerous experts to complete.

The Finance Committee rejected the Professional Commons’ request to speak at today’s meeting. Lawmakers said they had had at least two chances to present their proposal to legislators since November.

Lau pledged to stop lawmakers from repeating questions today, but said she could not deprive them of their right to speak. “I will conduct the meeting according to the procedure, in a fair and open manner,” she said. She has scheduled another meeting for next Friday in case today’s fails to bear fruit.

Albert Chan Wai-yip, of the League of Social Democrats, said he and his colleagues would keep tabling motions to prevent a vote on funding. “We will invite discussions on subjects such as whether there will be any noise mitigation measures for properties along the line,” he said. “Each affected housing estate can be made a separate motion.”

Ronny Tong Ka-wah, of the Civic Party, who successfully delayed the last vote on December 18, said he would not seek an adjournment today. “Many questions are still left unanswered. I believe today’s meeting may not be long enough to cover all of them,” he said.

Tycoon Li Ka-shing said funding would be passed eventually because Hong Kong people were intelligent enough to know what was good for them.

I suppose that aside from detailing the shouting match that took place, my favorite bit is the bit I’ve put in bold, where this guy asserts that the government has spent billions of dollars on the plan!   Not to forget that little bit of log rolling from Li Ka-Shing at the end.

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