Hong Kong gov’t adds HK$5 billion to national security fund – third allocation since 2020

“The Hong Kong government has allocated an additional HK$5 billion to a national security special fund , bringing the total amount to HK$18 billion. The funding is the third allocation for national security since Beijing imposed the national security law in Hong Kong in June 2020. Hong Kong’s Security Bureau organises a flag-raising ceremony on June 22, 2025, to mark the fifth anniversary of the national security law. Photo: GovHK. The government unveiled the funding on Friday, when it gazetted the government accounts for the fiscal year 2025-26. It showed a HK$5 billion allocation for non-recurrent expenditure as special funding for safeguarding national security. Hong Kong established the special fund in 2020 to finance expenses related to safeguarding national security after the national security law took effect in June that year. It received an initial allocation of HK$8 billion in December 2020 and an additional HK$5 billion in the financial year ending March 31, 2023. The latest allocation thus brought the total amount to HK$18 billion. In response to Ming Pao’s enquiry, the Financial Secretary’s Office said authorities will not disclose details of the funding, citing Article 14 of the national security law. It did not respond to whether the previous HK$13 billion funding had been depleted. According to Article 14 of the national security law, no institution, organisation, nor individual in Hong Kong shall interfere with the work of the Committee for Safeguarding National Security, and information relating to its work shall not be subject to disclosure. The Hong Kong government’s 2025-26 accounts show HK$5 billion is allocated to a special fund for safeguarding national security. Photo: HKFP screenshot. The government said in July that it would not disclose any details of the special fund in a report to the legislature on the control and management of the special fund, citing the same article of the national security law. It said authorities had established “a dedicated accounting and financial unit” in the secretariat of the Committee for Safeguarding National Security. “The unit, which reports directly to the [financial secretary], is responsible for the revenue and expenditure arrangements and financial matters relating to such work,” the government said.

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