Opening borders with country and world top demand at Hong Kong’s first informal chat session between lawmakers and John Lee

Hong Kong lawmakers have highlighted fully reopening the borders with mainland China and the rest of the world as a top demand in their first informal exchange with the city’s leader and his senior aides.

Participating legislators said although top officials in the closed-door talks held in an antechamber of the legislature on Wednesday offered no road map or timetable on achieving quarantine-free travel, they regarded the session as a “good start” to improving the policymaking process.