Democrats oppose status quo option
They are against keeping the present poll system after 2007
The Democratic Party is opposed to keeping existing arrangements to elect the chief executive and the legislature if there is no consensus on political reform beyond 2007.
Research by the South China Morning Post found that politicians had different responses to the legal issues raised by the government taskforce on political reform.
The government asked what would happen if there was no agreement on future changes. Other questions raised included how to initiate amendments to the electoral methods and whether such changes should follow formal amendment procedures under the Basic Law.
The Liberal Party and the Democratic Alliance for Betterment of Hong Kong (DAB) agreed that the methods in place for election of the chief executive in 2007 and the legislature in 2008 should be maintained if there was no consensus on the way forward.
But the Democrats called for improvements.
'The status quo cannot be maintained; otherwise it would not be called a gradual process,' the party said, referring to the principle of having gradual and orderly progress under the Basic Law.
On the question of initiating amendments, the Democrats said the best way to kick-start the process was for a government consultation paper on the possible options.
However, the Liberals said constitutional development should be initiated through mutual agreement between Beijing and Hong Kong.
The DAB believed that both the Hong Kong government and the legislature could initiate the amendment procedures.
All parties agreed that universal suffrage for election of the chief executive in 2007 was legally possible under the Basic Law, though Peter Wong Man-kwong, a local deputy to the National People's Congress, has said otherwise.
