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Hong Kong's society has become more politicised after 2003. Policy decisions have been driven by public opinion. With a growing "war of ideas", more social actors choose to do policy advocacies by research rather than slogans through setting up think tanks. Think tanks have seen their influence rising over time. The government has started to invite think tank representatives to give suggestions during the drafting of some important policy papers, like Policy Address.

The rise of the Hong Kong local identity vis-à-vis the Chinese national identity has been particularly pronounced in recent years. This article argues that the "Mainlandization" of Hong Kong since 2003 has alienated Hong Kongers and threatened their sense of distinctiveness, which in turn has intensified their resistance to Beijing's top-down assimilation.

Hong Kong's longstanding governance problems are compounded by an increasingly polarised society and widening social fissures. Close to one-fifth of the city's population lived below the poverty line; more young Hong Kongers are identifying themselves with Hong Kong rather than China, and competition for resources has stoked tensions between locals and Mainlanders. Amid these trends and record low public ratings for the chief executive, what is in store for Hong Kong in 2014?

The year 2012 was an eventful year for Hong Kong. On top of two important elections — of the chief executive and the legislative council — society had witnessed numerous scandals involving high level politicians and tycoons, pervasive social disgruntlement and protests of increasing intensity, frequency and scale. The new administration is now facing three key challenges in putting together a credible and competent government, dispelling social mistrust and gaining legislative support. It appears that the new Chief Executive is close to resolving none.

After two Chief Executive leadership, it is evident that Hong Kong has been ruled by polling, not the government, as seen in the policy U-turns in 2011. The government has failed to build public confidence in its leadership despite achievements such as raising Hong Kong's GDP per capita by 22% under Tsang's administration. A historically high proportion of people since the handover had identified themselves as Hong Kongers rather than Chinese citizens in June 2011.