HONG KONG -- The chief executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Donald Tsang said here on Thursday that the Hong Kong government is working with the Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) Authority to review and enhance the MPF system.

Speaking at his Legislative Council question-and-answer session on Thursday, Tsang said the emergence of the system was the result of public opposition against the government's proposal to form an old age pension scheme.

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In response to the recommendation of forming a universal retirement protection system, he said the idea shares some common elements with a pension scheme because all people will be entitled to it regardless of their payments, so the current generation would support the previous generation.

Noting the aging population will seriously affect the sustainability of a universal retirement protection system, he said the problem will result in a continuous drop in young people who can bear the living costs of retired people, and a continuous rise in protection system expenses.

"Instead of starting another social debate, it is more constructive to review and enhance our existing protection system," Tsang said, "We will also continue to put effort into elderly welfare."