Any objections to China’s radical overhaul of Hong Kong’s electoral system will put the city off a “new path to democracy,” a Beijing loyalist has said.

Martin Liao, who represents the commercial constituency, made the remarks during a Legislative Council meeting on Wednesday to discuss a drastic reform proposal that has been drawn up to accommodate a recent decision by Beijing.

In March, Beijing rewrote Hong Kong’s electoral rules in the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, and imposed new restrictions that would in effect eliminate pro-democracy figures from Hong Kong’s top office and legislature.

Liao, who chairs the LegCo’s bills committee, sang praises for the reform plan, saying that implementing Beijing’s decision would correct structural shortcomings in Hong Kong and ensure that the “one country, two systems” principle works.

The proposal, if passed, would cut the percentage of directly elected seats in the legislature to 22% from 50%. Other changes include the setup of a new vetting committee to screen election candidates.

Hong Kong’s political circle believes that the proposal could be passed as early as Thursday afternoon.

While noting that some in Hong Kong had reservations about the proposal, Liao said Hongkongers should not doubt or reject a “democratic system with Hong Kong characteristics.” Doing so would be an act of self-imposed isolation from a “new path to democracy”, he said.

He said the electoral reform was needed as some anti-China elements had abused the current system and attempted to wrestle the control of Hong Kong by paralyzing the legislature.

Other Beijing-loyal legislators also voiced support for the reform plan, with Michael Tien saying it marked the most important page in Hong Kong’s election history. Starry Lee, the leader of the city’s largest pro-Beijing party, said the proposal could exclude “extremists” from decision-making bodies.

Two previous debates on political reforms — in 2010 and 2015 — had drawn large numbers of protesters to gather outside the LegCo building. The complex remained quiet on Wednesday.

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