Florence Hui, a former undersecretary for home affairs, died on Monday morning of an illness. She was 44.
Hui was part of the first batch of undersecretaries in the Hong Kong government and served in the role between 2008 and 2017. After leaving the government, she was appointed as a board member for the Hong Kong Palace Museum in March.
In 2012, Hui was tipped to be a favourite to lead a new cultural bureau proposed by then-chief executive Leung Chun-ying. The plan was later shot down by democrats who feared that the cultural bureau would become a tool for Chinese propaganda.
Leung mourned his former colleague on Monday, calling her a “good civil servant and an old friend.”
Before entering public service, Hui built her career in finance. She joined Standard Chartered Bank in 2002 and later became the head of business planning and development for northeast Asia.
She was also the secretary to the Hong Kong Association of Banks, and held roles in the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce and the Central Policy Unit.
A top graduate of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hui also held an MBA from Cambridge University and received training at Tsinghua University and Harvard University.
Hui is survived by her husband and two daughters.
