Hong Kong’s mass coronavirus test plan hampered by swirling China distrust

Hong Kong’s plan to offer free coronavirus tests to all residents has become swept up in the festering political debate dividing the city, where many remain deeply distrustful of both local leaders and China. Billed as a benevolent public health initiative made possible with Chinese help, the city-wide tests are set to start on Tuesday in an attempt to stamp out a third wave of infections that have swept through the densely populated financial hub. But the involvement of doctors and companies from the mainland has sent the rumour mills into overdrive and compounded fears of Beijing’s surveillance state, while…