Zhang Xiaoming, deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) was quoted by South China Morning Post as saying: "Many people in Hong Kong have been thinking about the future of one country, two systems after 2047."

"We also need to think of this: what kind of record is Hong Kong going to bring, to win a new mandate from the National People’s Congress (NPC), and the Chinese people that it represents at that time," he said.

“Hong Kong’s major problem is not economic, housing, employment … or young people’s mobility,” he said. “It is a political problem, and a major manifestation is the fundamental question of what kind of Hong Kong do we want to build.”

China's parliament recently backed a new security bill meant to bring about tighter control over Hong Kong, which underlines that anyone who undermines Beijing's authority in the territory will be treated as a criminal and his/her action will be deemed crime against the state.

The new bill has caused deep concern among those who say it could end Hong Kong's unique status.

It could also see China installing its own security agencies in the region for the first time, the BBC reported.

The move has already sparked a new wave of anti-mainland protest.