Education minister Christine Choi on Sunday said universities that are interested in the Northern Metropolis should be proactive and help spearhead innovation at the project, as opposed to just building a campus on site.

Speaking on a radio programme, Choi said the batches earmarked for the project's university town have their own purpose and the administration expects institutions to align with development plans.

"We hope our institutions will dovetail with the development of the Northern Metropolis, the eight centres, and also the building of an international education hub," Choi said.

"Through the process, we hope they will consider enhancing cooperation among industry, academia, and research sectors, to bring in renowned international universities and courses, and be in line with the country's latest developments," she added.

Choi said the relevant working group, which was laid out in the Policy Address earlier this month, had already started work, and will introduce a development conceptual framework next year.

Meanwhile, Choi said local students will not be affected by the government's move to allow schools under the Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS) to expand their intake of non-local students holding student visas.

"[The scheme] works in the same way as local universities, by over-enrolling students. For now, primary and secondary schools can admit up to 33 and 41 students per class respectively, but the classrooms are able to accommodate 45 students," Choi said.

"Therefore, DSS schools can use these extra spots to admit non-local students without affecting local students, as the quotas for local students still exist," she added.

She also said such schools obtain government funding according to the number of local students they have in a class, instead of adopting the method of subsidised schools, which depend on the number of classes they have each year.