Shen Po-yang, the Democratic Progressive Party's candidate for Taipei mayor, appeared on a pro-Blue television programme for an interview, signalling a conditionally open attitude towards cross-strait exchanges — something seen as a boost to his campaign.

• Shen said that as long as there were no political preconditions such as "one country, two systems" or the "1992 consensus", he would be willing to take part in this year's Twin-City Forum.
• He stressed that exchanges are a matter of risk management and that the bottom line must be held; the Taipei City Government's existing framework for the forum can be retained, but it must deliver practical benefits and be of help to industry.
• He denied being an initiator of the mass recall campaign, saying that recalls are a constitutional right and do not amount to tearing society apart. He also denied taking money from US intelligence agencies, saying his research funding was applied for from various countries and international organisations.
• On the motorcycle parked for an extended period outside his home, which was found to be emitting a signal, he said it took more than a year of investigation to confirm that the surveillance had been commissioned by individuals in Hong Kong, and that the point of such cross-border pressure is to make people afraid.
• He argued for shifting drug policy towards hotspot-based enforcement, strengthening education for schoolchildren on refusing drugs, and referring existing drug users to harm-reduction services. He assessed Chiang Wan-an's policies as largely a continuation of existing ones, but said he had not been active enough on systemic problems such as child abuse.

Outlook: Whether the Twin-City Forum goes ahead and whether Shen Po-yang can win over centrist voters will be the key things to watch in the next stage of the Taipei mayoral race.