Textbooks are still widely used in schools in Hong Kong despite the Government policy of encouraging the development of school-based teaching and learning materials. Behind this situation lies the fact that teachers have neither the time nor the expertise to design high-quality school-based learning materials. The Hong Kong Government, in line with its laissez-faire economic policy, has treated textbook publishing as a commercial activity. The competition among publishers has led to continuous improvement efforts. However, this system does not imply that the Government has no part to play. Textbook publishers usually submit their products to the Government for review. This is a major part of the quality assurance system of textbook publishing. In addition, teacher professionalism in selecting textbooks is an essential condition of the success of the textbook marketization mechanism.