Govt combats bid-rigging without extra staff

The government believes criminalising bid-rigging can effectively tackle the problem, adding no extra manpower is needed at this stage.

Secretary for Security Chris Tang and Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau note the difficulty in ensuring a completely clean pre-qualified list of tenderers, but staff who do their best will not be held accountable.

The government believed the Wang Fuk Court fire in Tai Po stemmed from bid-rigging, and has decided to comprehensively crack down on the issue from, prevention to enforcement.

Speaking on a TVB programme, Secretary for Security Chris Tang and Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development Algernon Yau detailed a series of measures.

On prevention, law enforcement would help the government conduct background checks on consultants and contractors for major maintenance works, from which approved candidates would be included in a pre-qualified list of service providers.

Tang admitted it is not easy to ensure the list is completely flawless, but stressed it is a necessary task.

He added staff would not be blamed for any oversight beyond their control, as long as they are not negligent, warning being overly

harsh could foster a culture of inaction.

He emphasised a task force comprising the Competition Commission, Police, and ICAC would serve as a safety net, stepping in upon spotting any signs of bid-rigging.

Tang pointed out the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau had the statutory power to send task force members to these meetings.

He noted any refusal by the corporations to allow government attendance would raise suspicion.

With bid-rigging criminalised, offenders now faces up to 10 years in prison and fines.

Yau explained fines would start at a minimum of 10 million dollars.

He said fining three times the commercial gain would serve as a strong deterrent even for massive bid-rigging amounts.

Despite increased intervention without extra manpower, Tang believed effectiveness would not be compromised.

He said law enforcement agencies now had more investigative methods, such as tailing and wiretapping.

And while every department would welcome more staff, public resources must be balanced.

Tang said it was hard to determine how many past suspected cases met the criminal threshold, but stressed they could still be pursued through civil channels.