Hong Kong competition watchdog revises tender rules to criminalise bid-rigging

Hong Kong’s competition watchdog has revised its tender clauses to require bidders make a statutory declaration they have not engaged in collusion on a project, as part of a wider move to criminalise bid-rigging following the city’s deadliest fire in decades.

Senior Counsel Jat Sew-tong, chairman of the Competition Commission, also said on Thursday the body was considering proposing to raise the maximum penalty for the proposed criminal offence from seven to 10 years.

Tendering practices came under the spotlight following last November’s fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, which killed 168 people and displaced 5,000 residents. At least two bid-rigging syndicates were linked to the tender for the HK$336 million (US$43 million) maintenance project that was under way when the blaze broke out.

Substandard materials used in the renovations were found to have contributed to the rapid spread of the fire.

Unveiled during the commission’s first public general meeting, the revised non-collusion clauses and tendering certificates explicitly state that bidders who sign the documents and engage in collusive conduct could face prosecution for conspiracy to defraud.

The updated documents also introduce a new requirement for bidders to submit a statutory declaration affirming that their bids were prepared independently and free of collusive practices.