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Under the Bill, only a building professional who is registered under the relevant registration ordinance will be allowed to apply to be an authorised person or registered structural engineer. Two registration committees will be formed to help the Building Authority examine the suitability of an applicant. Most of the committee members will be nominated by the statutory Registration Boards of the respective professions.
The proposed change will ensure the competence of and help encourage self- regulation by building professionals.
As regards the registration of building contractors, we propose that two types of contractors, general building contractors and specialist contractors, should be registered. A contractor's qualifications, experience and competence will have to be assessed by the proposed Contractors Registration Committee, consisting mainly of representatives of the concerned industry and professional bodies, before registration.
Taking into account the views of the industry, we have refined the original proposal such that companies and partnerships will continue to be allowed to register. If the contractor is a company or partnership, the directors, partners or senior staff nominated to act for it for the purposes of the Buildings Ordinance, such as in certifying prescribed documents, will also have to be assessed by the proposed Contractors Registration Committee. To remove the existing grey area in terms of statutory responsibility, such nominated directors, partners or senior staff will be subject to discipline on a personal basis. To illustrate this point, if the director of a contractor is convicted of misconduct, he or she will not be allowed to continue to act for another contractor.
Since the collapse of a part of a wall of a building under demolition at Nathan Road in September last year, the issue of construction site safety has raised increased and considerable public concern. Such concern is shared by the Administration. We therefore announced a comprehensive action plan outlining immediate, medium term and long term measures to tighten safety control over building and demolition works. The plan included a legislative review. The second Part of the Bill is the result of this review.
to:
The Bill proposes to enable the Building Authority, for public safety reasons,
refuse to approve building or demolition plans or issue consent for the commencement or continuation of building works;