C126
PREVENTION OF BRIBERY (AMENDMENT) BILL
extend-
3. Clause 3 amends section 4 of the principal Ordinance ing the offence of bribery so as to cover cases where an advantage was solicited or accepted by a public servant outside Hong Kong. Clause 3 also amends section 4 so as to provide that where a public body whose name appears in the Schedule gives permission to its employees for the soliciting or accepting an advantage, such permission shall constitute a reasonable excuse for the purposes of subsections (1) and (2) of section 4.
4. Clause 4 increases the penalties laid down under section 12. The maximum fine on a conviction on indictment for any offence (other than one under section 3) in Part II is raised from $100,000 to $500,000. The maximum fine on a summary conviction is raised from $50,000 to $100,000. The fine for an offence under section 3 is raised from $20,000 to $100,000.
5. Clause 5 adds a new section 12A to Part II of the principal Ordinance. This new section provides that a person suspected or convicted of conspiracy to commit any offence under Part II shall be investigated, dealt with and punished as if convicted of the substantive offence.
6. Clause 6 amends section 14 of the principal Ordinance- (a) by extending the period in respect of which a person served with a notice under sub-paragraph (i), (ii) or (iii) of subsection (1)(a) need answer questions contained in the notice from 1 year to 3 years.
Experience has shown that the present period of 1 year is too short for investigations involving the use of section 14; (b) by providing that a person served with a notice under subsec- tion (1)(d) or (e) must furnish not only such information or documents specified in the notice as are in his possession but also information or documents to which he has access.
7. Clause 7 amends section 14A of the principal Ordinance so, where a notice is served on a person under that section and a copy of the notice is served on a bank or deposit-taking company with whom that person has deposited money, the bank or company shall not pay any money to that person without the consent of the Commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption. Clause 7 further amends section 14A b/ providing that a notice affecting immovable property shall be registrable in the Land Office. A similar amendment is made to section 14C by clause 8.
8. Clause 8 amends section 14C of the principal Ordinance, which provides for the court to issue a restraining order, by enabling the Com- missioner to apply to the court for such an order to be renewed after its initial period of 6 months for further periods of 3 months.
9. Clauses 9 and 10 amend sections 16 and 17 of the principal Ordinance, which provide powers to search premises, by empowering the officer authorized to carry out a search to detain any person found in the premises until the search is completed.
10. An important aspect of the fight against corruption is the confidence of the public that when they make complaints to the Com- mission, their identity will not be disclosed without their consent. It is considered desirable that this aspect be reinforced by a statutory provi- sion protecting the identities of informers. Accordingly, clause 11 adds a new section to the principal Ordinance to provide that no information for an offence under the Ordinance shall be admitted in any proceedings and no witness in any proceedings shall disclose the identity of an informer or answer any question that would lead, or tend to lead, to the discovery of an informer's identity. However, this protection can be removed if the court-
(a) in any proceedings for an offence under the Ordinance is satisfied
that the informer wilfully made a false statement; or
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