蘇錦樑籲中小企 挺競爭法如跨欄

文匯報
A14 | 香港新聞 2010-12-18

香港文匯報訊（記者 黃斯昕）特區政府期望《競爭條例》草案可趕及2012年換屆前獲立法會三讀通過，故商務及經濟發展局近日忙於充當說客爭取支持票。繼商務及經濟發展局局長劉吳惠蘭約見香港4大商會後，副局長蘇錦樑昨日亦應消委會邀請，出席午餐研討會，繼續呼籲中小企業支持，並以跨欄的體育精神寄寓參與權利均等的重要。

立法會早前就《競爭條例草案》成立法案委員會，並進入審議階段。據悉，4大商會礙於草案條文欠清晰，甚至生怕條例淪為大財團打壓小商企的手段，至今仍然持保留態度，政府亦開始轉向中小企業埋手。蘇錦樑重申，制定競爭法是期望建構公平營商環境，保障中小企及消費者權益，「競爭法不會縮窄中小企的生存空間，反而為他們開拓新契機」。他又以港人關注的跨欄比賽，寄寓捍衛公平賽事的重要，強調香港有需要及早締造公平營商環境。

中小企憂慮實際執法細則

香港中小企商會聯席會議主席兼召集人黃鵬緒指出，現時反對競爭法的中小企聲音主要來自製造業，並相信大部分中小企無意全盤否定競爭法，只是憂慮實際執法細則，「針冇兩頭利，不少中小企只是認為草案不足，他們終究是支持公平競爭的精神，邊有人會容許壟斷者繼續操縱市場」。

席間，不少與會中小企業代表則對「私人訴訟」感到憂慮，生怕日後需承受龐大訴訟費。立法會《競爭條例草案》委員會副主席湯家驊重申，私人訴訟的設立只為保障市民的基本訴訟權，且只規範「妨礙、限制及扭曲」市場競爭的行為，故市場持份率低的中小企普遍觸犯有關條例的可能性極微，「倘大企業涉嫌濫用條例，審裁署亦會主動介入，甚至要求押後聆訊，予競委會進行相關調查，所以濫用機會好微」。

Competition law is still at least three years away

南華早報
EDT2 | EDT | By Tanna Chong and Dennis Eng 2010-11-22

The long-awaited competition law is not expected to take full effect until 2014 at the earliest, Undersecretary for Commerce and Economic Development Greg So Kam-leung says.

Before that a string of procedures needs to be completed, including establishing a commission to investigate anti-competitive activities and a tribunal to act on the commission's findings, and drawing up guidelines on how the law should operate.

Despite worries from business, the bill has general support. It is expected to be passed by the Legislative Council before July 2012.

So said a phased approach would be adopted to get the law working.

"The first phase is primarily about building the institutional framework. We envisage that the first phase will take a year or more to implement subject to progress of the setting up of the commission and the tribunal as well as their respective work on the preparation for the various guidelines and court rules."

A competition commission would be set up to investigate anti-competitive conduct and a competition tribunal with jurisdiction to hear and determine applications filed by the commission.

In the second phase, guidelines will be established, after a consultation. "This will pave the way for decisions on what can and cannot be done and exceptions and exclusions on business agreements under a competition law," So said. He said other countries' guidelines would be consulted.

The final phase will see the new bodies delivering judgments and imposing penalties. Some business leaders and legislators are worried about "steep and unreasonable" penalties, but So said the proposed maximum - 10 per cent of the global turnover of the business unit in the year of contravention - was in line with international standards.

"Penalties rarely reach 10 per cent in the European Union, for example," he said. "For a fine to have any deterrent effect on businesses at all, the court must be free to hand down an appropriate amount."

Multinational corporations were accustomed to this approach, he added. The bill would tackle two major types of anti-competitive behaviour. The first rule covers practices including price-fixing and market-sharing. The second combats abuse of market power, such as predatory behaviour by competitors.

So said that while penalties would be imposed only on the business unit breaching the law, the court would be looking at the involvement of a parent company in the anti-competitive conduct in question, including whether the parent company had sufficient control over subsidiaries.

Other than public enforcement through the tribunal, alternatives would exist to resolve small-scale contraventions.

Individuals could make commitments to the commission to stop anti-competitive conduct. The commission may issue an infringement notice before a case is brought.

Highlighting worries expressed by small and medium enterprises, So said de minimis approach and other measures, including allowing a transitional period for businesses to make necessary adjustments, would provide protection. People with experience of small and medium enterprises would also be appointed as commission members.

Some companies fear the complaints mechanism could be abused, but the commission will be able to refuse to investigate complaints it considers trivial, misconceived or lacking in substance. So said the new law would not apply retrospectively.

As with the introduction of other new laws, observers expect the first few cases after the bill has come into effect to have a substantial impact.

So said it "would be a great pity" if the business sector hindered the progress of the bill.

"The bill will bring economic benefits to consumers and the business sector in the long run by preserving the competitive nature of our economy," he said.

"This bill has been prepared with the benefits of the implementation experiences of other competition law jurisdictions. We believe that it presents good and balanced measures while catering to the environment in Hong Kong."

The Legco bills committee has scheduled 37 meetings for scrutiny of the terms. Committee chairman Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen said extra meetings would be inserted during the Legco's summer recess next July if progress was too slow.