Hong Kong authorities have proposed new offences with tougher punishments for fire installation contractors who fail to obtain prior approval before deactivating firefighting systems or do not report malfunctions within 24 hours, in the wake of the city’s deadliest fire in decades, the South China Morning Post has learned.

Other proposed changes included drastically increasing the maximum penalty for existing offences related to the unauthorised handling of fire equipment and the issuance of false or misleading certificates, from the original HK$50,000 (US$6,380) fine to a maximum fine of HK$3 million and three years’ imprisonment.

The hearings by a judge-led independent inquiry into last November’s Tai Po fire, in which 168 people died, exposed a series of failures and malpractice by the estate’s licensed fire installation contractors that led to the deactivation of the fire alarms.

The SCMP learned on Wednesday that the Security Bureau planned to propose a set of legal amendments to improve oversight of fire installation contractors, including requiring prior approval before deactivating firefighting systems, such as hose reels and fire alarms.

Contractors would also be in breach of regulations if they failed to notify the Fire Services Department of any malfunctioning firefighting systems within 24 hours, display annual fire inspection certificates or implement temporary fire safety measures.

Those found to have breached the new laws for the first time could be fined up to HK$200,000, with an additional fine of HK$20,000 for every further day of non-compliance.