After years of calling for a competition law, lawmaker Ronny Tong Ka-wah has appealed to fellow pan-democrats not to miss a crucial legislative session on Saturday.
The Civic Party legislator fears the bill could still be thwarted by pro-business lawmakers, since the Legislative Council remains split on the heavily amended bill.
'In a prudent estimate there are only 34 votes supporting the bill at the moment, and usually few people attend Saturday Legco meetings,' said Tong. He was counting the 23 pan-democratic votes plus some supporters from the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong and Federation of Trade Unions.
The bill requires a simple majority to pass.
The bill, which has had 140 amendments, is expected to be vetted at a full council meeting on Friday, followed by a vote on Saturday.
'It should be the government's job to secure votes for the bill, but we do not want it to be caught off guard by business opposition,' Tong said.
