BUILDING contractors are going to be asked to reverse a decades-old practice of subcontracting, in an attempt to maintain flat quality.
According to initial ideas floated by the Government, contractors will have to hire a prescribed proportion of permanent staff to take charge of the important stages of construction.
Housing Authority chairwoman Rosanna Wong Yick-ming is expected to raise the issue with industry representatives at a meeting next week.
Deputy Director of Housing Marco Wu Moon-hoi yesterday said multiple subcontracting had made it difficult to monitor construction projects.
Referring to the scandal that has erupted over substandard foundations laid at an authority home-ownership scheme project in Tin Shui Wai, Mr Wu said the authority was determined to improve the monitoring of building.
'But we cannot do it alone. We need the building sector to co-ordinate with us,' he said.