Legislators may be asked to sit during their summer recess to pass the covert surveillance law after 'unsatisfactory' progress on the bill.
Secretary for Security Ambrose Lee Siu-kwong yesterday said he might apply for special Legislative Council sittings to meet a court-imposed deadline of August 8.
The bills committee, which has been meeting nearly every day this month, has its last meeting set for June 23, but lawmakers have yet to reach clause 10 of the 65-clause bill.
Mr Lee said the progress had been unsatisfactory and Legco might have to hold a special meeting on August 2 to pass the bill.
'It is very important that we have this piece of legislation in place. If we don't have this law in place when the six-month grace period ends, there will be a vacuum where law enforcement agents will not have the legislative backing to carry out their work.'
Mr Lee has not ruled out introducing emergency legislation if the law is not passed by the court-imposed deadline.