A code of practice intended to guide law enforcement agents conducting covert surveillance operations introduces even more grey areas and complexities than the proposed covert surveillance bill itself, lawmakers have said. As the special session to pass the bill on August 2 approaches, the bills committee on covert surveillance is studying the 44-page code of practice providing 'practical guidance to officers' conducting such operations. But Civic Party lawmaker Margaret Ng Ngoi-yee, an experienced barrister, said the code was too convoluted even for her to understand and would only confuse frontline officers. 'There is even less focus on the protection of privacy rights and the code makes the policy more grey rather than more clear,' the lawmaker said. James To Kun-sun, of the Democratic Party, said the guidelines for officers to assess whether a target had 'a reasonable expectation of privacy' were vague and appeared to limit protection. The code suggests that to evaluate whether a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy, officers should consider whether, among other factors, 'the individual has taken any steps to protect his privacy'. Mr To said the provision placed the onus on the individual to take active measures to protect his privacy, even if he was having a private conversation in the usual sense of the word. Permanent Secretary for Security Stanley Ying Yiu-hong suggested to the legislators that a review of the law be held in 2009 in response to Ms Ng's call for a sunset clause in the bill. 'Our position is that although this is a rather tight schedule, we feel we have had a thorough scrutiny of the bill and it should be commended and supported,' he said. But Ms Ng said hard work on the part of members and the administration could not replace open consultation. Other legislators, including Lau Kong-wah of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, said 2009 would be too late for a review. Members said the review should be undertaken before the present legislature's term of office ended in 2008. The committee will continue to hold marathon sessions next week before the bill goes on to second reading in less than a fortnight. Ms Ng and Mr To have proposed more than 300 amendments to the code.