Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee apologized for a fire that killed 168 people

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Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee apologized Thursday for the Wang Fuk Court fire that killed 168 people, as an independent inquiry found four government departments partly responsible for failures in fire-safety oversight. Hong Kong housing official Winnie Ho resigned, and Lee said she should bear political responsibility. The judge-led panel’s report, more than 1,000 pages long, cited widespread bid rigging and said no department had taken effective ownership of fire-safety issues. It identified shortcomings in the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit, the Buildings Department, the Fire Services Department and the Labour Department in overseeing risks related to renovation work. The government has established an independent team to review officials’ accountability and disciplinary action, and plans to tighten bid-rigging laws, with fines reaching HK$10 million and prison terms as long as a decade.