CONFIDENTIAL
New Terrj→ tories
Report of official Working Party
less than on the old register. The number of veters in the June 1967 elections was 10,189 or 38.8% of registered
electors.
4. The New Territories are administered by District officers under the District Commissioner, with the assistance of rural committees elected by and from village representatives. There is also a consultative council for the whole of the Nev Territories (Heung Yee Kuk); its functims are entirely advisory.
Proposals for ReoreS
5. In view of the spread of urban development into the New Territories and of pressure from the elected members of Urban Comeil to extend their authority into those areas, the Governor annotmoed sarly in 1966 that he had decided to institute a re-examination of local government generally. As a first step an official working party was set up to gather information on the possible forms of local government suitable to Hong Kong and to suggest lines of development for further study and debate,
6. The Working Party's report was published early in 1967. It recommended the creation of a number of urban mthorities
on the lines of English practice though with somewhat reduced powers and functions and a greater degros of supervision and control by central government. Under their proposals Municipal Council would be set up for the urban areas of Hong Kong and one, or possibly two, others for Kowloon and New Kowloon. An Urban District Council was suggested for Tauen Fan but apart from this the working party saw no good reason for changes in the New Territories' administration which was generally regarded as satisfactory by the inhabitants. All the new Councils would have a majority of members elected on a liberal franchise but a system of appointed mombers would be retained to guard against the possible failure of the elective principle. The report
was not unanimous, one member being in favour of a single
/authority ...
CONFIDENTIAL