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Miss M. M. Goldsmith, Parliamentary Unit
40
I explained to you over the telephone this morning the background to the attached Question tabled by Mr. John Rankin, MP., for oral answer on 6 April.
2.
The position is as follows :
(a) On 3 March Mr. Ernest Thornton, MP., wrote
to Lord Shepherd seeking an interview at
which Mr. James Johnson, MP., Mr. John
Rankin, MP., and he himself could discuss
with the Minister the arrangements which
had at that time just been announced
providing for the employment of women on
night work in Hong Kong.
(b)
At the meeting on 19 March Mr. Thornton said
that he was concerned about conditions of
work in Hong Kong generally. He suggested that the new measures "now taken to
facilitate the employment of women on night
shift were retrogressive and likely to
open the door to practices which could not be contained". Lord Shepherd agreed there was no reason for complacency but maintained that progress was being made in the legislative field and that conditions were
certainly improving. We had to influence
the Hong Kong Government by persuasion; we had no power to dictate policy. We had been consulted about the proposal to allow women on night shift and the conditions of employment we had suggested had been accepted by the Hong Kong authorities. Speaking in confidence Lord Shepherd said that he proposed to review the arrangements
after three months. He also told the
Members of Parliament in strict confidence
that a team of UK Inspectors would visit
Hong Kong shortly to review the Factory
Inspectorate and that they would pay
particular attention to the effective
administration of the law. At an earlier
meeting on the same subject on 17 March with
trade union officials Lord Shepherd had agreed to discuss the report of this team /with them.