CONFIDENTIAL
produced pensions earned on a constant of one four hundred and eightieth with the qualifications that the first ten years carried double pensionability and that pension payable as a result of service of less than five years was limited to an amount of one-quarter of annual pensionable emoluments. Pension was payable on retirement after the age of 60, and was restricted to a maximum of two-thirds of the highest pensionable emoluments drawn by the officer at any time in the course of his public service.
5.
It would appear that a form of pension arrangements based on the special West Indies model might be considered appropriate to the circumstances in Hong Kong. A revised scheme, based
on the West Indies model but saving the one six-hundredth constant, would enable a judge to earn half pay pension after 15 years service, and two-thirds pay pension after 23 years service. However, there might be difficulty with members of the public service other than judges who might complain about the introduction of preferential pension arrangements for judges, For this reason it has been suggested that an appointment subject to sp cial conditions of service as to pensionability might be a better way of approaching the problem. The special conditions of service would amount to the payment of a substantial terminal gratuity, say 25 per cent of salary. It has been argued that this would be a less disruptive method of appointing an officer from the local Bar to the Bench than the introduction of an outside officer to the normal pensionable establishment with consequential and, perhaps, invidious amendments to the Public Service Pensions Ordinance.
6. Apart from this we have had the suggestion that consideration be given to a special arrangement on the following lines:-
The Judge, on appointment, to be given the option of - (a) earning a normal (non-contributory) pension under
the Pensions Ordinance during his service as a judge but without the necessity of doing ten years' qualifying service; or
(b)
earning a special pension at a higher rate on a contributory basis, again without the necessity for ten years' qualifying service, the judge's contribution towards the cost of the pension to be effected by means of an appropriate deduction from each monthly instalment of his salary while he is serving as a judge with an a propriate matching contribution from Hong Kong funds;
or
(c) earning no pension but a special gratuity on retirement.
CONFIDENTIAL
17.