TNAG-0398-FCO40-444-Appointments-to-supreme-and-district-courts-from-the-Bar-in--1973 — Page 52

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pegs for reasonably informative answers if the reporting officer exercises due care in framing appropriate replies where he thinks them applicable."

I respectfully agree with those comments. Ad hoc reports are all very well when considering an officer in isolation, but one frequently needs to consider him (notwithstanding the shrunken state of the HMOCS) against other HMOCS candidates and, without a series of confidential reports, this is extremely difficult to do. I would, therefore, hope that there is a general measure of agreement that confidential reporting on the present basis should continue.

4. The second question arises from the fact that it would appear that neither the Colonial Secretary nor the Governor of Hong Kong comments on the judges' annual reports, except on that of the Chief Justice, where there is no-one else to comment; nor, I think, do either of them comment on officers in the Law Officers' Department except on the reports of the Attorney and

The fact that there was no

Solicitor-General.

Governor's report at the Principal Crown Counsel level gave rise to delay when we were recently considering new appointments at the Law Officer level in Hong Kong. This question was raised, with regard to the judges only, in a letter from Sir Leslie Monson to the Governor of Hong Kong (reference HKK 14/6 of 7 June 1972). Was there any reply to that query? Governors in smaller territories do, I believe, comment on reports at the level at which we have an interest.

5.

Such reports are of value particularly where the departmental head has remained the same over a reasonable period of time, and I would have hoped that the earlier practice of Governors adding their own, however short, comments, could be resumed in those territories where it has fallen out of use. The level of posts will, of course, depend on the particular territory.

6. A third question that requires reconsidering is that of reports on contract officers. Outside Hong Kong, most judicial and legal appointments are held by contract officers. In a number of cases there are what may be described as career contract officers, eg the present Attorneys-General of Gibraltar, the Seychelles and the New Hebrides. This is a situation which will continue. It would seem to me that there is a case for extending the annual confidential reports system to judicial and legal officers in the dependencies notwithstanding that they are on contract. This will not be an onerous task. There are few territories where more than three off cers are concerned and the submission of a short report by the Governor, as a matter of course, should not occupy him to any great extent. Of course, I confine this proposal to full-time officers; non-resident and part-time judges and advisers are excluded. I shall be grateful for your views and those to whom I am copying this minute.

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