CONFIDENTIAL
IT IS POSSIBLE THAT LORD BROCKWAY WAS REFERRING EITHER TO A CELEBRATED AND WELL DOCUMENTED CASE REPORTED IN THE PRESS RECENTLY CONCERNING MADAM LEUNG WAI-YIN ALIAS LEUNG YIN OR TO ONE OF TWO SIMILARLY WELL DOCUMENTED CASES CONCERNING MR. LAI MING OR MR. CHING MAN-SUN: OTHERWISE PLEASE GIVE DETAILS FOR INVESTIGATION. ADMITTEDLY THERE ARE SOMETIMES CONSIDERABLE DELAYS DUE TO VARIOUS REASONS BUT AN EXPERT FROM U.K. SECONDED TO THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT CONSIDERS THAT SUCH DELAYS ARE CERTAINLY NOT UNKNOWN IN THE U.K. HOWEVER, A BACKLOG DID BUILD UP IN THE PAYMENTS CONTROL SECTION IN NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER. THIS HAS SINCE BEEN RECTIFIED. IN DECEMBER 1974 THE BACKLOG OF NEW PUBLIC ASSISTANCE CASES UNDER CONSIDERATION WAS REDUCED BY 97 TO 2,267 DURING WHICH TIME 2,764 NEW CASES WERE RECEIVED AND 2,861 PROCESSED EVEN THOUGH THE CASELOAD HAD BEEN INCREASING BY OVER FOUR PER CENT PER MONTH, COMPOUND, IN 1974. (THE CASELOADS AT THE END OF JUNE, SEPTEMBER AND DECEMBER, 1974 WERE ABOUT THIRTY-ONE, THIRTY-SIX AND FORTY-ONE THOUSAND RESPECT- IVELY). THIS INDICATES AN AVERAGE PROCESSING TIME OF A LITTLE UNDER ONE MONTH, AGAINST AN ACCEPTABLE TARGET TIME OF THREE WEEKS. THOSE IN IMMEDIATE NEED, HOWEVER, CAN OBTAIN A CASH ADVANCE FROM ONE OF OUR 23 FIELD UNITS, EACH OF WHICH HOLDS A DAILY SUB-IMPREST OF 5,000 HONG KONG DOLLARS.
111.
ESTIMATE OF UNEMPLOYED.
THERE ARE NO ACCURATE FIGURES FOR THE UNEMPLOYED. A RECENT
ASSESSMENT CONDUCTED BY THE HONG KONG FEDERATION OF TRADE UNIONS ALLEGED THAT THERE WERE 110,000 UNDEREMPLOYED AND ANOTHER 100,000 UNEMPLOYED. THIS MAY BE THE FIGURE WHICH LORD BROCKWAY HAD SEEN, MISQUOTED AS ALL BEING UNEMPLOYED. THESE ARE NOT OFFICIAL FIGURES AND THEIR VALIDITY IS EXTREMELY DOUBTFUL. WE DO NOT KNOW HOW THEY WERE OBTAINED OR CALCULATED, NOR DO WE KNOW FTU'S PURPOSE IN PUBLICISING THEM.
WE PUBLISH OFFICIAL FIGURES QUARTERLY ON THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE EMPLOYED IN THOSE INDUSTRIAL UNDERTAKINGS REGISTERED OR RECORDED BY THE LABOUR DEPARTMENT. THESE ARE COLLECTED BY QUESTIONNAIRES SENT TO THE FACTORIES FOLLOWED UP BY PERSONAL VISITS TO CHASE THE RECAL ITRANT. THE SAME RETURN INDICATES THE NUMBER OF VACANCIES IN THE UNDERTAKING. THESE RETURNS ARE NOT A STATUTORY REQUIREMENT
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