C.S. 166
CONFIDENTIAL #
機密
XCC(76)51
19
8
The Government believes the Working Farty's recommendations for the Polytechnic to be reasonable, as they are designed to achieve optimum usage of existing accommodation and that for which commitments have already been accepted. Accordingly the student number target (full-time and equivalent part-time) for the Polytechnic would be 11, 400 in 1980-81. Part of the increase in full-time places will be taken up by an increased number of social work students.
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The proposal to introduce the shorter CUHK course might be expected to reduce considerably the need for continued growth at either university in the planning period following 1980-81. Honourable Members should note that the Working Party felt that the growth of student numbers at any of the three institutions should not continue in the 1980's, unless there were strong evidence to show that a higher annual output of gra- duates would be justified in terms of manpower demand and other con- siderations. In coming to this view the Working Party had regard to the sharp decline that is expected in the population in the relevant age group over the decade following this planning period (paragraph 11), which will serve to increase the opportunities to enter higher education without any further expansion in the student population taking place. The increase in the first year intake at CUHK that may occur through the introduction of the 3 year course would also obviate the need for any further expansion of the total student body. The Government will con- tinue to monitor the employment opportunities for graduates and the other factors relevant to a decision on the longer-term growth of higher education.
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In view of these considerations, the Government supports the Working Party's recommendation that no commitment should be made to capital projects designed to raise student numbers at any of the three institutions to above the approved targets in the period after 1980-81, except for those developments that have already been approved. The main project to be affected by this recommendation would be Phase III of the Polytechnic development programme. Honourable Members were informed on 28th May 1974 that the UPGC were proposing that the Folytechnic development plan should be implemented in three phases and that, while they were asked to give approval in principle to the plan, a decision on Phase III should be deferred pending a further review. It was reported to Honourable Members on 18th February 1975 that the UPGC had considered the requirements of a Phase III and a possible Phase IV of the development plan in order to enable student capacity to rise above that provided for by Phases I and II, but no decision was taken on Phase III nor on the ultimate size of the Folytechnic. The Working Party has recommended that the Polytechnic should be held at the capacity that will be provided by Phases I and II. Capital projects at the universities, apart from the specified approved projects, would
CONFIDENTIAL
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