DE 19-77
STAFE
Mr Quantrill Mr McLaren
IM - COMFGC Reference
HKA 373/393/5
19 SEP 1973
SPYRO. 51
REGISTRY
10: Tuken
25
1. I attach, as requested, a draft letter to Sir Basil Hall from Fr Freeland, asking for his help in locating a field of candidates in the Home Civil Service for the post of Attorney General, Hong Kong.
2.
I have not found this draft particularly easy to compile since I am not completely sure what Sir Denys Roberts wants. He mentions that at this stage all he wishes is that soundings should be taken in appropriate UK departments, and yet he goes on to say that he would like a list of "possibles" by the middle of October from which to make a short list for intervier in early November. Does he therefore envisage a list being compiled without the officers or their Heads of Department being consulted? If so, as we have seen with Sir Bryan Roberts, such a list would be pretty worthless if chosen candidates were subsequently found to be either unwilling or not available for consideration. I feel that Sir Dens Roberts still takes a rather optimistic view of the likely number of suitable candidates, with the qualifications he requires, being interested in a posting to Hong Kong.
3. I have put Sir Denys' letter on an Annex to our main file in view of his
11 September 1978
final paragraph.
E. Gregory
ET Gregory (Mrs)
Hong Kong 2 General Department
24
THIS IS A COPY
THE ORIGINAL HAS BEEN CLOSED
UNTIL
UNDER FOI
EXEMPTION No
но