Assistance Scheme by the unemployed was also cited.
More generally,
it was argued that people would not be willing to pay contributions towards unemployment benefits or old age pensions: they would rather have the money in their pockets and take their chance about unemploy-
ment and destitution in old age.
.12.
These attitudes seem bound to change as the extended family system is progressively weakened; though people I asked about this tended to say that although they expected the extended family system to be eroded in the future there were few signs of any significant changes yet. In the 1974-75 recession, much cushioning of those directly affected came from relatives; and contributions from relatives were given as a reason by more than one-third of all respondents to a recent survey of unemployed people who had not applied for public assistance.
Health And Education
13. With consultations (including any necessary medicines) costing
only $1, and a $5 per day hospital fee which can in any event be waived by the Almoner, the health service is virtually free. The need now is for more provision of services in the form of hospitals, doctors etc. Although a good deal of expenditure seems to be in the pipe- line, the lead times here are long, though an interesting licentiate system, based on a relatively short medical training, is just being
established.
14. Education, too, is free at primary level, though a lively debate
is proceeding on how the provision of secondary education should be financed and in particular on the extent to which it should be free. The conservatism of the local Chinese comes out strongly on this: they think that those who receive the education should pay for it. This is an area where firm liberal pressure will continue to be needed. There is clearly room for much improvement in quality, and in the extent to which education is vocational - though this latter point seems to be fairly widely appreciated. In particular, a lot of excellent courses are already being provided by the Polytechnic.
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CONFIDENTIAL