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4.

Does C.S.R. 611 conflict with Colonial Regulations?

It follows from our conclusion that Col. Regs. are

subordinate legislation binding the Governor that he may not make

rules governing the public service which conflict with them.

It was submitted for the appellants that C.S.R. 611

does conflict with Col. Regs. 54-66, which are concerned with

disciplinary proceedings, and so must be held invalid, for the

following reasons

(a) Col. Regs. are intended to be exclusive.

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(b) Even if they are not.so intended, Col. Regs. deal in detail

with the circumstances in which "interdiction" may be used.

(c) Interdiction is in effect suspension and it must be inferred

that suspension is not to be employed in any other way.

(d) C.S.R. 611 purports to evade the protection afforded by

Col. Regs. (in particular Col. Reg. 60) by substituting a

summary method of suspension without pay for the carefully

regulated procedure set out in Col. Regs.

We see no reason

We do not accept the first argument,

why Col. Regs. should be regarded as exclusive. Indeed, Col. Regs.

54 to 66, by the terms of Col. Reg. 54(1) apply only to officers on the

permanent establishment. Nor is there anything in Col. Regs. which

implies that the Governor may not exercise the inherent powers which,

as we have found, he enjoys under Articles XIV and XVI to regulate

the public service, in such a way as to supplement the directions to

him contained in Col. Regs., though. not to conflict with them.

Col. Reg. 60 deals with "interdiction".

This is, in

some of its effects, similar to "suspension". Interdiction is

described in Col. Reg. 60 as "interdiction from the exercise of

powers and function of his office". Suspension is described in

Article XVI as "suspension from the duties of his office".

The old Col. Reg. 56, which still governs other dependent

territories, applied to Hong Kong until Appendix II to the 1971

Edition of Col. Regs, was promulgated in 1970.

That Col. Reg.

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