ADMINISTRATION IN CONFIDENCE
ANNEX A
INSPECTION OF HONG KONG AND GENERAL DEPARTMENT REGISTRY
BY REGISTRAR'S BRANCH 14-16 JANUARY 1981: REPORT BY MR WR OWEN
1.
The registry consists of three integrated desks, two in Room K 242 and
the other in Room K 245.
Manpower
2.
The registry staff at present is:
Miss AJ Warburton
(wef 10.12.79)
Mr P Devine
CO
)
) Hong Kong
DS10 )
(wef 9.1.81)
Miss C Rowan
CO
(wef 12.1.81)
General and Administration
Supervision
3.
Workload
There is no direct supervision of the registry.
4.
The average number of papers registered per week in the 16-week period from 1 September to 19 December 1980 was:
In
Out
Miss Warburton
Mr Devine
Miss Rowan
81
34
64
39
54
66
"Working papers" attached to the files are extensively used in the Department which means that the registry actually handles a fair amount of unrecorded papers not included in the above figures. Other clerical dutics are also carried out by the registry, eg Miss Rowan maintains a card index of past and present members of HM Overseas Civil Service while the other two officers are required to carry out periodic amendments to 24 Volumes of Hong Kong Law kept in the Department. This latter task is surely a duplication of effort as the Library in Downing Street East is the proper custodian within the Office of the laws of all Commonwealth Countries and is responsible for keeping the legislation and indexing thereof up to date. I recommend that consideration be given to the transfer of the Volumes of Hong Kong Law to the Library. While the workload is low for experienced officers it should allow the two new entrants, Air Devine and Miss Rowan, to gain experience without undue pressure and 1 consider the staffing to be correct. If the recommendations, above and in para 6, are implemented however this may lead to a reduction in the workload and I recommend that a survey be carried out three months thereafter.
13
ADMINISTRATION IN CONFIDENCE