Mr Day Chief Clerk
10
HKA 431125
CONFIDENTIAL: STAFF IN CONFIDENCE
ARZH/6
STAFF IN THE DEPENDENT TERRITORIES
1.
Thank you for your minute of 29 April. You may recall that a paper 'Future Staffing in the Dependent Territories (Other than Hong Kong)' was prepared last year and its recommendations agreed with all concerned. I attach a copy.
2. The paper still embodies our main objectives although we are aware that the aspect of on-the-job training has not been as easy as we had hoped. For example, we have had problems with the Grade 4 Bermuda training slot, and POD were unable to identify a candidate for the Grade 5 Falkland Islands slot.
3.
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Opportunities of recruiting from the Overseas Civil Service are of course decreasing as the numbers shrink. We canvass Hong Kong whenever possible but are unlikely to attract their best people. In any case Hong Kong experience is not necessarily what is required in, for example, a West Indian environment.
I think that the problem will have to be tackled in one or both of the following ways:
4.
а
1
POD must be able to earmark high quality people for Dependent Territory slots. There is still a view in the Service that such jobs are not for officers heading for the higher reaches of the Service. Recent general requests by POD for volunteers to work in the Dependent Territories have met with virtually no response. There is a well-targetted exercise at present under way to identify officers at First Secretary/Counsellor level who might be suitable candidates. It is hoped that this targetted, individual approach, spelling out the attractions of Dependent Territory postings will result in a better response. We must make it clear that policy regards such posts as part of a normal career pattern. The fact that they have been identified as a potential candidate will, we hope, persuade them to think a little more deeply about such a posting. If this fails we may be obliged to move away from the present policy of making Dependent Territory postings strictly for volunteers. POD and we see no reason why we should not move towards the position of treating such posts on the same basis as other DS postings;
b) by creating supernumerary training slots in Dependent
Territories. We are unlikely to make much impression on the shortage of DS officers with Dependent Territory experience just by using the one
on-the-job training slots we have at present. What is really needed is for one or two senior Grade 5s or good Grade 4s each
/year
CONFIDENTIAL : STAFF IN CONFIDENCE