2
6. So the Governor is obliged to seek the advice of
Executive Council on major public policy issues. Executive
Council comprises 5 ex-officio members and 10 other members
appointed by the Governor of whom 9 are Unofficials. The
Governor is not obliged to accept the advice he receives,
but he must report his reasons to the Secretary of State.
7. The Governor legislates with the advice and consent of
the Legislative Council comprising 4 ex-officio members and
18 Official members and 27 Unofficial members nominated by
him.
8. All proposals involving expenditure from public funds
must initially be considered by the Finance Committee of
the Legislative Council comprising all Unofficial members and the Chief Secretary (chairman) and the Financial Secretary.
A Public Accounts Committee comprising seven Unofficial
members considers the annual report of the Director of Audit
and reports thereon to the Governor as President of the
Legislative Council.
9. The Unofficial members of both Councils form an organisation
known as UMELCO which has its own staff and which acts as
a forum for discussing matters of current concern. Through
the UMELCO office members deal with public complaints and
representations.
10. The Urban Council is concerned with municipal type services
in the urban areas of Hong Kong Island and South Kowloon plus
North Kowloon. Half of its 24 members are elected and half
are nominated.
11.
In addition, 18 District Boards (and associated District
Management Committees of officials) have been recently
established. One third of the membership of the Boards is
elected on a constituency basis with adult suffrage (900,000
registered electors), one third is nominated and one third
comprises officials. These boards provide advice on matters
affecting the well-being of people at district level.
(4) Organisation of Government
12. In his role as Chief Executive, the Governor has three
principal advisers within the civil service: the Chief Secretary who, inter alia, is head of the civil service and the Governor's deputy;
the Financial Secretary, who is the