recommended by the Committee in their Second Report in January 1980. The Secretary for Trade and Industry replied that this point had been taken up by the then Secretary for Economic Services with the Trade Development Council which had replied that it did not consider that the salaries were markedly superior to that of the Government. Unfortunately follow-up on this specific issue was overlooked in the reorganization of the Economic Services Branch and the setting up of the Trade and Industry Branch in 1982. The Secretary for Trade and Industry said that in recent years the Trade and Industry Branch had ensured that salaries adjustments for the Trade Development Council's staff were in line with those of Government. The Secretary for Trade and Industry told the Committee that the work performed by the Trade Development Council's staff did not have ready made analogues in the Government. He had therefore recommended to the Council that a pay level study be made to compare the total package of salaries and benefits paid to the Council's staff with those in the private sector and the Government. The Executive Director added that the Council had been losing a number of staff to higher offers in the private sector. A detailed study into job requirements together with salaries and benefits was required before any conclusions could be drawn. He added that the Council had now commissioned such a study which would start by January 1986 with a view to completion by the middle of 1986. The Executive Director agreed with the Committee that care should be taken not to compete with the private sector in offering higher salaries to retain staff in situations where vacancies could be filled at existing pay levels.
6.72 On being asked about the selection and evaluation of overseas trade promotional activities, the Executive Director said that in this field the benefits could not readily be quantified. The field included exhibitions, trade fairs, business missions, fashion presentations, business groups, and seminars so on. There were some indicators, such as the number of participants, the number of visitors to a trade fair, and amounts of business transacted, but these were no more than indicators. There were also longer term but intangible benefits such as image building, gaining market knowledge, market acceptance and making contacts. Every year new items, comprising about 20%, were added to the programme to cope with changing circumstances. In the first place these new ventures were sometimes supported by relatively few participants but this was only to be expected. A scoreboard system based on quantitative and qualitative factors had recently been instituted. This would be used in the review at the debriefing or summing up session following a promotional event. Another new strategy placed more emphasis on user views. The Council was setting up six more industry advisory committees to monitor the annual promotional programme by which the Council hoped to obtain constant feedback from the industries involved.
6.73 The Executive Director told the Committee that he was grateful to the Director of Audit for bringing the Council's attention to areas of poor expenditure control such as entertainment expenses and facsimile machines. As a result, the rules in these areas had been tightened up. He agreed with the Committee that there was no room for complacency. Every dime of the Council's funds had to be well spent.
6.74 Conclusions and Recommendations. The Committee note that revised funding arrangements for the Trade Development Council have recently been agreed between the Government and the Council. The Committee are of the view that these arrangements provide a pragmatic reconciliation between the need for economy in the expenditure of public funds on the one hand and for the proper discharge of the Trade Development Council's functions on the other hand.
6.75 The Committee are of the view that the arrangements for the scrutiny of the Trade Development Council's budget by the Government are satisfactory having regard to Part VI of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council Ordinance. The Committee hope that in the future the Secretary for Trade and Industry will continue to play an active role in the Trade Development Council's budget process and to give detailed and systematic scrutiny to the proposals within the budget.
6.76 The Committee wish to express concern at the failure of the Secretary for Economic Services and the Secretary for Trade and Industry to carry out the Committee's recommendations in 1980 that the Government should examine in detail the salaries and benefits received by the staff of the Trade Development Council with the aim of ensuring that they were no greater than those paid to officers of equivalent rank in the civil service, and that any breach of policy should be immediately corrected. The Committee are also concerned at the failure to carry out their further recommendation of 1980 made with the aim of ensuring that breaches of the policy do not arise in future. This recommendation was that detailed checks should be applied in the annual examination of the Council's estimates to the level of salaries paid in relation to those paid by the Government.
6.77 The Committee note that the Trade Development Council has now commissioned a study of the pay levels, including both salaries and benefits, enjoyed by the Council's staff and that this should be completed by mid 1986. The Committee wish to be informed of the outcome of the study, which they recommend should take account of the Government's policy that salaries and benefits payable to staff of subvented organizations should remain in line with those payable by Government.
6.78 The Committee accept that it is not always possible to quantify the costs and benefits of overseas trade promotional activities and that, particularly in regard to new activities, the benefits of such activities may not be immediately apparent. The Committee note that new evaluation procedures involving qualitative and quantitative assessments have been adopted and that six advisory committees drawn from various industrial sectors have now been set up to monitor the effectiveness of overseas trade promotional activities.
6.79 The Committee note that the Executive Director of the Trade Development Council has welcomed the observations by the Director of Audit on the control of entertainment expenses and the use of facsimile machines.
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