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Recommendation
3. I recommend that the Secretary of State should agree to the changes proposed by the Hong Kong Government, and agreed by EXCO, in Civil Service localisation policy, and that HM Ambassador at Peking should be instructed to inform the Chinese
Government about them.
Background
4.
The normal retirement age for administrative officers in
Hong Kong is 55. At present, they are normally given, subject
to their being efficient and required, extensions on contract
up to the age of 60. Hong Kong propose that in future, overseas administrative officers should be given only a 2 year
extension to the age of 57.
57. Their pension will be suspended during the extension but they will receive a gratuity at the end of the contract period. After the 2 year extension they
will generally be required to leave the service, whereas local
officers may be given further contracts up to the age of 60,
again on gratuitable terms but wi th pension suspended. The
Hong Kong Government are satisfied that, under this policy, they should be able to move gradually fr om the present situation in which the majority
secretaries in charge of
departments are Overseas
to on e in which the majority
officers
of
The
would be local officers, by the early to mid 1990s.
arrangements would not have any sudden impact, and Hong Kong
are confident that there is an adequate pool of able and experienced local officers to meet this situation.
5.
We have been in touch with the Governor, and with HM Ambassador at Peking, about this, and have agreed the text of a speaking note which would be used by the Embassy in telling the Chinese Foreign Ministry about this forthcoming change. The
administrative
the
speaking note mak es it clear that this is a modes t
measure aimed at progressively increasing
number of local
local officers in very senior posts, to enable us to
comply with Section IV of Annex I of the Joint Declaration
without administrative disruption.
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