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4. I asked you if the Civil Service Commission (CSC) would be able to help.
You mentioned that the Civil Service Commission was being privatised soon and some of the larger Government Departments would then be running their own recruitment sections. The FCO would for the time being continue to use the Civil Service Commission for most of its recruitment needs although Recruitment Section of PPD already recruited to Specialist Grades itself when needs arose. There was a possibility that some members of HMOCS may be qualified to apply for some of these vacancies. You mentioned that over the next few years however PPD would be compiling for its own use a data base of employment agencies and the services they offered. This list could plausibly be provided to enquirers in a few years time and you undertook to see that Hong Kong Department would be sent a copy of this. You suggested that I find out from the CSC if it had any plans to make provisions for an out placement scheme as part of its reorganisation.
5. We also discussed the possible opportunities for Ex-Hong Kong police officers. You asked Mr Shipley at what level police officers coming to the United Kingdom would likely to beat. Mr Shipley replied that most would be at Senior Inspector to Chief Superintendent rank. We were agreed that it was unlikely that the Home Office would be able to offer on this front. Most recruitment was done at junior levels. The police did not recruit officers directly into senior grades, and it was feasible that any attempt to do so would be unpopular.
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6. At the end of our discussion, we were agreed that HMG was not obliged to provide tangible assistance such as direct transfers to the FCO or any other government department. HMG had however offered to provide assistance to members of HMOCS seeking employment in the UK and this could take several forms. existing channel provided by the ODA could be supplemented by information about the services provided by other bodies such as the CSC and the European Commission recruitment offices. It was agreed that it would be useful to have a list of professional/executive placement agencies which members of HMOCS could contact for purposes of employment in the private (or public) sector.
7. Since our discussion I have made inquiries of the ODA, CSC and the Department of Employment. As already mentioned, the ODA are interested in professional people whom they still recruit to serve in other Dependent Territories. This recruitment is dealt with by Mr Russell of the Overseas Manpower Department of the ODA.
Applicants are required to apply directly with details of their professional qualifications and these details are then kept on a register which is the first resort when vacancies arise. The CSC however, had little to offer specifically to HMOCS members. The same conditions apply to all prospective entrants to the civil service, and from April next year, Government Departments which continue to use the CSC can be specific about their own recruitment criteria (they may move the age limit down for example.) The CSC Secretariat did however mention that if a group of civil servants wished to transfer en bloc to a certain type of job, in a Department which was prepared to accept them,
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