(b)
(c)
(d)
people at various levels in various parts of the world will find useful in a changing world. And it must be known as a place which has experience in all the areas every other territory has to face. The need is to be seen as such. And if it assists governments to think about certain issues, so much the better.
Macroeconomic Management. Participants in this discussion will need a clear understanding of the way in which governments conceive their role. I hope the British side would be prepared to identify (a) techniques of value to administrators working within the centre, and (b) issues on which the business community could assist advantageously outside the centre.
The Economic Report of Hong Kong Bank on the 1990-91 Budget said the following:-
"The sharply reduced budget surplus, plus the concentration of
tax increases on indirect taxes are likely to slow the economy's adjustment to a lower level of inflation. Although inflation can still be expected to decrease gradually in the coming months, there is a need for the Government to adopt a more restrictive stand towards public spending increases. The linked exchange rate system affords Hong Kong only limited discretion in terms of monetary policy, leaving fiscal policy as the only means by which the Government can fine tune the economy. Although the use of fiscal policy to influence macroeconomic behaviour is generally less effective in Hong Kong than in most other economies, it is nevertheless still important for it to be used appropriately. In Hong Kong's present circumstances, this requires a tight fiscal stance and the avoidance, as far, as possible, of specific
42° measures that add to inflation."
This experience, too, could be usefully compared with that of other economies, perhaps at a political level, perhaps at a series of conferences.
The Information Base for the Setting of Priorities within Government and Industry. This topic is of central importance: statistics can be notoriously unreliable, and can present little basis for the identification of priorities or achievable aims, or for the measurement of progress towards them. New methods are perhaps needed. This could be important after 1997. Information policy, and its relationship to a free media, is another topic.
Radical Change in government structures, or in the balance between Public and Private Sectors: Priorities and Consequences for Administration. Four important ideas to examine are (a) The extent to which administrators pay attention to cost in relation to benefit; (b) The ways in which scrutiny techniques and appraisal systems could be useful to administrators; (c) The