HMOCS policy
HKA 233/1
p.a.pls (135
Bir
17/3
DRAFT STATEMENT FOR USE IN OPENING CONSULTATIONS WITH HMOCS
REPRESENTATIVES IN HONG KONG
1.
Her Majesty's Government recognise that members of Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service in Hong Kong wish to know as soon as possible how the Government intend to make provision for HMOCS in the special circumstances of Hong Kong's becoming a Special Administrative Region of the
People's Republic of China of 1 July 1997.
2. The Joint Declaration and Basic Law provide good guarantees for continuity of service with pay, conditions
and pensions on terms no less favourable than before 1997. Nonetheless the Government accept that HMOCS officers serving in Hong Kong on 30 June 1997 will also be entitled to a measure of compensation for the loss of the Secretary of State's protection and, to a certain extent, of career
prospects.
3.
Measures introduced to these ends should contribute to ensuring a smooth transition in 1997 and should encourage maximum continuity in the Hong Kong public service after 1997, in order to maintain and preserve Hong Kong's economic prosperity and social stability. They should also be fair to the officers concerned, while involving the minimum necessary cost to the taxpayer.
4. The issues are complicated, and despite intensive work the process of drawing up appropriate arrangements has taken longer than envisaged. The Government are grateful for the sense of responsibility and patience shown by HMOCS officers. The Government have now formulated a proposal for a scheme providing elements of incentive and compensation.
5. Such schemes have always been tailored to the particular territory concerned. In the special circumstances of Hong Kong, we envisage that as the basis of calculating each
BUNABV/1