CONFIDENTIAL
3.
Membership of HM Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS) is a matter for the Secretary of State. The White Papers of 1954 and 1960 and subsequent practice established certain general criteria which we have followed in deciding whether to enrol an overseas officer employed by the government of a Dependent Territory as a member of HMOCS. One criterion is that the officer should be serving on pensionable terms, ie officers on contract or agreement terms are not eligible.
4.
In Hong Kong until the negotiation of the Joint Declaration the British and Hong Kong Governments judged it necessary to maintain an expatriate core in the public service, and to recruit on pensionable terms. Contrary to our original objectives, the JD sets limits on the positions which might be held by expatriates after 1997. It was therefore decided to cease new recruitment of overseas officers to pensionable terms with effect from March 1985. Recruitment of overseas officers since that time has been on
contract terms. However contract officers originally appointed before March 1985 were eligible to apply to transfer to pensionable terms and thus to become eligible to apply for membership of HMOCS; the deadline for exercising this option has been extended several times, partly because of changes to Hong Kong's pensions legislation: it finally lapsed on 30 June 1992. These arrangements were notifed to the Hong Kong public service by a circular dated 28 March
1985.
5.
The Judiciary, however, were in a different position. In order to make terms of service more attractive, in 1986 HKG put in place arrangements which effectively gave members of the Judiciary on contract terms the right to change to pensionable terms whenever they wished. In 1989 the Judiciary were informed by Civil Service Branch that the circular of 28 March 1985 did not apply to them. The
JUDADE/2
CONFIDENTIAL