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Para 7: It is intended that the cap would increase in line with UK RPI. To make this clear you could add after £120,000 "(at April 1991 levels)".
Para 8: I suggest that the words in parenthesis in the second sentence be deleted. The payments would not be cut by half as even with half factors some officers would still reach the cap.
Para 10: I have spoken again to our Legal Consultant on the question of judicial review of the compensation scheme. His advice is:
- the area where HMG would be most vulnerable would be on any decision to apply half factors.
- it would be up to HMG to justify to the satisfaction of the court that there was a good reason for applying half factors and that this had not frustrated officers' legitimate expectations.
as the Consultant does not know the basis of the Treasury's proposal of using half factors, he cannot predict the conclusion the court would reach. He added that the courts had become increasingly unpredictable in judicial review
cases.
In the light of the above, it might be better to say that HMG would have a fair or reasonable chance rather than a good chance of winning. Same applies to the last sentence of para
24.
Para 12: It might be worth pointing out that Hong Kong has very substantial assets with foreign exchange reserves among the highest in the world and that it would require economic collapse and the Hong Kong dollar becoming worthless for the contingency payments to be made immediately and in full. applies to para 23.
Para 16c: The estimated cost of the SPOS amendment is £1-2 million per annum.
Same
Para 19: I believe this is a meeting of the HMOCS Association Committee rather than a general meeting. No date has yet been set.
Your maring.
Nigel WROL
NC G Whitney
Hong Kong Department
cc Mr Fish, ODA (BY FAX AM
marsden.ADM.JEB/JRB
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