CONSTITUTION AND ADMINISTRATION
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dealing with service-wide issues such as staff relations and pensions. In addition, its General Grades Office is responsible for the overall management of some 30 000 officers in certain categories of general grades.
Recruitment and promotion to the middle and senior ranks of the Public Service are subject to the advice of the Public Service Commission, which is independent of the government. The commission has a full-time chairman and prominent citizens serving as members.
The government is advised on matters relating to pay and conditions of service by four independent bodies. The Standing Committee on Directorate Salaries and Conditions of Service advises on matters affecting directorate officers (the 1 000 or so most senior public servants). The Standing Committee on Judicial Salaries and Conditions of Service advises on matters affecting judicial officers. The Standing Committee on Disciplined Services Salaries and Conditions of Service advises on the salaries and conditions of service of the disciplined services. The Standing Commission on Civil Service Salaries and Conditions of Service advises on matters affecting all other civil servants.
Improvements to the civil service housing package, which comprises a Home Financing Scheme, an Accommodation Allowance Scheme and a Home Purchase Scheme, were implemented in November. The objective of the housing package is to make effective use of the resources provided for civil service housing benefits and to encourage home -ownership among civil servants. Over 18 500 officers are currently receiving benefits
under the schemes.
The government fully recognises the value of regular communication and consultation with staff. There are four central consultative councils the Senior Civil Service Council, the Model Scale I Staff Consultative Council, the Disciplined Services Consultative Council and the Police Force Council. Departmental consultative committees, established in most government departments, constitute an important part of the consultative machinery. In addition, individual staff or staff associations have ready access to the departmental or grade management, as well as to the Civil Service Branch. Staff are encouraged to make suggestions to improve the efficiency of the service under the Staff Suggestions Scheme, which was recently revised to enable individual departments to consider and reward valuable suggestions, rather than having all suggestions considered centrally. The Civil Service Branch also publishes a quarterly news magazine with a circulation of some 230 000, which keeps serving and retired civil servants abreast of developments which may interest them.
In recognition of staff commitment and contributions, long-serving civil servants are granted awards under the Long Service Travel Award Scheme and the Long and Meritorious Service Certificate Scheme. Those with 30 years of meritorious service are also presented with a gold pin. A retirement souvenir is given to long-serving civil servants. To enable more civil servants to receive this benefit, the service criterion for the retirement souvenir was recently reduced from 20 years' government service or more, to 10 years.
Traditionally, the terms of appointment offered to civil servants have been divided into two major categories - overseas and local. Whether an officer should be offered overseas or local terms was determined before he joined the service and could not be altered after the appointment, irrespective of changing circumstances. After a review of the policy in the light of the Bill of Rights, it was decided that a two-stage approach should be adopted.