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CHAPTER IX
INTERCHANGEABILITY WITH MALAYA
LIAISON WITH MALAYAN SALARIES COMMISSION
176. We kept in touch with the Malayan Salaries Commission not only by correspondence but also by visits to Singapore paid by the Chairman and by Mr. T. Megarry. Mr. D. J. Sloss flew to Malaya on 22nd April, returning on 4th May. He had two days of consultations with Sir Harry Trusted, Chairman of the Malayan Salaries Commission, and discussed with him various problems likely to face both Commissions. As Sir Harry Trusted had at this time only recently arrived in Malaya it was decided that the Hong Kong Commission should send a representative to Malaya at the beginning of July, by which time the Malayan Commission expected to have completed the hearing of evidence in the Malayan Union and to be receiving representations in Singapore. Mr. Megarry accordingly left by air for Singapore on 6th July. He had conferences on 9th and 10th July with the Chairman and the two official members of the Malayan Commission and attended sessions of the Commission from 8th to 11th July while it was taking evidence. On 10th July he addressed the Commission at length at Sir Harry Trusted's invitation on the work of the Hong Kong Commission up to date and answered members' questions. A full interchange of views was thus achieved. Mr. Megarry also had discussions with the Colonial Secretary, Singapore, before returning to Hong Kong on 13th July. An invitation was sent to Sir Harry Trusted for a member of the Malayan Commission to visit Hong Kong during the early part of August when the Hong Kong Commission's Report and proposed salary scales were in prelimi- nary draft but the date suggested unfortunately did not fit in with the Malayan Commission's programme.
INTERCHANGEABILITY BETWEEN MALAYA AND HONG KONG
177. It is our opinion that there are definite limits to the extent to which it would be practicable or, in view of the policy of providing access into the services for local officers, even desirable to arrange for the interchange of officers between Malaya and Hong Kong. It is clear that the only officers who could be compulsorily transferred from one Colony to the other are those who are members of the Unified Colonial Services who are liable to be transferred anywhere within the Colonial Service. Other officers could only be transferred voluntarily and would presumably only agree to a transfer if it meant promotion. It might even be necessary to grant expatriation pay to local officers if they were transferred. It does not appear to us on balance that any great benefits would be derived by either Colony from the interchange of officers who are not members of the Unified Colonial Services. There should be sufficient similarity of scales of pay and conditions of service as the result of our consultations in Malaya to make any voluntary transfers a matter of no great difficulty. Closer liaison could be achieved between the two territories by more frequent visits of senior officials to discuss problems of mutual interest and in certain cases short term secondments might prove of value in the training of specialist officers.