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Functions.
179. A Clerk of Councils requires the time and facilities to provide an efficient service to Executive and Legislative Councils, and to achieve this, he should, in addition to the Councils' work, be engaged on a limited field of allied subjects.
180. It is recommended that the subjects to be allocated to this post should be as shown on the proposed Distribution of Business List A (Appendix B).
181. When re-allocating the subjects of the Deputy Clerk of Councils, it was considered that H.E. the Governor may agree that his A.D.C. should also be responsible for making arrangements for ceremonial functions.
Executive Council Clerk.
182. The proposed Clerk of Councils will require the services of the Executive Council clerk and it is recommended that the present clerk should be retained on that work.
Deportations, banishment and detention procedure.
183. Enquiries have been made as to the present procedure and proposals are in draft for reducing the time and effort involved in dealing with the cases of persons not claiming Hong Kong birth. One proposal made at the time of the enquiry relating to the finger printing of prisoners after conviction has been adopted by the Identification Bureau and Prisons Department with staff savings in the former and a saving of work and an increase in convenience in the latter. The submission of the remaining pro- posals has been deferred awaiting Government's decision on legislative amendments which it is understood have been proposed by the Law Officers arising out of the O. & M. Branch report of the 28th March, 1949 which, if approved, will have the effect of reducing the volume of cases referred to the Secretariat and to Executive Council.
184. Summary of recommendations made in this Chapter:-
(1) The Clerk of Councils should be an officer other than the Deputy
Colonial Secretary. (178)
(2) The post of Deputy Clerk of Councils should be abolished. (178)
(3) Restriction on the number and variation of subjects for which the Clerk
of Councils should be responsible. (180)
(4) The present Executive Council clerk should be retained for that work.
(182)
CHAPTER X.
ORGANIZATION AND METHODS
Organization & Methods Branch (0. & M.).
185. In Chapter II it was recommended that an O. & M. Branch should be estab- lished and a few remarks are made below on how this Branch should operate.
Future success of branch.
186. It has been well proved in other organizations that the success of an O. & M. Branch is largely determined by the degree of support and co-operation given.
Advisory capacity.
187. To preserve the responsibility of Heads of Departments for the efficiency of their Departments and to attract the utmost co-operation, it is recommended that the work of an O. & M. Branch should be advisory. This should not prevent an O. & M. officer from remaining in a Department to introduce a new organization or procedure, watch for faults in the recommendations and to assist in overcoming difficulties likely to arise when a change is made.