COPY
CONFIDENTIAL.
Copyn (43) in 21218 CR (Gowsmith -)
Mr. Wodeman
|]
140
1
My minute of 20/10/44 in 55104/8 proposed an increase in the Hong Kong Planning Unit establishment for stage II to 28 officers. This proposal which
received approval in a Treasury letter dated 16th November, included a suggestion to engage, temporarily and for service in England only, two engineers to help with estimates and indenting.
For one reason and another none of the additional staff required is yet at work in the unit although the preparation of the Brett Estimates of technical requirements to assist with which the majority of them were needed in the first instance has had to proceed. The Hong Kong Planning Unit has so far kept pace with Borneo and Malaya and neither the Brett Committee nor the other two more amply staffed units have yet been involved in delay on our account.
Of the 23 heads to be worked out for the Brett working party, the Hong Kong Planning Unit have to date completed 20. These heads are concerned with technical estimates of machinery and in this unit the task has had to be shouldered by one officer (Mr. J.Forbes, civil engineer, P.W.D.) with what help Mr. H.S.Rouse (D.P.W.) and Mr. Symons (Govt.chemist) have been able to spare from other pressing duties. Malayan Planning Unit and the Borneo Unit have at their disposal for the same purpose 14 and 4 technical officers respectively: and the ratio of supplies required to Malaya, Hong Kong and Borneo seems to be about 20:10:2 respectively. Some notion of the strain imposed on this unit and particularly on Mr. Forbes may be gathered from these figures. He has done a remarkable job but there are limits to his endurance
and
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