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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 9, 1993
I DO NOT WANT TO DWELL TOO LONG ON THE RELATIVE MERITS OF EXECUTIVE OR ADVISORY BODIES. I HAVE MADE MY POINTS, BUT THEY NEED TO BE KEPT IN PERSPECTIVE. THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR FOR OUR INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT IS THAT WE CONTINUE TO PURSUE AND DEVELOP POLICIES AND PROGRAMMES THAT PROVIDE A FRIENDLY PLACE FOR INDUSTRIES THAT CAN THRIVE THROUGH COMPETITION IN TODAY'S ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT, AND THAT LAY THE FOUNDATIONS FOR INDUSTRY TO FLOURISH THROUGH UPGRADING AND INNOVATION IN FUTURE.
I WOULD NOT LIKE MEMBERS TO THINK THAT IN WELCOMING THE AMENDED MOTION I AM TAKING AN EASY WAY OUT. I AM AWARE THAT SOME MAY THINK GOVERNMENT IS KEEN ON MAINTAINING AN ADVISORY ITDC SO AS TO AVOID HAVING A FOCUSED INDUSTRIAL POLICY. THE NEED FOR SOME SUCH POLICY WAS A THEME OF THE MOTION DEBATE ON INDUSTRIAL POLICY IN 1992 AND HAS BEEN REPEATED TODAY, I CAN UNDERSTAND THE DESIRE FOR SOME PRECISE POLICY STATMENT. HONG KONG HAS A WIDE RANGE OF INDUSTRIAL SUPPORT PROGRAMMES I WILL NOT LIST THESE OUT AGAIN TODAY, BUT REFER MEMBERS ΤΟ MY SPEECHES IN LAST YEAR'S DEBATE ON INDUSTRIAL POLICY AND THIS YEAR'S BUDGET DEBATE. THEY ARK IN THE HANSARD RECORD AND PROVIDE AN EXTENSIVE SUMMARY - AS I SAID, WE HAVE A WIDE RANGE OF PROGRAMMES, BUT, WE HAVE NEVER SET OUT THESE PROGRAMMES, AND THE MECHANISM FOR COORDINATING THEM IN A CLEAR, COMPREHENSIVE DOCUMENT. WE HAVE A GENERAL STATEMENT OF THE AIMS OF OUR INDUSTRIAL POLICIES, WHICH ARE "TO MAINTAIN AN INFRASTRUCTURE WHICH ENABLES MANUFACTURING BUSINESSES TO FUNCTION EFFICIENTLY, AND TO PROVIDE SERVICES THAT ENABLE INDUSTRY TO REMAIN COMPETITIVE THROUGH PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH, QUALITY IMPROVEMENT AND PRODUCT INNOVATION," BUT IN RECENT YEARS WE HAVE NOT DERATED OR REFINED THIS STATEMENT, TO DEVELOP IF YOU LIKE A SHARED CORPORATE STRATEGY STATEMENT, THAT GIVES INDUSTRY, INVESTORS, YOURSELVES AND THE COMMUNITY A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING OF OUR GOALS.
FOR
THIS MAKES IT EASY FOR QUESTIONS SUCH AS THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN RAISED THIS AFTERNOON TO BE ASKED. WHAT IS GOVERNMENT DOING FOR INDUSTRY? WHAT CO-ORDINATION IS THERE? ANSWERS TO THE FIRST QUESTION ARE GIVEN IN OTHER PARTS OF THIS SPEECH AND IN PREVIOUS SPEECHES TO WHICH I HAVE EARLIER REFERRED. I WOULD LIKE TO REPLY HERE TO THE SECOND QUESTION, WE HAVE A SOPHISTICATED AND EFFECTIVE MECHANISM THE CO-ORDINATION OF OUR INDUSTRY SUPPORT PROGRAMMES. THE ITDC COMPRISES REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MAJOR INDUSTRIAL ORGANISATIONS, THE HEADS OF THE PRODUCTIVITY COUNCIL AND VOCATIONAL TRAINING COUNCIL, HEADS OF MAJOR ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS, AS WELL AS THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF INDUSTRY, THE POLICY SECRETARIES RESPONSIBLE FOR PLANNING, ENVIRONMENT AND LANDS AND EDUCATION AND MANPOWER, THE GOVERNMENT ECONOMIST AND MYSELF. THIS PROVIDES FOR DEBATE AND CO-ORDINATION AT THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF POLICY MAKING THE PATTERN IS REPEATED IN THE WELL-STRUCTURED NETWORK OF COMMITTEES THAT THE ITDC HAS ESTABLISHED. THERE IS STRONG CROSS LINKAGE BETWEEN THE ITDC, INDUSTRY DEPARTMENT AND THE PRODUCTIVITY COUNCIL. THE MACHINERY FOR CO-ORDINATION IS THERE. IT IS WORKING.
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HOWEVER, OUR WELL KNOWN MAXIMS
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"POSITIVE NON-INTERVENTIONISM"
A TERM WHICH WE NO LONGER USE BUT WHOSE SPIRIT LIVES ON
AND MINIMUM INTERVENTION, MAXIMUM SUPPORT" ARE TRUE STATEMENTS OF OUR PHILOSOPHY, BUT ARE TOO TERSE TO MERT THE NEED THAT MEMBERS HAVE HIGHLIGHTED FOR A CLEAR EXPLANATION OF OUR POLICIES TOWARDS INDUSTRY. QUITE FRANKLY, THE MAXIMS CAN BE CONFUSING, THOUGH I HOPE NONE OF ARR AS CONFUSED AS ONE OF MY OFFICERS WHO WROTE RECENTLY THAT POLICY WAS ONE OF "MAXIMUM INTERFERENCE,
|| MINIMUM SUPPORT.
YOU
OUR
/NO, MR