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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 26, 1994
HAS
LOCALISATION IS ONE OF THEM. IT IS A SUBJECT IN DANGER OF GETTING OUT OF PROPORTION. IT IS AN AREA IN WHICH MUCH PROGRESS ALREADY BEEN MADE. ALMOST 99% OF THE CIVIL SERVICE AND NEARLY 70% OF THE DIRECTORATE ARE NOW LOCAL. INDEED THE GOVERNOR HAS COMMITTED IN HIS POLICY ADDRESS THAT ALL SECRETARY POSTS WILL BE FILLED BY LOCAL OFFICERS BY THE END OF NEXT YEAR. WE SHOULD NOT FORGET THE TREMENDOUS CONTRIBUTION WHICH OVERSEAS OFFICERS, INCLUDING MANY ON AGREEMENT TERMS HAVE MADE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF HONG KONG. BY ENTERING INTO CONTRACTS WITH THEM, WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO BRING IN EXPERTISE ESSENTIAL TO ACHIEVING SO MUCH, IN SO MANY AREAS OF GOVERNMENT ACTIVITY IN SO SHORT A TIME.
BUT A CONTRACT IS A CONTRACT AND I WANT TO ASSURE MEMBERS THAT WE ARE NOT GOING BACK ON LOCALISATION. WE BELIEVE THAT, WITH THE HELP OF THIS COUNCIL, WE HAVE NOW FOUND AN EQUITABLE MEANS OF BALANCING THE INTERESTS OF LOCAL AND OVERSEAS OFFICERS BY OPENING UP AGREEMENTS TO COMPETITION.
THERE ARE SUGGESTIONS THAT, IN THE CONTEXT OF SUCH COMPETITION, OVERSEAS OFFICERS TRANSFERRING TO LOCAL TERMS SHOULD BE REQUIRED ΤΟ SHOW SOME PROFICIENCY IN CHINESE. WE HAVE INDEED IMPOSED SUCH A REQUIREMENT WHERE THE NEED EXISTS. AND WE HAVE SOME SYMPATHY WITH THE ARGUMENT THAT, IN SEEKING TO ASSOCIATE THEMSELVES MORE CLOSELY WITH THE LOCAL COMMUNITY THEY SHOULD BE ENCOURAGED TO LEARN ITS LANGUAGE. HOWEVER WE MUST RESIST THE POLITICAL TEMPTATION TO MAKE PROFICIENCY IN CHINESE A PREREQUISITE TO FURTHER EMPLOYMENT, REGARDLESS OF POSTS TO BE FILLED.
ANOTHER TASK AHEAD IS TO ENSURE THAT ALL DEPARTMENTS ARE STAFFED AT ALL LEVELS, ESPECIALLY THE DIRECTORATE, BY OFFICERS WITH APPROPRIATE EXPERIENCE, TRAINING AND ABILITY. SUCCESSION PLANNING HAS ALWAYS BEEN A PRIORITY BUT IS BECOMING MORE SO AS WE APPROACH THE LAST STAGES OF THE TRANSITION. IT IS NATURAL THAT SOME OFFICERS IN THE FINAL PHASE OF THEIR CAREER MAY DECIDE FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS ΤΟ RETIRE A BIT EARLY. IT IS EQUALLY NATURAL THAT THEY SHOULD WISH TO KEEP THEIR OPTIONS OPEN FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE. WE KNOW THAT IN SOME DEPARTMENTS
IT THIS COULD CAUSE DIFFICULTIES, BUT IN ALL DEPARTMENTS WILL OFFER OPPORTUNITIES OPPORTUNITIES FOR RENEWAL, FOR ADVANCEMENT OF YOUNGER AND HIGHLY CAPABLE OFFICERS. HONG KONG IS FORTUNATE TO HAVE A WELL-ESTABLISHED, STABLE CIVIL SERVICE WITH A SOUND STRUCTURE PROVIDING STRENGTH IN DEPTH. I HAVE RAISED THESE ISSUES, NOT TO RAISE ALARM BUT TO MAKE SURE THAT MEMBERS OF THIS COUNCIL AND THE COMMUNITY AT
STEPS LARGE ARE AWARE OF THEM, AND UNDERSTAND AND SUPPORT THE ARE TAKING TO ADDRESS THEM.
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WE
MEMBERS KNOW THAT WE HAVE INVESTED HEAVILY IN TRAINING IN THE PAST AND WILL BE INVESTING MORE IN THE FUTURE. MY POLICY COMMITMENT REFERS TO VARIOUS ASPECTS OF TRAINING AND, IN PARTICULAR HIGHLIGHTS THE CONSIDERABLE EXPANSION PLANNED FOR CHINA-RELATED TRAINING.
WE HAVE CONSIDERABLE TRAINING RESOURCES ALREADY. THE CIVIL SERVICE TRAINING CENTRE RUNS EXCELLENT COURSES ON A WIDE RANGE OF CHINA SUBJECTS, FROM NEGOTIATING SKILLS TO CHINESE TYPEWRITING, FROM STUDIES TO COMPUTER TRAINING. SINCE 1984 THE SENIOR STAFF COURSE ΤΟ CENTRE HAS RUN FULL-TIME MANAGEMENT COURSES FOR OFFICFRS PREPARING SERVE IN THE DIRECTORATE. THESE COURSES ARE POPULAR AND SERVE US WELL. MANY DEPARTMENTS ALSO RUN SUCCESSFUL TRAINING PROGRAMMES ΤΟ MEET THEIR SPECIFIC NEEDS. WE AUGMENT ALL THIS IN-HOUSE TRAINING WITH CAREFULLY TARGETFD MANAGEMENT COURSES BOTH LOCALLY AND OVERSEAS.
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