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Audit produces 'quiet revolution': Governor
The public sector had achieved a "quiet revolution" since 1992 in the way it approached its relationship with the community, the Governor, the Rt Hon Christopher Patten said today (Wednesday).
Opening the Legislative Council's 1995-96 session, Mr Patten said this relationship was now based on service, accountability and performance.
He said this was one result of his determination that his policy addresses to the Council should form part of an annual audit of the Government's performance.
Every area of the administration's activities was covered by publishing very detailed policy commitments and progress reports, he said.
"Now that they have become established, I do not mind admitting to you that, before I first introduced them, some people warned me that these documents would amount to the only two-volume political suicide note in history," he added.
Commenting on the third annual Progress Report, which the Chief Secretary, Mrs Anson Chan, had presented to LegCo on Monday (October 9), Mr Patten said it explained the position on the 471 outstanding specific initiatives announced during the past three years.
"The fair-minded will have noted with satisfaction that the Government has already completed or is on target with 94 per cent of these initiatives," he said.
"The perfectionists will have noted that we are behind our targets with six per cent of our undertakings. The Report explains how we intend to get back on track with the six per cent."
Mr Patten acknowledged that the Civil Service never expected press headlines reading "Government does a great job".
However, it drew considerable encouragement from the knowledge that the community valued its record of success and its determination to go on improving its performance.
The Governor pointed out that this year's policy commitments contained 343 new initiatives. Of these, 27 per cent were designed to upgrade social services and housing programmes; 21 per cent would help to strengthen the Government's support for the economy; and another 16 per cent aimed to make the best possible use of limited land resources and to meet the growing demands on our infrastructure.
End/Wednesday, October 11, 1995