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My Honourable Colleague, the acting Colonial Secretary has very ably and succinctly dealt with the various points brought forward by Honourable Members this afternoon:
would however be a poor compli- ent to the speakers if their speeches were considered as having entirely lost their official audience as soon as the Colonial Secretary had replied to them. They contain many in- teresting and suggestive passages which I look forward to re-reading and further digesting when they appear in the convenient form of Hansard.
Coronation Festivities
At the moment however I. have nothing to add to what Mr. North has just said, except to explain one omission in the Budget and to make a few general remarks. The omis- sion relates to the Coronation festivities next May for which no in the provision has been entered Estimates. That is because the Secretary of State's promised des- patch on Colonial celebrations not reach me till last mail.
did
In it he leaves to the local authority the making of such arrangements as will permit of the active co-operation and participation of the inhabitants of each Colony as whole and suggests the early appointment of committee
a
re- of the presentative of all sections community to arrange the necessary details.
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On that suggestion I shall certainly act, and the question of a special vote will be put up for discussion, with due regard to the state of our finances, as soon as definite sugges- tions have been put forward by the committee.
On the general subject of public expenditure I have to say this. I approached my work on Estimates Committee very critically and with considerable past experience of slump budgets and retrenchment in Malaya, but having had the privilege of serving under both my immediate predecessors in this Governorship I did not expect to find any very lush tares of extravagance in the field of annually recurrent expenditure; nor, gentlemen, are they there. I can see therefore no avenue to appre- ciable retrenchment along the line of a curtailment or elimination of exist- ing public services, for nearly, if not quite, all of them may be categorised as essential.
Private Charities
We are indeed extremely for- tunate in Hongkong in having much public service that is of an essential nature performed out of private charity and by voluntary workers. It is possible that some decrease in staff may be found feasible, but not so great a decrease as to justify the expense of compulsory retirement on abolition pensions.
The rule to which we are now working is that when retirements or casualties occur the vacated appoint- ments are not filled until an absolute
necessity for their retention is established.
Another line of ultimate economy lies in the training of Hongkong citizens to man posts hitherto occupied by European recruits. We are doing this in the Police and Sanitary Departments and indeed all along the line as opportunities arise. These gradual methods of retrench- ment are not conspicuous or sen- sational but they are, I am sure from past experience, the most truly economical in the long run.
I take this opportunity of publicly congratulating the Colonial Trea- surer on the manner in which he has resisted every proposal for avoidable expenditure and pressed every sug- gestion for savings and economy. I am happy to think that the recogni- tion of his distinguished Colonial Services by His Majesty the King came at a time when Mr. Taylor must have felt that he was up against
and particularly thankless palatable job.
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Chinese Co-operation
un-
Of the need for understanding and co-operation between ourselves and our Chinese neighbours there can be no possible doubt, and I agree with the Senior Chinese Unofficial Mem- ber that it cannot be too greatly emphasised or too often reiterated.
and The warmth
kindness of the welcome extended to my wife and myself on our visit to Canton was an inspiring proof that this need is recognized as much there as it is here, and I have every reason to hope that within the very near future I shall have the privilege and pleasure of welcoming my recent hosts of the new Kwangtung Pro- ! vincial Government as our honoured | guests in Hongkong.
In conclusion I must return for a moment to a subject on which I have
the already touched,
debt which Hongkong owes to private charity and volunteer service. Month by month I have become more and more conscious of the amount and extent of that debt; it is so large and covers so wide a field that I cannot attempt here a catalogue of all the funds, societies, associations
to and institutions
which public gratitude and admiration is due.
At a time of economic depression generosity is doubly generous and in the face of Hongkong's three public enemies (fog, fug, and their loathsome offspring fag) voluntary service is a doubly noble sacrifice of self to the community. On behalf of the Colony I humbly thank them all, donors and workers alike, for all that they have done, are doing and I hope, will always continue to do for us.
Budget Passed
Council then went into Committee to consider the Bill clause by clause. On Council resuming, the Colonial Secretary reported that the Bill had passed through Committee without amendment, and moved the third reading.
The Colonial Treasurer seconded, and the Bill was read a third time and passed.
The Council was then adjourned sine die.
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