CO129-607-5 Police Department- Indian Section 8-1-1946 - 15-9-1947 — Page 181

179

but an effort will be mande to select one or more members of prominent Chinese families for appointment as ondets in this grade. It is hoped by this means to encourage local inspectors to qualify themselves for promotion to these Ass is tant Superintenient posts.

5. Chinese Rank and File. Original proposal was to adopt pre-war Malayan rates which represented considerable improvement on Hong Kong rates. Both are set out in the attached table. The Malayan Dollar of course has a higher value but the cost of living was considerably higher so the Malayan rate probably represents what the Hong Kong salaries should have been in 1941 if they had been reviewed then. Justification for singling out the Folice Department now is

Our

(a) that it is necessary in the interests of good order and security to have

an efficient and contented Police Form and

(b) that we are giving effect to something which should have been done before

the war and was recognised as necessary then.

We cannot introduce a scale now which is designed to meet post war conditions because the time for this is not yet and in any case it cannot be done in respect of one department only. For these reasons we have been most reluctant to go beyond the Malayan soales but the Colonel A. (Police) has represented strongly that this scale falls serious short of present requirements because with rehabilita- tion allowance unler the present scheme, a recruit would still receive $60 a month which is what he reosives at present, and which must be compared with $2 a day which is the pay of an unskilled labourer. A compromise which would meet the views of the Colonel C.A. (Police) over the lower salaries and which merges into the Malayın scale at the rank of Sergeant is given in the 3rd Column of the attached table. This would cost £5,000 to £6,000 more than the application of the Malayan scale but if as appears all too probable the latter scale would not attract the right type of recruit the more generous scale must be adopte". It would be a tragedy to spoil the scheme for such a trivial sua and on the whole the adoption of the compromise scale is recommended. The establishment of Chinese Rank and File including the detective branch| would be increased from 1174 to 1409.

6. Indian Rank and File. The original proposal was to reduce the establishment of the Indian “ection of the Police from 780 to 320 and to pay them on a scale based on the Chinese Iblice rates suitable scaled down to allow for the fact that it has always been customary to supply them with free rations.

In view however, of certain recent developments it has been found recessary to reconsider the whole question and it seems probable that the final decision will be to include a small Gurichu Section in the iblice as a stiffening. Concrete recommenda-* tions for Indian Section salaries will therefore be submitted later.

7. Rent Allowance. At present rent allowance is given very sparingly and only after long service. In order to foster a feeling of esprit de corps the Force must be kept together and not scattered all over the City. The long term policy should be to provide barracks for single men and suitable quarters for those who are married.

That unfortunately is a good many years ahead and in the meantime if these men are to be properly housed a rent allowance is desirable which should be payable after two years ' servics. The rates proposed are £.15 for married men with 2 to 10 years' service, 8.30 for a married man with more than 10 years' service, X.50 a month for Inspectors and sub-Inspectors and.75 a month for Chief Inspectors.

8. This will be an expensive item costing some %.350,000 compared with A.32,088 in 1941 but it is felt that it is one which must be faced if the standard of the Police Force is to be improved,

0. Similar adjustments would be made in salary scales of the Fire Brigade and ultimately of the irison Department. A table showing the manner in which this would affect the total exenditure of the Fire Brigade is attached, but it is not possible at the moment to set out the position in regard to the Prison Department as questions of establishment, and the future of the Indian Section are not yet settled. It is also impossible to provide a similar table in the case of the Police until a decision is reached regarding the future of the Indian Section which, if it is retainel at all, will be much smaller than was hitherto the case. A table was however, prepared on the basis of the original proposals for the Indian Section and this is attached as it will give some indication of the increase in expenditure involved. It will be observed from thi table that the cost of the higher salary scale is to a considerable extent set off by the reduction in the Auropean establishment and that