CO129-612-5 Administrative Service- proposal to increase establishment 10-1-1945 - 11-2-1949 — Page 11

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filled

Director S. Tort

paragraph 4 of Mr. Mayle's letter at (7) on the 1947 file, consideration of this proposal, would have been facilitated if a comparative statement of posts by administrative officers before the war and now had been provided, but I do not think we need insist on this. We have already, at (14), approved ond additional post so that the full time services of an administrative officer may be given to defence matters and it also seems likely that the post or Registrar of Cooperatives will have to be filled by one of the Cadet Officers since we are unable to recruit a candidate for the post in the United Kingdom.

I think therefore that, bearing in mind also the arguments put forward by the Governor in paragraphs 3 5 of his despatch, an increase of four posts represents a very conservative estimate of the post-war increase in the work to be done in Hong Kong by administrative officers. I suggest that we approve this increase, subject to review when the recommendations of the efficiency expert are available.

5. So far as (c) in paragraph 2 above is concerned it seems to me that, to make out a case for an increase in the establishment of administrative officers over and above that provided under (a) and. (b), it is necessary to show:-

(i) that the leave replacements must necessarily

be found from the administrative establishment

and, (ii) that the profision of these leave

replacements is an additional commitment which the existing administrative

establishment was not called upon to meet before the war.

Of the seven posts listed in Schedule 2 to enclosure To. 2 to the Governor's despatch, two, (Colonial Secretary and Magistrates), do not, on the face of it, satisfy (ii) above and of the

remaining five posts, one (Secretary for

Development) is not at present to be filled and the others need, I think, to be reconsidered by the Gove nor in the light of (i) above.

6. To sum up this regrettably long minute, I sug est:-

(a)

(b)

(c)

that we approve a revised leave reserve

fraction of 1.44 for both administrative officers and gazetted Police Officers,

that we approve an increase in the minimum

number of posts which are to be filled by administrative officers from 26 to 30,

that we ask the Governor to reconsider (c) of paragraph 2 above in the light of the observations in paragraph 5 of this minute.

The