XN000022-1993-01-12 — Page 14

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TUESDAY, JANUARY 12, 1993

THE GOVERNOR:

I VERY MUCH ENJOYED, THE OTHER DAY, OPENING THE NEW HEADQUARTERS OF THE CONSUMER COUNCIL, CHAIRED, OF COURSE, BY A FORMER DISTINGUISHED MEMBER OF THIS COUNCIL. IT IS AN ORGANISATION WHICH HAS AN ENORMOUSLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN OUR COMMUNITY AND I AM PLEASED TO SEE IT EXTENDING THE SCOPE OF ITS WORK AND BECOMING INCREASINGLY INVOLVED IN COMMUNITY AFFAIRS. THE COUNCIL MAY KNOW THAT WE ARE HELPING TO FUND PROJECTS WHICH THE CONSUMER COUNCIL ARE UNDERTAKING, TO THE TUNE OF, I THINK ABOUT $800,000, TO SEE HOW COMPETITION CAN BE DEVELOPED IN A NUMBER OF PARTICULAR SECTORS, AND I HOPE THAT THE WORK OF THE CONSUMER COUNCIL WILL PUSH BACK THE FRONTIERS IN THOSE AREAS WHERE IT PROVES NECESSARY. WE HAVE ALSO HAD THE FIRST OF, I'M SURE, A NUMBER OF USEFUL DISCUSSIONS IN THE BUSINESS COUNCIL, WHICH I ANNOUNCED IN MY LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL ADDRESS, AND WHICH HAS NOW MET ON TWO OCCASIONS. WE HAVE HAD USEFUL DISCUSSION THERE ON COMPETITION POLICY AND I AM SURE THAT WE WILL HAVE FURTHER USEFUL DISCUSSIONS IN THE FUTURE.

I THINK IT'S AN AREA WHERE WE NEED ΤΟ ASSERT GENERAL PRINCIPLES AND THEN TRY ΤΟ TAKE PRACTICAL MEASURES IN INDIVIDUAL SECTORS, AND THAT IS WHERE WE NEED TO WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH THE CONSUMER COUNCIL.

MR ROGER LUK:

MR GOVERNOR, FOLLOWING YOUR POLICY ADDRESS LAST OCTOBER, MANY GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS HAVE ALREADY LAID DOWN THEIR SERVICE PLEDGES. WHAT TANGIBLE MEASURES ARE BEING TAKEN TO, FIRST, PREVENT THESE PLEDGES FROM BECOMING NO MORE THAN PROMISES? AND SECOND, INCREASE THE AWARENESS TO SERVE IN THE CIVIL SERVICE? THANK YOU.

THE GOVERNOR:

THE HONOURABLE MEMBER IS OF COURSE

RIGHT TO SAY THAT IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT WE ESTABLISH A SYSTEM IN WHICH WE CAN, FIRST OF ALL, CHECK THAT PERFORMANCE PLEDGES ARE ᎥᎬᎢ . SECONDLY, ENSURE THAT THE PURPOSE OF THEM IS UNDERSTOOD WIDELY IN THE CIVIL SERVICE AND THAT THEY ARE IMPLEMENTED VIGOROUSLY IN THE CIVIL SERVICE.

I THINK THAT THE HONOURABLE MEMBER COULD HAVE ADDED A POINT, WHICH I THINK HAS BEEN MADE IN ONE OR TWO NEWSPAPERS, THAT WE SHOULD ALSO MAKE SURE THAT THE PERFORMANCE PLEDGES THAT WE SET OURSELVES IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR AREN'T MERELY STATEMENTS OF WHAT WE ALREADY DO OR CAN EASILY ACHIEVE, BUT ARE STATEMENTS OF REASONABLE OBJECTIVES FOR IMPROVING PUBLIC SERVICE.

THE

ΤΟ UNIT OF

PUT

I'VE BEEN IMPRESSED BY THE EFFORTS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE IN A NUMBER OF AREAS TO GET THE PERFORMANCE PLEDGES EXERCISE OFF THE GROUND, I'VE BEEN IMPRESSED, FOR EXAMPLE, BY WHAT I'VE SEEN OF HOSPITAL AUTHORITY'S EFFORTS TO IMPROVE SERVICE TO PATIENTS, PATIENTS FIRST. IT'S GOING TO BE A JOB FOR THE EFFICIENCY GOVERNMENT TO CHECK THE PROGRESS WE MAKE AND THE EXTENT TO WHICH WE CAN EXTEND PERFORMANCE PLEDGES INTO DEPARTMENTS WHERE THEY DON'T YET OPERATE. I HOPE IT'S AN AREA WHICH THIS COUNCIL WILL TAKE AN ACTIVE INTEREST IN AND [ HOPE THAT I'LL GET FURTHER QUESTIONS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PERFORMANCE PLEDGES IN THE MONTHS AND YEARS AHEAD. IT'S NOT, Ι THINK, AN AREA WHERE NEWSPAPERS OR LEGISLATORS OR GOVERNORS SHOULD THINK THEY CAN HARRY CIVIL SERVANTS WHO ARE ALREADY CARRYING, IN MANY CASES, VERY HEAVY BURDENS. IT MEANS THAT WE HAVE то WORK TOGETHER WITH CIVIL SERVANTS TO DO WHAT THE BEST CIVIL SERVANTS, WHAT I'M SURE MOST CIVIL SERVANTS, ALREADY WISH TO DO, WHICH IS TO PROVIDE THE BEST POSSIBLE SERVICE TO THE TAXPAYERS AND TO CLIENTS.

THEIR

/I THINK