TNAG-0106-FCO40-142-Proposals-to-appoint-an-Ombudsman-1969 — Page 131

CONFIDENTIAL

straight forward complaint

while handing

on to him those of some complexity requiring

lengthy investigation.

This last point is advanced with some diffidence because it is

one that on careful local examination may already nɛve been ruled out for goed reason. But it is advanced as a possible point for discussion and one worth taking a look at because

one of the practical problems to be faced in introducing a

Commissioner in Hong Kong may be the lack of a suitable "sifting" mechanism sucl. as M.Ps. provide in the U.K. For want of it (and the draft Bill provides the complainant with direct access to the Commissioner) he might be swamped with a vast number of complaints,

mostly trivial ɔr misconceived.

Background

5. The Hong Kong Government have for several years been considering the possibility of appointing a Parliamentary

Commissioner for Administration. They have made a study of the

Ombudsman systems in Scandinavia and New Zealand, as well as that

of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration in Great

Britain. But although they have reached the stage of preparing

a draft Commissioner for Administration Bill, it must be emphasised

that they have not as yet reached any conclusion as to whether

such an appointment should be made in the Colony. This was made

clear in reply to Parliamentary Questions on the subject by Mr. Rankin and Mr. Thornton in December, 1968.

6, The draft Bill generally follows the line of the New Zealand Act (with modifications to suit the constitutional position of Hong Kong), although certain provisions have been taken from the

United Kingdom Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967. The New

Zealand model is considered by the Hong Kong Authorities to be

less restrictive and to give the Commissioner more satisfactory

powers to investigate and report on grievances. The Bill differs

from other models in :

a) providing that the Commissioner reports not to the

Legislature but to the Governor: this is the only

CONFIDENTIAL

/ arrangement