CONFIDENTIAL
2
2
FED
370/400/87
1:
7
? (a)
€
(b)
(c)
officers of sufficient calibre were not available in the Judicial and Legal Service;
a suitable member of the Hong Kong Bar was prepared to accept appointment; and
the circumstances were such that this would not constitute a legitimate cause of grievance to members of the Judicial and Legal Service.
Condition (c) referred to above follows the formula set out by the Secretary of State in paragraph 1(1) of his savingram No. 1564 dated 17th August, 1965.
These conditions are not satisfied at the moment because we have candidates of sufficient calibre for the current vacancy in the Supreme Court. Any immediate modifications of these conditions are likely to have considerable repercussions amongst the Service and to damage recruitment and morale. They may well lead to requests for premature retirement with compensation for loss of career prospects or for higher remuneration in return for lessened chances of promotion. Moreover, there would of course be considerable resentment in the Public Service generally, not merely in the Judiciary and Legal Department, if we were to offer terms of service better than those available to serving officers: special pension terms would require an amendment to the Pensions Ordinance with all the consequential publicity that legislation involves. If this proposal is to be carried further, we should need, in consultation with the Chief Justice, the Attorney General and the Registrar General, to examine the implications very fully.
Prosecutions by Members of the Bar
The Attorney General has not yet heard from de Basto. On the average, about two cases a month are prosecuted by members of the Bar. de Basto's reason for suggesting that all criminal prosecutions should be entrusted to members of the practising Bar is presumably that he would like to see more work
/provided
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