TNAG-0330-FCO40-366-Visit-of-Parliamentary-Under-Secretary-of-State--Anthony-Roy-1972 — Page 141

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CONFIDENTIAL

THE ROYAL HONG KONG FOLICE FORCE

9. The Royal Hong Kong Police Force's strength is, in round

figures, about 16,000 with some 600 expatriates.

A considerable

percentage of the senior posts in the Force are filled for

security and other reasons by overseas officers who are recruited

initially by the Crown Agents into the rank of Inspector with

prospects of promotion to the gazetted rank. The proportion

of expatriate Inspectors is maintained at 45-50%.

The rapid

rise in salaries and allowances of the constable in the police

force in the UK or in the Armed Services has caused serious

recruitment difficulties to Hong Kong.

Any upward revision

of the salary scale for Inspectors in Hong Kong to keep in line

with the UK rates of pay would be costly, would distort the

salary structure and give local Inspectors an unwarranted increase

in pay.

There is strong opposition to the re-introduction of

expatriate pay in addition to basic salary in Hong Kong but any

"topping up" payable in the UK from a UK source might be more

acceptable. See also para 11 below.

PROFESSIONAL OFFICERS

10.

Professional Officers are still required in many fields

Recruitment

and are recruited generally on agreement terms with the

possibility of subsequent pensionable employment.

difficulties, which vary according to the scarcity of the

up until recently

particular profession, have/been made more difficult by the lack

of housing, out of date education allowances, few holiday passages

for children and low terminal gratuity rates. These factors

have made it unlikely that officers will return for a second tour

of duty. The new scales and allowances recommended by the

Salaries Commission and recently introduced go a long way to make

Hong Kong more attractive, always provided the housing problem

is also solved quickly.

CONFIDENTIAL

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