TNAG-0373-FCO40-419-Visits-of-members-of-the-Hong-Kong-Urban-Council-to-the-UK-1973 — Page 57

CONFIDENTIAL

go to UMELCO members; and also that it would be

wrong to distinguish between elected and nominated

members of Urbco. In any case at that time the

Urban Council was fully occupied with its own

re-organization and with the 'Keep Hong Kong Clean'

campaign. It was therefore decided to invite a

group of four UMELCO representatives in the autumn

of 1972 followed by an invitation to a similar

number of Urbco members (both elected and

appointed) this year. The UMELCO visit duly took

place in November 1972.

In

5. The Urban Council was re-organized in 1972

on the lines of a Hong Kong Government White Paper

on its reform. The aim of the re-organization was

to reduce possible areas of friction between the

Government and the Urban Council and to delineate

the Council's proper sphere of activities.

order to make this decision more palatable to the

Councillors and to the public the Council was also

given more autonomy, both financial and otherwise,

within its proper sphere. At the same time all

Official Members were removed from the Council and

Membership of the Council now consists of 12

Members

Elected and 12 Appointed the Council being free to

select its own Chairman. The Urban Council role

broadly consists of environmental public health,

including sanitation and hygiene; recreation and

amenities, including the provision of entertainment;

and the provision of cultural services. The

Council also had some responsibilities in regard to

public housing but these have now been removed from

the Council with the establishment of the new

Housing Authority.

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