TNAG-0592-FCO40-725-Inspection-of-Hong-Kong-and-Indian-Ocean-Department-1976 — Page 65

Chief Clerk

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GIBRALTAR AND GENERAL DEPARTMENT

I submit an Inspection Report on Gibraltar and General department. The inspection was carried out in December last year and the report is written on that basis. I have, however, delayed submission in order to try to settle a number of points queried by the department and supervising Under-Secretaries.

2. The report is fairly detailed and you will not wish to read the whole; our main conclusions are, however, set out in Part I and the Summary of Recommendations. The most important is that the department, and its General section in particular, should in future play a more positive part in formulating and coordinating policy for the Dependent Territories in the new phase of accelerated decolonization.

3. The department's future rests upon the outcome of my recommendation (in the Inspection Report on Southern European department) that all Gibraltar work should be concentrated in SED. If this is accepted the remaining two sections of Gibraltar and General department will not justify departmental status and it will be necessary to transfer them elsewhere. We have offered some thoughts on where they might be put but shall not make final recommendations pending an inspection of HKIOD next month. Mr Cortazzi and Mr Male have some reservations about the suggestion by Mr Larmour and Mr Stanley that they might be put with HKIOD when it loses its responsibilities for the Seychelles during the summer. Mr Cortazzi believes that the Administrative, Legal and Judicial Staffing section ought to become a part of the FCO administration. We have ourselves considered this possibility but have concluded that the balance of advantage is still with its remaining part of the Dependent Territories Division. We shall, however, consider further how it might eventually be absorbed when we inspect the Personnel departments in May/June this year.

4.

Gibraltar and General department concur with most of our recommendations, including the removal of the ILO work and posts to the Overseas Labour Adviser's department, who have agreed to take them. But the department wish to retain the Advisers on Colonial Affairs and Audit and the third DS 10 post in Registry (which we have recommended should go with the ILO work to the OLA).

M.H.

Margar

M Morgan Inspectorate

18 March 1976

Copied to:

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Mr Larmour Mr Cortazzi Mr Stanley

Mr Male

Deputy Chief Clerk

Mr Parsons

Mr Moberly

Mr Cheeseman

Mr Thom

Mr Jewkes

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